International Capsules: Rogge: Weather is only question mark for Vancouver

With 15 days to go before the opening ceremony, International Olympic Committee president Jacques Rogge said Thursday that the weather is the only unresolved issue hanging over the Winter Games in Vancouver.

"I’m very optimistic for the staging of these games," Rogge said. "We’re ready. I think that Vancouver can say that everything is ready now."

Rogge said his remaining concern is the possibility of weather problems affecting the outdoor events during the Feb. 12-28 Olympics.

"That’s the only question mark," he said in a teleconference. "The rest, I’m very optimistic."

Rogge said that, as with all Winter Games, contingency plans are in place to deal with too much or too little snow.

Unseasonably warm and wet weather in the Vancouver area has been a worry for Canadian organizers in recent weeks. Cypress Mountain, the venue for snowboarding and freestyle skiing events, was closed to the public 2½ weeks earlier than planned to protect the snow conditions.

No such problems have been reported in the Whistler resort area, where the Alpine and Nordic ski events will be held.

Rogge said he received encouraging weather news Thursday from VANOC, the local organizing committee.

"Whistler is absolutely fine," he said. "Cypress Mountain is absolutely fine on the playing field. On the track itself, there is no problem. There is a little bit of an adjustment of snow here and there but there is absolutely no problem. The competition will take place as scheduled."

Vancouver is hosting the first Olympics since the global recession, which has forced VANOC to make budget cuts. But Rogge said there would be no impact on the competitions or the athletes.

"Savings were chosen very carefully so as not to impact on the quality of the games and the quality of the experience of the athletes," he said. "The athletes won’t feel anything about the financial crisis and they will have very good games."

Rogge also said he wasn’t concerned that the Whistler resort could be auctioned off in the middle of the games after creditors moved to auction off the assets of Intrawest LLC.

"We’ve received comforting words from VANOC," he said. "VANOC is not preoccupied by that, and I trust that they have found good solutions. I don’t think this will affect the games."

The IOC will conduct 2,000 doping tests during the Vancouver Games, a record number for a Winter Olympics. Asked how many positive cases he expected, Rogge noted there were seven in Salt Lake City in 2002 and seven in Turin in 2006.

"Something around that (number) would not be surprising," he said. "But hopefully we will have less than that."

Rogge said athletes could be caught without a positive test as happened to German speedskater Claudia Pechstein, a five-time Olympic champion who will miss the Vancouver Games after receiving a two-year ban for blood doping. She was sanctioned by the international skating federation based on irregularities in her blood samples.

"I cannot rule that out," Rogge said. "It is a possibility."

The IOC will carry out 450 blood tests in Vancouver. If any abnormalities are detected, the IOC will pass on the information to the relevant sports federations to compare with their own athlete blood profiles.

"If there is an indication of doping, a disciplinary hearing will be opened," Rogge said.

In Turin, Italian police raided the lodgings of the Austrian cross-country and biathlon team and seized blood doping equipment. Six Austrian athletes were later banned for life from the Olympics by the IOC.

Unlike Italy, Canada has no anti-doping laws. Rogge said it will be up to Canadian authorities to decide whether to conduct any raids during the games.

Cypress Mountain will host despite little snow

VANCOUVER, British Columbia — Snow or no snow, freestyle skiing and snowboarding at Cypress Mountain will go forward.

Crews are working around the clock using natural and man-made snow to ensure courses are ready, Tim Gayda, vice president of sport for the Winter Games, said Thursday.

"We are running these events at Cypress," Gayda said. "We have no intention of moving from that venue. We have enough people and enough snow to get the job done."

Unseasonably warm, wet weather in the Vancouver area has been a worry for organizers in recent weeks. Cypress Mountain was closed to the public 2½ weeks earlier than planned to protect the snow.

More than 300 dump trucks of snow have already been used to create courses, and straw and wood are being laid to create bases for the snow.

"It’s like Lego," said Eric Fremont, organizing committee manager of freestyle skiing and snowboard events. "We’re stacking the straw and building a foundation. Then, we put the snow on top."

Organizing committee meteorologist Chris Doyle said the freezing level was moving down the mountain and was expected to remain that way until Tuesday.

Gretchen Bleiler, the 2006 halfpipe silver medalist, said the athletes can’t focus on the conditions.

"We’re all in the exact same boat. We’re all going to the exact same halfpipe, and we all have to ride the exact same conditions," Bleiler said. "There’s no point in worrying about anything. What we get is what we get. We’re gonna have to make due with whatever it is and rise to the occasion and ride the best we can."

Last February, a parallel giant slalom event at Cypress had to be canceled because of poor snow conditions.

"We came up with our plans this year to make sure that doesn’t happen again," Gayda said.

Canadian Freestyle Skiing Association CEO Peter Judge remains confident the organizing committee will have Cypress ready.

"There is no doubt in my mind this can be managed," he said.

Doyle said the lack of snow was attributed to warm weather and rain from the Pacific.

The story was far different at Whistler, which will host the downhill, men’s ski jumping and sliding events. With nearly 32 feet of snow, Whistler has an unprecedented amount for the end of January. Whistler has been declared games-ready by international ski officials.

This is not the first time a Winter Olympics has faced a lack of snow.

In 1998, Nagano had major concerns about a lack of snow in the months before the games. Heavy snow forced organizers to cancel events and left spectators stranded.

