Star-Phoenix from Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada • 20

Saskatoon, Saskatchewan BIO SPORTS The StarPhoenix Monday, November 4, 2002 Living large at Park Town Sherry Anderson rink undefeated for third straight year i ir 1 By Doug McConachie SP Sports Editor Sherry Anderson's foursome has been perfect at the Park Town Classic five straight years. "Perfect or perfectly bad," said the Delisle skip, at a loss to explain what happened the first two years when her rink couldn't win a game, or the past three when they haven't lost at the Nu-tana Curling Club. For the third consecutive year, Anderson went 7-0 in the 32-rink bonspiel. The team pockets $8,000 first-place money after doubling up on Regina's Nancy Inglis 10-5 in nine ends Sunday. "Maybe it's confidence," Anderson said.

"You have to believe you're going to win or else you're beaten before you go on the ice." It was the second victory in two weeks for the team of third Kim Hodson, second Sandra Mul-roney and lead Donna Gignac. Last week they earned $14,000 at the JVC Classic in Winnipeg. Anderson cracked a three in the sixth end to grab command over Inglis, skipping for the first time in 10 years and with a totally new team. "The train got derailed," Inglis said after earning $5,000 as runner-up. "We were on a roll." Inglis, with Tanya Gray, Danita Zacharias and Lisa Kuski, lost the opening game, then bounced back with five straight victories to qualify out of the side.

She dow ned Renee Sonnenberg of Grande Prairie, Alta. 7-6 in the quarter-final and edged Amber Holland of Regina 8-7 in an extra end to come up against Anderson. "We knew we would have to have our A game, but this was a really good 'spiel fantastic," said Inglis. "I'm happy. This was a great experience for us, especially having that third game (the final) and it was great because Sherry Anderson just fights and fights and fights." Anderson, who qualified out of the A with four victories, had to battle to last rock in the semi-final against Saskatoon's Patty Rocheleau.

Leading 4-2 after six, Rocheleau tried to bury her final stone behind guard for an opportunity to steal two. Her rock hung out just enough to give Anderson the narrowest nose hit for two. The Delisle skip delivered perfectly to tie the game 4-4. Anderson got fully behind front guards in the eighth and Rocheleau's attempt at a long raise back failed. Anderson led 5-4.

Although Rocheleau got that back in nine, Anderson had a nose hit with her final stone. "She had us on the ropes a couple of times," Anderson said. "Kim (Hodson) made a couple of great shots." Inglis grabs 16 points in the race to represent Saskatchewan at the 10-team $110,000 Canada Cup of Curling in Kamloops on Jan. 8-12. The team with the best finish at the Park Town, the Nipawin Evergreen Classic this weekend, and at the Sandra Schmirler Classic in Regina, will join Anderson, B.C's Kelly Law and Canadian champion Colleen Jones of Halifax in Kamloops.

Those three rinks all got invites, while the seven others have to earn their way. Rocheleau and Holland each get a dozen points, as well as for making the Park Town semi-final. Regina's Jan Betker, who lost to Anderson 5-2 in the quarter-finals, and June Campbell of Regina, who lost to Holland 7-6 in the quarter-finals, get eight points as well as $2,500 each. Rocheleau said her rink hadn't planned to play at Nipawin, but after their semi-final showing Sunday, phoned in a late entry. "We didn't know t(W much about (Kamloops) when we made our plans in the summer." With the results in Saskatoon, the opportunity to play for $110,000 prize money can't be ignored, she said.

ICE CHIPS: Olympic gold medallist Rhona Martin of Scotland heads to Regina today to participate in the Keg Continental Cup of Curling with no pocket money from Saskatoon. After losing to Anderson in the opening game Thursday, she won two in the event, lost to Carla Rokochy of Regina and was eliminated by Tracy Streifel of Clavet. SP Photo by Greg Pender Sherry Anderson (I) pulled away from Nancy Inglis in the sixth end Sandhu's silver has certain glow the Atlantic and back again. "We're not just trying to be skaters, but performers who touch the hearts of everybody watching," Dubreuil said. "Since there were many changes in our lives we wanted to tell our own story." Their tale had a major plot twist last summer, when the couple sought to rejuvenate their careers under renowned French coach Muriel Boucher-Zazoui.

They packed up and left for France when Boucher-Zazoui agreed to coach them, selling their home in Boisbriand, and other possessions in haste. Sunday's medal was the culmination of an emotional homecoming. "We started crying right off the plane," Dubreuil said. "You realize how much you love your country when you're away for so long." Ukrainians Elena Grushina and Rus-lan Goncharov finished first. tem, Sandhu was awarded a series of marks ranging from 5.4 to 5.7 for technical merit and 5.7 to 5.9 for presentation.

