CONTENTS

LOOK WHO'S LOOKING UP 18
Mark Eaton of Utah towered above L.A.'s Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, as the Jazz took a short-lived playoff lead
by Hank Hersch

DEVILISH FEAT BY THE BRUINS 24
Boston made it to the Stanley Cup finals for the first time in a decade by defeating feisty New Jersey
by Austin Murphy

A RUNNER RUNS HOME 26
Beset by controversy, a drained Zola Budd left Great Britain and returned to her native land, South Africa
by Craig Neff

VERSED IN ADVERSITY 32
Could the Seattle Mariners' hapless start in the American League West this year be a case of poetic justice?
by Franz Lidz

ORIENT EXPRESS 40
The team from China soared past the rest of the world at the McDonald's diving meet in Florida
by Robert Sullivan

IN THE COMFORT ZONE 46
Mats Wilander is happy being almost the top tennis player alive. The question is, will he take the next step?
by Franz Lidz

TAKING HER SWEET TIME 60
Gwen Torrence, a perennial late starter, came to be a sprinter reluctantly; now she's easing toward Seoul
by Sarah Boxer

THE VALLEY BOYS 78
Little Martins Ferry, Ohio, and its sister villages have turned out a generation of superior, big-time athletes
by Ron Fimrite

DEPARTMENTS

Letters 6
Scorecard 13
Lacrosse 66
Motor Sports 68
Inside Baseball 72
For The Record 101
Point After 102

Cover Photograph by Richard Mackson

PHOTO

LANE STEWART

THE FUTURE MEETS THE PAST: Boys play ball near an all but abandoned steel mill in Martins Ferry, Ohio. Will they be the next heroes from this struggling, proud place, home to a galaxy of sports stars (page 78)?