If She’s Not a She but in Fact a He, He Shouldn’t Ski

French skier Marielle Goitschel has finally received official recognition for winning a world championship--after the skier who defeated her turned out to be a man.

In the 1966 World Alpine Championships in Chile, Goitschel was runner-up to Austrian Erika Schinegger in the downhill. But Schinegger later discovered during medical tests that she was, in fact, a man, according to her autobiography published in 1988.

Schinegger gave his gold medal to Goitschel in 1988, but the sport’s governing body never got around to changing the result until recently.

Schinegger learned during the 1968 Olympics that she--he?--had male chromosomes. He later married and became a father. He is now Eric Schinegger.

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Trivia time: Who is the only person to have won the Heisman Trophy, scored a touchdown on a 99-yard run to win a bowl game, been drafted No. 1 overall by the NFL and played in the NCAA Final Four?

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No fear: Emanuel Yarbrough had a 360-pound weight advantage, but it wasn’t enough for the 660-pound truck driver turned sumo wrestler. After flicking off smaller opponents, the American was knocked off balance and out of the International Sumo Federation championship match in Tokyo by South Africa’s Mark Robinson, a 300-pound world champion power lifter.

“A lot of guys go in there afraid of him,” Robinson said. “I just went in unafraid. Unafraid.”

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Players’ player: One of Cal Ripken Jr.’s Baltimore Oriole game jerseys brought a $5,200 bid at a charity auction in Puerto Rico. The bidder: Moises Alou, new Florida Marlin outfielder.

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Sounds of music: Leo Mehl, recently named executive director of the Indy Racing League, has an ear for racing.

“If I were to describe it, I’d call a stock car engine a bass, a Formula One engine a soprano, the previous Indy engines a tenor and these [IRL] are a beautiful alto,” Mehl said.

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Cowboy hit: From the Miami Herald’s Greg Cote:

“Who says the Cowboys no longer dominate the NFL? Three of this season’s eight league drug suspensions and seven of the past 13 overall--that’s dominance!

“This isn’t a team. It’s a cartel.

“The Cowboys don’t have fans anymore. They have lookouts. Other teams win one for The Gipper. These guys win one for Pablo Escobar.”

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Big O My! Triple-doubles get headlines in the NBA these days, but Oscar Robertson averaged a triple-double for the 79 games of his second season with the Cincinnati Royals. The Big O is also the only player to record a triple-double in his first NBA game.

If you’re wondering, Magic Johnson did it in his fifth game, and Damon Stoudamire in his 11th.

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Trivia answer: Terry Baker of Oregon State.

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And finally: Television commentator and former major league catcher Joe Garagiola likes to tell about the scouting report he read on himself: “Deceiving runner. He’s slower than he looks.”