Grateful Tomjanovich Says He’s Cancer-Free

Former Houston Rocket coach Rudy Tomjanovich, who resigned after he was found to have cancer last season, is free of the disease, he and his doctor said in a statement Monday.

“I am extremely grateful to be cancer-free,” the 54-year-old Tomjanovich said in a statement released by the Rockets, who are now coached by Jeff Van Gundy.

Tomjanovich, who coached the Rockets to NBA titles in 1994 and 1995, had a bladder tumor in March that didn’t require surgery.

He took a leave of absence then for treatment, then resigned in May.

Richard Goldfarb, deputy chief of urology at Methodist Hospital, said recent biopsies showed no signs of cancer.

Tomjanovich, who remains with the Rockets as a personnel consultant, will need maintenance immunotherapy for two or three years, as well as close observation, Goldfarb said.

Track and Field

The U.S. Olympic Committee, in an invitation that signals the pressure that could be brought to bear on USA Track and Field, asked USATF’s president to appear Friday in Cleveland before the USOC’s policymaking executive committee to outline what’s next in the case of sprinter Jerome Young.

USOC President Bill Martin, in a letter sent Monday, made the request to USATF President Bill Roe.

The USOC also wants details from USATF about plans, if any, to ensure next year’s Athens Olympics don’t have a recurrence of conduct-related issues involving U.S. athletes that marked this year’s track and field championships in Paris.

Sprinter Jon Drummond, for instance, declined to leave the track after being disqualified for a false start.

“These are serious issues and we’re very interested in learning more about how USATF intends to address these issues,” USOC spokesman Darryl Seibel said late Monday.

USATF officials could not be reached for comment.

Young tested positive for the banned steroid nandrolone in 1999 but took part at the Sydney Olympic Games, winning a gold medal as a member of the 1,600-meter relay team, after a USATF appeals panel cleared him to compete. Young’s hearing and appeal after the positive test were conducted in secret.

Tennis

Fifth-seeded Chanda Rubin lost and Lindsay Davenport withdrew because of a foot injury on the opening day of the Swisscom Challenge at Zurich, Switzerland.

Jelena Dokic beat Rubin, 6-1, 5-7, 6-4, for her first victory over a top-10 player this season. Davenport has a nerve problem in two toes on her left foot.

Wayne Ferreira overcame a sore groin and elbow to beat Ivan Ljubicic, 7-6 (7), 7-6 (5), at the Tennis Masters Madrid in Spain.

In other matches on opening day, Gaston Gaudio of Argentina rallied past Finland’s Jarkko Nieminen, 3-6, 7-5, 6-2, and Juan Ignacio Chela of Argentina defeated Alberto Martin of Spain, 6-4, 1-6, 6-1.

Miscellany

USC might start basketball practice Saturday -- the first day colleges can begin official workouts -- without junior power forward Jeff McMillan, who is still feeling the effects of a hairline fracture to his foot suffered late in the spring.

“I told Jeff this summer, ‘You need to stay off of it, you don’t need to play on it,’ ” Trojan Coach Henry Bibby said. “Of course he goes and plays the whole summer and we’re looking at the problem staring at us in the face now.”

The 6-foot-8, 260-pound McMillan, who sat out last year after transferring from Fordham, averaged 10.1 points and 7.7 rebounds in two seasons there.

Three world title fights will highlight Golden Boy Promotions’ Fiesta De La Hoya pay-per-view card at the Olympic Auditorium on Nov. 22.

In the main event, World Boxing Council super-bantamweight champion Oscar Larios (48-3-1, 33 knockouts) will defend his title against Napapol Kiatisakchokchai (22-1, 18).

The semi-main event between 2000 U.S. Olympian Jose Navarro (18-0, 7) of Los Angeles and Reynaldo Hurtado (36-4, 27) will serve as an International Boxing Assn. super-flyweight world title bout. Also, Javier Jauregui (46-10-2, 33) will meet Levander Johnson (32-3-2, 25) for the International Boxing Federation lightweight title.

T.J. Simers has the day off.