Fjader in Malm

Sport stars usually fall faster than they rise, and Gunder (''The Wunder") Haegg fell with a thud on last winter's U.S. tour. One slow time win in five tries was the best he could do, after training on hard surfaces had pounded the spring from his legs. When deflated Gunder got home, he went to Valadalen in northern Sweden, where he had trained in the palmy days of his 4:04.6 and 4:06.2 miles. Over trails quilted with moss and pine needles, he slowly coaxed the fjader (spring) back into his legs.

Last week, on his home track at Malmoe, the gangling Swede bounced back to stardom. With arch-rival Arne Andersson as opposition and a heat wave to loosen his muscles, Haegg ran on the ragged edge of the magic four-minute mile. His 4:01.4 was world record time (1.2 seconds better than Andersson's mark made two years ago over the faster Stockholm track).

Thanks to his reclaimed fjader, Haegg said after the race that the four-minute mile was no longer a problem: "I believe I could have done it today if there had been more competition." Then, to prove he had plenty left, he sprinted an extra lap in a triumphal shower of torn programs.

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