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Phillips' close shave spurs him on to jump for glory
Should American long jumper Dwight Phillips land gold in the long jump it will be a remarkable feat given that he was once told he would never walk again.
Should American long jumper Dwight Phillips land Olympic gold in the long jump here it will be a remarkable feat given that he was once told he would never walk again.
The 26-year-old enters the Olympics with the world outdoor and indoor crowns to his name but 12 years ago such thoughts of greatness couldn't have been further from his mind as he lay prostrate on the ground with both legs broken below the knee after being hit by a motorbike.
"When I was a kid, I was fooling around, playing football in the middle of my street with some friends," said the man from Decatur, Georgia.
"I can't recollect how it went, but a motorcycle hit me.
"It happened to be one of my brother's good friends. I didn't realise what had happened.
"I got up, and it was like my legs were twisted," he added.
It took Phillips two years to get over the accident and he had to use a walker for a time to get around, but he never doubted he would make a full recovery.
"I never felt sorry for myself. They told me I might not walk, but in my mind, I knew I was going to be alright," he said.
He kept his optimism burning with the dream of winning Olympic gold - not in the long jump but on the track.
"As a kid I used to have dreams about winning 400 metres Olympic gold."
Phillips, though, was told to settle for the long jump instead, something which at first when he went to Arizona State University he was none too happy about.
"At first I was angry about it (being told he should switch to the long jump)," he admitted.
"However after my second competition, I think I jumped 25 feet for the first time.
"That was when I knew it was my event," added Phillips, who started out his junior career running cross country.
Phillips will face some tough opposition like Jamaica's 1996 silver medallist James Beckford, who was also runner-up to the American in the world outdoors, and 21-year-old Ghanaian Ignisious Gaisah, but he appears more focussed on breaking the world record of 8.95 metres.
"I would love to jump very far and have 'WR' flash across the screen.
"It's definitely not a fantasy anymore.
"I replay it in my mind a million times. I can see it. I feel it can become a reality soon," said Phillips, who also reached the 100m semi-finals at the US trials last month.
Phillips equates a big long jump to the Hollywood blockbuster 'The Matrix'.
"It actually feels like the movie 'The Matrix' where he's performing the moves in slow motion.
"That's how I feel - like I'm moving in slow motion. It takes forever to land."
Phillips will be hoping to be cast in the lead role and for there to be a typical Hollywood fairytale ending when the medals are handed out on August 26.
