www.kansascity.com 08 22 2008 Taormina's life runs parallel to stress-filled modern pentathlon

BEIJING - When Sheila Taormina chose to grow into a new pentathlete, imperceptible did she recognize her go would come to duplicate the stressful challenges of the sport.& Over the trail of 11 hours Friday, she survived five events - on land, in saturate and on horseback - shooting, fencing, swimming, riding and running to the stop column of her odyssey. She is the antecedent female athlete to compete in three changed Olympic sports.&

Directly my brio begins," said Taormina, beaming away of a belief of relief considering her love-hate affair with the sport is over. I yearning a dog. I've never had generation for a dog." Crammed into one day: Five costume changes at three venues, including fencing mask, Speedo bodysuit and equestrian blazer.

Taormina endured a horrid round of fencing, during which she said "I could annex closed my eyes and gotten augmented points"; swam an Olympic information in the 200-meter freestyle, and coaxed a steed she had never met named Liangliang to a accomplished score over 15 jumps. Taormina, 39, finished a respectable 19th, ahead of a teammate who is less than half her age.& It's so draining it's enjoy a catharsis at the end," she said after running 1.86 miles all over the stadium track. I hog no regrets.

I wondered approximately that a hardly any days ago. No medal, on the contrary it was payment it." Sometimes sport imitates life. To obtain to Beijing, Taormina overcame a arduous learning curve, financial straits, depression and a stalker.&

She picked the most anachronistic sport in the Olympics, invented by Baron Pierre de Coubertin, who modernized the antiquated pentathlon of discus javelin jumping running wrestling by turning it into the commission of a soldier delivering a comment in battle - fighting with pistol and sword, swimming ended a river and riding and running completed the woods.& It's a weird and expensive sport, repeatedly on the brink of elimination from the bloated Olympic program.

Army Lt. George S. Patton finished fifth in 1912. Boris Onischenko was disqualified in 1976 when his epee was fix to be wired with a order breaker.& After a solid shooting performance, Taormina cast away 31 of 35 epee bouts and contemplated bailing out. On the other hand she maxim her older sister, Sudee, in the stands and climbed up on a stool to peroration to her.

I could barely stay in my own skin I was so frustrated," Taormina said. She looked in my eyes and said, 'You cannot want.' Meaning, you can't consign up now, not after all you've been through, not with elephantine Moya, 81, and dad Sam, 85, from Livonia, Mich., Taormina, a former Olympian in swimming and triathlon, moved on to the pool, where she finished with the fastest time, 2:08.86.& A scarce hours later, going off the eighth jump, she headed toward No.

5, until she realized her fallacy and turned Liangliang in the condign direction. Not so lucky were the riders aboard Naonao - let's telephone him No-No - who threw one, stepped on another and balked at the jumps for a third. During men's pentathlon the lifetime before, a horse fell on top of a rider and another gashed his rider's face into a bloody pulp.

It wasn't as deficient as 1968, when West Germany's Hans-Jurgen Todt attacked Ranchero after the horse balked at three jumps, knocking him elsewhere of medal contention. Todt had to be restrained by teammates. Athletes attract their horses 20 minutes before jumping.& Our trainer teaches you how to communicate with the animal during warm-up," said Taormina, who tied for cardinal in exhibit jumping - however did Liangliang find out English?

Liangliang did a commendable job. I would corner been mortified whether I went over the bad jump." She is the fundamental female athlete to compete in three differential Olympic sports.