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Show The Salt Lake Tribune WINTER SPORTS Jamaican Sledder Russia Ices Kazakhstan,U.S. Begins Play Today in Junior Hockey Championship Still Searching for Fairy-Tale Ending ‘THE ASSOCIATED PRESS STOCKHOLM, Sweden — Evgeny Muratov had four goals and twoassists as Russia routed Kaza: Founding member, Harris, recently visited khstan 14-1 Saturday in a World Junior Iee Hockey Championship openerfor both teams. Muratov, an 18-year-old left wing, scored his first goal on the power play halfway through the opening period to make the score 41. He scored again halfway through the game, giving Russia a HeberCity to film a commercial fortelevision BY SKIP KNOWLES ‘THE SALT LAKE TRIBUNE Jamaican bobsledder Devon Harris relishes the wild ride and fame that came with a career on ice that helped inspire a Disney movie. He turned 35 this Christmas, and now the veteran driver and original Jamaican Bobsled Team founding memberis starting to look elsewhere for the fairy-tale ending. The Jamaicanswill havea team for 2002, but Harris is not explosive European power teams that spend decades honing pushtactics. While the other countries were perfecting their teams,the Jamaicans were still deciding seating order and should be brakeman. ‘The cause of the crash in the movie was a Disney-fied equip- mentfailure; a loose bolt. The truth is the team hadlittle fourman experience and a ph tackatparlethesfader’ rienced. Driver Dudley Stokeshad never gonethatfast before. competing this year. “Tam working now andfor the past two years putting things in place for life after bobsled, and competing,” he said. He was in Heber City recently to film a TV commercial. Fans of the movie Cool Runningswill be relieved to know the seemingly too Disney-to- be-true storyline did take creative license but also veered close to the true story of the Jamaican Bobsled Team . “Tt was accuratehowit depicted the underdogspirit of the team and immortalized the efforts we made,”hesaid. While the tension andfistfights with other teams were pure Hollywood, the crash in the movie was not. The crash scene wasshotwith a real footage from the team’s wreck in Olympic competition, just as the team was putting to- ‘Al Hartmann/The Associated Press Devon Harris, a member of the Jamaican bobsled team,will not be competing with the team this yearas it prepares for the 2002 Games. generated the movie Everybody remembered the crash becauseit was so horrendous. No injuries, but our pride was hurt.” but ... that is what generated the movie,” he said. “Everybody remembered the crash because it businessmen, George Fitch and William Maloney, who saw the push-cart racesheld in the streets of Jamaica and thoughtit resem- bled bobsledding. “They're great guys,” Harris said. “They were discussing a bet that Jamaican athletes were best in the world and wanted to put that theory to the test. The best wayto test an athlete is to see how quickly [the athlete] can learn a newsport and be competitive.” The bobsled push-start is all about speed, and only the United States has more medals than Jamaica in sprint events. “And we derfunded. Its finest hour was a 16th place in the four-man in Lillehammer.Andits best finish time in the two-man was in Naganoin 1998, a 29th. But moneyis not all that hin- ders the team in Harris’ mind. There is not a lot Disney-like about the way the Jamaican bobsled team is working together these days. Both of the team’s top is now over in Innsbruck,training, while Harris hits the motivational speakercircuit. “I wantto be onice but because of all that crap [politics], I can’t be,” he said, For nowheis lookingatlife beyond bobsled and liking what he sees. Going backto the old neighborhood in Jamaica and “doing some good” tops his to-dolist. Like the thousands of Americantourists whoconsiderit para- dise, Harris loves Jamaica. “WhenI’m away, I realize just how much[he missesit]. I get this nostalgic feeling. I miss hearing the the Jamaican tongue, birds singing in the mornings. It’s really hard to explain.” Andthat is all the Disney he really needs. d-rings (steering ropes)of the Jamaica I team, he said. Harris is Harris was a runner who was enlisted at the time of the bobsled from the ghetto, and Stokes is tryouts and tried outfor theorigi- The controlling board is a groupof friends, Harris said, and team at his commander’s etetenSueden Stovakianied 8 ad 5 Cah Republic reden Ukraine v8 Kazakstan vs. Switzerland we Skel < United States vs. Finland Canada vs, Slovakia (At umes, Sweden ‘Sweden Kasabvanva,Ukraine Frida: leftea.Sweden finland vs.Cnc Republic Canada ‘mea, Sweden Rusia Sse i 1. In group A action at nearby the politics are such that he must lobby to become “sanctioned” to competewith his own team, which wheel but politics keeps aging driver Dudley Stokes behind the Manystar athletes in Jamaica compete while in the