Organizers Won’t Lengthen Nagano’s Downhill Course

Organizers of next year’s Olympic Winter Games in Nagano, Japan, claimed victory Saturday in a long-running fight with the International Olympic Committee over the men’s downhill course.

Nagano organizing chief Makoto Kobayashi said Marc Hodler, president of the International Ski Federation and executive board member of the IOC, finally agreed to drop his demand that the course to be lengthened.

“We take it that they [IOC] have effectively accepted our stance,� Kobayashi said after a meeting with the IOC board.

Kobayashi said the starting point for the downhill at the Hakuba venue would remain at 5,493 feet. That will make the length of the course less than 1.86 miles, the shortest in recent times.

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Opposition to Stockholm’s bid for the 2004 Olympics has risen sharply since last week’s bomb attack on an Olympics-connected stadium, according to a new poll.

The poll, published in the newspaper Svenska Dagbladet, showed 42% of the 1,001 people questioned believed hosting the games would be bad for Sweden, an increase of nine percentage points from a poll taken two weeks ago.

The low support was seen as a critical weakness for Stockholm, whose bid otherwise has been highly regarded for its facilities and environmental consciousness.

Pro Football

All-pro defensive end Bruce Smith has agreed to an offer from the Buffalo Bills that virtually guarantees he will end his career with the team.

Details of the deal were not released, but previous reports had Smith accepting a six-year deal worth at least $26 million, including a $6-million signing bonus.

Amid speculation about Barry Switzer’s future, Dallas Cowboy owner Jerry Jones has refused to guarantee that the coach will return to his post after this season.

Jones also acknowledged there was a local and national perception Switzer might be fired or that he would prod Switzer into retirement.

“It is speculation, because I’m the only one who knows that,� Jones told the Dallas Morning News. “And I don’t know that he’s a lame-duck coach.�

Three-time Pro Bowl linebacker Seth Joyner of the Packers won’t play against the Bears on Monday night because of a sore left knee.

Auto Racing

Italy’s Alex Zanardi earned his 10th CART IndyCar pole and edged closer to his first series championship in Vancouver, Canada.

Because of heavy traffic, Zanardi, the defending pole sitter, failed to beat his record-setting time but earned one important point toward the series title.

On a three-race winning streak, Zanardi leads Brazil’s Gil de Ferran, 169 points to 130, with three races remaining. If he leaves Vancouver with a gain of seven points he will win the title and a $1-million bonus.

Driving a Reynard Honda, Zanardi toured the circuit in 54.025 seconds for a speed of 113.481 mph, slightly faster than his time Friday.

Jeff Burton, whose controversial slowdown helped Mark Martin win a Winston Cup race two weeks ago, didn’t give him any help this time in winning the Dura-Lube 200 at Darlington, S.C.

In winning the Dura-Lube 200, a NASCAR Busch Series event at Darlington Raceway, Burton kept Martin from breaking a tie with Jack Ingram for most Busch Grand National career victories.

Joe Amato recorded the fourth-fastest speed in NHRA history, 317.46 mph, and the top fuel field became the quickest ever during qualifying at the U.S. Nationals in Clermont, Ind.

Amato also climbed to No. 2 in the field on the same run by covering the quarter-mile in 4.625 seconds. Gary Scelzi remains No. 1 at 4.613, 312.60, his run from Friday night.

Golf

Fulton Allem last took a lead into the final round of a golf tournament in 1993, which is better than David Sutherland, his co-leader at the Greater Milwaukee Open at Brown Deer, Wis. Sutherland, who didn’t even play on the PGA Tour last year, was at the front of the pack for the first time in his career going into today’s final round with a 13-under-par 200 total.

Bob Duval, who got a spot in the Pittsburgh Senior Classic when Orville Moody broke his wrist, shot a four-under 68 to take the second-round lead in the Senior PGA Tour event.

Duval, the father of PGA Tour player David Duval, had an eight-under 136 total, two ahead of Tom Wargo, David Graham and John Jacobs.

Helen Dobson, Dana Dormann and Sherri Steinhauer shot seven-under-par 65s to share the first-round lead in the LPGA’s Rail Classic at Springfield, Ill.

Miscellany

The United States will get another shot at the Netherlands’ Fed Cup tennis team the week of April 13, 1998. The Americans will have choice of site. The Dutch women, led by Brenda Schultz-McCarthy and Miriam Oremans, upset the United States in first-round competition in March and will meet France on Oct. 4-5 for the title.

Guard Arthur Davis, whose play as a freshman was pivotal in St. Joseph’s run to the Sweet 16 in the NCAA tournament, was declared academically ineligible for the fall semester. Davis, who averaged 14.7 points and 4.2 rebounds, will miss at least the first five games.

The United States claimed a record fifth consecutive World University Games men’s basketball title, beating Canada, 72-64, at Sicily. Guard Earl Boykins from Eastern Michigan led the Americans to their 11th title in 15 appearances, scoring 23 points. Also, Frankie Fredericks and Merlene Ottey won 200-meter races at the “Sprint Festival� organized in conjunction with the games.

David LeFevre, the governor of the Tampa Bay Lightning since the team’s inception, resigned from the organization, effective today.