Man Arrested in Olympic Plot

A man tried to extort $60 million from five countries by threatening to put bombs on planes and in public places during the Sydney Olympics, according to Australian police.

Mehmet Akin Kayirici, 35, of Sydney, was arrested Tuesday in Sydney on extortion charges after a more than two-month investigation conducted with the help of the consulates involved, police said.

Peter Ryan, police commissioner for New South Wales state, said Kayirici’s arrest showed security measures in place for the Olympics in September are “robust.�

Kayirici appeared in court Tuesday after he was charged with nine counts of demanding money with menace and three counts of threatening to destroy aircraft.

He is accused of making the threats in letters and telephone calls since December to the consulates of the United States, Britain, Israel, Russia and Turkey.

Football

The University of Texas officially backed out of its scheduled season opener against Hawaii, explaining that the move was in the best interest of the program. Texas will pay Hawaii a $100,000 fee for canceling the Sept. 2 game.

Considering a contract offer from the Minnesota Vikings, quarterback Dan Marino played golf with Miami Dolphin owner Wayne Huizenga.

“Dan told Wayne he wanted to go home, talk with his family and think about it, and he would make a decision in four or five days,� Dolphin President Eddie Jones said.

Jones also reiterated what the Dolphins said publicly for the first time Monday: They would be happy to have Marino, 38, back for another season.

Meanwhile, the Vikings signed free-agent fullback Harold Morrow and former San Diego Charger cornerback Paul Bradford.

The Denver Broncos, still looking for a successor to the retired John Elway, signed unrestricted free-agent quarterback Gus Frerotte. The Broncos also acquired safety Billy Jenkins from the St. Louis Rams for an undisclosed draft pick and waived safety Darrius Johnson. . . . Reluctant NFL prospect Nate Webster will be eligible for the league draft next month, rather than the supplemental draft in July. The former Miami Hurricane linebacker declared himself eligible for the draft, then changed his mind after the paperwork was submitted, hoping to return to college. But the NCAA declared him ineligible and denied his appeal. . . . The Dallas Cowboys hired Wade Wilson, a former backup to Troy Aikman, as their quarterbacks coach. Wilson, 41, succeeds Buddy Geis and completes Coach Dave Campo’s staff. . . . John Michels, former USC and Green Bay Packer offensive lineman, will be a graduate assistant coach at USC this fall.

Jurisprudence

Iowa State defensive back Jason Parrott was been sentenced to 90 days in jail in Orange County after being convicted of terrorizing his former girlfriend. Parrott was kicked off the team last Friday after the conviction.

Ford Olinger, a club pro from Indiana who sued the U.S. Golf Assn. for the right to ride a cart in U.S. Open qualifying, lost his appeal with the 7th U.S. Circuit Court in Chicago ruling that a cart would change the nature of competition.

The decision against Olinger, who has a degenerative hip disorder, was handed down one day after the 9th U.S. Circuit Court in San Francisco upheld a lower court ruling that lets Casey Martin ride a cart on the PGA Tour. Martin suffers from a rare circulatory disease in his right leg that makes it painful to walk.

Miscellany

CBS basketball analyst Al McGuire is retiring after 23 years of broadcasting, saying he no longer has the energy or desire to continue. The former coach, who led Marquette to the 1977 NCAA title, told CBS he would miss the NCAA men’s basketball tournament because he is suffering from a form of anemia.

But McGuire, 71, told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel that he will be retiring from broadcasting. “It’s over. It’s curtains. It’s all she wrote,� he told the newspaper in an interview published today.

Patrick Rafter of Australia, still feeling the effects of a shoulder injury, put up little resistance in a 6-4, 6-2 first-round loss to Juan Carlos Ferrero of Spain in the rain-delayed Franklin Templeton Tennis Classic at Scottsdale, Ariz.

Pete Sampras and Marcelo Rios of Chile, other former top-ranked players returning from injuries, struggled but won in straight sets. Sampras beat Greg Rusedski of Britain, 6-3, 6-4, and Rios ousted Vincent Spadea, 6-4, 6-4, for his first win in four months.

The U.S. Soccer Federation is seeking bids for a permanent national training center, featuring a stadium of at least 7,000 seats, a minimum of six grass practice fields and two artificial-turf practice fields. The USSF, which has had not had a full-time facility since 1994, when it had a couple of fields in Mission Viejo, set an April 15 deadline for bids and said it will choose in November. . . . Barcelona became the first team to clinch a spot in the quarterfinals of the European Champions Cup, winning 2-0 at FC Porto on goals by Abelardo and Rivaldo.

British 400-meter runner Mark Richardson was suspended by his national Olympic body after testing positive for the steroid nandrolone. . . . American Matt Savoie took the lead in the men’s event at the Junior World Figure Skating Championships in Oberstdorf, Germany. Defending champion Ilya Klimkin of Russia struggled to third place.