According to the International Olympic Committee, the 1964 Innsbruck Games also faced a lack of snow. The Austrian army rushed to the rescue, carving out 20,000 blocks of ice from the mountainside, which they transported to the luge and bobsled tracks. They also carried 1.4 million cubic feet of snow to the Alpine ski slopes.

-- Jeremy Hainesworth

Rogge: Olympics is good for the NHL

VANCOUVER, British Columbia — Jacques Rogge says the NHL should realize that sending its players to the Olympics raises the league’s exposure and increases its fan base.

"I think it’s important for the Olympic Games to have the NHL," the president of the International Olympic Committee said Thursday said during a telephone conference call. "That goes without saying.

"But also I think it’s important for the NHL to have their stars shine in the Olympic Games. If you look at the audience of the final of the Olympic hockey tournament, it matches the final of the Stanley Cup. That is a good promotion for hockey in North America."

NHL players will participate in the Vancouver Winter Olympics, which open Feb. 12. But the league has not decided if it will allow its players to compete at the 2014 Games in Sochi, Russia.

That has prompted Washington Capitals superstar Alex Ovechkin and other Russian players to say they will play at the Games in their home country even if the rest of the NHL doesn’t go.

Bill Daly, the NHL’s deputy commissioner, said Rogge is welcome to his opinion.

"I understand that’s Mr. Rogge’s point of view," Daly said in an e-mail to The Canadian Press. "It doesn’t mean that point of view is necessarily shared by our owners or the league."

NHL commissioner Gary Bettman has repeatedly said that Olympic participation will require extensive discussions between the league and the NHL Players’ Association.

Bettman said shutting down the league for two weeks creates problems — particularly when the Games are staged outside of North America.

Lou Lamoriello, general manager of the New Jersey Devils, has said he’s totally against returning to the Olympics. He said the tournament removes some prime dates from the NHL schedule.

Rogge said Rene Fasel, president of the International Ice Hockey Federation, "is in discussion" with Bettman about the Olympics.

"We have not given up the hope we can find a good solution and that not only Ovechkin could come play in Sochi as he promised, but also the (other) stars can play."

NHL players first competed at the 1998 Nagano Games. The 2002 tournament in Salt Lake City, where Canada defeated the U.S. to win its first gold medal in hockey for 50 years, drew massive television audiences. The league also sent its players to the 2006 Turin Games.

China downplays expectations for Vancouver Games

BEIJING — After dominating the Summer Olympics in Beijing two years ago, China downplayed expectations Thursday for a similarly strong performance at the upcoming Winter Games in Vancouver.

Winter sports have been slower to catch on in China, though Chinese women were expected to have strong showings in freestyle skiing, snowboarding halfpipe, speedskating and curling. Pairs figure skating was another possible bright spot.

"China is still not among the best in many winter sports," said Zhao Yinggang, director of the Winter Sports Management Center at the General Administration of Sports. "We still haven’t participated in all the events, we don’t have many potential gold medalists and our overall strength is still lagging behind the best countries."

However, China has made continuous improvement in winter sports, driven by a state-run sports system that identifies promising athletes when they are young. They live and train year-round with other athletes, working toward a goal of one day competing at the Olympics.

China is sending its largest-ever Winter Olympics delegation to Vancouver, including 91 athletes. That compares with 71 at the previous Winter Games in Turin, where China won 11 medals: two gold, four silver and five bronze.

By contrast, China won 51 golds at the Beijing Olympics, topping the standings for the first time.

Zhao would not put a figure on how many medals China expected in Vancouver.

"It’s hard to say how many gold medals we must win. In general, it should be no fewer than the previous Olympics," he told reporters.

Pairs figure skater Tong Jian, who is seeking his first Olympic medal after finishing fourth in Turin, hopes the games will spur winter sports development in China.

"We still don’t have so many ice rinks and ski parks like there are in North America," he said. "I hope that through our hard work in competitions, Chinese will have more and more interest in winter sports and will participate in these events. If more people take on winter sports, then that’s when our Winter Olympics results will get better."

The Vancouver Olympics begin on Feb. 12 and close on Feb. 28.

-- Anite Chang

Winter X Games

Action sports star Burke can’t find spot at games

ASPEN, Colo. — Young, well-spoken, an envelope-pushing sex symbol and, most of all, extremely talented in a popular action sport, Sarah Burke has everything the Olympics supposedly wants these days.

To find Burke in Vancouver next month, though, best look in the stands or on her couch because she won’t be competing. One of the most talented athletes on snow, her sport has no place on the Olympic program.

"Really unfortunate and frustrating," she said.

The Canadian is the 2009 champion in Winter X Games skiing superpipe, and she led the charge to have women’s slopestyle added to the X Games schedule last year.

Both disciplines are popular among the action sports community and have potential to be included in the Olympics, maybe as soon as 2014.

Neither, however, caught the eye of the International Olympic Committee in time to get a 2010 spot for Burke, who lives between Vancouver and Whistler, is 27 and whose sizzling FHM magazine shoot from 2006 comes up first when her name is punched into Google.

"Just nothing I can do about it right now," she said. "The big thing is trying to stay in it, and hang on ‘til the next one."

Burke tries to defend her X Games title in skiing superpipe Friday. In skiing slopestyle Thursday, she finished sixth. Kaya Turski of Quebec was the winner.

Burke is reluctant to complain about her lot in X Games life. She has good endorsements with clothing designers, a goggles company and an energy drink. She’s a frequent star in ski movies and has traveled the world many times over, searching for powder, jumps and adrenaline.

