The Palm Beach Post du lieu suivant : West Palm Beach, Florida • Page 45

I 2C THE PALM BEACH POST WEDNESDAY, JULY 24, 1996 SUMMER GAMESATLANTA '96 Agassi, Seles open with wins i ViN) i SPOTLIGHT By CHARLES ELMORE Palm Beach Post Staff Writer STONE MOUNTAIN, Ga. Andre Agassi, wearing a cycling cap, long-sleeved shirt and black shorts, arrived at his first Olympic tennis match Tuesday looking as if he had taken a wrong turn in the Tour de France. Before it was over, he had taken nearly 12,000 USA-chanting fans in Stone Mountain Tennis Center's stadium court on a wild and wobbly ride, shifting gears to come from behind in two tiebreakers and beat unseeded Jonas Bjorkman of Sweden 7-6 (8-6), 7-6 (7-5). "It was close," Agassi said. "Definitely a close call.

I feel pretty good about getting through that one." Thus was Olympic men's tennis spared the embarrassment of having its top-seeded player ousted on the first day of competition following the withdrawal or absence of Pete Sampras, finalist MaliVai Washington sees his first action today against Jan Krokslak of the Slovak Republic. Later, second-seeded Goran Ivanisevic of Croatia meets unseeded Marcos On-druska of South Africa. No. 3 seed Thomas Enqvist also plays today. Agassi trailed 4-1 in the first set as his fiancee, Brooke Shields, looked on anxiously, peeking through raised hands.

Bjorkman led 6-4 in the first tiebreaker and 4-3 in the second before Agassi won key points, by blasting serve returns and maneuvering' Bjorkman into mistakes. Though he conceded his footwork and shotmaking are still a shade off, Agassi said there was no place he would rather be. "I have a hard time understanding why somebody would pass on the Agassi said. Entrance fee is history Underground Atlanta's plan to cash in on the Olympics has been, well, grounded. The shopping area and food court in the middle of downtown had to lower, then eliminate, its $3 per-head entrance fee Tuesday.

That helped ease the pain of infuriated store and shop owners, who said the cover charge kept visitors away. Reports of the admission even soured tourists from visiting stores and restaurants near Underground. "Yesterday was dead," Dairy Queen employee Ahlen Momin said Tuesday. "I think Underground scared everyone away from the area." Thomas Muster, Boris Becker, Michael Chang and Jim Courier. Monica Seles, the women's top seed who also is staying in the Olympic Village, beat China's Li Chen 6-0, 6-4.

"I absolutely love it," she said of staying in the Olympic Village. "When you have these two weeks or 17 days, it is something that I think 40 years from now, when I will be a grandmother or whatever, I can appreciate it so much more than anything else." Today, No. 12 seed Mary Pierce, who's playing for France and whose father lives in Delray Beach, plays Olga Barabanschikova of Belarus. Fourth-seeded American and Wimbledon Price gouging 101 Charles Whitmire, owner of Elaine's Grab Go near Underground, on his justification for its Olympic-size price increase of $2 a sandwich, or 67 percent: "If people can spend $630 a seat on opening ceremonies, they can fork over $5 for a tuna fish sandwich," he said. "And that includes a bag of chips." Soda is extra.

i I.JWM' )M)I LJ.vJL,llvl.llMl''l!m,W.,M ,1 .1 I. ,1 ,1. liiSWJlililM i Jml Ji Izzy has relatives in outer space Former Atlanta mayor Andrew Young was asked about Izzy, the official mascot of the 1996 Atlanta Games who has been widely criticized as the worst, ugliest and scariest mascot in the history of sports. But Young defended Izzy. "Our young people are probably going to have to deal with creatures from outer space," he said.

"Izzy is breeding a new level of tolerance for things that are different from you and me." At risk of stereotyping, only in the deep South would preparing kids for invasion by space aliens be considered an important aspect of childhood education. Beach volleyball makes big debut Tlie oV plop-a- johns don't cut it. Rich Walz, of Jensen Beach, on how the public would much rather use the bathrooms at air-conditioned facilities like CNN Center. ALLSPORTSTU FORSTER A Brazilian fan takes in Tues-day's opening round of beach volleyball at Atlanta Beach. Some 13,000 fans watched the sport make its Olympic debut.

beach-like atmosphere. "Unlike some other sports," he said, "we actually like our fans and enjoy talking to them and spending time with them." Idiots abound Even in the midst of the Olympic security officials in the Atlanta area, crimes still are being committed every day. And that has law enforcement officials scratching their heads. "That's what I love about this job job security," Cpl. James Meadows said.

