One of the world’s fastest humans, Shawn Crawford admits he’s no match for the animal kingdom.

“That was living hell. It was crazy, man. I threw up at the end,” Crawford, the 2004 Olympic gold medalist in the 200-meter dash, said Tuesday at Memorial Stadium, recalling his racing both a giraffe and zebra as part of Fox’s “Man Vs. Beast” TV competition in January 2003.

Crawford, who will compete on Sprint Capitol USA’s 400-meter relay team during Saturday’s Gold Zone portion of the Kansas Relays, defeated the giraffe but lost to the zebra in the 100, contested in 40-degree temperatures after midnight at a Los Angeles-area horse track.

“I got two legs. The zebra has four … come on,” Crawford exclaimed, asked how a powerful athlete with the nickname of “Cheetah Man” could lose to the lovable striped creature.

“My television experience, that was the worst,” said Crawford, a 28-year-old former Clemson University standout from Van Wyck, S.C.

“I said, ‘Hey, this will be fun.’ When you are doing things for television, there are so many takes. You probably saw me race a zebra, what, twice and the giraffe once? I actually raced the giraffe about three times, the zebra three times. They had a bunch of other animals out there. I was like, ‘Man.'”

Olympian Shawn Crawford sprints alongside fellow Olympian Dwight Thomas, back, during workouts for the Kansas Relays. Crawford, shown Tuesday at Memorial Stadium, won the gold medal in the 200-meter race at the 2004 Olympics in Athens, Greece.

The races against “Zack” the zebra and “Leonard” the giraffe gave Crawford some popularity in the U.S., but his 200 victory in Athens provided notoriety all over the world.

“Every athlete’s dream, in my opinion, especially in track and field, is to participate in the Olympics, go there, and medal,” Crawford said. “I was fortunate enough to win gold and silver in a relay (400).

“It meant a lot to me. It was the year I was most dedicated to the sport, and my work with Travor (Graham, Sprint Capitol coach) paid off. It spikes up the dollar. The checks are much bigger when you get a gold medal,” he added with a grin.

This outdoor season, Crawford likely will learn whether he will remain a major factor in track and field. He’s coming off a rough 2005 season in which he suffered injuries to both feet.

“I’m just trying to get back up on the pedestal, getting in running shape and being at that elite level again,” said Crawford, who practiced starts and 100-yard sprints next to relay partner Dwight Thomas on Tuesday. They’ll be joined by Justin Gatlin and Rodney Martin in Saturday’s “Main Event” relay.

Shawn Crawford catches a breather during practice Tuesday.

“I didn’t do anything in ’05. I don’t want to be remembered for ’04 when I’m still running in ’06. I’m out to make a mark now. Say, ‘Hey, if I could do it then, I still have it in me, now.'”

“Coming off the foot problem last year, we’re trying to use a couple of relays to fine tune him,” coach Graham said. “He’s OK, not 100 percent. We’ll see what he looks like on Saturday.”

Crawford will continue to work out with his club teammates all week before the Main Event relay at 5 p.m. Saturday.

He doubts he’ll be bored.

“If I do, that’s when I might hit the Wal-Mart. I’ll go get a fishing reel, lures, find the nearest pond, lake. That’ll cure my boredom right there,” said Crawford, who actually had a fishing trip to Clinton Lake planned for Tuesday night.

“I fish all the time. I love fishing. I might not even catch anything. I love being out in nature, just waiting for something to bite even though most time I pull in the jig I threw out with nothing on it.”

¢ Relays notes: Olympic champion Allen Johnson on Friday was added to the list of Relays entrants. Johnson will team with Maurice Greene, Leonard Scott and Kaaron Conwright in the Main Event 400 relay against the Gatlin-led Sprint Capitol team and others. Johnson will take the place of Olympian Pierre Brown. … The 79th annual Relays will begin at 11 a.m. Thursday with the hammer outside Memorial Stadium.