In Sports from United Press International
Tyson turned down by state boxing commission
LAS VEGAS, Nev., Jan. 30 (UPI) -- Mike Tyson was denied another chance Tuesday by the Nevada State Athletic Commission.
Accompanied by a four-member team of advisors, Tyson was told his recent actions have "diminished the sport" and his "lack of control" has cost him a chance to fight Lennox Lewis in Las Vegas for the heavyweight title on April 6.
Following closing remarks, the five-member board seemed ready to reject Tyson's application. But top advisor Bob Fess asked for a brief recess, then requested that the board withdraw his request for reinstatement.
Board member John Bailey moved to withdraw the application but failed to garner any support and the commission went ahead with a 4-1 vote against Tyson.
Fess' strategy was a wise one since Tyson would have a better chance of being licensed elsewhere if he was not rejected by the Nevada State Athletic Commission.
The hearing was to decide whether or not Tyson would receive the license that was revoked following the 1997 fight in which he bit Evander Holifield's ear.
As the commission was quick to point out, Tuesday's gathering was not precipitated by last week's brawl in New York, where Tyson attacked Lewis during what his side claimed was a scripted faceoff.
Tuesday's 2 ½-hour hearing--the last item of the day for the board--began at 4:35 p.m. EST because Tyson was five minutes late. He entered with a smirk but quickly had the smile wiped off his face.
Schottenheimer new Chargers coach
SAN DIEGO, Jan. 30 (UPI) -- The San Diego Chargers on Tuesday named Marty Schottenheimer their fifth coach in seven years.
Terms were not disclosed, but the San Diego Union-Tribune reported that Schottenheimer was expected to receive a four-year contract worth between $6.5 million and $7.5 million. He also will be paid as much as $3 million under terms of the deal he had with the Washington Redskins, who fired him on January 13.
"Everybody's excited that the deal is finally done," Chargers president Dean Spanos said. "We started out trying to find somebody with experience at the NFL level who has been a winner, and Marty's record speaks for itself."
Schottenheimer, 58, replaces Mike Riley, who was fired on New Year's Eve after going 14-34 in three years. The Chargers have not had a winning season since 1995, which also was the last time they reached the playoffs.
Schottenheimer was dismissed by the Redskins after just one season. After losing their first five games, Washington went 8-3 to finish at the .500 mark. But owner Daniel Snyder dumped Schottenheimer in favor of former University of Florida coach Steve Spurrier.
Schottenheimer had been out of football for two years before taking the Redskins' job. He ranks 11th all time with 153 wins but never has been to a Super Bowl and has a 5-11 career mark in the postseason.
Brady expects to play in Super Bowl
NEW ORLEANS, Jan. 30 (UPI) -- New England quarterback Tom Brady said Tuesday he expected to play in Super Bowl XXXVI and that he felt he would be able to demonstrate in practice Wednesday that he was ready to start in the biggest game of his career.
Patriots coach Bill Belichick has said he would wait until after practice Wednesday to decide whether Brady or Drew Bledsoe would start Sunday against the St. Louis Rams.
In his first year as a starter, Brady became one of the NFL's biggest success stories by leading the Patriots to a division title. But when Brady limped off the field in the AFC Championship game last Sunday with a sprained left ankle, Bledsoe came in to throw a touchdown pass and help guide the Patriots into the Super Bowl for the third time in franchise history.
Now the Super Bowl finds itself with its biggest quarterback controversy ever. As far as Brady is concerned, however, the debate will end with him being named the Patriots' starter.
Olajuwan to miss 4-6 weeks
TORONTO, Jan. 30 (UPI) -- Toronto Raptors center Hakeem Olajuwon will be sidelined up to six weeks with a right quadriceps strain, the team announced Tuesday.
The injury does not require surgery but will force the 39-year-old to undergo an "intensive" rehabilitation program once the swelling subsides.
Olajuwon left Sunday's game against Orlando in the second quarter and did return.
In his first season with Toronto, the 14-time All-Star has averaged just 8.1 points, 6.9 rebounds and 1.75 blocks in 36 games, missing another nine from Dec. 15-Jan. 6 with an infected toe.
Toronto acquired Olajuwon from Houston in August and signed him to a three-year, $17 million deal. The Raptors gave up a lottery-protected 2002 first-round pick and a 2002 second-round pick they acquired from Detroit to land him.
One of the NBA's 50 Greatest Players and the NBA's all-time leader in blocked shots, Olajuwon led the Rockets to back-to-back titles in 1994 and 1995. But his production has seriously diminished the past four seasons.
The 7-foot Nigerian played only 58 games last season and averaged 11.0 points and 7.4 rebounds. In 17 seasons with the Rockets, Olajuwon averaged 22.5 points and 11.4 rebounds per game while amassing an NBA-record 3,740 blocks.
Sampras, Roddick to lead U.S.
WHITE PLAINS, N.Y., Jan. 30 (UPI) -- Pete Sampras will return to the United States Davis Cup team for the first time in nearly two years in a first-round tie with the Slovak Republic next month.
