Sports Briefs
Twin City Raceway set to go this Saturday
Twin City Raceway, located on Shotgun Drive across from Beaver Loop on the Kenai Spur Highway, will have stock car racing on Saturday. The gates open at 5 p.m., the time-ins are at 6 p.m. and racing starts at 7 p.m. General admission is $5, while kids 10 and under get in for free. Kids can also bring their bicycles and helmets for bike races on the track.
For more information, contact Jeannette Young at 283-8321 or Chet Soares at 283-9078.
Homer Jackpot leaders remain the same
Don Uribe of Carmel Valley, Calif., kept his lead in the Homer Jackpot Halibut Derby last week with the 250.2-pound fish he landed on June 6.
The next four biggest fish belong to Tom Sharbono of Coeur d'Alene, Idaho, who landed a 231.2-pound fish on June 10; Donna Shunko of Algoa, Texas, who caught a 229.0-pound fish on June 9; Jeff Sauer of North Pole, who caught a 196.2-pound fish on June 2; and Ward Peterson of Clarkdale, Ariz., who caught a 182.6-pound fish on June 8.
Homer Mariner Triathlon slated for Sept. 1
The first Homer Mariner Ironman Triathlon will be held Sept. 1. All proceeds from the race will go to the Homer High School swimming team.
The race, which has an entry fee of $20, is open to all ages and will be limited to the first 200 participants. It will start at the Homer High pool with a 1,000-yard swim, then there will be a 15-mile bike ride and a 5-mile run.
There are no teams, so each person must do all three stages. All entries must be received by Aug. 24.
For more information, call Trent Fischer at 235-7416 or e-mail him at tfischer@xyz.net. Registration forms are available at the Homer pool or on the Internet at http://www.akmswim.org.
Bird takes Nikiski fun run
Mario Bird, a former standout runner at Nikiski High School who now runs for the University of Notre Dame, pulled away from Todd Boonstra to win the Nikiski Fun in the Sun Run Saturday in Nikiski.
Bird finished the 5-mile race in 26 minutes, 50 seconds, while Boonstra finished at 27:33. Boonstra is a former Olympic skier and Mount Marathon champion. Coming in third was Ryan Wicker, who will be a senior at Nikiski this year, with a time of 30:56.
The first woman to cross the finish line was Teri Ostrander, who came in at 37:45. She was followed by Shiloh Reilly, a recent graduate of Kenai Central High School, in 39:17 and Mary Stenga in 39:47.
Nikiski Fun in the Sun Run
Saturday at Nikiski
Men's 18 and under -- 1. Ryan Wicker, 30 minutes, 56 seconds; 2. Joey Wicker, 36:50; 3. Ryan Crumpacker, 37:24; 4. Isreal Blatchford, 37:27; 5. Kevin Epperheimer, 37:27; 6. Ben Quesnel, 58:49.
Men's 19 to 39 -- 1. Mario Bird, 26:50; 2. Todd Boonstra, 27:33; 3. Kent Peterson, 35:08; 4. Jeff Helminiak, 35:32; 5. Jeff Lettington, 39:46; 6. Jason Moore, 40:07.
Men's 40 and over -- 1. Don Glaze, 37:01; 2. Ken Robinette, 37:58; 3. Ron Rogalsky, 42:22; 4. Joe Donahue, 42:50; 5. Bill Rolph, 42:57; 6. Malcolm Rooper, 45:06; 7. Erik Barnes, 49:28.
Women's 18 and under -- 1. Elena Bird, 41:15; 2. Laura Rooper, 41:20; 3. Anjani Salonen, 46:03; 4. Liz Lettington, 55:42; 5. Ramona Baker, 58:31; 6. Jennifer Sexton, 1:25:49.
Women's 19 to 39 -- 1. Teri Ostrander, 37:45; 2. Shiloh Reilly, 39:17; 3. Oralee Nudson, 40:47; 4. M.J. Loveland, 42:22; 5. Lori Manion, 46:03; 6. Heidi Chay, 49:28; 7. Lisa Robinette, 55:43; 8. Brenda Ahlberg, 1:16:04.
Women's 40 and over -- 1. Mary Stenga, 39:47; 2. Mindee Morning, 40:48; 3. Kay Sexton, 1:25:49; 4. Bev Berdahl, 1:31:52; 5. Jean Thompson, 1:31:52.
Wimbledon picks Sampras as top seed
WIMBLEDON, England -- Pete Sampras may have slipped to fifth in the world rankings, but he's still No. 1 at Wimbledon.
Organizers of the grass court Grand Slam championship ignored the ATP rankings on Monday and gave the seven-time champion the top seeding for the tournament, which starts next week.
Andre Agassi, who is second in the rankings, was seeded No. 2, meaning he and Sampras cannot meet until the final.
Australia's Patrick Rafter, last year's runner-up, is No. 3 despite a ranking of 10, with U.S. Open champion Marat Safin of Russia at No. 4. Lleyton Hewitt, the Australian who on Sunday won the grass-court tournament at Queen's Club, is No. 5.
Martina Hingis was seeded No. 1 in the women's field, the same as her world ranking, followed by defending champion Venus Williams.
For the first time in its 124-year history, Wimbledon will have 32 seeds instead of the usual 16 in each singles draw.
The organizers decided to double the number of seeds to try and pacify the clay-court players who claim the seeding system is biased toward grass-court players.
Three players withdraw from Wimbledon
WIMBLEDON, England -- Anna Kournikova, sidelined by a stress fracture in her foot since February, pulled out of Wimbledon on Monday.
