Tear Found in Mayfield Seat Belt

The seat belt in Jeremy Mayfield’s car was partially torn during an accident that injured the driver at Dover Downs International Speedway in Charlotte, N.C.

NASCAR officials found a tear in the left lap belt while inspecting Mayfield’s car after his accident Sunday. The belt was made by Simpson Performance Products, the same company that manufactured the torn belt found in Dale Earnhardt’s car after his fatal accident on Feb. 18.

Bill Simpson, who resigned this summer as president of the company, citing stress from Earnhardt’s death, could not be reached for comment.

NASCAR officials attributed Mayfield’s torn belt to “dumping,” which occurs when the webbing is pulled or moved to one side of the adjustment device through which the belt webbing travels. When a dumped belt is under stress, it can separate and tear across the entire webbing.

NASCAR said Mayfield’s belt was only partially torn. Earnhardt’s was completely separated.

Basketball

Guards Allen Iverson and Aaron McKie of the Philadelphia 76ers will undergo arthroscopic surgery today and may miss the Oct. 2 start of training camp. Iverson will have surgery on his right elbow. McKie will have surgery on his right shoulder.

Guard Kevin Ollie, a former Crenshaw High player and NBA reserve, signed with the Chicago Bulls. .... Rodney Buford, a 6-foot-5 swingman who was a reserve for the 76ers last season, signed with the Miami Heat

Jurisprudence

Christopher Calkin, assistant state attorney in Florida, testified in Miami that he saw no ethical problem when his romance with tennis star Martina Hingis blossomed two days after he obtained a two-year jail sentence for her stalker. Frank Abrams, attorney for convicted stalker Dubravko Rajcevic, called Calkin as a witness during a request for a new sentence or trial based on the relationship between Hingis and the prosecutor. The judge, who called Abrams’ arguments “fallacious, specious and maybe an ethical violation,” said he planned to rule within two weeks.

Hockey star Sergei Fedorov of the Detroit Red Wings was arrested for driving while impaired after failing a field sobriety test in Royal Oak, Mich.

The world cycling body in Lausanne, Switzerland, said it would appeal the Danish Doping Board’s acquittal of Bo Hamburger on charges that he used the banned endurance-building drug EPO.

Hockey

Bryan Berard is expected to sign a four-year deal with the New York Rangers worth an average $2.875 million a season. The deal would include an insurance settlement to recover at least part of the money paid to Berard after his right eye was severely damaged when he was accidentally struck by Marian Hossa’s stick in a March 2000 game in Ottawa.

The Ottawa Senators signed defenseman Zdeno Chara to a multiyear contract.

Dave Christian and Mike Ramsey, members of the gold medal-winning 1980 U.S. Olympic team, and Paul Johnson, a member of the gold medal 1960 U.S. Olympic squad, were elected to the U.S. Hockey Hall of Fame.

Miscellany

USA Boxing, citing concerns after the recent terrorist attacks, has withdrawn teams from scheduled international competitions next month in Azerbaijan and the Ukraine.

Worries about the cost of transporting and ensuring the safety of the Dead Sea Scrolls have prompted Olympic organizers in Salt Lake City to cancel a display of the religious artifacts.

The Clippers today will host their charity golf tournament, benefiting local youth, starting at 9 a.m. at Ocean Trails Golf Club in Rancho Palos Verdes.

Passings

A memorial service has been scheduled for Friday in New York for Andy O’Grady, a four-year letter-winning swimmer and former graduate assistant swim coach at UCLA.

O’Grady, 32, is missing and presumed dead as a result of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center. A native of Harrington Park, N.J., he graduated from UCLA in 1991 and was a managing director at Sandler O’Neill, for which he worked on the 104th floor at 2 World Trade Center.

Maine hockey Coach Shawn Walsh, who led the Black Bears to two national championships, died after a long battle with renal cell carcinoma, a rare form of cancer. He was 46.