2000 SUMMER OLYMPICS
Sisters double the medals
The Associated Press
SYDNEY, Australia — The
Williams’ Invitational, also known
as Olympic women's tennis, ended
with a fittingly ferocious flourish.
On championship point, Venus
Williams socked a 115-mph serve.
Kristie Boogert somehow managed
to return it, so Serena Williams
whacked an overhead slam for a
winner and the gold medal in dou
bles.
The sisters dominated in Sydney
from start to finish, beating the
Dutch team of Boogert and Miriam
Oremans in the final Thursday, 6-1,
6-1.
The gold was the second for
Venus, who won the singles title
Wednesday.
"For me, this is almost bigger
than singles," she said. "To have a
victory like this with Serena, my
sister and best friend, doesn't hap
pen very often."
In fact, they're the first sisters to
win a gold in doubles. And Venus
is only the second woman to win a
gold in singles and doubles, joining
American Helen Wills, an
Olympian in 1924.
"To be a part of history is really
important," Williams said. "To be
able to cap an opportunity and suc
ceed is really, really rewarding."
Williams played — and won —
11 matches in 10 days.
"It's been a good 10 days," she
said. "I didn't really have any
doubts. The only thing I was hop
ing was that I wouldn't pull any
muscles along the way and have to
pull out. It was just a matter of how
my body was going to last.”
The sisters weren't too taxed in
the doubles final, which took just
50 minutes. The men's singles final
lasted 3 hours, 34 minutes, with
Yevgeny Kafelnikov of Russia out
lasting Tommy Haas of Germany 7
6(7-4),3-6,6-2,4-6,6-3.
Venus and Serena lost only three
points in the first three games, and
Oremans double-faulted three
times in the seventh game to lose
the opening set. Then the Ameri
cans raced to a 4-0 lead in the sec
ond set.
When Serena lowered the boom
with her slam on championship
point, the sisters shrieked, flung
their rackets in the air and hugged.
Holding hands, they waved to the
crowd, then skipped happily across
the court carrying American flags.
From the medal podium, the sis
ters beamed during "The Star-Span
gled Banner;" Venus closed her
eyes through much of the song, sa
voring the occasion.
"It only lasts one minute, but it's
a good time," she said.
"It was a happy moment for me
Wednesday, watching Venus win,"
Serena said. "It was the same kind
of feeling today."
The sisters extended their win
ning streak in doubles to 22 match
es, complementing Venus' 32
match streak in singles. They've
won three of the past four Grand
Slam doubles tournaments they've
played.
"This takes the cake," said Sere
na, who turned 19 Tuesday. "Every
year I can win a Slam. This is every
four years, and you never know
what's going to happen."
The U.S. men fared poorly at
Sydney, winning just one match —
their worst Olympic showdng since
1912. But American women swept
the gold in singles and doubles for
the third time in as many
Olympics.
The women's tour will get a bit of
a break this fall because Venus and
Serena plan to return to school and
cut back on their tennis schedule.
That will raise new doubts about
their dedication to the sport.
They have the talent to dominate
for years. But do they have the at
tention span?
"I don't know," U.S. coach Billie
Jean King said. "Do they stay injury
free? And what do they really want
for their lives?"
In Sydney, at least, the sisters
achieved their objectives.
C.J. cheers Jones to Olympic 200 gold
By Steve Wilstein
The Associated Press
SYDNEY, Australia — Stripped
of his credential but far from an
outcast, C.J. Hunter leapt from his
trackside seat, cupped his hands
and bellowed into the jittery si
lence as his wife, Marion Jones, set
tled into the starting blocks.
It was a cry that sounded like,
“Let’s fly!” though Hunter smiled
when asked exactly what he shout
ed.
“It’s a secret, just between Mari
on and me,” he said. “She knows
what I said.”
Whatever it was, Jones did in
deed fly.