military. nal _—_Dimitri lead Switzerlandto a 6-2 win over Ukraine. wins have comewith Harrisat the It would be inaccurate to say the team was headed for gold, but it did have the seventh highest push-start time at the top of the track. That isa stunning debutfor and Skelleftea, Milan Kraft scored urging. Still, there is much more to bobsledding than pushstarts. High-tech bobsled equipment costs money and the team, like most non-European teams, is un- only have 2.5 million peoplein the a thrown- together team against Tereschenko —_;Mansenkov scored Iwo goals cach 3 waeBIne Driver of Jamaican bobsled EES gether a good run on its maiden voyage. whole country,” Harris said. at Umea, Alexander Ljubimov, Alexei In the other group B game,Flavien Conne notched two goals to Dudley Stokes was so horrendous. Noinjuries, 1 0 o1 0 _SatardaysGa Coch Repti.Sova Canada Finland . Sweden Switertapd 6, Ukraine2 Russia 14, Kazakstan { ‘Today's wiead (Czech Republic vs. United States Slovakia vs, Finland At Umea, Sweden Switnerland vs, Sweden, Ukraine vs, Russia Kazakstan 1-1, Alexander Rjazantsev added one goal and four assists for the aeantraniie ” a . 3 WORLD JR. HOCKEY CHAMPIONSHIP FIRST ROUND 7-1 lead. In the third, Muratovincreased Russia's lead to 9-1 and Torthont aveden “It wasfunny, that we crashed, but... thatiswhat “Tt was funny, that we crashed, but our pride was hurt.” Just as in the movie, the team was started by a pair of American Bu Sunday, December26, 1999 middle class,he adds. three goals as the Czech Republic beat Slovakia 5-2 and Canada,last year’s second place finisher, scored three unanswered goals in a 3-2 win against Finland. Kraft opened the scoring at 13:16in thefirst period. He scored twicein the third period, when the Czechs pulled awayafter leading by only onegoalafter two periods. Kraft made it 4-1 at 6:22 and completed his hat trick at 13:24. The 19-year-old center also set up David Hajek, who broke a 1-1 tie four minutes into the second period. The Czechs, whofinished fifth in last year’s championship won by Russia in Canada, outshot the Slovaks 32-26. Michal Sivek scored the other goal for the Czechs. Martin Cibak and Marian Gaborik, who connected with the first penalty shot in the tourna- ment, scored for Slovakia. Chris Nielsen, Eric Chouinard and Matt Pettinger gave Canada a 3-0 lead over the Finnsafter two periods. Antti Miettinen scored both goals for Finland. Adrian Wichser, Sven Helfenstein, Luca Cereda and Paolo Duca also scored for the Swiss, who outshot Ukraine 43-24. Artem Hindenko scored both goals for Ukraine. Today, the United States will playit first game in the tournament against the Czech Republic while host Sweden, a co-favorite with Russia, Switzerland. starts against Slutskaya Tops Butyrskaya for Russian Figures Title ‘THE ASSOCIATED PRESS MOSCOW — Irina Slutskaya,ina free program set to melodies from “Carmen,” beat world champion Maria een on Saturday and won the Russian Figure Skating Championships. Slutskaya landed five triple jumps including a clean triple-double combinationto take thetitle. Butyrskaya, the six-time Russian champion, was second and Viktoria Volchkova was Along with the pressure of trying to defend hertitle, Butyrskaya was unnerved by the mysterious explosion of her car Thursday, just before she was to leavefor the arena. Witnesses reportedly saw two people running from the car shortly before the blast. Butyrskaya thinks the screen was a warning, “but I don’t know as a warn ruisetag eapetosil bi women’s skating is so deep year that Julia Soldatova, the world championes bronze medalist, placed fourth at Sokolniki The girls came prepared for a strong battle,” Vdlchkova said. Yet, most appeared to be drained of confidence. Four of the top six backed off in their programs, turning intended triple jumps into doubles, doubles into singles. Slutskaya and Butyrskaya were the only ones in the top group who appeared to try every planned moved. INCE 197 Slutskaya tumbled once and Butyrskaya went down twice, but such daring produced higher marks after hesitan jesitance. ForSlutskaya, pushing herselfthrough the tension was victory in itself. Last season, when she didn’t make the Russian world team, she became so unsettled she cried whenevershetooktheice. “T've started from scratch this year. I’m a new person,” said Slutskaya, whose marks were 5.8s and 5.9s for technique and presentation. Shewas in first place after the short program on Friday, but on Saturday she was unable to project the emotional intensity in “Swan Lake”that she usually showsontheice, Trina Lobacheva and Iya Averbukh wonthe ice dancing competition, followed by Anna SemenovichRoman Kostomarov and Oksana Potykova-Denis Petukhov. The world champion team of Angela Krylova and Oleg Ovsiannikov withdrew because of HCE SALE SELECT RODS 50”orr While Supplies Last! 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