Display Cases Must Cost Quite a Fortune

Pin collections may be on their way out as the most popular form of Olympic memorabilia. The latest craze: exercise equipment.

Treadmills, stair-climbers, weight machines and stationary bikes from the 11 athlete gyms and seven media villages at Athens were put up for sale and every piece has been claimed.

The collection is worth $1.5 million.

“The idea is to make them collector items, like how people collect pins,” said Kate Carlisle of Technogym, the official supplier of the Olympic gyms.

“They are high-end collector’s items.”

Trivia time: The Boston Red Sox have had 25 league batting champions, more than any other team. Who was their most recent one?

Tissue, anyone? Gil Lebreton of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram could not believe all the crying when wrestler Rulon Gardner retired after his last Olympic match.

“Rulon was crying,” Lebreton wrote. “Rulon’s wife was crying. Rulon’s coach was crying. The Iranian guy that Rulon beat was crying.... There were so many teary eyes, in fact ... a gymnastics meet almost broke out.”

Slap in the face: The Florida Times-Union reported that Jacksonville Jaguar defensive tackle John Henderson’s unusual pregame ritual was revealed recently by an NFL Films crew.

Moments before every game, Henderson has assistant trainer Joe Sheehan slap him open-handed in the face with as much force as Sheehan can muster.

Apparently it isn’t catching on.

“To heck with that,” teammate Marcus Stroud told the paper. “Ain’t nobody slapping me.”

Nutty stuff: Count Mychal Thompson of XTRA Sports 1150 among those who can’t figure out how Paul Hamm won Olympic gold in the men’s gymnastics all-around, despite nearly falling into the judges’ scoring table during the vault competition.

“If the judges didn’t catch him, he would have taken out the peanut guy,” Thompson said.

Underage bowling: The National Federation of State High School Assns. reports that although football retains the highest participation rate among high school sports, bowling is the fastest-growing.

“It opens up another opportunity for a different set of students in high school,” said Bruce Howard, a federation spokesman.

Yeah, but what’s the fun in bowling if you can’t have a beer frame?

Crooked stick: America Online columnist Jim Armstrong on reports that golf may be added as an Olympic sport for the 2012 Games: “Perfect. Maybe Tiger will have his swing straightened out by then.”

Trivia answer: Bill Mueller, who batted .326 to lead the American League last season.

And finally: Mark Montieth of the Indianapolis Star reports that cellphones will be banned in NBA locker rooms next season.

“Not for players, but reporters,” Montieth wrote. “The primary concern is that the newer models, which include cameras, could be used to send inappropriate photographs over the Internet.”