Without as much as a single nod, Rouse blasted through the 54 second barrier with a new world record time of 53.93, removing David Berkoff's 54.51 from the record books. Tewksbury followed Rouse to the wall with a personal best of 55.19. A gap of 1.2 seconds separated the two athletes. With one year to the 1992 Olympic Games, the 1.2 second difference was as wide as a mile. Strength Dreams don't always die hard.
Dreams somehow find ways to live on in the minds and hearts of winners.
Whatever he felt Jeff Rouse was doing, Mark would do more. Whatever it took, Mark Tewksbury was determined to push beyond the limits he had set in his mind. When the work was finished, he wanted nothing more than to sit in the Barcelona readyroom a different athlete and man from the one in the Seoul readyroom. There would be no changes in strategy. He would not doubt his abilities nor would he allow fear to creep into his mind.