Sports

Evert Academy to help spur juniors

By TIMES WIRES
Published July 6, 2006

WIMBLEDON, England - After nine months of negotiating, the USTA announced Wednesday it has signed an agreement with the Evert Tennis Academy to move its development center from Crandon Park on Key Biscayne to Boca Raton.

The key reason for the change is housing. The Evert Academy has apartments to house up to 20 juniors at a time with parents, and the young prospects will train alongside international youths already at the academy.

"The USTA realizes its responsibility as the national governing body of tennis to do what we can to develop future champions," president Franklin Johnson said.

DRUG PROBE: Tennis players aren't part of a Spanish drug investigation, and that includes French Open champion Rafael Nadal, the International Tennis Federation said. Monday, Nadal said he was considering suing a French newspaper which loosely linked him to the doping probe, which led to the exclusion of several top cyclists from the Tour de France.

MORE OF SAME: Wimbledon said it may consider putting more "permanent measures" - possibly security screens or fences - around Centre Court after a second security breach in as many days Wednesday.

During Roger Federer's quarterfinal win over Mario Ancic, two man came on the court with rackets and balls, and one of them hit a shot. On Tuesday, a streaker interrupted a quarterfinal match and danced and cartwheeled only 10 meters from Maria Sharapova.

WHO'S THE IDIOT?: Dmitry Tursunov was fined $7,500 for his altercation with chair umpire Fergus Murphy in a quarterfinal loss to Jarkko Nieminen. Tursunov was fined for deliberately striking the umpire's chair with a swatted ball, for an aggressive handshake in which he appeared to at first try to pull Murphy out of his chair and for later calling Murphy "an idiot."

- TIMES WIRES

[Last modified July 6, 2006, 06:08:57]