Penn Police accreditation on hold due to technicality

By the time University Police Sgt. John Washington reached the last half mile of the race, he was suffering from sun poisoning. He had sweated off all his sunblock, the top of his head was covered with blisters and he was vomiting profusely. Still, Washington kept running, beating out close to 70 other police officers to win a bronze medal in the half marathon. In addition to this hard-won bronze medal, Washington won another bronze in the mountain bike race and a silver in the five-mile trail race at this year's International Law Enforcement Games last month in Cocoa Beach, Fl. The games, which are held every two years, drew 5,600 contestants from 19 countries to participate in events such as golf, bowling and shooting. So why didn't Washington stop running when he got sick? "In hindsight, I probably should have," he said. "But when you've spent all the money to travel there, you don't give up that easily." Washington's coworkers at the University Police Department were not at all surprised at his decision to finish the race. "John's a real athlete," said Deputy Chief of Investigations Tom King, who participates in other races with Washington. "But John's also insane." Washington came to Penn 12 years ago, after working as a fire marshal in a Philadelphia suburb. He began racing in 1995, at first just to beat Philadelphia Police officers. But now the 39-year-old Washington runs or bikes in about a half-dozen races per year -- and he usually wins. He has won the Philadelphia Police Bike Challenge three years in a row, beating out 125 other officers, mainly from the Philadelphia Police Department. He also took gold medals in both the 5K run and the mountain bike course this June at the Pennsylvania Police Games. But Washington is still smarting over his loss to King at the East Coast Police Biathlon last year, when King took first place and Washington placed third. "It's the only time he's ever beat me," Washington said. "The first time and the last time." But his competitive spirit is not the only reason Washington enjoys participating in police athletic events. "Sure, there's a personal satisfaction in saying I went up against some of the best and beat the best," he said. "But the best part is sitting down and having a beer with [the other contestants] and... trading war stories, seeing how they do things differently." Although Washington was unable to attend the 1998 International Law Enforcement Games because they were too far away -- in the United Arab Emirates -- he does intend to compete at the 2002 games in Quebec. He is also trying to convince some of his colleagues to go along -- although many of them are athletes, Washington is the only one who has competed in the games. "The most disappointing part is that all these other officers are so talented -- they could do the same thing," Washington said. "I would think [my success] would be an incentive to them." Washington's successes come despite myriad injuries sustained during previous races -- he has had back surgery, two knee surgeries and a hip replacement. But these injuries have been mere inconveniences for Washington, and he does not intend to stop competing any time soon. "As long as I have my health, I'll keep doing these things," he said.