Things, of course, could always be better. She sees the way halfpipe rider Shaun White, with his unique looks and undeniable talent, has become both a mainstream and an extreme sports star.

She sometimes wonders if that could have been her.

"I think we’re all doing this, first off, because we love it and want to be the best," Burke said. "But I also think it would’ve been a great opportunity, huge for myself and for skiing and for everyone, if we could’ve gotten into the Olympics. It’s sad. I mean, I’m super lucky to be where I am, but that would’ve been pretty awesome."

The next step in determining the Olympic future of slopestyle and skiing halfpipe will come in June, when the International Ski Federation (FIS) decides whether to submit the sports to the International Olympic Committee for consideration for the 2014 Games.

Snowboarding got fast-tracked for inclusion in 1998, when the IOC came to the realization that there weren’t enough sports on the winter program, and that they needed events that would capture a younger audience.

That trend continued when snowboardcross was added in 2006, then its cousin, skicross, was brought in for 2010. Both are four-person races (six at the X Games) down a course filled with jumps and bumps and jostling — great television that almost always provides a scary crash or two.

Halfpipe skiing is essentially the same sport White has brought into the mass culture on a snowboard. It’s contested in the same halfpipe, but on skis instead of a board.

Slopestyle, on either skis or snowboards, would offer a different kind of excitement: Riders careen down courses set up with rails, jumps and other obstacles and fly high through the air, twisting and flipping. In other words, pretty much everything a mother lectures her kids not to do when they head out to the mountain.

"You go to any resort around the U.S., around the world, and they’ve got these parks, they’ve got the jumps, they’ve got the jibs, they’ve got the boxes," said Tim Reed, the senior director of sports and competition for the X Games. "It’s what the kids are doing, males, females, boys, girls. There’s lots of participation and you know the growth is going to be tremendous."

Question is, will the growth at the highest level come in time to benefit the athletes at the top of the sport right now, who put their lives and careers on the line everytime they strap on skis?

One of the best halfpipe skiers, Tanner Hall, shredded the ligaments in both knees during preparation for a movie shoot last spring. He’s still recovering, not able to compete in the Winter X Games this year.

"I’ve done all I could," Hall said of the fight to bring his sport into the Olympics. "I’ve put in all my knowledge and what I think. That’s all I can do. You can’t change the world by yourself. All you can do is put in your effort, put in your part and hope for the best."

Burke, who fought to have women’s slopestyle included in the X Games, got her wish last year, then promptly went to the hill, landed awkwardly and broke a vertebrae in her lower back. Her recovery was slowed when she hurt her shoulder in December, and the Winter X Games is her first major competition since the injury.

When this is over, she’ll head back to British Columbia and cheer on a couple of her snowboarder friends. She’ll follow Canada’s quest to win the medal count on its home soil — a mission that largely will be driven by the country’s stellar freestyle and snowboarding teams.

She’ll also soak in the irony that one of the most successful, yet least-known, winter sports team in Canada is the skiing halfpipe team. According to the team Web site, every member of the team is ranked in the top 10 in the world, and they do it without the funding that Olympic-sport teams receive.

"We don’t need anything different," Burke said. "Just a timeslot and a couple judges. It’s a top-selling sport. It’s frustrating. It’s the exact same thing, except we go backward and forward instead of sideways."

-- Eddie Pells

Notebook: White cruises in qualifying round of superpipe

ASPEN, Colo. — Even when Shaun White isn’t putting on a show, he’s still putting on a show.

White kept his signature move, the Double McTwist 1260, on the shelf for the qualifying rounds of snowboard superpipe on Thursday night at the Winter X Games.

His 20-foot jumps above the halfpipe more than made up for it.

Playing it safe, White still blew away the competition, scoring 97.66 points on his final run. He beat the next-best finisher, Iouri Podladtchikov of Switzerland, by 9.33 points, a landslide in this event.

White’s Olympic teammates Louie Vito and Greg Bretz also earned spots in Friday night’s finals, but another Vancouver-bound American, Scotty Lago, failed to make the field.

Vito needed a strong final run to sneak in, staving off a wipeout midway through his performance.

White’s ‘Big Air’ package was unparalleled. He soared into the lights, 20 feet, 9 inches above the pipe, on his first run, then went 22-2 on his second. Everything else about the two trips down the superpipe — including his double-cork jumps — was solid.

And solid for White is spectacular for pretty much everyone else.

Now, the big question: Will White incorporate the Double McTwist 1260 into his bag of tricks for the final?

"I think I’m going to go for it," he said shortly after his run on the ESPN broadcast. "I’m feeling good. I’m basically going to do hopefully a little bit of what I did tonight and some double McTwist 1260s."

REDEMPTION

Gretchen Bleiler waited 12 months to return to the Winter X Games and pull off the trick that did her in last year.

A wait well worth it.

The three-time X Games champion completed a frontside 900 jump on her second run in snowboard superpipe qualifying to finish second, only 0.34 points behind Kelly Clark.

"There’s some redemption there," said Bleiler, the 2006 Olympic silver medalist. "It feels really, really good to do the jump, grab the board and get all the way around."

Clark and Bleiler will lead a six-woman field into the finals on Saturday. Counting Hannah Teter and Elena Hight, the top four finishers in qualifying are the same four on the U.S. Olympic team.

A notable absence from the field is Australia’s Torah Bright. One of the favorites in Vancouver, Bright suffered a concussion Thursday morning while practicing a switchback 720, not the double-cork jump she’s been trying to perfect for the Games.

