Commonwealth Games: Thomas applies supreme will:

Independent, 19 09 1998 by Mike Rowbottom in Kuala Lumpur

IF ANYONE even faintly doubted it, they know it now: Iwan Thomas is a championship racer par excellence. The 24-year-old Welshman yesterday added a Commonwealth 400 metres gold medal to the European and World Cup titles he has won in the space of a month, having overcome a back injury, which, he revealed, had left him unable to walk after his second-round heat on Wednesday.
His victory was a blow for his domestic rival Mark Richardson, who had been desperate to make up for his defeat by the Welshman at the European Championships late in July.
Just three days after making the 6,000 miles flight from Johannesburg, the World Cup venue, Thomas completed his trial by ordeal with a time of 44.52 sec as Richardson, teeth clenched with effort, followed him home to take silver in 44.60. It was a demonstration of strength and endurance that was hard to credit. But even the rugged Welshman is human - as it became clear following his win. After his second-round heat a disc in his back began to give him such pain that he was unable to walk properly.
"I was in tears, because I wasn't going to be able to run," he said. Then he heard that Torbern Hersborg, a Danish osteopath he knew, was in town and he sent out an SOS. "Torbern arrived at the athletes' village at 11 that night, and he was still working on me at four the following morning," Thomas said. "I felt something go click - and then it was all right."
Twelve hours later he was chatting his way down the final straight with Welsh team-mate Jamie Baulch to qualify from his semi-final in 44.61. Perhaps, he isn't human after all.