Kournikova, one of tennis' biggest draw but still seeking her first singles' title, was among three prominent players withdrawing from the Grand Slam tournament on the day seedings were announced.
French Open runner-up Alex Corretja, who boycotted Wimbledon last year in a protest by clay court players over the seeding system, also withdrew because of a leg injury. He was joined on the sidelines by Monica Seles, who will miss the only Grand Slam she has not won because of an injured foot. The same injury kept her out of the French Open.
No. 1 ranked Gustavo Kuerten, who defeated Corretja for the French Open title, withdrew from Wimbledon last week citing a groin problem and Mary Pierce, a former French Open champion, pulled out because of a back problem.
Rafalski, Young added to 2002 Olympic team
Brian Rafalski and Scott Young were added Monday to the 2002 U.S. men's Olympic hockey team.
Rafalski, a defenseman with the New Jersey Devils, and Young, a forward from the St. Louis Blues, join the first 10 NHL players that were selected for the team in March.
Each of the six nations that have qualified for the Olympic tournament, featuring NHL players for the second time, must announce its full 23-player roster by Dec. 22.
Rafalski is the second defenseman selected to the team, joining Brian Leetch.
The 33-year-old Young, a two-time Olympian, joins Blues teammate Keith Tkachuk along with Mike Modano, Brett Hull, Tony Amonte, Doug Weight, Bill Guerin, Chris Drury, Jeremy Roenick and John LeClair up front.
Baffert to appeal 60-day suspension
LOS ANGELES -- An attorney for Bob Baffert said Monday the nation's leading thoroughbred trainer will appeal his 60-day suspension for a positive drug test on one of his horses 13 months ago.
The suspension is scheduled to run from June 25 to Aug. 23 unless a stay is granted by the California Horse Racing Board or the court system.
Baffert trained Point Given to victories in the Preakness and Belmont stakes this month -- the third time since 1997 one of his horses won two-thirds of the Triple Crown -- and the suspension could keep him out of the summer's biggest races.
''This sounds like this is somebody who dislikes Bob, and I'm not making any accusations,'' attorney Neil Papiano said. ''It has no sense to it. You have to say why in the world would anybody do this?''
Michael Chang lobbies for Beijing's 2008 bid
LONDON -- In 1989, Michael Chang watched the Tiananmen Square crackdown on television just as he was making his memorable run to the French Open title. As he accepted his trophy, he paid special tribute to the Chinese people.
Twelve years later, Chang -- an American of Chinese heritage -- has become a high-profile backer of Beijing's bid for the 2008 Olympics, saying China has changed significantly and will open up further if it wins the games.
With less than a month before the IOC vote on the host city, Chang was in London on Monday discussing his volunteer role in China's campaign to bring the Olympics to the world's most populous country for the first time.
''If Beijing becomes the host nation, I think you're going to see something very, very special,'' Chang said in an interview. ''They know this is an opportunity that doesn't come around very often. They know how precious this is. For the first Olympics in China, they're going to want to make this the best ever.''
Beijing, which lost the 2000 Games by two votes to Sydney, is widely considered the front-runner for 2008. Paris and Toronto are the main challengers, with Osaka, Japan, and Istanbul, Turkey, as outsiders. The International Olympic Committee will elect the host city in Moscow on July 13.
Critics oppose Beijing's bid on human rights grounds, citing the 1989 crackdown on pro-democracy demonstrators in Tiananmen Square as an example of China's intolerance of political dissent.
The crackdown coincided with the French Open, where Chang, then 17, became the youngest male player ever to win a Grand Slam title. He did it in amazing fashion, overcoming painful leg cramps and serving underhanded to beat Ivan Lendl in one match, and coming from behind to defeat Stefan Edberg in the final.
After receiving the winner's trophy, Chang told the crowd: ''God bless everybody, especially the people in China.''
On Monday, Chang -- whose parents came from China and who still has relatives there -- said Tiananmen Square helped inspire his French Open triumph. He hasn't won a Grand Slam title since.
Chang believes he was destined to win the French in '89 ''for the purpose of being able to say to Chinese people around the world: 'Hey, something good is happening to a fellow Chinese person halfway around the world, there is something to smile about.'''
Chang recalled watching television footage of Chinese troops crushing the demonstrations and of a lone protester standing in front of a tank.
''Obviously they're moving images that really stay in your mind,'' he said. ''It was a downtime for Chinese people around the world, there's no doubt about that.
''I've always had a heart for Chinese people, even more so after 1989. What's been an encouragement for me is I've seen China and how they've changed and opened up over these years. Things have changed tremendously.''
Supporting Beijing's bid puts Chang in conflict with a number of U.S. lawmakers, who argue that China should not get the games until it improves its human rights record.
''You have to take into consideration certain things, but at the same time you have to take into consideration what the Olympics is all about,'' Chang said. ''The Olympics is really about sports, about camaraderie, about unifying countries, about unity, about teamwork. It really doesn't have to do with the political aspect of things.''
Chang said the Olympics would encourage positive change in China.
''I think it would open things up even more,'' he said. ''It would open up a lot of doors, a lot of channels. You have a quarter of the world's population in China, and that really still needs to be exposed to the world.''
Chang has played tournaments in China and Hong Kong for the past 10 years. He has also played in two Olympics, Barcelona in 1992 and last year in Sydney.
''People still have a certain image of China,'' he said. ''For me, because I've been there and experienced those gradual changes, I've seen how much they've grown, how much more willing they are to be open to the world.
''For Beijing to get this bid would not only be important for the people of China, but also for the people of the world to be able to better understand China and its culture. It's really a tremendous opportunity for the world.''