US athlete is in the red, lapping Pole (5)
I believe the answer is:
owens
'us athlete' is the definition.
(Jesse Owens)
'is in the red lapping pole' is the wordplay.
'is in the red' becomes 'owes' ('in the red' means in debt).
'lapping' is an insertion indicator (lapping can mean covering or wrapping).
'pole' becomes 'n'.
'owes' placed around 'n' is 'OWENS'.
(Other definitions for owens that I've seen before include "former athlete" , "Olympic athlete" , "inspiring athlete" , "Jesse who ran" , "Great athlete" .)