SHEBROOKE, Quebec, Canadian sprinter Ben Johnson came within a whisker of both shattering his own world record and suffering a potentially serious injury in a 60metre race at the University of Sherbrooke indoor athletics meet on Sunday.
Johnson, who holds almost every sprint record, fell six one hundredth’s of a second short of tying his world mark of 6.41, but it was the end of the grand prix race that provided the most excitement and a brief moment of concern.
As he crossed the finish line, his momentum carried him up the track incline and he tumbled over some padding which protected the runners from hitting the railing.
Johnson fell over the barrier and landed on the floor, a drop of about five feet.
Article extracted from this publication >> January 29, 1988
