Wimbledon Purses to Stay Unequal

Women still will earn less than the men at Wimbledon, even though total prize money at the Grand Slam tournament is going up.

The All England Club on Tuesday announced a 5% increase across the board in payoffs, pushing the purse to $12.7 million.

The men’s champion will receive $756,000 and the women’s champion will get $700,000.

Last year, Goran Ivanisevic was paid $720,000 and Venus Williams $666,000.

The total prize money is $6.29 million for men and $5.32 million for women, with the rest of the overall fund going to mixed doubles and senior doubles events.

The discrepancy between men’s and women’s prize money had narrowed the last two years because Wimbledon gave the women higher percentage increases. But not this year.

The Women’s Tennis Assn., which has campaigned for years for equal pay, was disappointed by the decision.

“We continue to be concerned over the lack of equality between women’s and men’s prize money,” said Josh Ripple, chief operations officer for the WTA Tour. “Over the next year, we will work with Wimbledon to review the disparity.”

All England Club Chairman Tim Phillips said last year he did not expect to see equal pay in the foreseeable future.

“I do think we’re being fair,” he said. “We’ve applied a 5% increase of both the men’s and women’s total and the women’s total is a marginally smaller increase. It makes a tiny difference.”

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Pete Sampras fought off a spirited upset bid by 79th-ranked Jan Vacek to win, 4-6, 6-1, 7-5, in the first round of the U. S. Men’s Clay-Court Championships at Houston.

Top-seeded Tommy Haas defeated wild-card Alex Kim, 6-2, 6-4, but eighth-seeded Jan-Michael Gambill, despite 14 aces, was upset by Kristian Pless, 2-6, 6-2, 7-5.

Defending champion Andy Roddick, seeded third, ousted Michael Russell, 6-1, 6-2.

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Spanish veteran Sergi Bruguera beat 18-year-old countryman Carlos Cuadrado, the tournament’s youngest qualifier, 4-6, 7-6, 6-1, in the first round of the Open Seat Godo 2002 at Barcelona, Spain.

In second-round matches, seventh-seeded Alex Corretja defeated Galo Blanco 7-6 (7-5), 7-5, and eighth-seeded Thomas Enqvist was upset, 6-4, 6-2, by Gaston Gaudio.

College Basketball

Duke junior point guard Jason Williams officially announced he will make himself eligible for the NBA draft in June.

Williams, who graduates in May with a degree in sociology after three years, said he has hired an agent.

Texas Tech men’s Coach Bob Knight has canceled an appearance at a Fort Worth library benefit co-sponsored by the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, which ran a front-page article examining his older son’s business practices.

The April 12 article cited records showing that Tim Knight, an assistant athletic director at Texas Tech, had shipped school merchandise to an Indianapolis store operated by his mother without the university receiving payment.

Rick Pitino, who last year was courted by Nevada Las Vegas before taking the men’s coaching job at Louisville, has pulled the Cardinals out of a Dec. 21 game against the Runnin’ Rebels at the Thomas & Mack Center.

In a statement, Pitino said he “prefers to play teams in areas that can help in our recruiting process.”

Portland State formally introduced Heath Schroyer, 30, as men’s coach. He spent last season as an assistant at Wyoming and the previous four at Brigham Young.

Pro Football

Theft charges were dropped against former New Orleans Saint receiver Albert Connell, accused of stealing $4,363 last year from teammate Deuce McAllister.

Connell returned the money, and McAllister told authorities he does not want to press charges.

Connell, who signed a five-year, $14-million contract in March 2001, said he took the money as a prank. He was released by the Saints on Feb. 28.

NFL Commissioner Paul Tagliabue took his push for a northern Super Bowl to Washington, which he wants considered for the 2007 game along with New York.

League rules stipulate that the Super Bowl must be played in a domed stadium or a city where the average January high temperature is at least 50 degrees.

Woody Dantzler, a quarterback at Clemson projected as a running back by the NFL, signed with the Dallas Cowboys. Dallas also re-signed tight end Mike Lucky and receiver Randal Williams, and signed running back Ennis Haywood, who played at Iowa State.... Nose tackle Gilbert Brown and tight end Tyrone Davis agreed to one-year contracts with the Green Bay Packers.... Matt Turk, whose 77-yard punt for the Miami Dolphins was the longest in the AFC last season, signed with the New York Jets.

Horse Racing

Times handicapper Bob Mieszerski led all public handicappers during Santa Anita’s 85-day winter-spring meet, which ended Sunday. Mieszerski finished with 233 winners, four more than the runner-up, syndicated handicapper Bob Ike.

Passings

Jerry Heidenreich, who won two gold medals swimming for the United States in the 1972 Olympics at Munich, Germany, died Thursday in his home at Paris, Texas. He was 52.

Paris police said Heidenreich died of an apparent suicide. He had suffered a stroke last summer. (See story, B section).

Former Nebraska fullback Sam Francis, a member of college football’s hall of fame, died in his sleep at Springfield, Mo. He was 88.

Francis, the 1936 Heisman Trophy runner-up to Yale’s Larry Kelley, played professionally at Chicago, Pittsburgh and Brooklyn.

Also a track star, Francis finished fourth in the men’s shot put in the 1936 Olympics at Berlin.