A Year Later, Slaney Is Cleared of Drug Use at Olympic Trials

Mary Slaney was cleared of drug use by USA Track and Field on Tuesday.

Slaney was suspended by the International Amateur Athletic Federation after allegedly testing positive for testosterone at the 1996 U.S. Olympic trials.

“Everybody is very pleased and relieved,” said Jim Coleman, Slaney’s attorney. “I think we convinced the panel Mary was innocent.”

“Mary Slaney has been one of our outstanding athletes, and I am looking forward to seeing her compete once again,” said Craig Masback, USATF chief executive officer. “I am also pleased that our process worked to afford her a fair hearing.”

Basketball

In statements only hours apart, two favorites to fill Arizona State’s coaching vacancy--Utah’s Rick Majerus and Oklahoma’s Kelvin Sampson--said they aren’t interested in the job.

School officials also shot down a report Tuesday night by Phoenix radio station KMVP that Arizona State Athletic Director Kevin White had met with George Washington Coach Mike Jarvis about possibly replacing Bill Frieder, who resigned last week after eight seasons.

Meanwhile, Frieder said Don Newman, hired in May as his third assistant, could wind up coaching the Sun Devils next season on an interim basis. Newman, 39, coached Sacramento State to a 20-114 record over five years but has a reputation as a good recruiter.

New York Knick center Patrick Ewing was elected president of the NBA Players Assn. Ewing, a leader in the movement to decertify the players’ union in 1995, succeeds Buck Williams.

Cal State Northridge freshman guard Markus Carr will sit out the season because of a knee injury.

Jurisprudence

A former topless dancer, who falsely accused Dallas Cowboy stars Erik Williams and Michael Irvin of sexual assault, was sentenced to 90 days in jail.

Nina Shahravan, who recanted her accusations, apologized to the players “for putting them through the stuff that I’ve put them through.”

Shahravan also must pay a $1,500 fine. She could have received probation or up to a year in jail and a $4,000 fine.

Former Ferrari driver Michele Alboreto testified in the manslaughter trial of Ferrari team owner Frank Williams in Imola, Italy, that Brazilian driver Aryton Senna was killed in a 1994 race because of mechanical failure.

Senna, a three-time Formula One world champion, was killed when he crashed on a sharp turn during the San Marino Grand Prix.

“You don’t come off [the track on] that curve unless you have a mechanical problem,” he said.

“I hope this trial serves to defend a man who was a great driver and who is no longer with us.”

The prosecution contends that Williams was responsible for the accident because of negligence.

Motor Sports

Seven-time Winston Cup champion Dale Earnhardt, who fell asleep at the wheel twice before the start of the Southern 500 earlier this month, will race at this weekend’s MBNA 400 at Dover Downs International Speedway in Delaware.

Earnhardt said tests were negative. “Chalk it up to a chemical imbalance,” he said. “It was a reaction that happened chemically with what I had to eat that day or the night before.”

Craig Breedlove is officially back in his quest for a sixth world land-speed record. But weather could be a problem in the Nevada desert, where forecasts call for increasing winds and a chance of showers into the weekend.

Winter Olympics

A watchdog group for the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City, has requested an investigation into the organizing committee.

Tom Welch, former organizing committee president, received a $10,000-a-month consulting contract as well as $500,000 in retirement benefits following his resignation after being charged with domestic abuse.

Names in the News

International Boxing Federation flyweight champion Mark Johnson lived up to his nickname “Too Sharp” at Nashville, as he battled his way to a unanimous 12-round decision over Angel Almena. . . . UCLA women’s volleyball Coach Andy Banachowski, who has won six NCAA championships, will be inducted into the volleyball hall of fame next month. . . . Captain Tom Gullikson said there is a possibility that Todd Martin could be added to the U.S. Davis Cup team that will face Australia in a semifinal match in Washington this weekend. . . . James Madison baseball Coach Kevin Anderson resigned amid a school investigation into team meal money expenses. . . . Pepperdine’s Jason Gore, who planned to make his pro golf debut this week in the Nike Open in Boise, Idaho, pulled out because of the death of his father.