Discus Throwers Put UCLA Women in NCAA Track Lead

UCLA freshman Seilala Sua won the discus to lead a dominant effort by the Bruin women, who took the lead after the first day of the NCAA track and field meet Wednesday at Bloomington, Ind.

Sua won with a throw of 200 feet 6 inches, and teammate Suzy Powell, winner of last year’s Olympic trials and the Pacific 10 Conference champion, was the runner-up at 198-7.

Adding to the Bruins’ total of 22 points in the event were Nada Kawar and Rachelle Noble, who finished sixth and eighth.

Not to be outdone by the women’s team, the UCLA men got a victory during Wednesday’s four finals, Mebrahtom Keflezighi winning the 10,000 in 28:51.18.

Other winners were Alabama’s Mats Nilsson in the men’s javelin with a throw of 245-9 and Pittsburgh’s Trecia Smith in the women’s long jump at 21-10.

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Decathlon world-record holder Dan O’Brien said he will not compete in next week’s U.S. championships because of an apparent stress fracture.

The withdrawal means O’Brien, the three-time world champion and Olympic gold medalist, will miss August’s world championships in Athens. Only athletes who compete in the U.S. championships June 11-15 at Indianapolis are eligible for the American team.

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Primo Nebiolo, president of the International Amateur Athletic Federation, said that last Sunday’s $2-million showdown between Donovan Bailey and Michael Johnson in a 150-meter race was a “circus” and that a rematch will not be sanctioned because the race broke IAAF rules by having only two runners, instead of at least four.

Jurisprudence

Lawyers for Christy Brzonkala, a former Virginia Tech student who said she was raped by two football players, asked a federal appeals court in Richmond, Va., to reinstate her lawsuit against the players and the school.

Brzonkala is the first alleged sexual assault victim to sue under the federal Violence Against Women Act, which Congress passed in 1994.

Pro Football

Cowboy receiver Michael Irvin said he was suing Dallas police for allegedly violating his rights in a false sexual assault case, and he also said that his football career is on hold until he can find a reason to continue playing.

“Right now, I just don’t have the intensity and emotion I used to have. I just need time right now to decide what I want to do,” Irvin said, adding that he doesn’t know when he’ll make a decision.

He and teammate Erik Williams were cleared of allegations after an 11-day police investigation. A former topless dancer accused Irvin of holding a gun to her head while Williams and another man sexually assaulted her last December. She later recanted and faces trial on a perjury charge next month.

The Philadelphia Eagles signed Ian Beckles, a free-agent guard who spent the last seven seasons with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, and draft picks Damien Robinson, Koy Detmer, Byron Capers and Deauntae Brown. . . . The New Orleans Saints cut wide receiver Haywood Jeffires, defensive end Fred Stokes, safeties Sean Lumpkin and Derrick Hoskins and tight end Henry Lusk. . . . The Washington Redskins saved about $1.35 million under the salary cap by releasing fullback Marc Logan, tight end Scott Galbraith and defensive end Sterling Palmer.

Hockey

Atlanta, which lost the Flames to Calgary in 1980, moved to the front of the NHL expansion race when a deal for a $213-million arena to be built on the site of the Omni was approved by the Fulton County Commission.

Names in the News

Tony Stewart earned the pole position for Saturday night’s True Value 500K Indy Racing League race at Fort Worth, Texas, with an average lap speed of 167.133 mph. Under a new qualifying system, Stewart also had the fastest pit stop. . . . New England Revolution Coach Thomas Rongen must sit out one Major League Soccer game and pay a $500 fine resulting from an argument with a referee during a game last Sunday. . . . U.S. District Judge Dickerson Debevoise ruled that boxer Virgil Hill can reclaim the International Boxing Federation light-heavyweight championship, which he had recently vacated, but must defend the title against No. 1 contender William Guthrie on or before July 19. . . . Former Buffalo Bill quarterback Jim Kelly said that his 3 1/2-month old son, Hunter James Kelly, has been found to have cerebral palsy.