Bleiler took a mean tumble last year at the X games, catching the lip of the pipe and slamming her back down hard on her second run. The Aspen resident stayed on the ground for some time before getting back up and boarding down.

She is considered a top challenger to Clark, who has been on a roll of late, winning four of five U.S. Grand Prix events in the lead-up to the Olympics.

Bleiler, who won the other one, also had a rough go last weekend at the final two Grand Prix events in Park City, Utah. She fell during training and hit her head before the final contest.

Feeling better at the X Games, Bleiler scored a 95.66 despite not being able to bring her final trick all the way around for 720 degrees of spin.

"There’s definitely more to come," Bleiler said. "I feel like I’m in a perfect spot right now."

SKATING TO SKIING

As a kid, Kaya Turski thought her future was in in-line skating, not skiing.

An accomplished rollerblader, the Canadian would skate on everything from railings at the local bank to obstacles at the skate park. She entered competitions around the world, winning her share.

Some things never change.

Turski switched from skates to skis nearly five years ago and has rapidly adapted to the rails and jumps set in snow, not concrete. Turski won the women’s skiing slopestyle event Thursday, edging Keri Herman and Grete Eliassen.

"This is pretty similar to rollerblading, with the rails, balance and air sense," explained Turski, who’s from Montreal. "So I picked it up pretty quick."

Turski has had quite a few bumps along the way.

Most notably, there was her wipeout at the 2006 Icer Air competition in San Francisco. Doing tricks off a custom-made 100-foot ramp — lined with tons of imported snow — Turski under-rotated, causing her to land backward. In trying to recover, she traveled into the steps on the side of the course and rolled all the way down, catching a board near the end and crashing. She was pretty banged up, and to this day doesn’t like to watch the footage, widely available on YouTube.

"It was brutal, but here I am," she said. "It was like a totally freak kind of accident. It wasn’t regular skiing."

The next season, Turski tore up her right knee, causing her to miss more time.

"It’s annoying being the injured girl," the 21-year-old said, smiling.

She’s making up for lost time, though. Turski won the bronze last season and gold this time around.

On her final run Thursday, Turski cranked rapper Lil’ Wayne on her iPod and jammed all the way down the mountain — nailing all her tricks.

KICKERS

Justin Hoyer won the snowmobile freestyle event Thursday night, while Joe Parsons was second and Caleb Moore took third. ... Lizzy Beerman was taken to the hospital for observation after a fall on her second superpipe run. There was no immediate update on her status.

-- Pat Graham

Extreme hugging: Record sought at Winter X Games

ASPEN, Colo. — Dagny McKinley has this hug thing down to a science: Come in with open arms and squeeze real tight upon contact.

"That’s the best way to give a hug," the Steamboat Springs, Colo., resident said.

McKinley should know, she’s trying to set a Guinness world record for most hugs in a 24-hour time frame. McKinley said she needed to embrace 5,001 people to set the record.

As of 7:30 p.m. Aspen time, the 36-year-old McKinley had embraced more than 2,400 people. She had until 8:30 a.m. Friday to accomplish the feat.

"We’re doing OK," McKinley said.

McKinley set up a booth near the bottom of the stairs leading to the superpipe, embracing any willing spectator. Some shied away, but most were all too willing to give her a hug and sign her sheet to document her feat.

So, why the X Games to fulfill this quota of hugs?

"I think Aspen, all in all, has been really welcoming of it," McKinley said. "I figured this would be an open crowd, kind of a younger crowd, open to hugging. It’s been awesome from all ages."

Figure Skating

Weir changes mind about wearing fur

Animal rights groups can leave Johnny Weir alone now.

Weir will replace the fox on his costume with faux fur after receiving "hate mail and death threats" from animal rights activists, agent Tara Modlin said Thursday.

"He’s changing it because he needs to focus on skating," she said.

Friends of Animals posted an open letter to Weir after he added white fox fur to the left shoulder of his free skate costume for the U.S. Figure Skating Championships. On Tuesday, the animal advocacy group called his costume designer, Stephanie Handler, and faxed a press release about its open letter to her business.

Since then, Weir has heard from other anti-fur activists, Modlin said. Although People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals made its case in a professional manner, Modlin said others did not — to the point she and Weir were concerned someone might disrupt his performances at the Vancouver Olympics.

Weir qualified for his second Olympic team by finishing third at nationals.

"I do not want something as silly as my costume disrupting my second Olympic experience and my chance at a medal, a dream I have had since I was a kid," Weir said in a statement, first published by icenetwork.com.

Priscilla Feral, president of Friends of Animals, said no one from the group had threatened Weir. She applauded Weir’s decision.

"If he’s made the smart decision I hoped he’d make, to shun the skins of animals and not decorate his costumes with them, that’s a very good thing and I’m happy to hear it," Feral said.

Weir makes no secret of his love of fashion — fur included — and he’s received letters and videos from PETA and other animal-rights advocates over the years. Although he respects their positions and is fully aware of how pelts are obtained, Weir has said wearing fur is a personal choice.

There are other causes that concern him more, he said, such as homelessness, soldiers dying and the devastation in Haiti.

"I hope these activists can understand that my decision to change my costume is in no way a victory for them, but a draw," Weir said in his statement. "I am not changing in order to appease them, but to protect my integrity and the integrity of the Olympic Games as well as my fellow competitors.

"Just weeks away from hitting my starting position on the ice in Vancouver, I have technique and training to worry about and that trumps any costume and any threat I may receive."

