Hammer Throwers Investigated; Vanderbilt Upsets South Carolina

The silver and bronze medalists in the men's hammer throw at the Beijing Olympics are being investigated for doping offenses by International Olympic Committee.

Belarusians Vadim Devyatovskiy and Ivan Tsikhan tested positive for traces of testosterone after the hammer final on Aug. 17, the Russian news agency Allsport said yesterday.

An IOC disciplinary commission will meet at the end of the month to hear the case, IOC spokeswoman Emmanuelle Moreau told the Associated Press in an e-mail message.

The Belarus Athletics Federation said it had received no documents or confirmation of any positive tests by its athletes.

"How can we comment on what we do not have?" spokeswoman Anastasiya Marinina told the AP in a telephone interview. "Devyatovskiy and Tsikhan deny all the accusations. Every person can have different level of testosterone in his body."

If the two are found guilty of doping, they would be disqualified and stripped of their medals.

Devyatovskiy's silver would go to Krisztian Pars of Hungary, while Tsikhan's bronze would go to Koji Murofushi of Japan. Primoz Kozmus of Slovenia won the gold medal.

Devyatovskiy, 31, faces a lifetime ban if found guilty of a second doping offense. He served a two-year drug suspension from 2000 to '02.

It would be a first offense for the 32-year-old Tsikhan, a three-time world champion and silver medalist at the 2004 Athens Olympics.

The Belarusians would be the seventh and eighth athletes caught doping at the Beijing Olympics, which closed on Aug. 24. . . .

Tyson Gay withdrew from tonight's 100-meter showdown with Jamaicans Usain Bolt and Asafa Powell in Brussels, citing a hamstring injury. Gay was scheduled to take part in the first meeting of the three fastest men in history at the Memorial Van Damme meet. He has struggled with hamstring trouble this year after suffering the injury at the U.S. Olympic trials in June.

· COLLEGE FOOTBALL: Chris Nickson threw for a touchdown and ran for another and Vanderbilt finally beat a ranked opponent on its own field, upsetting No. 24 South Carolina (1-1), 24-17, in the Southeastern Conference opener for both teams in Nashville.

Vanderbilt (2-0) had made a habit of knocking off SEC teams on the road with victories at Arkansas and Tennessee in 2005 and an upset of then-No. 22 Georgia in 2006. They pulled off the biggest victory in more than 70 years by downing then-No. 6 South Carolina last October.

But the Commodores hadn't upset a ranked team at Vanderbilt Stadium since Sept. 19, 1992, a 31-9 win over then-No. 25 Mississippi. . . .

A Penn State player has been kicked off the team for an undisclosed violation of team rules, and three others will miss tomorrow's game against Oregon State because of a separate, off-field issue, Coach Joe Paterno said.

Reserve defensive back Willie Harriott is off the squad, Paterno said. In November, Harriott was arrested for driving under the influence and speeding. Paterno also said that defensive linemen Maurice Evans and Abe Koroma, and tight end Andrew Quarless will sit out tomorrow. Paterno said he's still gathering information on a recent off-field incident. . . .

Ohio State Coach Jim Tressel said tailback Beanie Wells will not play when the third-ranked Buckeyes host Ohio tomorrow.

Wells injured his right foot in Saturday's 43-0 victory over Youngstown State. He has not practiced with the team this week and has spent much of the time wearing a protective boot.

· SOCCER: Mike Petke scored in the 60th minute for his first goal in nearly one year to lead the Colorado Rapids past FC Dallas, 1-0, in an MLS match in Frisco, Tex. . . .

Kevin Keegan resigned as Newcastle manager, ending his second stint in charge of the Premier League club after only seven months. . . . Stefano Colantuono was fired as Palermo manager and replaced by Davide Ballardini, five days after the team lost its Italian Serie A opener, 3-1, to Udinese.

· WNBA: Sue Bird scored 19 points to help the Seattle Storm (20-10) clinch a playoff berth with a 70-62 victory over the host Chicago Sky (11-18).

-- From News Services