Wednesday, April 25, 2007

Michael Vick got an incomplete from Congress.

The Atlanta Falcons quarterback was scheduled to lobby yesterday on Capitol Hill, hoping to persuade lawmakers to increase funding for after-school programs. But Vick missed a connecting flight in Atlanta and failed to show for his appearance.

Vick's publicist, Susan Bass, said it wasn't his fault. The quarterback was in Tampa on Monday to play in teammate Warrick Dunn's charity golf tournament, then caught a flight to Atlanta that was supposed to arrive in time for him to make another flight to Reagan National Airport.

But the AirTran flight was late leaving Tampa, and Vick missed his connection and wound up stuck in Atlanta, Bass said.

"He was really mad," she said. "He was on the plane and everything, but the plane didn't come in until late."

AirTran, which has an endorsement deal with Vick, gave a different account of Vick's travel arrangements. While acknowledging that the flight from Florida was late getting into Atlanta, causing him to miss his 8:35 p.m. connection, airline spokesman Tad Hutcheson said the player was booked on a 10:50 p.m. flight, but Vick failed to show.

Vick's mother, Brenda Boddie, accepted an award from the Afterschool Alliance on her son's behalf. He was honored for his foundation's work with after-school projects.

· TENNIS: The total purse at Wimbledon will be 8.7 percent more than last year, with the male and female champion each taking home $1.4 million.

The only Grand Slam tournament on grass will offer total prize money of $22,572,011. The increase reflects female and male competitors getting equal pay from the first round to the final for the first time since Wimbledon began paying players in 1968.

Wimbledon, which starts June 25, also announced it would use instant replay technology for the first time, subject to final testing in May. . . .

Tommy Robredo and David Nalbandian advanced to the third round of the Open Seat event in Barcelona, and former champions Marat Safin and Gaston Gaudio were eliminated in first-round matches.

· COLLEGE BASKETBALL: Morgan State men's basketball coach Todd Bozeman, who faced misdemeanor assault and cursing charges following a tirade against a restaurant employee for making the wrong kind of sandwiches, had the charges dropped after he made a simple apology.

"I want to apologize to Mulligan's and the community," Bozeman said in Prince Edward County (Va.) General District Court.

Court records show Bozeman also agreed to a monetary payment to the employee involved in the Feb. 3 tirade that followed a loss by Morgan State at Longwood. . . .

Nevada men's basketball coach Mark Fox was reprimanded by the Western Athletic Conference for unsportsmanlike conduct with referees during two games in March. He was spared a fine or suspension by the league.

-- From News Services