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Mandatory sickle cell testing being considered for athletes

By TIMES WIRES
Published June 28, 2006

COLUMBIA, Mo. - A growing number of trainers and team physicians - particularly in the Southeast and the Sun Belt, where intense heat and dehydration can increase the risk of exercise-related injuries and deaths - are calling for mandatory sickle cell testing nearly one year after the death of a Missouri football player who had the sickle cell trait.

NCAA guidelines treat the hereditary condition as a "benign condition" and ask members only to consider voluntary testing.

Members of the National Athletic Trainers' Association, in conjunction with the NCAA, will hold a summit in early 2007 to explore the link between sickle cells and risk to athletes.

DUKE: Athletic director Joe Alleva injured his head during a boating accident at a lake north of Durham, N.C., and his son, Joseph David "J.D." Alleva, 27, was charged with operating a boat while impaired Friday.

CYCLING

Hamilton allowed to keep medal

Tyler Hamilton will keep his gold medal from the 2004 Athens Olympics. The Court of Arbitration for Sport rejected an appeal by the Russian Olympic Committee to strip his time- trial medal due to a doping controversy and give it to silver medalist Vyacheslav Ekimov.

TOUR DE FRANCE: The Astana-Wurth team has been asked to pull out because of a doping scandal in Spain. ... Jan Ullrich was cleared to compete when organizers decided doping accusations against him were too weak. ... Lance Armstrong will provide pre-taped segments on OLN throughout the Tour de France. "On Lance" segments will cover his experiences at various stages of the Tour.

SOCCER

Italian manager falls from building

Juventus said Gianluca Pessotto fell from a building at its headquarters in Turin and has been hospitalized in serious condition.

Pessotto was appointed team manager after the club's entire board resigned in May due to the massive match-fixing scandal.

MLS: The New York Red Bulls fired coach Mo Johnston and chose assistant coach Richie Williams as interim coach.

ETC

HOCKEY: Mike Sullivan was fired after two seasons as coach of the Boston Bruins. ... The NHL salary cap was increased to $44-million, the league and players' association said. ... Mark Cuban and Dan Marino have joined with a New York financier in trying to buy the NHL's Penguins from Mario Lemieux's group, which is selling the team.

DERBY LANE: Extruding Dream and brother Phenomenal Dream qualified for Friday's St. Petersburg Derby. Extruding Dream won for the 36th time, tying the meet mark set by Cayman Went two years ago.

OLYMPICS: Banned Olympic ski coach Walter Mayer was afraid and "couldn't act sensibly" when he rammed his car into a police blockade after fleeing the Turin Games, his lawyer said.

BOXING: Joe Mesi hurt his hand in a fight last week, forcing him to cancel a plan to fight Kenneth Craven on July 8. ... Former WBO junior-welterweight champion Randall Bailey stopped Juan Polo Perez in the first round of the scheduled eight-round bout in Miami.

SAILING: Poor winds forced the second-leg races on day six of Act 12 of the Louis Vuitton Cup to be postponed in Spain.

Times correspondent Don Jensen contributed to this report, which also used Times wires.

[Last modified June 28, 2006, 06:40:36]