Rowing Medalist Puts Family First

Minutes before he was to launch himself toward his third Olympic rowing medal and his first Games since recently becoming a U.S. citizen, Xeno Muller put down his oars and walked away.

The Swiss-born Muller, who moved to the United States to attend Brown University in 1991 and has lived in California since 1995, became a popular commercial pitchman in his homeland after he won a single sculls gold medal at Atlanta and a silver medal at Sydney. But he’d married an American woman and had become the father of three children, now 6, 5 and 2, and he was uneasy about an Olympic return if it meant enduring possible terrorism and anti-American sentiment.

If his wife and kids went to Greece, he’d worry about their safety. And if he was distracted while competing, he saw no point in going on, so he rowed his boat to shore and pulled out of the U.S. trials last weekend in West Windsor, N.J.

“My family is my primary responsibility,” he said Thursday by phone. “There are people that want to race and have only themselves to worry about, and those are the people that can go to the Olympics.”

Muller, 31, said he hasn’t gotten a threat but was aware of world tensions and Athens security concerns. He was struck by the news that volleyball player Lloy Ball would leave his wife and son at home during the Olympics. Some high-profile athletes, including several NBA stars, have withdrawn from Olympic consideration, but none have cited safety.

Muller believes that anyone who wants to harm him or others could easily cause havoc at the Olympic qualification regatta next month in Lucerne, Switzerland.

“Sports is a mind game. You keep hearing stuff,” he said. “In 2000 I took my family to Australia and we had a wonderful time. I wanted to take my family to Europe and it became apparent more and more that it was not such a good idea. I cannot function in rowing when my family is not with me....

“I have won gold and silver. Where’s the fun in going to Greece without my family?”

Muller, who operates an indoor rowing center in Costa Mesa and hopes to coach, will watch the Games at home.

“I hope nothing is going to happen,” he said. “Maybe six or eight years ago I would have gone without thinking. But I’m a father and my most important place in the world is providing for my kids.”

Grappling Expectations

U.S. wrestlers have won more Olympic medals than their compatriots in every sport except track and field and swimming, which have more events and more medals at stake. At Athens, where the U.S. will compete in 17 weight classes -- seven men’s freestyle, six men’s Greco-Roman and four women’s freestyle -- wrestlers might win more medals than ever.

“I’ve been with USA Wrestling 16 years and this is one of the first times I remember going into the world championships or Olympic Games and having a chance to win a medal in every class,” said Rich Bender, the organization’s executive director. “I look at our chances and I think short of us having all 18 weights qualified, I wouldn’t trade with anyone, in terms of potential and possibility to win medals.”

Though U.S. freestyle wrestlers have won a medal in every Olympics in which they’ve participated, results in Greco-Roman have been spotty. The reverse could be true in Athens.

The freestyle squad “in terms of medals won, is probably one of our more less-accomplished teams,” Bender said. He cited the few titles won by 121-pounder Stephan Abas -- whom he called “the best guy in the world the last two years” -- Eric Guerrero, Jamill Kelly, Joe Williams and 185-pounder Cael Sanderson, who won a silver medal at last year’s world championships and is still getting accustomed to Olympic-style rules after a 159-0 career at Iowa State.

“Cael has been on the cusp of really producing for us internationally,” Bender said.

The Greco-Roman team is led by 2000 heavyweight gold medalist Rulon Gardner and 211.5-pounder Garrett Lowney, a 1996 bronze medalist. It also includes 121-pounder Dennis Hall, the 1996 silver medalist and 1995 world champion at 125.5 pounds, and Jim Gruenwald (132 pounds) and Brad Vering (185).

“From the Greco-Roman standpoint, it’s as strong a team as we could have hoped for,” Bender said.

He also said the women could place a finalist in each class in the sport’s debut for women at the Games.

Here and There

A synchronized swimming exhibition scheduled as part of an aquatics festival in Long Beach was canceled because of conflicts with Olympic training and traveling schedules, organizers said Thursday. The four-team event was to be held June 19-20, and might be replaced by a demonstration by the U.S. team July 14 after the Olympic swim trials. The change won’t affect the swim trials and other events scheduled for the temporary pool being built on the Long Beach shore.

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Shotputter Christian Cantwell, whose throw of 73 feet 4 inches at last week’s Home Depot Invitational was a personal best and a world-best this season, is a big man back home in Eldon, Mo., population 4,000. Cantwell said his mother “can hardly go out to the store” without being stopped to chat about him. “She said they’re going to have Christian Cantwell Appreciation Day coming up pretty soon,” said Cantwell, who won the U.S. and world indoor titles this winter. “I’m not sure if I’m ready for that, but it’s an honor just to hear somebody say that.” Cantwell will compete Monday at Stanford at the U.S. Open.

Five-time U.S. gymnastics champion Blaine Wilson, who tore his left biceps muscle Feb. 28, has resumed full workouts and hopes to compete in at least a few events at this year’s competition, to be held next week in Nashville. “I have some little shoulder issues because I’m doing so much so quickly,” he said during a conference call Thursday, “[but] I don’t see it being a problem in about a week.”

Courtney Kupets, who won the 2003 U.S. all-around title but tore her Achilles’ tendon at the world championships, is also ready to go. She finished first in an international event at the ranch of national team coordinator Martha Karolyi last week.

The U.S. championships are a qualifying event for the Olympic trials, June 24-27 at Anaheim.

Only 77 days until the Athens Summer Games.