Jeff Williams

Track and field

As a semipro football player, Jeff Williams was subjecting his body to a series of “traumas.”

“There are train wrecks in the NFL,” Williams said. “I decided, at 30, I’d like to still be able to walk.”

That’s why he quit playing safety for the Los Angeles Mustangs. Although the Mustangs are far from an NFL-caliber team, Williams was getting banged around quite a bit.

Since he also was a world-class sprinter with ambitions of making the 1996 U.S. Olympic team, he figured football was not the safest preparation. So, after playing for the Mustangs from 1991-94, he left.

“Not playing football made a big difference in my sprinting,” Williams said. “My speed has always been there, but now people are close to seeing what I’m capable of doing. They haven’t seen the whole package yet.”

Williams displayed a big part of the package during last month’s Olympic trials in Atlanta.

He finished second in the 200 meters in 20.03 seconds, behind Michael Johnson’s world record of 19.66, and he just missed making the team in the 100. Making one, however, was satisfying in light of his past.

Before the 1988 Olympic trials, Williams was on his motorcycle when a car made a left turn in front of him. Williams still has a 3-inch scar on his right knee.

In 1992, 3 months before the trials, Williams was driving his car in Long Beach, Calif., when he was rear-ended by a group heading to Disneyland. He had back and rib injuries, and was unable to pump his arms properly.

He recuperated in time to compete in the trials, but was eliminated in the semifinals of the 100 and finished eighth in the 200.

Finally, last year, Williams began realizing his potential in track.

He finished third in the 200 at the U.S. Championships, qualifying for the World Championships, and won bronze there.

This year, Williams has recorded personal bests in both the 100 (10.02) and the 200 (19.87).