-- Nancy Armour

Suzuki, Asada face off at Four Continents (Friday)

JEONJU, South Korea — Japan might have a new figure skating darling in Akiko Suzuki.

Suzuki is the surprise leader at the Four Continents ahead of favorite Mao Asada going into Friday’s women’s free skate.

Asada is the 2008 world champion and current Japanese champion. The Four Continents is her last skating competition before the Vancouver Olympics.

With the world’s No. 1, Kim Yu-na of South Korea, skipping the event to continue training in Canada, where she’s based and where the Olympics begin in two weeks, Asada had been expected to easily win gold in Jeonju.

During practice, Asada nailed her trademark triple axel — the one jump in her arsenal that Kim doesn’t have — but stumbled on the jump in the short program late Wednesday. An under-rotated landing cost her credit for it, and moments later, she botched a triple flip.

When the scores came up, it was Suzuki at the top of the list — not Asada.

Suzuki’s short program wasn’t perfect, either. She tried out a new jump, a triple toe loop, and ended up doing just one rotation. But skating to a fiery Andalusian tune, she displayed spectacular footwork that buoyed her score.

The Four Continents title — and the Olympic gold — may come down to the triple axel. Asada is the only woman in skating history to land it twice in competition, and that achievement won her the Grand Prix championship over Kim in 2008.

She has not beaten Kim since. Landing the triple axel cleanly in the free skate could mean victory for Asada in Jeonju and boost her confidence for Vancouver. It will be the 19-year-old’s Olympic debut since she just missed the age cutoff for Turin.

"After this competition, I will go back to Japan and make sure all of my contents, my entire program, is good for the Olympics," she said on Wednesday.

A determined Asada refused to quit. After the short program, which ended well after 10:30 p.m., she went straight to the practice rink to go over the jump with her coach, according to Seoul’s SBS television.

She also hit the rink on Thursday, trailed by the legions of cameras that follow the superstar’s every move in Japan and South Korea.

Footage of Asada checking into her Jeonju hotel, reportedly taken by a hotel employee who uploaded the clip to the Internet, outraged fans. The clips eventually were removed, South Korean media reported, and Asada was assigned bodyguards, the Japan Skating Federation confirmed.

Suzuki has had a much quieter path to the Olympics. At 24, she was five years older than Asada, and even stopped competing during the 2003-04 season before returning to the rink and slowly rising in the standings.

She has posted two impressive first-place wins this season, won the bronze medal at the prestigious Grand Prix final and secured her spot at the Vancouver Olympics by finishing second to Asada at the Japanese nationals last month. Along with 2007 world champion Miki Ando, the three Japanese women make up a formidable team.

On Friday, Suzuki and Asada must also fend off young Americans Amanda Dobbs and Caroline Zhang. Dobbs, 16, beat Asada for second place in the short program while Zhang, also 16, was in fourth.

The contest, though, likely will come down to Asada and Suzuki as the two leading skaters grapple with the big jumps they plan to unleash at the Olympics.

Asada has the chance to show the world she’s ready to take on Kim and claim Olympic gold. But if she slips, it could again be Suzuki’s turn to shine.

-- Jean H. Lee

Funeral in Mass. for Nancy Kerrigan’s father

STONEHAM, Mass. — The father of figure skater Nancy Kerrigan was remembered by family and friends at a funeral Thursday as a family man who went out of his way for his three children and as a key to his daughter’s accomplishments.

More than 100 people attended a private service at St. Patrick Church in Stoneham. Friends and family paid tribute through somber readings and praise, and Jim Day, a family friend, eulogized Kerrigan by saying he set an example to his children and always put his family first.

"When God made Danny, I wish he never threw away the mold," Day said. "If we had more people like Danny Kerrigan in the world, there would be peace and love everywhere."

Day also pleaded with attendees to pray for Kerrigan’s son, Mark.

Daniel Kerrigan died over the weekend following a violent struggle with Mark Kerrigan. The 45-year-old Mark Kerrigan has pleaded not guilty to assault and authorities are awaiting tests on the cause of his father’s death.

Family members said the death was unrelated to their argument early Sunday. Daniel Kerrigan’s wife, Brenda Kerrigan, told the Boston Herald newspaper her husband died of a heart attack and there was nothing suspicious about his death.

Nancy Kerrigan did not speak during the funeral Mass. She buried her face on her mother’s shoulder and appeared to weep as her father’s flag-draped casket was carried into the church.

In a statement, the former Olympian called her father "my support." He is the person who rushed to her and carried her into a locker room after an assailant clubbed her right knee during practice at the U.S. Championships in 1994.

"He was there behind me always," she said in the statement.

Mark Kerrigan, who has a history of domestic violence arrests and was sued by his parents to recover money they spent for taking care of his home while he was in jail, is being held on $10,000 bail.

Paul Wylie, a 1992 Olympic silver medalist and a close friend of Nancy Kerrigan, attended the funeral.

-- Russell Contreras

Winter Sports

New documentary features U.S. Ski Team

Ted Ligety now realizes acting and skiing have at least one thing in common: They’re not as easy as they look.

Already a star on the slopes, Ligety played a role in the upcoming documentary "Truth in Motion: The U.S. Ski Team’s Road to Vancouver," which NBC will air Saturday night.

And Ligety thought careening down a slope at nearly 60 mph was tough.

It felt almost tame compared to having a film crew follow him around for days on end, recording his every move and conversation. At all hours no less, including when he first opened his eyes at 5 a.m.

