Solid future awaits Clay
| • | Bryan Clay photo gallery |
By Ann Miller
Advertiser Staff Writer
On the morning after, they were calling Bryan Clay the "Little Big Man from Kane'ohe." Talking about how the "little, and little known" Clay had soared to silver in the Olympic decathlon Tuesday. "A little Clay goes a long way," was the Chicago Sun-Times' headline.
Associated Press
For those blown away by the big performance that came out of the lean, mean sub-6-foot decathlon machine, Clay has one thing to say:
Hawai'i's Bryan Clay, right, and Roman Sebrle of the Czech Republic display their Olympic medals at the decathlon awards ceremony.
Get over it. Opponents might peer down at him, but they will never again look past him. Besides, his relatively small stature is the least of what sets Bryan Clay apart.
His life changed Tuesday. Clay has gone from soft-spoken, spiritual, devoted decathlete in training to compelling international personality.
The next four years will be dramatically different than the last four, which were spent quietly training and growing in his college home of Azusa, Calif.
Now Clay, a multi-ethnic child with Hawai'i's exotic background, will be tugged in all directions. The tug of the silver medal in America is obvious, though not as gripping as it might have been had he beaten Roman Sebrle of the Czech Republic for gold. Clay, though, will be tugged in many more directions, especially from the Far East.
Subject to change WHEN: Sept. 4, 10 a.m. WHERE: Windward Ho'olaule'a at Windward Community College
"This is a big deal in Japan because they've never had a Japanese decathlete before," according to Clay's Japanese-American mother, Michele Vandenberg. "His life is going to really change. People are going to embrace him, not only in Hawai'i but in Japan. He's going to find out who he truly is as far as his ethnicity and what that brings."
Clay in Hawai'i
Clay became Hawai'i's first Olympic medalist in track at age 24. He now has the power and prestige to mold his future. Expect it to include the 2008 Olympics in Beijing.
"He is not so high (tall)," said Sebrle, 29, in Athens. "But he is powerful, and he is great for our sport."
Clay has shattered nearly all his personal decathlon marks the past year. His point total at the U.S. Trials was a high. He rendered that obsolete in Athens, where his 8,820 was the third-highest ever by an American.
"This is just the beginning," says Martin Hee, Clay's high school coach at Castle. "His body will mature, his mind will mature. He's not Hawai'i's anymore. The world is at his feet. To me, he fulfilled the American Dream."
For the past few years, Clay's quest for Olympic fame was personal, shared only with family and close friends. Now, his quest has gone global. The decathlon, one of sport's most demanding events, might not be his toughest challenge anymore.
But on the day after Clay stood with his silver medal, the future can wait. The celebration goes on — in Athens and anywhere Clay has had an impact.
"The family support, I know it's always been there but it's good to live it over and over," Vandenberg says. "It's priceless. And here in Hawai'i, it's not only your bloodline, it's your ohana — anybody that has touched your life."
Reach Ann Miller at amiller@honoluluadvertiser.com or 525-8043.
