Gymnasts Test Positive

United States national gymnastics champion Sean Townsend and two teammates tested positive for cannabis and were warned they could be suspended if it happens again.

Townsend, Brett McClure and Jason Gatson failed the unannounced, out-of-competition test in January, the International Gymnastics Federation said Wednesday.

“In the event of subsequent offenses, these gymnasts could be subject to a suspension of up to two years. Gymnasts, be warned,” the federation said.

A positive test for cannabis--which can be found in marijuana and hashish--does not merit an automatic suspension because it is not a performance-enhancing substance.

USA Gymnastics, the organization that oversees the U.S. team, planned no official sanction.

Pro Football

Tackle John Parrella, a key run-stuffer for the San Diego Chargers the last five seasons, agreed to a $24-million, six-year contract with the Oakland Raiders, according to a source familiar with the negotiations.... Terry Glenn’s agent said that he could have a trade worked out that would send the New England receiver to the Green Bay Packers as early as today.... Free-agent guard Kerry Jenkins finalized a five-year, $10-million contract with Tampa Bay. Jenkins played the last five seasons with the New York Jets.... Linebacker Sam Cowart agreed to a six-year contract to join the Jets, who also re-signed middle linebacker Marvin Jones, cut at the start of free agency, for $12 million over five years.... Atlanta signed free-agent right tackle Todd Weiner to a five-year, $17.5-million contract.... Former St. Louis linebacker London Fletcher agreed to a five-year deal with Buffalo pending a physical.

Winter Sports

American Caroline Lalive finished second behind overall World Cup champion Michaela Dorfmeister of Austria in the season’s final women’s downhill race at Altenmarkt-Zauchensee, Austria.

Tennis

Andre Agassi put a stop to a string of upsets when he beat Greg Rusedski, 6-4, 6-4, in the Franklin Templeton Tennis Classic in Scottsdale. Ariz.

The win sends Agassi, a three-time Scottsdale champion and the event’s top-seeded player, into a quarterfinal match Friday with Juan Ignacio Chela, who beat fifth-seeded Alex Corretja, 6-4, 7-5.

Jurisprudence

A judge in Florida has said he is concerned about the constitutionality of a state law restricting public access to autopsy photos.

Circuit Judge Leroy Moe, hearing arguments in a media challenge to the law, which was passed a year ago after the death of race car driver Dale Earnhardt during the Daytona 500, said the state’s open records statute may trump a family’s pain in having the photos made public.

Miscellany

Spark forward Latasha Byears will sit out the WNBA season opener against New York to serve a one-game suspension ordered by the league. Byears received the suspension after pleading no contest to a reckless driving charge last week in Sacramento.

Magna Entertainment Corporation, which owns Santa Anita, Golden Gate Fields, Bay Meadows and Gulfstream Park among several other race tracks, has reached an agreement to purchase Lone Star Park at Grand Prairie, Texas, for a reported $80 million in cash.

Martin Buser reached the Cripple checkpoint in Phir, Alaska, claiming gold nuggets and a trophy for being the first musher to reach the halfway point of the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race.