Times wires
Tuesday, February 8, 2011
Winter sports
Vonn 'skiing in a fog' at worlds
GARMISCH-PARTENKIRCHEN, Germany — American Lindsey Vonn, the Olympic downhill champion, isn't sure when she'll be fully recovered from her head injury.
Attempting to defend her super-G title in the opening race of the world championships, Vonn finished seventh. She was 0.84 seconds behind Austrian winner Elisabeth Goergl (1:23.82).
"It's like I'm skiing in a fog," said Vonn, who lost time at each checkpoint and became increasingly shaky Tuesday.
"I can't process the information fast enough, and that's why I'm behind the course; all the bumps are throwing me around," she said. "It's because my body is one gate ahead of where my mind is, and that's not a good way to ski."
Vonn landed on her head during a fall in giant slalom training last week in Austria.
"It's very frustrating because it's not pain. I can't just fight my way down and fight my way through the pain. I have no fight; I can't think," she said. "It's awful, it's awful."
The next race is the super-combined Friday. Vonn will assess her condition day by day.
U.S. teammate Julia Mancuso took silver, 0.05 seconds behind, and Maria Riesch of Germany won bronze.
Golf
PGA won't halt fan calls on rules issues
PGA Tour commissioner Tim Finchem wants to see more common sense used in enforcing penalties for rules infractions phoned in by fans watching on television but said halting their input is "not an option."
"We like the fact that people call in. We like the fact people who watch the telecasts get excited about something they see," he said. "We don't want to turn those people off. We want to accept the information and deal with it. … It is just a question of how the rule is applied."
Finchem said he wants the PGA to follow the USGA's lead and anticipates they will end up with "a few, little, small" changes to the rules.
Et cetera
Autos: Doctors say Formula One driver Robert Kubica is responding well to treatment and will have surgery Thursday to stabilize a broken right foot and right shoulder suffered in a rally car crash Sunday in Italy.
Cycling: Riccardo Ricco was admitted to a hospital in Modena, Italy, in critical condition Monday after performing a transfusion on himself with blood that might have turned bad, several news outlets reported. A transfusion can increase red blood cells and boost endurance, and the procedure is banned under World Anti-Doping Agency rules. Ricco served a 20-month suspension for testing positive during the 2008 Tour de France.
Soccer: Brazilian D Daniel Alves said he is subjected to racist insults from spectators during nearly every match with Barcelona in the Spanish league. "Unfortunately, I have learned how to live with it," he told the Brazilian newspaper Folha de S. Paulo. "Every match the crowd goes after me. They insult me, call me monkey." Meanwhile, Barcelona coach Pep Guardiola agreed to a one-year contract extension through the 2011-12 season. … Frank Lampard was chosen as England's captain for the first time for tonight's exhibition game at Denmark after injuries to Rio Ferdinand and Steven Gerrard.
Tennis: American Bethanie Mattek-Sands routed Carla Suarez Navarro 6-0, 6-3 and American Melanie Oudin rallied past Vera Dushevina 7-5, 5-7, 6-2 in the first round of the Open Gaz de France in Paris. … Milos Raonic upset fourth-seeded Xavier Malisse 6-3, 6-4 in the first round of the SAP Open in San Jose, Calif., and faces James Blake of Tampa today.
Times wires