Goodmans hope to double up on Olympics
Speed runs -- on 1/8-inch spikes, to be sure -- in the Goodman family. Chalonda Goodman’s older brother, Demiko, played football and ran track at the University of Georgia. Their father, Harold, coached them at Newnan High School.
Demiko Goodman tried to pursue football, signing as an undrafted free agent with the Pittsburgh Steelers in the spring of 2009, but he was cut before mini-camp. It was time to run.
Similar to his sister, who runs for the University of Texas, track has taken him to Austin. Demiko Goodman will begin classes at the Austin Graduate School of Theology, a seminary affiliated with the Churches of Christ
“I played football and I loved football,” he said. “I just wanted to go somewhere and do something different. I wanted to have an opportunity to concentrate on track. “
Demiko Goodman is probably more of an Olympic long shot. While he was on the track team at Georgia, his scholarship and majority of his time were committed to football.
“The last time I ran track at full speed was in high school,” said Demiko Goodman, who turned pro in track this summer and has a sponsorship deal with Adidas, a stipend that will allow him to train and retain his Olympic dream.
Brother and sister Olympic athletes? Their father said it’s been a frequent topic of occasional family conversation for years.
“They would kind of set it as a goal, especially with Chalonda, but Demiko was a multi-sport athlete, so things were a little different with him," Harold Goodman said.
While Chalonda Goodman might be trimming tenths or hundredths of a second off her times, Demiko Goodman, who runs the 200 and 400, is looking at full seconds. His personal best in the 400 was a 45-second run in high school, which would have qualified him for the Olympic trials leading up to the Beijiing Games. He’s working out in the 47s now.
“Some people would look at me as a long shot, but I’m confident in my ability,” Demiko Goodman said. “I definitely feel it’s doable.”