"Those cameras definitely take some getting used to," Ligety said, laughing, during a recent telephone conversation from Europe.

The documentary captures the members of the U.S. Ski Team simply being themselves. It’s sort of like the HBO reality show "Hard Knocks," which followed selected NFL teams around during training camp.

"You see exactly what we’re going through every day," said Ligety, who won gold in the combined at the 2006 Turin Games. "I don’t think anybody has ever gotten a truly in-depth look at ski racing. It’s cool in that respect. This portrays what we do."

The movie begins with Scott Macartney’s horrific downhill crash in Kitzbuehel, Austria, two years ago, when he lost his balance on the final jump while going nearly 90 mph. Slamming his head on the snow, Macartney lost his helmet and slid unconscious across the finish line.

When asked about the crash on camera for the documentary, Macartney answers, "Better to get hurt charging ..."

And so this movie goes.

The director of the film, Brett Morgen, was with the team for several months, starting in training camp in Portillo, Chile, and staying on through World Cup competitions leading up to the announcement of the American team earlier this week.

Morgen and his crew shot nearly 400 hours of film, then whittled it down to an hour show. Once the skiers got used to the cameras being around, it made for some entertaining clips.

"There were numerous moments where people said things to us that shocked and surprised us at how open they were," Morgen said of the project, sponsored by Audi. "It was very important for us to let the skiing tell the story."

And for the personalities to shine through.

"This (ski film) spends more time on the characters and people, the personalities and the perseverance," said Scott Keogh, the chief marketing officer at Audi, one of the sponsors of the U.S. Ski Team.

Sarah Schleper and Ligety have big parts in the film. Ligety for his devotion to his craft, Schleper for her ability to get back on the slopes.

Until this season, Schleper hasn’t spent all that much time on the snow. She’s been sidelined with injuries and then the birth of her son, Lasse, who turns 2 on the day the movie comes out.

With her family in tow, the 30-year-old Schleper set out this season to earn a spot on her fourth Olympics team, a goal that she accomplished.

Schleper’s portion of the film centers on her training and family time.

In one scene, teammates ask Schleper how many runs she’s going to do that day on the slopes.

"One more than all you guys," she replied, laughing, before zooming down the mountain.

The film also showed her coming home exhausted from training and still finding the energy to play with her son.

"This film is going to have a really positive impact on our sport," Schleper said. "It’s going to show all the elements people really don’t know about ski racing — showing the risks that we’re taking."

There’s a dose of drama in the film with newcomer Tommy Ford and veteran Jake Zamansky competing for what was shaping up to be one of the last remaining spots on the Olympic squad.

Turned out, both made the team.

Even Bode Miller makes an appearance in the film, a little cameo role where he talks about his teammates. Lindsey Vonn and Julia Mancuso are briefly in the film as well.

For Ligety, being cast in the documentary was quite an experience.

As for his budding acting career, though, it will have to wait.

He’s more than content starring on the slopes.

-- Pay Graham

Vonn has final World Cup business before Olympics

ST. MORITZ, Switzerland — Lindsey Vonn says she’s focused on taking care of World Cup business this weekend in her final stop before the Vancouver Olympics.

"I can’t look too far ahead to the Olympics just yet," the two-time defending World Cup champion said Thursday.

Vonn will compete in three races at St. Moritz and leads the standings in all three — super-combined, downhill and super-G. She also leads the overall standings.

"You definitely have to stay in the moment," she said. "I have to get this weekend over with and hopefully do it well and move on to Vancouver."

Vonn doesn’t want to give ground to rival Maria Riesch with 10 World Cup races left. The 33-race, five-month season ends March 14 in the German’s home town of Garmisch-Partenkirchen.

The American leads Riesch by 56 points, with the winner of each race getting a 100 points.

"I have to be able to execute in all three races (this weekend) because it’s really important for the overall," Vonn said. "Maria’s super close to me all the time, so I have to be able to stay ahead of her."

The super-combi on Friday is a super-G run and slalom on snow Vonn described as "aggressive and perfect."

Vonn takes a perfect five-for-five record this season into the downhill on Saturday. She has a chance to match Austrian great Annemarie Moser-Proell, who won all eight downhills in the 1972-73 season.

"I’m not focused on trying to win all the races in a row," Vonn said. "All I can hope for is good weather, that I ski my best and hopefully I can be on the podium."

Weather changes fast at St. Moritz, and strong wind made the slope too dangerous to race last season. The training run Thursday was abandoned after only two racers completed the course because of the strong wind.

"That was a smart decision," Vonn said. "It’s been an interesting season with a lot of injuries, and I think everyone just wants to have a safe race."

-- Graham Dunbar

Mesler’s family having money returned

Bilked out of more than $7,300 in a Vancouver Olympic home rental scam, U.S. bobsledder Steve Mesler’s family and friends are getting their money back.

Procter & Gamble said Thursday it will cover the group’s losses, a gesture that Mesler said left him and his family "overwhelmed."

"The Olympics move people," said Mesler, a push athlete for the reigning four-man world and World Cup championship sled from the U.S. "That’s the bottom line. I’ve thought that since I was a kid."

Ben and Lois Mesler tried to rent a house for their 11-person party in Whistler, British Columbia, where the bobsled events will be held, from someone who responded to an ad they posted on a Web site. They found out last week the deal was not legitimate, and have since found other places to stay free of charge, offered by strangers who heard about the situation.

Canadian police are investigating.

