Jansen Lays Claim To Sullivan Award As Sentimental Pick

Speedskater Dan Jansen, whose Olympic frustrations ended last year with a gold medal and world record in a stirring triumph at the Lillehammer Games, Monday night won the Sullivan Award, given to the nation’s top amateur athlete.

It was the second consecutive year Jansen was a finalist for the award, which an athlete can win only once.

Jansen beat out nine rivals in becoming the 65th winner: Bruce Baumgartner (wrestling), Leroy Burrell (track and field), Dominique Dawes (gymnastics), Michael Johnson (track and field), Nancy Kerrigan (figure skating), Shannon Miller (gymnastics), Tommy Moe (skiing), Glenn Robinson (basketball) and Tiger Woods (golf).

Jansen is the third speedskater to win the award, joining Eric Heiden and Bonnie Blair. Track and field athletes have dominated the selection with 36 winners. Swimming is a distant second with nine winners.

“I remember when Eric Heiden won back in 1980,” Jansen said. “That was the first time I became aware of what it was, and I’ve followed it ever since.”

Jansen was accompanied to the Indiana Convention Center by his parents, four sisters and two brothers.

The 29-year-old skater was selected from the list of finalists picked by a committee of the Amateur Athletic Union. The finalists were chosen from among 53 candidates named by the national governing bodies of their sport.

Jansen, who has competed in four Olympics, was selected for his 1994 accomplishments, which included a world record of 1 minute, 12.43 seconds in the 1,000-meter event at the Lillehammer Olympics.

He also won the 1994 world sprint championship and swept the 500-, 1,000- and 1,500-meter events at the U.S. Olympic trials. But voters undoubtedly considered his heartbreaking efforts in the 1988 Olympics when he fell twice as he tried to compete shortly after his sister died of leukemia.