STILL REMEMBER CRAIG BARRET?

 I STILL REMEMBER THE MOMENT DURING THE SUKOM 98!!!...HE WAS A GOOD SPORTMAN!!...A GOOD WALKER!! AND NEVER GIVE-UP!!

HERE SOME INFO,ARTICLE FROM AUSTRALIANSPEAKER.COM....

Craig Barrett

One of New Zealand's finest - and most under-rated - athletes has retired.
Craig Barrett ruled race walking in New Zealand for most of the past 15 years, winning 32 national senior titles in the process. In addition, he competed at six world championships, four Commonwealth Games and three Olympic Games.

Ironically, despite his many triumphs, Barrett is best recalled for a race that he failed to finish - the 1998 Kuala Lumpur Commonwealth Games 50km walk. The Waikato-based New Zealander set a sizzling pace in the steamy Malaysian heat and walked so well that with only one kilometre remaining, victory for him seemed a formality. The New Zealand supporters began gathering at the finish, ready to welcome home their latest gold medal winner. Then, astoundingly, Barrett began to suffer bouts of dizziness and weaved across the road. Within moments he had been forced to withdraw the race, battling extreme dehydration. While some pondered if the New Zealander had gone out too fast, it was undeniable that he was desperately unlucky not to win the gold medal, having dominated the race so comprehensively until virtually the finishing straight.

Barrett dipped his toe into the waters of top-level walking when, aged just 22, he was eighth in the 30km event at the Victoria Commonwealth Games in 1994. The bronze medallist in that race was fellow New Zealander Scott nelson, who had so many close duels with Barrett through the mid-1990s.

His next Commonwealth Games effort was the Kuala Lumpur disappointment, but he bounced back to his best at Manchester in 2002, claiming the silver medal. At Melbourne in this year's Commonwealth Games he was pipped for a medal and had to settle for fourth. Barrett competed at three Olympics and won admiration for his bold tactics, often going out quickly and doing his best to hold on against the strong finishers.

During the early part of his walking career, Barrett was generally left alone by race walk judges, but, searching for extra pace, he was disqualified in the world championship races in 2001 (when he'd been up with the leaders in the early stages), 2003 and 2005.

He holds the New Zealand records over 3km, 20km and 50km, and for the two-hour walk. His 50km mark of 3h 48min 05s, set in New Plymouth in 2001, was a fantastic effort. To give athletics followers some idea of the quality of that performance, it was 42 minutes faster than Norman Read walked on his way to winning the 50km gold medal for New Zealand at the 1956 Melbourne Olympics.

Almost as impressive was the 3h 48min 14s he walked in the World Cup race at Deauville, France in 1999.
Having devoted himself to his sport for so long, Barrett now intends to complete his architectural degree.

source : australian speaker