By FRANK PASTOR, Times wires
Published December 9, 2003
RALEIGH, N.C. - As a precaution, American track and field athletes at the 2004 Athens Olympics might be discouraged from wearing red, white and blue or anything with "USA" when they are not competing.
"For security reasons, if that's the way they want to go, that's what we'll do," U.S. men's track coach George Williams said.
USA Track & Field spokeswoman Jill Geer said Monday "off-track uniform issues are governed by the U.S. Olympic Committee."
"Coaching and managerial teams always look at a number of security issues before any international competition, including clothing," Geer said.
Greece is spending more than $750-million for security, the biggest security budget in Olympic history and more than 31/2 times more than was spent for the 2000 Sydney Games. Authorities plan to deploy about 50,000 security personnel, including 16,000 soldiers, during the Games.
Williams said track officials have suggested ways to lower the profile of American athletes around Athens.
"They said it would be good if we low-keyed it," he said. "(But) some of us are going to look American. We're going to have our Bermuda shorts on and our white tennis shoes. It's going to be hard to do."
ARENA FOOTBALL: Storm holding tryouts
The Storm will hold open player tryouts from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Jan. 17 at the University of South Florida's football practice facility. Registration will begin at 9 a.m. The workout is open to all positions and will include agility, speed and position-specific drills. Participants should bring a T-shirt, shorts and grass cleats. Cost is $50 in advance or $60 the day of the event via cash or money order. For details, call Dave Ewart at 813 307-5908 or e-mail dave@tampabaystorm.com
TENNIS: Record deal for Serena?
Serena Williams is close to signing an endorsement contract with Nike that could be the richest ever for a female athlete, the Associated Press reported. The multiyear agreement would include royalties and performance bonuses for winning Grand Slam tournaments or reaching No. 1 in the rankings. Those clauses could make the contract worth more than the deal with Reebok that Williams' older sister Venus signed in December 2000 after winning Wimbledon and the U.S. Open. That was worth up to $40-million over five years. Serena Williams, 21, has won five of the past seven Grand Slams, beating her sister in the final each time.
ET CETERA
BASKETBALL: Larry Brown, coach of the U.S. men's Olympic qualifying team, was named national coach of the year. Brown, who coaches the NBA's Detroit Pistons, is the first to win the award twice. He guided the U.S. team to gold and an 2004 Olympic berth in the FIBA Americas qualifying tournament in Puerto Rico.
COLLEGE SOCCER: Florida State freshman India Trotter was named to the NCAA All-Tournament team, the first Seminole to earn that honor. FSU's first trip to the College Cup ended in a 2-0 loss to UConn in the semifinals.
FIGURE SKATING: Polk County was selected to host the U.S. National Invitational Championships, which includes Olympic eligible and professional levels, June 3-6 at the Lakeland Center.