"There'll always be idiots." 3 66 9 THE ASSOCIATED PRESS Mike Lambert (from left), Bob Ctvrtlik and Dan Landry celebrate the Americans' victory over Argentina in volleyball Tuesday. Bolton sparks women's basketball win over Ukraine; Gebhardt 12th I 6 Count President Clinton's daughter, Chelsea, as one of the growing number of fans following beach volleyball. The sport made its official Olympic debut in front of 13,000 screaming, chanting fans (including the first daughter) on Tuesday atJonesboro, Atlanta Beach. It's a man-made beach with hundreds of tons of trucked-in sand some 20 miles from downtown Atlanta and about five hours from the Atlantic Ocean. The first day of the tournament was virtually sold out, as is today's second round.

The final four days are sold out. The growth of the sport is no surprise to Kent Steffes, who teams with two-time U.S. indoor volleyball gold medalist Karch Kiraly to form the third-seeded men's team (all three men's teams received first-round byes. The American women led off by beating France). Steffes said the fact the game is played on sand makes it attractive to fans looking for athletic competition with a relaxed, Warnings taken Getting into town Tuesday was easier for commuters, who heeded warnings and came in early.

At 7:30 a.m., normally the peak of rush hour, downtown highways were clear. "It's amazing. It looks like a Sunday morning," said Toni Dunagan, a spokeswoman for the state Transportation Management System, which monitors the highways. TELEVISION Sanders' shrieking an earful By ED PRICE Palm Beach Post Staff Writer If only the International Olym-l pic Committee had added shriek-; ing and over-dramatization as medal sports this year. Then the United States would have two more golds, thanks to NBC announcers Summer Sanders and John Tesh.

Sanders, who won four medals in 1992, has stood out during the swimming competition mainly because of volume. Her unfortur' nate tendency to shout over Dan Hicks' calls prompted Tom Ilof- farth of the Los Angeles Daily News to write, "Someone please check her for toxic chlorine syndrome." Yes, she shouts too much the high-pitched Sanders yelps after Amy van Dyken won the 100-meter butterfly final Tuesday hadn't been heard since the last Wham! concert. But give Sanders some credit. She has to overcome the noise at the natatorium, and she has provided some good commentary. In Tuesday's 200-meter women's breaststroke final, Sanders told us: there was a question whether Penney Heyns could repeat her performance from the heats; the three leaders were using three styles of strokes (rolling, power and skimming); and Amanda Beard waited too long to make her move.

Tesh has no decibel problem. He prefers somber proclamations to accompany delicately produced introductions and features. Which perfectly suits his hyperbole. Here's how Tesh introduced the Russian women's gymnastics team Tuesday night: "Russia no longer the specter of evil, but still the strut of beauty and perfection; no longer the hammer-and-sickle army, but still the seven strongest in the world. The force that joins them is flesh and blood; yet no one knows why our pious Russians never lose." Yikes.

Is Tesh trying to convince us" that every gymnastics session is a matter of life and death? Perhaps it seems that way after 10 years on Entertainment Tonight, where Sandra Bullock's haircuts are considered "news." Tesh who called gymnastics for NBC in Barcelona and was CBS Sports personality in the ears ly 1980s has done some home-; work. His Russian' pronunciation, seems practiced and he knows the story behind many of the gymnasts. Spilling the beans: NBC? Sports continues to keep from us which events are being shown live' and not giving anything away, a-' though the rest of the network has' no qualms about reporting When Olympics coverage began Tuesday night at 7:30, Bob Costas told us there was "actually a possibility" the United States could win its first gold medal in women's team gymnastics. But a half hour earlier, on the NBC Nightly News, Tom Brokaw said the United States had indeed finished first. "From our perspective, it was deemed a news story and we felt on the Nightly News broadcast, that was our responsibility to broadcast news," said Heidi Po-korny, spokeswoman for NBA News.

"I certainly think it will not be a habit of ours, but it just happened to KJ a really news'-worthiness story." WMtmtm i niiiM urn nose. Playing a man down, the three-time champions still prevailed 9-8, to face six-time champion Hungary next. The United States, which met Romania late Tuesday, is all but certain to advance, and the winner of today's game between Greece and Ukraine likely will be the last into the quarterfinals. WEIGHTLIFTING Chinese dominates Tim McRae, lifting in the division, set American records in the snatch (319M pounds), clcan-and-jerk (391 and total (710), but the Daytona Beach native had no chance for a medal. The gold medal went to Zhan Xugang of China, who set world records in the snatch (357 pounds), clean-and-jerk (430) and total (788).

VOLLEYBALL U.S. sweeps Argentina The United States team dispatched the Argentines 15-7, 15-8, 15-11 to improve to 2-0 in Pool A. The Americans play Thursday against Cuba, which faced Poland in a late match Tuesday. SECURITY Armed man arrested in stadium A man carrying a loaded gun and posing as a security guard slipped into Olympic Stadium before Friday's opening ceremony. Rolland Atkins, 55, of Aurora, was carrying a semi-automatic handgun loaded with 1 1 rounds when he talked his way into the stadium.

Palm Beach Post Wire Services The U.S. women (2-0) walloped the Ukraine 98-65 and, as they did in their debut, scored more points in their second game than the Dream Team (87 points vs. Angola). The women cruised to victory behind a balanced attack. Gainesville resident Ruthie Bolton hit her first five shots, including two three-pointers, and scored 21 points.

