This Runner Could Deliver a Big Effort

When Sue Olsen lines up today in Duluth, Minn., for Grandma’s Marathon along the North Shore of Lake Superior, she will be precisely 16 days short of the due date for her first child.

“I get a lot of advice both ways,” Olsen, 38, said with a laugh. “There are people who think I’m crazy and shouldn’t be out there, and there are a lot of supportive people.

“I’m not worried about making 26 miles. I’m worried about having the baby up there or somewhere in between Duluth and the Twin Cities.”

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Trivia time: Ernie Els of South Africa won the U.S. Open last year. Who was the last foreign golfer before Els to win it?

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Views from Three Rivers: Opinions vary about the antics of the San Antonio Spurs’ Dennis Rodman, who sometimes takes off his shoes during games and once lay down on the floor and refused to return to the game, but Pittsburgh columnist Ron Cook found unanimity on the subject in his town.

From Pirate Manager Jim Leyland: “There are some guys you would rather lose without than win with.”

From Steeler Coach Bill Cowher: “He wouldn’t have to worry about putting on his shoes with me. He’d be gone.”

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One tough out: Over 19 seasons, the Cleveland Indians’ Eddie Murray has a lifetime average of .416 with the bases loaded.

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From the readers: Merwin Lucas of Glendale claims Babe Ruth batted left-handed, but pitched right-handed, so it was correct that his statue has a right-hander’s glove.

Not so, Merwin. The Babe was a lefty all the way.

An anonymous reader takes issue with the note that Jim Thorpe, an African American, led the U.S. Open at Merion in 1981. “You young fellows probably don’t know it, but Jim Thorpe was an Indian,” he said. “And I don’t think he was still alive in 1981.”

Yes and no, depending on which Jim Thorpe you have in mind. The golfing Jim Thorpe, 44, is a regular on the PGA Tour. Jim Thorpe, the all-around athletic legend, died in 1953.

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Trivia answer: David Graham of Australia in 1981.

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Quotebook: Montreal Expo Manager Felipe Alou, on his hyperactive left-hander Carlos Perez: “He’ll be a good pitcher if he stays sane.”