He was pleased with his overall result his best ever on the Grand Prix circuit. Breakthrough for Cohen American Sasha Cohen captured the women's event, adding to her growing reputation as a force to be reckoned with. It was a first Grand Prix win for the 18-year-old California native, who delivered a graceful free skate to retain her lead from the short program. She said she hopes to introduce a quadruple jump later this year. Fumie Suguri of Japan was second and Russia's Viktoria Volchkova third.

Jennifer Robinson of Barrie, finished fourth. Annie Bellemare of Blainville, finished seventh and Michelle Currie of Edmonton eighth. Canadian dancers second Canadians Marie-France Dubreuil and Patrice Lauzon collapsed into each other's arms after performing a silver-medal-winning free dance. They beamed and hugged at centre ice, celebrating the culmination of a love story that has come full circle. It goes something like this.

Boy meets girl and they begin skating together. They fall in love. Their coach retires and they find a new one in France. They move there. Then they win a silver medal during an emotional return visit to Canada, dazzling home fans with a program based on their own life story that took them across QUEBEC (CP) Emanuel Sandhu tried finding a silver lining to go along with his silver medal Saturday at the MasterCard Skate Canada International.

The Vancouver native saw victory slip away moments into his free skate when he tumbled onto his backside during a quadruple-triple toe loop, the same jump he executed flawlessly two nights earlier in the short program. He fell into second place and was passed by Japan's Takeshi Honda, who trains in Canada. "I really would have loved to have won," Sandhu said. "But you put that aside and look at the big picture. We won the short (program) and kept it together for the long." Sandhu recovered from his early fall, delivering a relatively clean performance afterward.

Under the temporary new judging sys CP Sasha Cohen From the heart of Saskatchewan i Biggar hometown of rl Olympic a ii i it Wo A ftl I I i it I II I Li Wf0k if? ject, the people behind the park commissioned a 160-page book, "Sharing the Memories' dedicated to "the Schmirler team and all those who dare to dream." With hundreds of photographs of Sandra, the book goes from her very first picture June 11,1 963, and follows her throughout her life. Family, friends and curling share the spotlight, with excerpts of her thoughts as she battled cancer. The pictures tell a thousand stories, both of her public and private moments, as well as the building of the park, and gives readers a glance at the lives of her two children, Sara and Jen-na. The soft cover 160-page book is being launched today in Regina and is available at book stores for $39.95. Not everyone would get excited about having a park named after them.

Half the people probably wouldn't know who that individual was, and most wouldn't care. But in Biggar, everybody knows why there is a Sandra Schmirler Olympic Gold Park. So does everybody in Saskatchewan. So does everybody in Canada. The woman from Biggar captured the hearts of the nation in her quest for curling gold at the 1998 Winter Olympics.

She won supporters world-wide in the curling fraternity because of her prowess in provincial, national and world championships. And her fight against cancer, and her death March 2, 2000, epitomized her belief of living every day to the fullest. In her hometown, the people wanted to remember "their girl" and launched the park project before her illness. Five months after her passing, the Gold Park was officially opened. To commemorate that pro Singh shows finishing touch 1 Kevin tfegrrreTTi, answer," Howell said.

Tiger Woods was never a factor after taking a double bogey on the opening hole. He wound up with a 70 and a tie for seventh. PGA event ends today MADISON, Miss. The final round of the Southern Farm Bureau Classic was postponed Sunday because of rain and wind, with England's Luke Donald leading by a stroke. Play was to resume this morning, setting up the first Monday finish to a PGA event this season.

Park wins Match Play NARITA, Japan South Korea's Grace Park defeated Japan's Midori Yoneyama 1-up after four playoff holes Sunday to win the Cisco World Ladies Match Play championship for her first victory of the season. By Doug Ferguson of The Associated Press ATLANTA Vijay Singh atoned for two final-round failures at East Lake, pulling away from the field with three straight birdies and closing with a 3-under 67 Sunday to win the season-ending Tour Championship. A 54-hole leader the previous two times at East Lake, Singh finally figured out how to close the deal. He put together his best ball-striking round, kept out of trouble and dared everyone else to come get him. They certainly tried.

Jerry Kelly made an ace on No. 1 1 to trim Singh's lead to one. Charles Howell III holed a wedge from the 13th fairway for an eagle and birdied the 17th to keep it interesting. It wasn't enough. Singh missed only two greens and finished at 1 2-under 268 for a two-stroke victory over Howell.

"Every time I hit a good shot, he was right there to Carin Koch of Sweden scored a 1-up victory over Hee Won-han of South Korea to finish third..