Wednesday, February 10, 2010 // The Statement 3B OLYMPIC WOLVERINES From the Paris games of 1900 through the 2008 Beijing Olympics, the University has seen 205 of its students and coaches participate in the international sporting event. If the University were its own country, the total medals won by its representa- tives - 65 gold, 30 silver and 38 bronze - would make the 'U' the 24th most successful country in the history of the games. What follows are some of the most intriguing and timeless stories of 'U' athletes and leaders to compete in the Olympics. BY ALLIE WHITE I DEPUTY MAGAZINE EDITOR Former Michigan hockey player Jack Johnson is no stranger to wearing his country's colors. After all, the reason he first came to Ann Arbor was to play for the U.S. National Team Development Program - a causeway for many hockey players to the National Hockey League, as well as to the University of Michigan. And for those years with the pro- gram - from 2003 to 2005 - Johnson wore the colors arguably better than any defenseman in the program's his- tory. Eighty-one points - the most ever by a defenseman. Seven points in one game - the Yoost ever, by anyone. So when U.S.A. hockey called to invite Johnson to be part of the 2007 International Ice Hockey Federation World Championship team, no one was surprised. It was his fifth year donning an American hockey jersey. Even Johnson seemed to know it was coming. He wore the red, white and blue, again, helping the American team on its path to a bronze medal. After that, Johnson donned the maize and blue for two years in Ann Arbor, but in a world much bigger than Yost Ice when Michigan coach Red Berenson - Arena. approved, Johnson left early for the Fast forward to this past New Year's next level. Eve, and Johnson's nerves are getting It was a new world for Johnson, the best of him. being thrown into the NHL as the The 23-year-old defenseman knows third pick in the 2005 NHL Entry that an announcement is coming soon. Draft. He started playing in March of After all, at the NHL Winter Classic on the 2007 season with the Los Angeles New Year's Day, the whole world will Kings, seeing time in five games but know who's representing the Ameri- failing to tally a single point. Johnson's acclimation to the pro- "To be able to represent m fessional game continues to this day, but there was still one constant in his on the biggest stage like tha sights, one thing that felt familiar and was never fully complete. something I'll never forget. He had to weal his country's colors, again. can team. It's going to be a new year "I was just hoping more than any- the next day, and this could be a hell of thing that someday I could call myself a way to start 20I0. a U.S. Olympian," Johnson said. When Johnson checked his mail- This past summer, Johnson was box that day, the puzzle he had been invited to the U.S. Olympic camp to piecing together since coming to Ann prove himself to a handful of NHL Arbor in 2003 got its last piece. General Managers. It hadn't been a Johnson would be an Olympian. On question for years whether Johnson hockey's biggeststage, the former Wol- could be a representative of his coun- verine would again wear the jersey he try. It had become second nature. had worn for so many years and grown But here he was, proving himself accustomed to. again like he had been on a daily basis "It's a dream come true," Johnson in Los Angeles, trying to find his niche said. "It's the biggest stage in the world and to be able to represent my country on the biggest stage like that is something I'll never forget." Toronto Maple Leafs President and General Manager Brian Burke called Johnson the next day to congratulate him, just before the rest of the world knew. And unlike any other U.S. Olympic hockey player, Johnson is leaving early for Vancouver. When the games ny country open on Friday night, Johnson will at is be the only repre- sentative of the U.S. Hockey team to take part in the opening ceremonies. An extra day on the "big- gest stage," as Johnson repeatedly called it in a recent interview, could never hurt. It was just another day he could gladly wear those colors. A lot of the credit for his develop- ment and his ascension to the world's biggest stage, according to Johnson, goes to Berenson and the University of Michigan. Every summer, Johnson comes back to Ann Arbor to train with Berenson and the rest of the program. To him, this is the best place to continue finely tailoring his game. Unlike many Wolverines, Johnson never had to come to Ann Arbor to prove himself. He could have left after one year or just as easily never blinked on his way to the NHL. He was, as current Wolverine Chris Summers described, "a hockey prodi- gy." So when the Carolina Hurricanes called during the 2006 Stanley Cup Finals, telling Johnson that they need- ed him on the roster immediately, Red Berenson was impressed and proud when Johnson politely declined. "He's done everything right, all the way up," Berenson said in an interview on Monday. Johnson may not be at the top of his game in professional hockey yet. After all, he would have only graduated from Michigan two years ago if he had stayed the full four years. But an Olympic invitation - a chance to dust off his American jersey - could just mean more to him. "There's a chance that you might only get one opportunity to play in the Olympics," Johnson said. "You spend your entire career trying to crack an NHL lineup, and the NHL is a special thing, but being able to call yourself an Olympian and represent your coun- try...it's a different kind of special. It's a worldwide thing." N When Henry Jamison "Jam" Handy arrived at the University of Michigan, he had hopes of playing football for for- mer coach Fielding Yost. But at 4-foot-1 and 86 pounds, he was offered a position as team mascot. Despite his initial setback, Handy went on to become the first Wolverine to ever medal in swimming at the Olympics, winning a bronze in the 440-yard breaststroke at the 1904 summer games in St. Louis. Although varsity sports for women didn't exist at the University until the 1970s, Maxine "Micki" King trained with the men's head diving coach in preparation for the 1968 Mexico City Olym- pics. After eight dives, King was in first place, but on her ninth, she hit the board and broke her left arm. Despite not being able to lift her arm over her head, King completed her final dive and placed fourth overall. At the 1972 games in Munich, King came back and won gold. 4 In a sport dominated by athletes from the former Soviet bloc nations, University alum Steve Fraser brought home the first-ever gold medal for the United States in Greco-Roman wres- tling. At the 1984 games in Los Angeles, Fraser defeated the three-time world champion from Sweden to place first.