Isle gold medalist stays
active in world of fitness

Answer: Kono, now 74, became a city Department of Parks and Recreation physical fitness specialist for 24 years, retiring in 1997. He has been a vice president of the Honolulu Marathon Association since 1973, as a liaison to the city.

Kono still works out three times a week in the weight room and is completing his second book, directed more toward the coaching of the sport. He hopes to complete the book by October and offer it for sale in trade magazines.

Unlike some of today's athletes who have been caught using steroids to build muscle, Kono said weightlifters in his day never even knew about these drugs.

Many of the modern lifters do exercises (like biceps curls and bench presses) for "cosmetic" reasons that are a waste of time. Weightlifters should concentrate on strengthening their legs, back and especially the hips, "where the power is generated," he said.

The United States has won few gold medals in weightlifting since the 1960s because it is an individual sport, and team sports are given more funding and promotion in schools, he said.

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