Coors Escalator Lacked Switch

A major safety switch was missing from an escalator when it malfunctioned at Coors Field last summer, injuring dozens of baseball fans, city inspectors in Denver said Tuesday.

City inspectors said the switch would have prevented the escalator from hurtling out of control July 2.

The device was there when the escalator was originally certified, and contractors said they inspected it in March, according to Julius Zsako, spokesman for the city Community Planning and Development Office.

“We don’t know when it was removed,� Zsako said.

Escalators at Coors Field are maintained by Kone Inc., whose spokesman, Mark Spencer, said the company is reviewing the report.

The company previously issued a report that blamed the accident on overcrowding and a misconnected wire.

According to the city’s investigation, a sensing device that is supposed to bring the escalator slowly up to speed malfunctioned and allowed the moving stairs to hurtle out of control. Inspectors said the overspeed board would have shut the escalator down.

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Right-hander Jason Johnson agreed to a $7-million, two-year contract with the Detroit Tigers.

Johnson, 30, pitched the last five seasons for Baltimore. He was the Orioles’ second-winningest starter behind Sidney Ponson last season, going 10-10 with a 4.18 earned-run average in 189 2/3 innings. His victories matched a career high, set in 2001.

Johnson became a free agent when Baltimore failed to offer a contract by the Dec. 20 deadline.

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Free-agent pitcher Mike DeJean agreed to a one-year contract with the Orioles.

DeJean went 5-8 with 19 saves and a 4.68 ERA in 76 games for the Milwaukee Brewers and St. Louis Cardinals last season.

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College Sports

USC senior April Ross is one of four finalists for the Honda Award in women’s volleyball after leading the Trojans to their second consecutive NCAA title. Joining Ross in consideration are Kim Willoughby of Hawaii; Ogonna Nnamani of Stanford; and Kele Eveland of Georgia Tech.

UCLA senior forward Matt Taylor was selected to College Sports Television’s 2003 All-American men’s soccer team. Sophomore forward Iris Mora and senior defender Nandi Pryce were selected to the women’s team.

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Miscellany

Stephen Werner scored two goals, including the winner, as the United States beat Sweden, 4-3, at the world junior hockey championships at Helsinki, Finland.

The United States remained undefeated in the under-20 tournament and next plays Russia today. The winner of that game will top Group A and get a bye into the tournament semifinals on Saturday.

The Czech Republic defeated Switzerland, 2-1, and will face Canada today to decide the winner of Group B and a berth in the semifinals.

Former NASCAR rookie of the year Dick Brooks was in a plane crash at Woodruff, S.C., the Federal Aviation Administration said.

The exact nature of Brooks’ injuries wasn’t immediately known.

Brooks, 61, was taxiing a plane down the runway at his farm Sunday when a wheel caught in the grass and turned the plane over.

The former driver from Porterville, Calif., was NASCAR’s top rookie in 1969 and recorded 57 top-five finishes before retiring after the 1985 season.

His only Winston Cup victory came in 1973 at Talladega Superspeedway.

Jacob Beste and Rachel Steer won pursuit events at the national biathlon championships at Lake Placid, N.Y.

Beste, of St. Cloud, Minn., won the men’s 12.5-kilometer pursuit in 38 minutes 21.3 seconds, including two perfect shooting rounds.

Steer, of Anchorage, won the women’s 10-kilometer pursuit in 37:54.6, and hit 16 of 20 targets on the biathlon range.

Ronny Ackermann of Germany picked up his fifth World Cup Nordic combined victory of the season at Oberhof, Germany.

Ackermann finished 53.6 seconds ahead of Austria’s Felix Gottwald, with American Todd Lodwick third, 1:06.6 behind.