The story got attention through print and then radio reports in the Vancouver area earlier this week, and eventually crossed the desk of Procter and Gamble external relations manager Cheri McMaster, who called Lois Mesler with Thursday’s news.

McMaster said Lois Mesler was "taken back by the gesture."

"We work very closely with the U.S. Olympic Committee and we heard some news early on through some of the Canadian press," McMaster said. "They needed some help. ... It brings the feeling of the Olympic Games to life knowing that we’re helping somebody."

Mesler’s team will be among the gold-medal favorites at the Vancouver Games. He was an alternate on the 2002 Olympic team and was part of a seventh-place finish in four-man at the 2006 Turin Games.

-- Tim Reynolds

U.S. cross country team gets one more Olympic spot

The U.S. cross country ski team has selected Simi Hamilton of Aspen, Colo., as its 11th and final competitor at the Vancouver Olympics.

Hamilton, 22, was added Thursday when the U.S. Ski and Snowboard Association was granted one more spot in the new Olympic quota system.

Hamilton is one of the fastest American sprinters. He won four qualifiers in the U.S. Ski Association Super Tour, Canadian NorAm and U.S. championship events, and took the U.S. title in the freestyle sprint. Earlier this week, he led sprint qualifying in the Under 23 world championships in Germany.

Head coach Pete Vordenberg said, "Simi has definitely raised some eyebrows this season with his pure speed in the sprint events."

-- Arnie Stapleton

Olympic bobsled builder moving to NC’s NASCAR core

CONCORD, N.C. — A non-profit company that’s used NASCAR racing technology to supply the U.S. Olympic bobsled teams with faster rides is moving to the heart of stock-car country in North Carolina.

Bo-Dyn Bobsled Project Inc. says it will move from Connecticut to Concord after next month’s Vancouver Olympics. The corporation was founded by NASCAR legend Geoff Bodine 18 years ago to ensure U.S. sleds would be made in America with racing know-how.

Bo-Dyn Bobsled says in Thursday’s statement that the leader of the Colchester, Conn., company that fabricated the metal sleds is retiring and the work will be taken over by technicians who have worked with other NASCAR teams.

The North Carolina Motorsports Association says the state is home to 90 percent of NASCAR racing teams.

Takayama misses out on becoming double Olympian

TOKYO — Juri Takayama has missed out on her bid to become the fifth Japanese athlete to compete in both the Summer and Winter Olympics.

Takayama, a pitcher for Japan’s softball team at the Sydney Olympics, was looking to become a member of Japan’s national bobsled team for the Vancouver Olympics, but failed to make the team.

Recruited by Japan’s bobsled and luge federation, Takayama was hoping to become a pusher in the two-crew event.

Shino Manami and Asazu Konami will represent Japan in Vancouver.

Strong wind forces end to WCup downhill training

ST. MORITZ, Switzerland — World Cup organizers have abandoned a training run for the last women’s downhill race before the Winter Olympics because of strong wind.

Race officials halted Thursday’s session after two racers came down the Corviglia piste. The test run for Saturday’s scheduled race had already been delayed by poor visibility.

Organizers were trying to ensure safety a day after Olympic downhill silver medalist Martina Schild of Switzerland crashed in the first downhill training and sustained a season-ending injury.

Schild tore the ACL in her left knee when landing after a jump.

The meet begins with a super-combined on Friday.

Sailing

Swiss: Will forfeit Cup if U.S. wins sails issue

Defending America’s Cup champion Alinghi of Switzerland said Thursday it will forfeit the oldest trophy in international sports if American challenger BMW Oracle Racing succeeds in getting a New York court to disqualify the sails on its giant catamaran.

The statement from Fred Meyer, vice commodore of Alinghi’s backing yacht club, Societe Nautique de Geneve, is perhaps the most bizarre twist yet in a long, bitter legal fight between two of the world’s richest men, Swiss biotech mogul Ernesto Bertarelli and American software tycoon Larry Ellison.

Their powerhouse sailing teams are scheduled to begin a rare best-of-three showdown Feb. 8 in massive multihulls in Valencia, Spain, for the silver trophy the Swiss have held since 2003.

They’ve been in court for more than two years, and could be right up until within days of what could be the most exciting racing in the 159-year history of the America’s Cup.

"We have been clear: If BMW Oracle succeeds in disqualifying the Defender’s sails then there will be no Match," Meyer said. "Russell Coutts will have won the America’s Cup for Larry Ellison without sailing."

BMW Oracle Racing has gone to the New York State Supreme Court again, arguing that the sails on the 90-foot Alinghi 5 breach America’s Cup rules because they were not made in the team’s home country.

The Swiss said in court papers filed last week that the sails were constructed in Switzerland using blanks built at North Sails’ plant in Minden, Nev.

BMW Oracle Racing said it’s not trying to disqualify Alinghi’s boat, but wants the issue clarified before racing begins. The Americans have offered to delay the racing to give the Swiss time to build new sails for their 90-foot catamaran.

It’s not clear if the court will hold a hearing before Feb. 8. BMW Oracle Racing spokesman Tom Ehman said the syndicate hopes there’s a hearing early next week.

Coutts, a three-time America’s Cup winner, has been CEO and skipper of BMW Oracle Racing since July 2007, right about when the legal scrum began. He skippered Alinghi’s victory over his native New Zealand in 2003, then had a falling out with Bertarelli and was fired the following year.

