ARLINGTON, Texas — Sprinter Tyson Gay is in Germany, resting, relaxing and getting ready for his next race — almost exactly like he planned before getting injured at the U.S. Olympic Trials.
Gay sprained a muscle in the back of his left leg in a 200-meter qualifying race, a tumble that forced him to be carted off the track and ended his chances of winning two individual gold medals in the Beijing Games.
“He’s fine,” his coach, Jon Drummond, said Tuesday. “He’s walking normal. There’s nothing to really be overly concerned about. I feel there’s no reason why he won’t be 100 percent at the Games.”
Gay will run in the 100 and the 400-meter relay in Beijing. Drummond said Gay still plans to race in London on July 25.
Drummond added his only concern is Gay might be pampering himself with too many visits to fast-food restaurants.
“You can go once, maybe twice,” Drummond said. “But not every day.”
Olympic canoeing champion dies
BUDAPEST, Hungary — Gyorgy Kolonics, a canoeing gold medalist at the 1996 and 2000 Olympics, died after collapsing in his canoe while training. He was 36.
The Hungarian Olympic Committee cited heart failure as the probable cause of death.
Iran basketball team invited to train in Utah.
Iran’s national basketball team has been invited by the NBA to train in Utah and play against NBA and NBADL teams in preparation for the Beijing Olympics.
Iran will take part in the Rocky Mountain Revue, the Utah Jazz-hosted summer league, and will play four games. The team will also observe NBA team practices and talk to players and coaches about basketball.
• Slovenia, Germany, Puerto Rico and Brazil reached the quarterfinals of the Olympic basketball qualifying tournament that will send three countries to the Beijing Games. Croatia, Greece and New Zealand have also booked a place for the quarterfinals. Canada and South Korea will play for the final spot today.
• New Orleans Hornets center Tyson Chandler has accepted an invitation to train with the U.S. national team in Las Vegas. Whether Chandler travels to China with the squad has yet to be decided. It might depend on whether starting center Dwight Howard of the Orlando Magic recovers fully from a chest injury.
• Houston Rockets center Yao Ming (foot) is likely to resume working out with China’s national basketball team this week.
Cyclist in coma
HAVANA — Pedro Pablo Perez, a star Cuban cyclist who competed at the Sydney Olympics, was in a coma after a car crash and will miss the Beijing Games.
Graham banned for life.
Track coach Trevor Graham received a lifetime ban from the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency for his role in helping his athletes obtain performance- enhancing drugs. Graham has been banned from participating in any event sanctioned by the U.S. Olympic Committee, the IAAF, USA Track and Field or any other group that participates in the World Anti-Doping Agency program.
The Associated Press
