Two Women Sue Tyson for $22.5 Million

Two women are suing Mike Tyson for $22.5 million, claiming they were traumatized when he verbally and physically abused them in a Washington restaurant after his sexual advance was rejected, their lawyer said Tuesday.

The former heavyweight boxing champion allegedly grabbed one of the women, cursed at the other one and overturned a table before hot coffee was thrown on him to “impede his attack” on March 1, the lawsuit says.

Tyson, who served three years in prison for rape, became even more enraged when he learned one of the women is a corrections officer, the suit says.

“This is just another attempt to wrongfully embarrass Mike Tyson through meritless litigation against which he will vigorously defend himself,” Tyson’s attorney, John Branca, said in a statement. “He is currently considering a counterclaim.”

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A tabulation error made in Saturday’s World Boxing Council super-lightweight title fight between Julio Cesar Chavez and Miguel Angel Gonzalez at Mexico City was a “mental lapse” that did not affect the outcome, WBC President Jose Sulaiman said.

An error made by a WBC official in transcribing one judge’s scorecard, giving Gonzalez more points than Chavez, was seen on television and brought to the council’s attention more than an hour after the fight, Sulaiman said.

But Sulaiman said that in investigating the error, the WBC found that the judge’s scorecard turned in immediately after the sixth round had 10 points for both fighters.

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Roberto Duran, 46 and thought to be retired, will fight champion William Joppy for the World Boxing Assn. middleweight title in May or June.

Soccer

Soccer’s international governing body, FIFA, announced that for the first time, World Cup referees will signal to the teams’ benches how many minutes have been added for injuries, substitutions and time wasting.

The information will also be transmitted to the fans in the stands, probably by flashing it on the electronic substitution boards that officials use on the sidelines.

FIFA also announced that players testing positive for recreational drugs, such as marijuana, at the World Cup finals will be kicked out of the tournament.

Teams from the United States, China, Norway and Denmark will make up the field when women’s soccer becomes part of the Goodwill Games for the first time this summer, organizers said in New York.

The Los Angeles Galaxy will participate in the inaugural Copa Merconorte international tournament beginning in September, along with clubs from Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador, Mexico, Peru, Venezuela and two-time Major League Soccer champion D.C. United.

Winter Sports

Sweden’s Mathia Fredriksson and Per Olofsson won a narrow victory over Norwegians Rune Torseth and Tor Arne Hetland in a World Cup 16-kilometer cross-country skiing relay at Falun, Sweden.

Fredriksson and Olofsson completed the race in 32 minutes 46.2 seconds, four-tenths of a second ahead of the Norwegians.

Three-time U.S. medalist Tonia Kwiatkowski was named to replace Olympic champion Tara Lipinski, who on Monday had two abscessed teeth removed, on the U.S. team for the World Figure Skating Championships that begin March 31 in Minneapolis.

Swedish favorite Jesper Roennbaeck took over the World Cup lead by winning a dual moguls contest at Hundfjallet, Sweden. Norwegian skier Kari Traa won the women’s event.

The front-runners in this year’s Iditarod sled dog race maintained a fast pace, with Mitch Seavey jumping into the lead. Sixty-three teams remain in the Alaska race. The first to reach Nome will take home $50,000.

Pro Football

Chicago Bear defensive end Alonzo Spellman, wearing no shoes or shirt in freezing weather, walked out of the hospital he had checked into after an eight-hour standoff with sheriff’s deputies Monday.

Officials at Good Shepherd Hospital in suburban Barrington called the Lake County sheriff’s office when Spellman left, and deputies eventually talked Spellman, 26, into voluntarily returning to his room.

Spellman has been angry over the Bears’ attempts to trade him, authorities said.

The Baltimore Ravens retained the services of backup quarterback Eric Zeier, matching an offer sheet tendered by the Atlanta Falcons, and re-signed special teams standout Bennie Thompson.

Dallas Cowboy Coach Chan Gailey has completed his assistant coaching staff. Jim Jeffcoat, who played 12 seasons for the Cowboys at defensive end, will be a defensive line coach. Other coaches hired include George Edwards, Wayne Geis, Les Miles, Dwain Painter, Tommie Robinson and Clarence Shelmon.

Denver Bronco linebacker Bill Romanowski has offered a $5,000 reward for the return of jewelry, including a Super Bowl ring, that disappeared while he was vacationing with his family in Florida. He earned the ring in the 1989 Super Bowl, in which the San Francisco 49ers defeated the Broncos.

Names in the News

Gil Morgan finished off an easy victory in Senior Slam at Cabo San Lucas, closing with a four-under-par 68 for a six-stroke margin over 1997 winner Hale Irwin. . . . Mario Moriello, remembered as the player who left the Boston University bench to tackle a Villanova player heading for a touchdown in 1952, died Friday at 73. . . . Alfredo Melandri, a Formula Three racing driver injured in a crash eight days ago, died Monday night in Florence, Italy. The 25-year-old Melandri was injured during a test run when his car spun off a curve at 120 mph. . . . Charlotte Hornet forward Anthony Mason submitted blood for DNA testing to see if it matches samples from two underage girls he is accused of raping, the Queens District Attorney’s office in New York said.