May 26, 2012
Chris Owens, Alba Berlin
Chris Owens - Alba Berlin Seventy years after Jesse Owens chiseled his name into the collective memory of Berliners with an unforgettable display at the 1936 Olympics, there's a new member of the same Owens family in town, and he's hoping to make some history of his own. Chris Owens, the great nephew of the legendary American track and field star, is a first-year forward for ULEB Cup team Alba Berlin and he's already set some lofty goals for himself and his teammates. "I want to dominate," he recently told ULEBcup.com. "I want to win the German League and the ULEB Cup."

Chris's grandfather, Henry, was one of Jesse's 10 siblings. The younger Owens didn't really know his great uncle, who died when Chris was just a year old. But naturally he knows the legend of the great athlete, as well as stories of the man, who, according to Chris, "for us was like a normal person, a member of the family." Jesse Owens, the grandson of American slaves, was born into poverty but went on to become one of the greatest athletes of the 20th century. Jesse quickly rose to fame in 1935 when competing with Ohio State University, where he set three world records and matched a fourth at a single meet all within a 45-minute span.

Chris Owens - Alba BerlinThe following year Jesse Owens represented the United States at the Berlin Olympic Games, which were played in the shadow of Nazi leader Adolf Hitler, who claimed that blacks were an inferior race. Jesse showed otherwise, setting world records in the 200-meter dash and 4-by-100-meter relay, setting an Olympic record in the long jump and tying another Olympic mark in the 100 meters for a stunning total of four gold medals. His feat wasn't duplicated in track and field until Carl Lewis earned golds in the same four events at the 1984 games, almost half a century later.

"He was such a great figure... It's a big story," Chris Owens said of his great uncle's accomplishments. Being in Berlin has given the younger Ownes a chance to see some of the sites from those Olympic Games in person. One moment that stands out in particular was a preseason visit to the Olympic Stadium, where he had a look at an engraved wall with the names of every gold-medal winner from the '36 games. "When I went to the Olympic Stadium and saw his name, I saw my name there, too," Owens said. "It was special."

But if anyone thought that the reason Owens is in Berlin has a connection to his uncle, they'd be wrong. "Mostly, I wanted to play," Chris said. "I knew it would come up," he added about his his family's connection to the city, "but I'm just here to play."

Chris Owens - Alba BerlinThose words are backed up by his coach, Henrik Rodl. "It's a nice story and it's special for him, but we care more about winning and losing," Rodl said, who is pleased to have Owens, a player he tried to sign in the past, on the team. He describes Owens as a "very physical player," "a good rebounder" and "scorer in the low post," three traits Owens has displayed so far as Alba has began the German League in good form. "He a rebounder and a scorer, who can also hit the mid-range jumper. He's a very versatile player," Rodl summed up.

Even though Chris Owens's reasons for coming to Berlin may be purely for basketball, he's certainly not running away from his family's connection to the city. He signed his contract on August 3, exactly 70 years to the day that Jesse Owens won his first gold medal at those Olympic Games.

"Berlin's a great city. I love it here," Chris said. "I just want to win and get better as a player. I want to become a more complete, all-around player and dominate."

Owens is on his way to doing just that. And although it's impossible to know if there's something special in the Berlin air that brings out the best in the Owens family, what's certain is that the name Owens could wind up engraved in a few more places if the nephew of the legend meets his goals, too.
Monday, October 30, 2006
ULEBCup.com
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