Bannister: Black Sprinters Have Anatomical Edge

Roger Bannister, saying he was “prepared to risk political incorrectness,” said Wednesday that black sprinters have “certain natural anatomical advantages” over their white rivals.

Bannister, who in 1954 became the first person to break the four-minute mile, said it was possible that black athletes’ muscles were better adapted to hot climates and therefore better at providing energy quickly.

He also suggested they could have better power-to-weight ratio because they have less fatty tissue under the skin. Bannister, a 66-year-old retired neurologist, gave no evidence to back up his position.

Bannister, speaking at the British Assn. for the Advancement of Science conference at Newcastle, England, said the vast number of all-black sprint finals and a high proportion of black athletes in other events at the recent track and field World Championships lead to interesting speculations.

“As a scientist rather than a sociologist, I am prepared to risk political incorrectness by drawing attention to the seemingly obvious but under-stressed fact that black sprinters and black athletes in general all seem to have certain natural anatomical advantages,” he said.

Boxing

Former super-featherweight champion Bobby Chacon has been arrested on charges of selling cocaine.

Chacon, 43, was arrested Tuesday at his Pacoima home by undercover police officers. Also taken into custody was Yolanda Maria Medina, 37. Each was charged with one count of sale of cocaine, and bail was set at $20,000 for each.

After considering several other options, promoters for Oscar De La Hoya have completed a deal to fight former junior-lightweight champion Jesse James Leija, Dec. 15, at Madison Square Garden in New York, in De La Hoya’s next bout.

Peter McNeeley will fight for the first time since his controversial loss to Mike Tyson when he opposes Mike Dixon Oct. 27 at the new Fleet Center in Boston.

Hockey

Right-winger Teemu Selanne signed a new one-year contract with the Winnipeg Jets, the NHL club announced. Selanne said Monday that he and the Jets had agreed in general on the deal, reportedly worth about $3 million a year, but there was a problem over the length of the contract.

All-star goaltender John Vanbiesbrouck, who has had salary problems with the Florida Panthers, said he wouldn’t be surprised if he is traded within two weeks.

Miscellany

The Little League organization in Tampa, Fla., that produced major leaguers Dwight Gooden and Gary Sheffield and made three appearances in the Little League World Series has lost its charter because of allegations of financial mismanagement.

NBA players Gary Payton, Jason Kidd and Brian Shaw were kicked out of a 24-hour restaurant in Orlando after waitresses accused them of being threatening and shouting obscenities.

Shaw, a guard for the Orlando Magic, denied the allegations, which resulted in a call to police early Sunday but no charges being filed.

One-on-one matches between the Lakers’ Nick Van Exel and the New Jersey Nets’ Kenny Anderson and top draft choices Joe Smith and Kevin Garnett have been added to the Sept. 30 pay-per-view Taco Bell One-On-One Championships at Atlantic City, N.J., featuring the Shaquille O’Neal-Hakeem Olajuwon duel.

Roberto Calcaterra scored three goals to lead top-ranked Italy to an 11-8 victory over the United States in the second round of the Water Polo World Cup at Atlanta. Chris Humbert had three goals for the United States.

A professional rodeo cowboy died of complications Wednesday after breaking his left leg when his horse fell on him in the Pendleton (Ore.) Round-Up a day earlier.

Team roper Mike Boothe, 25, of Bishop, Calif., suffered an embolism when fatty tissues entered a lung, a spokesman at St. Anthony Hospital said.