BYU men's track coach Mark Robison met with Smith Friday morning and said his physical recovery would most likely be the easiest part of the healing process. It is the emotional healing that will most likely take much longer.

Smith was expected to run in the 200-meter dash during the Olympic trials that begin in three weeks in Eugene, Ore.

"He trains hard and is a really successful track athlete," said Robison. "He is running right now as well as he has ever run in his life, but he struggled with working full-time and trying to train and do some coaching on the side. In track and field, it is tough to keep your career going."

Smith is from Las Vegas, and although not a member of the LDS Church, he enjoyed his time at BYU and embraced the area wholeheartedly, Robison said.

"Provo was a huge change for Paul, but he just fit in," Robison said. "It was different, but he liked it here, and that was why he stayed, and I would imagine he will continue to stay."

Team captain and recent BYU graduate Nicole Rasmussen said she appreciated the time she got to spend with Petersen and admired her dedication to performance improvement.

"She was famous for making jokes about the Olympics," Rasmussen said, then quoted Petersen's quasi tongue-in-cheek phrases: "'This is for Bejing,' or 'When I was in Athens.' So we called her Athens, Bejing. It was always her motivation."

Petersen, the oldest of three children, was studying exercise science.

Funeral plans have not yet been announced, although the team plans to travel to St. George.

---

E-mail: sisraelsen@desnews.com, ethomas@desnews.com