Katrina McClain added 17 points on 8-for-9 shooting, and Lisa Leslie had 12 points and nine rebounds. Bolton, called 'Microwave' by her teammates, went 4-for-4 in the first half with two three-pointers, then scored 11 points during a 2:19 stretch early in the second half. Bolton finished 7-for-10 from the field. She also had four rebounds all in the first 31a minutes and made three steals. YACHTING Fort Pierce's Gebhardt in 12th Americans didn't fare well in board-sailing events, with Fort Pierce's Mike Gebhardt standing in 12th in Mistral, but three groups of Americans held second place in their classes, including defending Star Class champions Mark Reynolds and Hal Haenel.

BASEBALL Cuba runs to 3-0 Cuba became the first team to go 3-0, beating the Netherlands 18-2. The United States (2-0), the only other unbeaten team, plays Italy today. or OLYMPIC ROUNDUP ROWING Americans keep on rowin' After Cyrus Beasley's right oar grabbed too much water and ruined his start in the men's single sculls' repechage, the American recovered to edge Italy's Giovanni Calabrese for second place and a spot in Thursday's semifinal. All four of the U.S. entries in the repechage after losing first-round heats advanced to the semifinals.

SHOOTING Well, she was just 17 American high school student Kim Rhode won the gold medal in the women's double trap shooting event, an Olympic event for the first time. Rhode, 17, sprinted into the stands and jumped into the arms of her father, Richard, moments after firing off the last two shots from her shotgun. SOFTBALL U.S. only unbeaten team The Americans became the only undefeated team at 3-0 with a 6-1 victory over Japan (2-1). The U.S.

plays Tawain (1-2) this morning at 9, a 4-0 loser to Australia on Tuesday. WATER POLO Short-handed Yugoslavs win There was blood in the pool as Yugoslavia advanced. Vladimir Vu-jasinovic was punched in the face by German Uwe Sterzik, and left the pool bleeding from a cut in the ft i They even try to cheat in Ping-Pong "Most people know sniffing glue is dangerous," said Ron Keyhoe, an Australian umpire. "At the International Table Tennis Federation, we know it is dangerous in other ways." Table tennis champions are not glue sniffers, by and large. But the choice of glue they use to affix the rubber face to their paddle can add up to 20 mph to the speed of their slams an edge that could swing victory their way.

"If table tennis players use certain glues, it is like steroids," Keyhoe said. "It gives them an unfair advantage." Since 1993, when the ITTF decreed that certain chemical mixes in glues were banned, the most important step in table tennis doping control is the "vapor check," and Atlanta pulled in the paddles before competition began Tuesday. Paddles, once inspected, are marked across the face with three invisible stripes that can be checked with ultraviolet light and are subject to spot examination both directly before and after a game. Few are found to be illegal. 1 A i o) is 1 1 i 1 ti-rr if, id IRC! Sir I j'N I l- 0 i i.

fri Pi i SNAPSHOTS li 9f Y- Obviously (Atlanta Braves owner) Ted Turner is not going to let Greg Maddux take two weeks off during the pennant stretch and fly to Australia. U.S. manager Skip Bertman on letting professional baseball players participate in the 2000 Olympics. Vendors losing shirts Street vendors who have taken over the downtown streets say they're losing their shirts because no one's buying any shirts, or much else for that matter. A New York vendor said he will lose $38,000 on his investment of $45,000.

A woman from Michigan said her sales had barely topped $200 and she had to pay 1 2,000 in cash and 10 percent of her gross sales for her spot. Vendors blame the city and B.G. Swing Games Management which has the sole contract to put vendors on city-owned property. i i in xn ri 5 111 la tail E.A. KENNEDY IllStaff Photo WEIGHTLIFTING: Jouni Gronman of Finland strains his way to 17th place Tuesday in the 70 kg division won by China's Zhang Xugang.

WOMEN'S 4x100 MEDLEY RELAY GOLD MEDALISTS THE ASSOCIATED PRESS EQUESTRIAN: Germany's Jurgen Blum and Brownie McGee compete in the team endurance portion of their event Tuesday. THE ASSOCIATED PRESS BEACH VOLLEYBALL: The second-seeded U.S. team of Nancy Reno (above) and Holly McPeak easily won a their first match. THE ASSOCIATED PRESS ROWING: Jason Scott readies himself before racing Tuesday. His U.S.

team made the semifinals of the cox-less four competition. 1980 E. Germany 4:06.67 1984 U.S. 4:08.34 1988 E. Germany 4:03.74 1992 U.S.

4:02.54 set Olympic record; set world record YEAR COUNTRY TIME 1960 1964 1968 1972 1976 U.S. U.S. U.S. U.S. 4:41.1 4:33.9 4:28.3 41:20.75 E.

Germany 4:07.95.