The fastest woman in the world,
winner of the 100 last week, Jones
sprang from the blocks at the start
of the 200 Thursday, bolted into the
lead and leaned into the turn a
good meter ahead of the field.
“C’mon, c’mon, c’mon, c’mon,”
Hunter kept shouting from his spot
50 meters from the finish line as
she separated herself from the pack.
Hunter wasn’t accustomed to
watching Jones from the stands. Be
sides being her husband, he’s been
her personal coach since their days
together at North Carolina. He
watched her 100 meter race from
near the finish line and hugged her
after the race in the tunnel leading
to the locker room.
But that was when he still wore
an athlete’s credential around his
neck — and before IOC and track
federation officials revealed he
flunked four drug tests this summer
with massive amounts of the ana
bolic steroid nandrolone in his
urine samples.
Hunter, the shot put world cham
pion, pulled out of the Olympics a
few days before the opening cere
mony, saying his surgically re
paired left knee hadn’t healed
enough to let him compete. But he
kept his athlete’s badge and stayed
at Jones’ side, helping her prepare
for one of the great challenges in
Olympic history — a record five
gold medals in the sprints, relays
and women’s long jump.
Now, with his credential gone,
the 330-pound Hunter came in
with a ticket, courtesy of USA
Track & Field, and sat five rows up
from the track. He wore a blue USA
Track & Field cap and sweatshirt.
Before and after the race, fans
flocked to shake his hand, pose
with him for photos and ask for his
autograph. Rather than acting like a
man disgraced, he seemed like a
hero, obliging his admirers.
And Jones, as resolute a runner
as ever has appeared in the games,
refused to let her husband’s trou
bles get in her way.
“To let one event in your life, as
dramatic as it might be, ruin this ...
no way,” Jones said after the race.
Asked if she feared that people
would think she, too, was using
drugs to boost her performance,
Jones responded:
“No, I don’t have that fear, be
cause the people who know me,
coach me, train me, know I’m a
clean athlete.”
U.S. women fall to Norway
The Associated Press
SYDNEY, Australia — As the
U.S. women’s soccer team assem
bled behind the silver medal podi
um, Mia Hamm left her place in
line to talk to her teammates.
“She said, ‘Hold your head high
— and be proud.’ And we were, de
fender Brandi Chastain said. “I
think you could see that in every
body’s eyes. We’re very, very proud
of what we accomplished. And I
hope everybody who watches the
game understands it wasn’t easy.”
And it wasn’t the finish the team
or its fans wanted.
In the 12th minute of sudden
death overtime, substitute Dagny
Mellgren scored to give Norway a
3-2 victory Thursday against the
Americans and an Olympic gold
medal. It also gave it the right to
claim a spot next to the United
States as the top team of the past
decade in major international
women’s soccer.
With the victory, Norway adds
the 2000 Olympic title to its 1995
World Cup championship. The
United States can claim the 1991
and last year’s thrilling World Cup
triumph in front of U.S. fans at the
Rose Bowl plus the gold medal at
the 1996 Atlanta Games.
The victory also means Norway
is still the only nation with an all
time winning record (15-13-2)
against the United States. The Nor
wegians are also the only team to
defeat the Americans in a World
Cup or Olympic tournament, the
other victory coming in the 1995
World Cup semifinals.
The game was by far the best of
the Olympic tournament. The U.S.
team took an early lead, lost it just
before halftime, then fell behind in
the second half before forcing over
time with Tiffeny Milbrett’s goal
seconds before the end of regula
tion.
“When the U.S. team scored very
early I thought ‘No, not again. Why
should they win again?’” said Gro
Espeseth, who scored Norway’s
first goal. “It was terrible when
Tiffy scored the goal when they
were a few seconds from the end.
But we came back.”
Although these Olympics
weren’t a cumulative last-hurrah
for the stars of the U.S. team, it’s
likely that the lineup will change
substantially before the next major
tournament, the 2003 World Cup.
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