Morrison plans to let it rip in hurdles final

By ANN GREEN

Gannett News Service

ATHENS, Greece - For Melissa Morrison of Columbia, S.C., being in Tuesday's final of the women's 100 meter hurdles at the Olympics beats working as a teller at the credit union any day.

``One more round and let it all hang loose,'' she said Monday after advancing from the semifinal with a time of 12.53, a personal best and third-best of the night.

Joanna Hayes of Los Angeles had the best time in the semifinal heats with a 12.48 Monday, and Perdita Felicien of Canada had a 12.49.

Morrison, 33, a volunteer coach at the University of South Carolina working with sprinters and hurdlers, is hoping to improve upon her bronze-medal performance in the 2000 Sydney Olympics.

Morrison grew up in Mooresville, N.C., and graduated from Appalachian State University, where she was the Southern Conference athlete of the year.She came home from the 1996 Olympic trials so disappointed in her eighth-place finish that she thought of giving up running and took a job in a credit union.

Her family and coach John Weaver of Appalachian State encouraged her to continue.

Asked if she ever thinks back on that period in these heady days of Athens, she said, ``Listen, this beats anything. Doing something you love and enjoy and getting paid to do it, you can't beat that. I feel really positive about tomorrow's race.''

The eighth and final qualifier was a surprise, Canada's Angela Whyte, who also clocked a personal-best time of 12.69. Whyte, a former University of Idaho track star, substantially improved on her qualifying time of 13.01, which was slowest among the 16 semifinalists.