NASCAR Investigates Torn Seat Belt

A partially torn seat belt made by the same company as the one worn by Dale Earnhardt when he was killed was found in the wreck of a Busch Grand National car in which the driver was injured.

NASCAR officials found the torn belt in Mike Harmon’s car after Saturday’s crash at Nashville that left him with a cracked shoulder blade, said Kevin Triplett, director of operations for NASCAR.

NASCAR confiscated the entire restraint system for further investigation after Saturday’s accident.

“We found a partial tear of the belt that concerns us enough that we are looking into it thoroughly,” Triplett said Wednesday.

The left lap belt sustained a half-inch tear and fraying in the area of the belt near the metal buckle used to adjust the size. It did not break apart in the wreck, Harmon said.

“If it came apart, I’d be in a lot worse shape,” Harmon said. “The belt did its job, but the fact that it tore at all raises great concern.”

The belts used in Harmon’s car were made by Simpson Performance Products, the same company Earnhardt used.

Bill Simpson, founder and chairman of the company that has manufactured safety equipment for 48 years, told the Charlotte Observer that the belt was nicked, not torn.

“It certainly wasn’t torn,” Simpson said. “It is very rare, but sometimes in a massive crash the metal adjuster can nick the fabric. That doesn’t mean the belt failed. This belt did its job and probably saved his life.”

Simpson also said NASCAR was trying to make him “a scapegoat for the Earnhardt thing.”

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Three-time Winston Cup champion Darrell Waltrip said that NASCAR should mandate its drivers use a specific safety device known as the HANS.

“That thing gives you a 60 percent better chance of surviving a wreck like that,” said Waltrip, who retired last year at age 53 with 84 victories. “If [NASCAR] won’t make it mandatory, they ought to at least send out a bulletin that says, ‘We highly recommend the HANS device.’ ”

Tennis

Australian Open champion Jennifer Capriati and Amelie Mauresmo, who has won her last three events, opened the Family Circle Cup at Charleston, S.C., with victories, but fifth-seeded Arantxa Sanchez-Vicario lost to Elena Likhovtseva, 6-3, 6-4.

Capriati, seeded second, won eight consecutive games during one stretch to defeat Rossana de los Rios, 6-4, 6-3.

Mauresmo, seeded seventh, beat Marissa Irvin, 6-2, 3-6, 6-3.

Gustavo Kuerten escaped a wave of upsets at the Masters Series Monte Carlo at Monaco, an important clay-court tuneup for the French Open.

The second-seeded Brazilian beat Fernando Vicente of Spain, 6-2, 6-2, and is the only seeded player left among the top seven entering the third round.

Eliminated from the $2.95-million tournament Wednesday were No. 3 Magnus Norman, No. 7 Juan Carlos Ferrero, No. 11 Thomas Enqvist, No. 12 Franco Squillari and No. 16 Carlos Moya.

French qualifier Emilie Loit upset third-seeded Tathiana Garbin of Italy, 6-4, 6-3, to reach the third round of the $110,000 Budapest Open at Hungary. Also, second-seeded Anne Kremer beat unseeded Sarah Pitkowski, 7-6 (4), 3-6, 6-4.

Gymnastics

UCLA will attempt to win its second consecutive national title and third in five years when it begins competition today in the NCAA championships at Athens, Ga.

The Bruins, ranked No. 1, are favored to prevail. UCLA will compete with 11 other teams in tonight’s qualifying sessions. The top six teams advance to Friday’s round.

Georgia, Alabama and Michigan are among the top challengers.

Jurisprudence

A co-defendant of indicted sports agent Tank Black pleaded guilty at Gainesville, Fla., to helping scam millions of dollars from pro football players.

As part of a deal with prosecutors, Robert C. Ellenburg entered guilty pleas to federal charges of wire fraud, obstruction of justice and money laundering and faces a possible prison sentence of 25 years.

A Southeast Missouri State basketball player was released from a Jackson, Mo., jail after pleading guilty to possessing a little less than a gram of marijuana.

Terry Rogers had been sentenced to 30 days in jail. But because he had been in custody since March 9, he was released Tuesday.

Soccer

Real Madrid reached the Champions League semifinals with a 3-0 victory over Galatasaray at Madrid. In the semifinal, Madrid will meet Bayern Munich, which beat Manchester United, 3-1.

Soccer’s governing body is considering punishing clubs, leagues or national associations that fail to meet international safety standards. The discussion by FIFA’s emergency committee came a week after 43 people died in a stampede at South Africa’s Ellis Park Stadium.

Miscellany

The Clovis West boys’ basketball team is expected to be stripped of its 2000 Southern California Regional Division I championship game victory over Mater Dei for using an ineligible player from the Dominican Republic.

Center Charlie Rodriguez was 21 years old when he scored 17 points to help the Golden Eagles defeat the Monarchs, 71-64, in March 2000, according to birth records obtained by Central Section Commissioner Jerry Laird.

California Interscholastic Federation rules state that athletes who turn 19 on or before June 14 of an upcoming school year are ineligible for competition.

The Long Beach Ice Dogs begin play tonight in the West Coast Hockey League’s Southern Division finals. The Ice Dogs will meet the San Diego Gulls in a best-of-five series beginning in San Diego.

South Carolina dismissed linebacker Pat Fleming from the football team for breaking team rules, Coach Lou Holtz said. . . . Texas El Paso point guard Eugene Costello has been suspended indefinitely from the team after being charged with marijuana possession.