The latest dispute in the convoluted legal tiff is over North Sails’ patented 3DL sail, built by laminating carbon and other fibers between two layers of Mylar.

Meyer called it "an irony unto itself given Russell’s use of 3DL sails on every AC team he has raced with since 1995; New Zealand, Switzerland and now the USA."

Each team has offered its own interpretation of the Deed of Gift, the 1887 document that governs the America’s Cup. Just like with every other issue in the long spat, those interpretations differ.

Alinghi says the Deed of Gift stipulates that only the hull needs to be built in country, not the sails. The Americans say that since sails are part of the yacht, they need to be built in country.

"Alinghi’s constructed-in-country violation is yet another example of SNG’s reckless disregard for the Deed of Gift, and of their repeated attempts to gain an advantage by shamelessly breaking the rules," Ehman said in a statement.

BMW Oracle Racing will counter with USA, a 90-by-90-foot trimaran with a radical wing sail. That wing sail has led to the Swiss filing a motion with the court saying USA no longer meets the specifications the Americans included in their challenge certificate filed in July 2007.

-- Bernie Wilson

American Railey builds lead at Miami Regatta

MIAMI — Paige Railey won two races to build an 18-point lead over Spain’s Alicia Cebrian in the Laser Radial class at the Rolex Miami OCR Thursday.

In the first race, Railey, from Clearwater, Fla., said she got stuck in the middle of two big shifts. She rounded deep, but then made a comeback on the first run and grabbed the lead. In the second race, she broke free on the last downwind leg and took a commanding lead.

England’s Nick Thompson, who came into the day trailing leader Bruno Fontes by seven points in Laser class, passed the Brazilian and took 26-point lead by posting two victories.

Fontes fell into a tie for second with France’s Jean-Baptiste Bernaz.

Track & Field

Robles ready to hurdle for 1st time in months

HAVANA — Dayron Robles says he’s ready to return to competition next week, the Cuban’s first meet since pulling out of the world championships last summer in Berlin.

In an interview with The Associated Press on Thursday, the 2008 Olympic champion and world record-holder said little about the left-leg injury that forced him out of the semifinals of the 110-meter hurdles at the worlds. Robles pulled up injured after hitting the first three hurdles.

He returns to competition on Wednesday in an indoor meet in Duesseldorf, Germany.

Robles says his eyes are on the March 12-14 world indoor championships in Doha, Qatar, where he is likely to go head-to-head with rival Liu Xiang of China.

"Liu’s presence makes me happy," Robles said. "But my main worry is me, it’s not Liu or other rivals. I have a promise I’ve made to myself and I will look to fulfill it."

Liu is also coming back from injury.

The 2004 Olympic champion and former world record-holder was unable to run the first heat in the 2008 Olympics in Beijing because of a right Achilles’ tendon injury that required surgery.

Though Robles is an Olympic champion and holds the world record of 12.87 seconds, he has never won a world championship — indoor or outdoor. Next week, he’ll be aiming at the 60-meter indoor mark of 7.30 held by Britain’s Colin Jackson. Robles has run 7.33.

Robles’ coach, Santiago Antunez, says he’s been concentrating on stretching, trying to add flexibility to the Cuban.

"We have stressed stretching in our training," Antunez said. "Dayron is a guy that goes all out, even in training." He described hurdling as "very traumatic because the athlete jumps a hurdle and then runs full speed for three steps before another hurdle. This increases the risk of injury."

"An injury also sows doubt in an athlete’s mind," Antunez added. "Even without realizing it."

-- Anne-Marie Garcia

Olympics

Subway defends itself against USOC attack

NEW YORK — The Subway restaurant chain defended its advertising campaign with swimmer Michael Phelps against the U.S. Olympic Committee’s attack on ‘ambush marketing.’

The USOC issued a statement Wednesday attacking nonofficial advertising tied to next month’s Vancouver Olympics.

"Subway has a successful history of partnering with elite athletes," Tony Pace, chief marketing officer of the Subway Franchisee Advertising Fund Trust, said Thursday. "Regarding our latest commercial featuring Michael Phelps, Subway does not share the USOC’s perspective and the conclusions being drawn from it."

Subway is not an official sponsor of the Olympics but has worked with Phelps and pledged to keep using him in its ads.

"Michael Phelps has been an integral part of several Subway marketing campaigns since late 2008," the company statement said. "We are proud of our work with Michael and we look forward to working with him and other elite athletes throughout 2010 and beyond."

Cycling

Steel structure completed on 2012 cycling venue

LONDON — The track cycling venue for the 2012 London Games is on course to become the first sports facility completed in the Olympic Park.

Olympic organizers say work has been completed on the steel structure of the 6,000-seat velodrome. Work is under way to install the double-curved net roof.

Construction of the velodrome began in March 2009, and the venue is on track to be completed in early 2011.

Also under construction in the park complex in east London are the main Olympic stadium, aquatics venue and main media center.

After 2012, the velodrome will be used by elite athletes and the local community. It will include a cafe and bike rental and workshop facilities.

Swimming

FINA bans swimmer Szepesi over missed doping tests

LAUSANNE, Switzerland — FINA has banned Hungarian swimmer Nikolett Szepesi for one year for not submitting to doping tests before coming out of retirement.

Szepesi retired from competition in Dec. 2008 but returned to racing last year without first undergoing doping controls. Athletes must undergo tests for a certain period of time before returning to prove they did not dope during their absence.

Swimming’s governing body banned the 22-year-old Szepesi from competing until Jan. 22, 2011.