| 1 | 1 | | The 19-year-old sprinter Darren Campbell is well versed in the art of survival on the |
| 2 | | streets of Manchester's Moss Side district. He went to Princess Road school there, and |
| 3 | | admits being on friendly terms with many of the young people who have created a gun |
| 4 | | culture on Manchester's streets - in the past three months there have been about 120 |
| 5 | | shootings. |
| 2 | 6 | | Still, Darren Campbell is an articulate, likeable young man. But it could all have |
| 7 | | been very different. 'I was born in Sale, but I went to school in Moss Side because my |
| 8 | | mother thought it best that 1 was educated among my own culture,' he says. 'I was lucky. |
| 9 | | Sport helped me steer away from the troubles. But if people are not careful there will be a |
| 10 | | riot in Manchester soon, which could ruin its chances of becoming an Olympic city in the |
| 11 | | year 2000. ' |
| 3 | 12 | | By then Campbell will still be a relatively fresh-faced 26, a Peter Pan compared with |
| 13 | | the 32 years of runner Linford Christie when he won the 100 metres gold medal in |
| 14 | | Barcelona last year. Some knowledgeable observers of the athletics scene believe |
| 15 | | Campbell has the ability at least to equal the achievements of the Olympic champion. |
| 4 | 16 | | Comparisons between the two at a similar age, though, are futile. At 19, Christie was |
| 17 | | more attuned to the dance halls and parties of west London than to winning gold medals. |
| 18 | | Campbell, on the other hand, is dedicated and focused. He is already looking to collect |
| 19 | | Olympic medals in Atlanta in 1996. |
| 5 | 20 | | He has every reason to. Today Campbell is Britain's most successful junior athlete, |
| 21 | | having won six medals at world and European level. But he admits he could have been |
| 22 | | drawn into the nightlife as well. 'I would train and then go out to nightclubs,' he says. 'I was |
| 23 | | just like any other silly teenager, doing everything and not thinking about the |
| 24 | | consequences. But now I don't waste time like I did then.' |
| 6 | 25 | | The change in Campbell's attitude can be traced back to the Olympic trials last year. |
| 26 | | He did not make the team to Barcelona, a failure which spurred him to put in more hours |
| 27 | | at the track - 'You can't die from training hard' - and take more control of his life. |
| 7 | 28 | | Around the time of the trials, Campbell met Jeoff Thompson, who won five world |
| 29 | | karate titles between 1982 and 1986. As Campbell's mentor he has passed on his wealth of |
| 30 | | experience to him. 'I've become more responsible since I met Jeoff, although my mum |
| 31 | | wouldn't say so,' Campbell says. |
| 8 | 32 | | Mum is a word that crops up a lot when talking with Campbell. He acknowledges |
| 33 | | that his mother, Marva, has been a major influence since she and his father separated when |
| 34 | | he was a toddler. 'She still thinks I'm silly, but that's 'cause I am when I'm Iwith her... but I'm |
| 35 | | a lot more mature than she realises,' he says with a mischievous grin. |
| 9 | 36 | | Thompson is clear about what he expects from Campbell: 'Darren has the desire, the |
| 37 | | smile and he does the hard work. I ensure that he does not make the mistakes I made. The |
| 38 | | aim is to show that sportspeople can take care of themselves and recycle their talents back |
| 39 | | into the community. Today's winners have to be more than winners.' |
| 10 | 40 | | Campbell says he hopes one day to be a role model, but he does not intend to |
| 41 | | imitate the boxer Chris Eubank, whose recent visit to Moss Side was as welcome as a |
| 42 | | snowstorm in summer. 'Dark glasses and designer suits are not the kind of image that is |
| 43 | | well received here,' Campbell says. Eubank's visit was seen as nothing more than a chance |
| 44 | | for the boxer to oil his publicity machine. |
| 11 | 45 | | It is hard to believe Campbell is still eight months away from his twentieth birthday. |
| 46 | | He is relaxed and confident, and has the air of a champion. Before Christmas, he and |
| 47 | | Christie met at an awards ceremony. While the Olympic champion held court with the |
| 48 | | eager media pack, Campbell demonstrated his financial wisdom by sorting out his day's |
| 49 | | expenses with the sponsor. Not only does he run fast, he learns quickly too. |
