Owens, though, made the best of the situation, focusing on his studies and training with the OSU track team under coach Larry Snyder. Snyder, who thought Owens' race starts were too slow, made the athlete repeatedly practice starts that had him crouching tightly at the starting line. He also altered Owens' long-jump style, teaching him to move his legs in mid-air.
In general, a low platelet count occurs because: 1  The body's bone marrow doesn't make enough platelets. 2  The bone marrow makes enough platelets, but the body destroys them or uses them up. 3  The spleen holds on to too many platelets.
Some infants are born without the ability to make enough red blood cells. This condition is called aplastic anemia. Infants and children who have aplastic anemia often need blood transfusions to increase the number of red blood cells in their blood. Acquired conditions or factors, such as certain medicines, toxins, and infectious diseases, also can cause aplastic anemia.