Olympics-Athletics-No evidence Perec was harassed -- hotel

SYDNEY, Sept 2 (Reuters) - A high-security Sydney hotel says it has no evidence to support triple Olympic champion Marie-Jose Perec's allegation that she was harassed there.

The Frenchwoman has pulled out of the Olympics and left Australia. Her sponsor Reebok said she decided to leave after a man forced his way into her room at the luxury One Darling Harbour Apartments and threatened her on Wednesday afternoon....

Olympics-Athletics-No evidence Perec was harassed -- hotel

SYDNEY, Sept 2 (Reuters) - A high-security Sydney hotel says it has no evidence to support triple Olympic champion Marie-Jose Perec's allegation that she was harassed there.

The Frenchwoman has pulled out of the Olympics and left Australia. Her sponsor Reebok said she decided to leave after a man forced his way into her room at the luxury One Darling Harbour Apartments and threatened her on Wednesday afternoon....

Olympics-Boxing-No split loyalties for maple-syrup Simmons

SYDNEY, Sept 21 (Reuters) - Olympic heavyweight boxer Mark Simmons has a British passport and a brother studying at Oxford University.

On Thursday, he found himself one fight away from winning a medal for Canada....
 

Olympics-Basketball-U.S. stars win but booed off court

SYDNEY, Sept 21 (Reuters) - The United States men's Olympic basketball team of NBA stars were booed off court by a capacity crowd on Thursday after Lithuania pushed them harder than any team in the past eight years before losing 85-76.

As has been the case throughout the tournament, the U.S. started slowly and shot a dismal 32 percent from the field in the first half....

Olympics-Boxing-U.S. Bennett looks to Sydney for redemption

SYDNEY, Sept 21 (Reuters) - The ghosts of Michael Bennett's past, his former inmates at Menard Federal Prison in Illinois, are in the U.S. heavyweight's corner as he battles his way towards gold in Sydney and personal redemption.

Bennett, who walked out of prison in July 1998 after serving seven years for armed robbery, said he was on a mission in Sydney to heal the pain he caused his family when he was jailed....

Olympics-Soccer-Women's soccer's slow march to respectability

CANBERRA, Sept 21 (Reuters) - Australia's women's soccer team, the Matildas, bared all in a nude millennium calendar.

American Brandi Chastain put the sport on the front pages when she celebrated the United States' victory in the 1999 Women's World Cup by ripping off her top, to expose her bra....

Olympics-Athletics-Mystery woman Perec flees Games

SYDNEY, Sept 21 (Reuters) - Claiming harassment, triple Olympic champion Marie-Jose Perec fled the Sydney Games on Thursday and was questioned by police in Singapore over an airport fracas involving her fiance and a television cameraman.

The reclusive Frenchwoman's sponsor Reebok said Perec had decided to leave the Olympics late on Wednesday after a man had forced himself into her hotel room and threatened her....

Olympics-Equestrian-Riders hurt, horse put down

SYDNEY, Sept 21 (Reuters) - Two riders were taken to hospital on Thursday and one horse was put down after crashing falls on the cross country course in the Olympic individual three-day event.

Brazilian Roberto Macedo suffered a pelvic fracture and Danish rider Nils Haagensen had a broken shoulder, organisers said....

Olympics-Cycling-Czech cyclist expelled after positive test

SYDNEY, Sept 21 (Reuters) - Czech rider Jan Hruska has been thrown out of the Olympics following confirmation of a positive drugs test taken during the Vuelta a Espana which finished last Sunday.

The substance was not revealed by the Union Cycliste Internationale spokesman, Enrico Carpani, who said that the counter-analysis at the Madrid laboratory had also shown 'positive.'

``Under our regulations it is certain that he cannot compete in Sydney, but the Czech Federation now must take disciplinary proceedings,'' said Carpani who added the test was made on September 13....

Olympics-Equestrian-O'Connor holds lead as riders fall

SYDNEY, Sept 21 (Reuters) - American David O'Connor rode a perfect cross-country round on Thursday to lead the Olympics individual three-day event, but two of his fellow riders were taken to hospital after falls and one horse was put down.

O'Connor remained on his overnight score of 29.00 penalties after the cross-country leg, and leads Heidi Antikatzidis of Greece by 8.40 points into Friday's final show jumping test....

Olympics-Swimming-De Bruijn double, Thompson makes history

SYDNEY, Sept 21 (Reuters) - Inge de Bruijn grabbed her second gold medal in another exciting display of Dutch courage at the Sydney Olympics on Thursday while American Jenny Thompson just made swimming history by the length of a finger nail on the sixth day of competition.

De Bruijn enhanced her reputation as the world's fastest female swimmer when she powered her way to victory in the women's 100 freestyle final in 53.83 seconds....

Olympics-Swimming-Kovacs back on song with breaststroke gold

SYDNEY, Sept 21 (Reuters) - The haunting strains of the Hungarian national anthem filled the Sydney Olympic pool on Thursday after teenager Agnes Kovacs won gold in the 200 metres breaststroke final.

The Hungarian anthem, a familiar sound at Olympic swimming ceremonies over the years, hadn't been played in Sydney's pool until Kovacs stormed back from fifth place at the halfway mark of Thursday's final to edge out American Kristy Kowal in a repeat of the 1998 world championships in Perth, Australia....

Olympics-Boxing-Cuban and U.S. boxers go out

SYDNEY, Sept 21 (Reuters) - Cuba and the United States lost their first boxers from the Olympics on Thursday when welterweights Roberto Guerra and Dante Craig were beaten in their second round fights.

Romanian Dorel Simion secured his place in the quarter- finals by beating Guerra 11-7 in a fight that see-sawed between him and the Cuban....

Olympics-Fencing-Romanian outsider stuns world elite

SYDNEY, Sept 21 (Reuters) - Romanian rank outsider Mihai Claudiu Covaliu completed the final shock of the Sydney Olympics men's individual sabre fencing event by winning gold on Thursday.

Order, however, was restored in the women's individual foil competition, as Italian policewoman Valentina Vezzali lived up to her billing as one of the favourites on the way to her first individual gold....

Olympics-Gymnastics-Romania sweep medals

SYDNEY, Sept 21 (Reuters) - Andreea Raducan led a Romanian sweep of the medals in the Olympic gymnastics women's all-round competition on Thursday, but were made to wait for they victory after some gymnasts were allowed to repeat vaults due to an equipment error.

Raducan, the rising star on the Romanian squad, posted a winning score of 38.893 ahead of team mates Simona Amanar and Maria Olaru....

Olympics-Athletics-French team say Perec 'left like a thief'

SYDNEY, Sept 21 (Reuters) - French team officials on Thursday slammed the decision of triple Olympic champion Marie-Jose Perec to flee the Sydney Games, saying she had left ``like a thief.''

French athletics federation president Philippe Lamblin said: ``The whole of France is penalised by this decision....

Olympics-Korea win archery, lose badminton title

SYDNEY, Sept 21 (Reuters) - South Korea walked off with the women's archery team gold medal for the fourth straight Olympics on Thursday but lost a thrilling men's badminton doubles final to Indonesia.

The heavily favoured archery trio of teenager Yun Mi-jin, who won the individual gold earlier this week, Kim Nam-soon and Kim Soon-nyung easily beat Ukraine 251-239 in the team event....