Gay Wins 100, and Richards Sets Mark

Tyson Gay won the 100 meters in 9.88 seconds and Sanya Richards broke the 22-year-old American 400-meter record Saturday at the track and field World Cup in Athens.

Taking advantage of the absence of world-record co-holder Asafa Powell, who chose to run only in the relay, Gay ran close to his personal best of 9.85. The world record is 9.77.

Gay’s run made him the second-fastest 100 winner in the history of the 10-year competition. Obadele Thompson of Barbados won the 1998 race in Johannesburg, South Africa, in 9.87.

“I didn’t expect to run that fast, so I am excited,” Gay said. “It was hard being in the outside lane.”

Richards breezed home in 48.70, the fastest time of the year. Richards, a world silver medalist last year, was the first woman to break 49 seconds this year and became the seventh-fastest 400 runner of all time. She is undefeated this year.

“I got into the blocks thinking ‘I want to break the record,’ and that’s what I did,” she said.

Valerie Brisco held the old mark of 48.83 since the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics.

“I am overwhelmed, I was shocked,” Richards said. “My dad said watching the clock slowed me down, so I didn’t look at the clock. Everything he said came true.”

European champion Vania Stambolova was second in 50.09.

Gay was never threatened in the 100 and crossed the line well ahead of European champion Francis Obikwelu, who clocked 10.09. Marc Burns was third in 10.14.

TENNIS

Belgium and Italy Are

Tied, 1-1, in Fed Cup

Justine Henin-Hardenne responded with a strong run in the second set to edge Flavia Pennetta, 6-4, 7-5, leaving Belgium and Italy tied, 1-1, after the opening day of the Fed Cup final at Charleroi, Belgium.

Francesca Schiavone gave Italy the early lead by beating Kirsten Flipkens, 6-1, 6-3, in the best-of-five format.

Reverse singles and doubles are today.

Top-seeded Svetlana Kuznetsova defeated defending champion Lindsay Davenport, 7-6 (4), 7-6 (5), to advance to the final of the Wismilak International tournament at Bali, Indonesia.

Kuznetsova, who won the Wismilak title in 2002 and 2004, will face sixth-seeded Marion Bartoli, who overcame second-seeded Patty Schnyder, 6-4, 6-4, in the other semifinal.

Marco Baghdatis reached his first final since the Australian Open, defeating Paradorn Srichaphan, 6-2, 3-6, 7-5, to advance to the title match of the China Open in Beijing.

Baghdatis, seeded third, will play fourth-seeded Mario Ancic for the title. Ancic rallied past eighth-seeded Lee Hyung-taik, 4-6, 6-1, 6-1.

MISCELLANY

U.S. Breezes Past Cuba

in Second-Round Game

Candace Parker had 16 points and nine rebounds to help the United States to a 90-50 victory over Cuba in a second-round game of the Women’s World Basketball Championships at Barueri, Brazil.

Tina Thompson and Diana Taurasi added 13 points each for the United States, 4-0 in the tournament but credited with a 3-0 mark in Group F because only first-round games against teams that advanced count in the second-round standings.

Deion Branch will not make his debut for the Seattle Seahawks today against the Arizona Cardinals.

The NFL has given the Seahawks a two-week roster exemption for the former Super Bowl MVP, acquired Monday from the New England Patriots in a trade.

The World Anti-Doping Agency held off on banning the use of hypoxic chambers, but asked that studies look further into health implications.

WADA’s ethics committee ruled that the chambers enhance performance and violate “the spirit of sport,” but the executive committee refrained from adding them to their list of prohibited substances and methods for 2007.

Ohio State has filed an appeal in a bid to overturn a judge’s decision awarding $2.4 million to fired former men’s basketball coach Jim O’Brien.

The Ohio Court of Claims ruled last month that Ohio State improperly fired O’Brien in 2004 after learning that he had given $6,000 to a recruit. The judge in the case said that O’Brien broke NCAA bylaws but that the university did not follow the terms of O’Brien’s contract in terminating him.

Right wing Jere Lehtinen signed a two-year, $8-million contract extension with the Dallas Stars after leading the team in goals two of the last three seasons. The club exercised its option for the 2006-07 season, and the extension will keep him under contract through the 2008-09 season.