Hurdles' great Allen Johnson exits the field

A few things have slipped by while I was working on other things.  Among them: Allen Johnson left competitive track and field at age 39.

If hardly anyone noticed when the high hurdler quietly announced his decision a couple weeks ago, that would be ironically fitting for a man whose career highlights -- an Olympic gold medal and four outdoor world titles -- always seemed to have been overshadowed by something else.

Read more: "Hurdles' great Allen Johnson: Gone, too often forgotten"

-- Philip Hersh

Photo: Allen Johnson, second from left, wins the 110-meter hurdles at the 2003 world championships. Credit: Lionel Cironneau / Associated Press