ANYONE who expected Michael Green to return from Troy State University with a baseball bat, some "candy" and an American twang doesn't know much about the boy, writes BRIAN DOOGAN.

Admitted to the Alabama institute in January after being offered a scholarship because of the talent in his feet, Michael has made sure those same feet haven't zoomed into orbit.

If they had, it could almost be justified.

In six months he has smashed the university's 3,000m record, set the fastest 3,000m run in the Mid-Continent Conference in a decade and won the 1500m at the Mid-Continent Conference, the biggest meet in the North East of America's collegiate calendar.

All this has been achieved in his first semester at the university and before he is the legal age to walk into most American bars to buy himself a celebratory drink.

Blowing his own trumpet, however - especially in music class where he finds it hard to blow a tune on anything - is not his style.

Others, though, are happy to do it for him.

"Michael is only a freshman (a first year)," said TSU middle distance coach Garrie Richardson.

"But he has so much talent and can do so many events, he could be an All-American for Troy State some day.

"He is going to dominate."

Green is significantly more circumspect.

"When you beat people who have put in as much work and hours as you have, that is very satisfying," said the articulate 20-year-old from Great Harwood who competes with distinction for Blackburn Harriers and won the Whalley Nab Fell Race last Friday, the very first race in which he competed as a spindly eight-year-old and one he had set his heart on winning ever since.

For Green, the physical act of running, the process of stretching one foot out in front of the other at speed and in co-ordination, has always been the attraction.

Winning, of course, is too. But he enjoyed running long before he became successful at it.

If he were denied the right to run now, he might as well give up the spirit.

He is as committed to fitting in his daily run as a druggie is to getting a regular quick fix. "When I don't run I feel miserable," he said in the front room of his home, looking sufficiently happy to suggest he had already run on the day we talked.

"You can be addicted to an athletic discipline.

"For instance, I become very moody whenever I'm injured and can't run.

"I suppose it provides a kind of emotional outlet.

"I'm so used to doing it every day that when I don't there's an emptiness."

Any hint of a void subsides when the spikes are pulled on and the vest drawn over his chest.

In training in America, he was running better times than he was in races simply because he was working so hard.

"I was training so hard, the races were a relief," he joked.

"I run every morning at 6am, do another run in the afternoon and have a supervised track session twice a week."

It is just as important that he stays ahead of the game with his studies.

Failing subjects is not tolerated in collegiate athletics, even if your name is Carl Lewis or Michael Johnson.

Green has completed his first year of a three-year Bachelor of Science degree course in Sport and Fitness Management, a year in which he's only done about "five hours" of his subject.

"The first year is a general studies curriculum which includes a lot of subjects I've done already," he said.

"Because of the track commitment, I pick my hours and arrange my studies around the running - athletics comes first and foremost.

"But I have to be realistic as well. You can't make a living out of athletics, certainly not at the stage I'm at.

"I want to get an education and have some qualifications behind me too."

Receiving that education in America, for most people, would be a dream.

Michael got his chance when the university contacted him after taking note of his cross-country times and results. He had intended - and was accepted - to go to Loughborough University instead but after sitting and passing a Scholastic Aptitude Test in London for TSU he decided to take the American route.

Though he thoroughly enjoys it, he has not got carried away by it all.

He rooms with Josh, an 800m runner, in a house that contains 15 people and is one of the best domiciles on the campus.

"It's certainly better than the halls which are like a prison," he said.

Tyrone is one of the more extrovert members of the household, frequently thumping the others' doors before proceeding to thump the bible.

"Every time he sees you he wants to talk about God," said Michael.

Life in nearby Montgomery, site of the infamous 1955 bus boycott by blacks protesting against segregation, is good too with its big shopping malls, fast food restaurants and drive-through banks.

"They can't believe we don't have them yet," added Michael.

As they are too young to enter bars, Michael and his friends either "hang out" or go to the movies.

His uncle and aunt live in nearby Mobile, an important factor in his decision to accept his college place.

Travelling with the athletics team provides exciting sightseeing opportunities, the picturesque Niagara Falls being one of the most memorable this year.

"Seeing it on TV doesn't even prepare you for seeing it for real," insisted Michael.

"You could hear the water five miles away."

Five years from now, Green hopes to be preparing for the 2004 Olympics.

If progress is maintained, there is no reason for him not to be there.

Converted for the new archive on 14 July 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.