Team captain Patrick McEnroe announced the five-player squad that will represent the United States from February 8-10 in Oklahoma City, naming Sampras, Andy Roddick, Todd Martin, James Blake and Mardy Fish.
Sampras, 30, has played Davis Cup seven times, but has shown sporadic commitment since Sweden defeated the United States in the 1997 final, appearing for the last time in 2000.
The 13-time Grand Slam winner will bring an edge to the American squad, having gone 14-7 in Davis Cup singles action and helping the U.S. to a pair of titles.
This will be the first meeting between the U.S. and the Slovaks since the Slovak Republic first competed apart from Czechoslovakia in 1994. The Slovakian team will consist of 1999 French Open semifinalist Dominik Hrbaty, Karol Kucera, Jan Kroslak and Karol Beck.
Malone joins NBA all-stars
NEW YORK, Jan. 30 (UPI) -- Karl Malone of the Utah Jazz, Gary Payton of the Seattle SuperSonics and Alonzo Mourning of the Miami Heat were among 14 reserves named Tuesday for the National Basketball Association All-Star Game.
The 2002 All-Star Game will be played at Philadelphia's First Union Center on Feb.10.
The 38-year-old Malone, one of the NBA's 50 Greatest Players, is averaging 23.6 points and 8.6 rebounds in 45 games. He has been named to the Western Conference All-Star team each year since 1988, missing the 1990 game due to injury.
Payton was selected to the West squad for the eighth time and will back up Houston Rockets guard Steve Francis. Point guard Steve Nash of the Dallas Mavericks will join Payton on the bench and becomes the first native of Canada selected. Nash's teammate, forward Dirk Nowitzki, also was chosen for the first time.
Mourning, who made an inspirational comeback from a kidney ailment last season, has been named six previous times but has missed half of those games due to injury. The 6-10 Mourning, who missed Monday's game with the flu, will back up fellow Georgetown alumnus Dikembe Mutombo of Philadelphia.
Sacramento's Chris Webber, who missed the first 20 games of the season recovering from a sprained right ankle, was selected for the fourth time. He will be joined by Kings swingman Peja Stojakovic and Minnesota Timberwolves forward Wally Szczerbiak both of whom are first-time selections.
Maleeva, Coetzer advance in Pan Pacific
TOKYO, Jan. 30 (UPI) -- Sixth-seeded Magdalena Maleeva of Bulgaria and No. 8 Amanda Coetzer of South Africa, both looking to build on strong efforts at the Australian Open, reached the second round of the $1.2 million Pan Pacific Open Tuesday.
Maleeva topped Daja Bedanova of the Czech Republic, 6-4, 6-4,and Coetzer defeated American Lisa Raymond, 7-5, 6-4.
Maleeva and Coetzer are coming off fourth-round finishes at the year's first Grand Slam last week. Maleeva lost to Venus Williams and Coetzer fell to Martina Hingis.
Russian wild card and fan favorite Anna Kournikova, who won the Australian Open doubles title with Hingis, dispatched Spaniard Cristina Torrens Valero, 6-3, 6-0.
Also on Tuesday, Italy's Rita Grande posted a 7-6 (9-7), 6-3 victory over Uzbekistan's Iroda Tulyaganova, and Austria's Barbara Schett cruised past Spain's Magui Serna, 6-1, 6-3.
Ted Williams home from hospital
GAINESVILLE, Fla., Jan. 30 (UPI) -- Ted Williams was back home with family members Tuesday after a four-day hospital stay to deal with low blood pressure and high temperatures.
The 83-year-old baseball Hall of Famer who underwent open-heart surgery last year, was suffering from cardiovascular deterioration, latest in a series of ailments that have slowed the former Boston Red Sox star. He was released from Shands Hospital Monday.
The last major leaguer to bat .400 when he hit .406 in 1941 and one of the greatest hitters in baseball history, Williams underwent nine hours of heart surgery in January 2001 at New York Presbyterian Hospital. He had a pacemaker implanted in 2000.
Indian pair wins World Doubles opener
BANGALORE, India, Jan. 30 (UPI) -- Leander Paes and Mahesh Bhupathi gave the home crowd something to cheer about Tuesday, opening play at the World Doubles Challenge Cup with an easy win over John-Laffnie de Jager and Robbie Koenig of South Africa.
The second-seeded team of Paes and Bhupathi cruised to a 6-2, 6-3 win as it tries to forget three finals losses in this event, the most recent coming against American Donald Johnson and Piet Norval of South Africa in 2000.
Johnson and American teammate Jared Palmer, the top seed, opened play in the Touchtel Group with a 6-7 (3-7), 7-6 (7-3), 6-3 win over Belgium's Tom Vanhoudt and South African.
Also in the Touchtel Group, American twins Mike and Bob Bryan outlasted Rick Leach of the United States and South Africa's Ellis Ferreira, 6-4, 5-7, 6-4.
Joining the Indian team in the Bharti Group win column were Mark Knowles of the Bahamas and American Brian McPhie, who defeated the Czech duo of Petr Pala and Pavel Vizner, 6-1, 3-6, 7-5.
