Grasshopper from Germany

At first glance, the beak-nosed Cologne engineering student seemed too easygoing to be a track champion. He practiced only a couple of hours a week, liked to sack out for a midday nap that lasted until 4, loved to strum his guitar at parties. Watching his relaxed approach to hurdling, West German sportswriters good-naturedly called him "the American from Cologne."

But Hurdler Martin Lauer, 22, knows how to get in shape. His workouts, though short, are incredibly intense. His basic technique is a series of short, full-throttle sprints broken by what he calls Laufhupser (local dialect for grasshopper), i.e., a sort of Russian balletlike leap touching chest to thighs in midair.

Last week, racing on the springy new track at Zurich as a member of Cologne's A.S.V. track club, Lauer was first out of the blocks in the 110-meter high hurdles. Bending far forward as he cleared the barriers, then snapping his body erect as he hit the cinders, Grasshopper Lauer was all alone at the tape, gasped in astonishment : "It was like having hold of a truck. I'll bet it was 13.4!"

It was even better: 13.2, a full .2 sec. better than the world's record. With that, Lauer remarked casually, "I've got a world record coming in the 200-meter hurdles too." He did indeed, blazing home in 22.5--.1 sec. under the mark for the distance around a curve. The track club president celebrated by ordering beer for all hands. Lauer? He marked one of the great performances in track history by calmly going out to anchor the winning 400-meter relay team.

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