By Ferd Lewis
Advertiser Columnist

The story is a made-for-television Olympic tale: The American-born grandson of Greek immigrants returns to the ancestral homeland as a prime contender for the gold medal in the storied decathlon.

Cue the Olympic theme, flash to the flags of two nations and roll the up-close-and-personal video.

If you've seen the television promos, you know NBC, among others, has a rooting interest in Tom Pappas for more than his world championship credentials.

But there just might be another compelling, straight-from-the-heart piece just waiting to be told: The Bryan Clay Story.

Clay, the self-described "littlest guy on the track" at 5 feet 11, 184 pounds, has already stolen the show once from Pappas, last month in the U.S. Olympic Trials. Now, in two days time, the world stage in Athens and the title of "world's greatest athlete" that has traditionally been bestowed upon the winner of the decathlon are Clay's for the taking over two grueling days.

In a field that includes Pappas, the Czech Republic's Roman Sebrle, the decathlon record holder, and Erki Nool of Estonia, the 2000 goal medalist, Clay is over-shadowed. Long the often-overlooked underdog forced to elbow his way into the picture by persistence of purpose, you suspect Clay couldn't relish the challenge more any other way.

Success hasn't come easy to the self-made Castle High and Azusa Pacific graduate. So, why, at the pinnacle, should things suddenly change now?

We're told his birth certificate reads "Bryan Ezra Clay" but these days you're likely to find the state's brightest hope for a first Olympic track and field medal hope variously identified as "... the 24-year-old upstart from Hawai'i" or "the surprising Hawaiian."

All of which are vast improvements from barely a month ago at the U.S. Olympic Trials, when, as the Los Angeles Times, among others, put it, the question was, "Who is Bryan Clay?"

Never mind that his competitors knew all too well who the part-Japanese, part-African-American performer was even before he ripped through the U.S. Olympic Trials in July with a series of personal bests and took a victory lap with the state flag. Or that the strength of his showings has been steadily building over the past months.

Back in March, Sebrle was telling anybody who would listen that when it came to U.S. decathletes, "It's not just Tom Pappas anymore. It's Bryan, too." After the momentum of Sacramento, there should be little doubt.

The list of American winners of the Olympic decathlon is long and legendary. And, Sunday Clay begins making his bid to join them on the medal stand of history.

Jim Thorpe, Bob Mathias, Rafer Johnson, Bill Toomey, Bruce Jenner, Dan O'Brien ...

And Bryan Clay?

Imagine what a story that would make.

Reach Ferd Lewis at flewis@honoluluadvertiser.com or 525-8044.