Olympic roundup

Compiled from Times wires
© St. Petersburg Times
published February 9, 2002

High winds at ski jump force postponement

SALT LAKE CITY -- Winter weather got the best of the Winter Olympics on Friday.

Ski-jump qualifying on the 90-meter hill, the first competition, was postponed because of high crosswinds and blowing snow at the Utah Olympic Park. Gusts exceeding 50 mph ripped a door off its hinges at the park's day lodge.

Venue general manager Colin Hilton said the qualifying and final would be Sunday morning.

Practice for the men's downhill, the premier event of alpine skiing, was canceled, as was training for women's downhill and Nordic combined. A first practice run of men's single luge was held, but the second run was canceled.

LET THE PROTESTS BEGIN: The first protests were "passionate but peaceful," according to a volunteer at the American Civil Liberties Union, which has raised concerns about police restricting demonstrations.

Around noon, five members of an antihomosexual group protested on a downtown street corner, carrying signs denouncing gays and lesbians. Three women in blue ACLU caps stood nearby as passers-by exchanged shouts with the protesters. Police officers across the street seemed more concerned about heavy foot traffic than the demonstrators.

"Peaceful but passionate," said Emilie Turner, an ACLU volunteer.

When the group's allotted protest time was up, members obediently packed up their signs.

More than two dozen abortion protesters gathered at Salt Lake Organizing Committee headquarters to oppose the distribution of condoms in the Olympic Village.

The group was confronted by security when it tried to enter the building to present the organizing committee with pamphlets about the failure rate of condoms, but three were allowed inside to distribute the pamphlets.

Police have said they will allow demonstrations provided the Games aren't disrupted. Protesters need permits and must stay in designated zones.

TAKE THE SAFE ROUTE: U.S. skater Sasha Cohen wants to be the first woman to land a four-revolution jump in competition, and she has been practicing a quad salchow all season. But she said Friday that she won't try the quad in her free skate.

"We were training it after nationals, and I could do a small percentage," she said. "We've decided we really want to do a safer program, a program we're comfortable with."

The headstrong 17-year-old and coach John Nicks have had their share of disagreements. She reluctantly left the quad out at the U.S. Championships last month, convinced by Nicks that she needed to focus on two clean programs to make the team.

"Surprisingly enough, Sasha and I have been more or less on the same page the last few weeks," Nicks said. "We decided to play the percentages. Do two clean programs. I think with two clean programs, she's going to do very well."

RELATIVELY CLEAN: The chair of an independent world antidoping agency called these Games "the cleanest competition ever," after nine of 1,621 athletes failed out-of-competition drug tests. World Anti-Doping Agency chairman Dick Pound said in the winter and summer federations "one-half of 1 percent" of 3,639 athletes failed random drug tests, performed from early last year to last month.

THANKS, DOC: Dr. Bengt Saltin, whose work in the field of sports injuries led to changes in the treatment of recovering athletes, was honored with the 2002 IOC Olympic Prize on Sports Sciences. The honor, with a $500,000 award and an Olympic medal, was presented by IOC president Jacques Rogge at the athletes' village. Among the breakthroughs attributed to Saltin was the concept that exercise, rather than rest, was an important part of recovery from any illness or injury.

WEATHERING SECURITY: Gusting winds forced a temporary shutdown of metal detectors outside the Salt Lake Ice Center and Olympic Square. The disruption didn't last long, and the detectors in both locations were running within an hour, U.S. Secret Service agent Mark Connolly said. Security officers switch to hand-held wands when walkthrough booths don't operate properly, he said.