O’Brien Going For Olympic Gold

No $25 million ad campaign, no Dave.

This time, it’s just Dan.

In the four years since the shocking flameout that kept him off the U.S. Olympic team and denied him a gold medal, Dan O’Brien of Moscow, Idaho, has undergone a remarkable transformation: from tragic figure to pop icon.

Now, what wasn’t settled in Barcelona will be settled in Atlanta.

Is he the world’s greatest athlete, ready to take his place with Olympic decathlon legends - Thorpe, Mathias, Jenner - in what has long been the defining event of the Games?

Spokesman-Review writer John Blanchette catches up with O’Brien before his postponed Olympic adventure, and checks up on a few other athletes who’ll represent the United States - and the Inland Northwest - in today’s sports section.

, DataTimes ILLUSTRATION: Color photo