VaultWhere's the Chief? Robert Parish left the game vowing never to return. But like his old teammates from Boston, he's no longer content to be on the sidelineBy Leigh Montville
VaultThe X Factor The XFL drew big crowds and boffo ratings on its debut weekend, but can it keep the ball rolling with a mix of babes, bombast and barely adequate football?By Leigh Montville
VaultThe Mile High Club Denver's South Stands are the second home to a close-knit gang of diehards bonded for life by their passion for the BroncosBy Leigh Montville
VaultA Winner at the Finish Emil Zatopek had a storied distance-running career, but his life wasn't all gloryBy Leigh Montville
VaultSight for Sore Eyes After his face was crushed by a batted ball in last season's most gruesome play, Boston's Bryce Florie is returning to normal--and not ruling out a comebackBy Leigh Montville
VaultDouble Take The surprisingly strong American swimmers got the biggest surprise of all when Anthony Ervin and Gary Hall Jr. won in a dead heatBy Leigh Montville
VaultFast Lanes Australia's 17-year-old hero, Ian Thorpe, was the hit of a record-smashing pool party in Sydney, until others, including a bunch of Americans, began horning in on the funBy Leigh Montville
VaultStroke of Luck Emigrating from the Soviet Union was one of the best things that ever happened to backstroker Lenny Krayzelburg, the U.S.'s best hope for swimming gold at the Sydney GamesBy Leigh Montville
VaultField of Screams With all its bells and whistles and architectural quirks, Houston's new dinger-friendly Enron Field is every bit as thrilling as the Astrodome was dull. But, as the Astros are finding out, it takes some getting used toBy Leigh Montville
VaultThe Long Haul Having reached yet another milestone--this time 3,000 hits--the enduring Cal Ripken Jr. can again concentrate on his strength, playing the game day by dayBy Leigh Montville
VaultThe Ghost Plane For three endless hours last October the entire nation watched, horrified but helpless, as a runaway jet carried Payne Stewart and five others to its terrible destinationBy Leigh Montville
VaultThe Curse Exorcised. Now What? After waiting 82 years, New Englanders are going to find a Red Sox World Series win isn't all it was cracked up to beBy Leigh Montville
VaultChief Weapon Kansas City's athletic tight end, Tony Gonzalez, used some of his basketball skills to develop into one of the NFL's premier players at his positionBy Leigh Montville
VaultShall We Dance? When Cincinnati's John Copeland and Cleveland's Orlando Brown collide on Dec. 12, it will be the 10th time these Goliaths have performed their violent minuet in the trenchesBy Leigh Montville
VaultA Bird's-eye View In Beantown THE RED SOX WIN THE WORLD SERIES SEPTEMBER 11 1918By Leigh Montville
VaultThe Great Alaska Shootout In a title game held before the state freezes over, Wasilla was snowed underBy Leigh Montville
VaultStalk Softly Even with enhanced sideline access, Monday Night Football's Lesley Visser will pick her spotsBy Leigh Montville
VaultTour De Amerique Tour de France winner Lance Armstrong used a triumphant whirlwind return to the U.S. to peddle a message of hopeBy Leigh Montville
VaultTiger Tales It may be showing its age, but when Tiger Stadium falls to the wrecking ball after this season, a lot of terrific memories will go with itBy Leigh Montville
VaultMiracle Worker Carolyn Peck won an NCAA title in her second year at Purdue. Her next trick: building a brand-new WNBA team in OrlandoBy Leigh Montville
VaultCome Back, Howard Amid the legions of cookie-cutter sportscasters and clowning clones, we miss the guy we all loved to hateBy Leigh Montville
VaultThe First Dance Game 1 of the opening round gave a rookie coach and four players who had never reached the postseason a tantalizing taste of what they had been missing THE SUPERSTAR Allen Iverson/76ERSBy Leigh Montville
VaultGuardian Angel Mo Vaughn's spiritual impact on the Anaheim Angels may be more powerful than anything he does when he returns to the lineupBy Leigh Montville
VaultNot Fast Enough in Belfast At the world championships, an American is outrun by the Africans--againBy Leigh Montville
VaultDynamic Tension SINCE THE MID-'80S, UCONN MEN'S BASKETBALL COACH JIM CALHOUN HAS BUILT A POWERHOUSE... ...WHICH IS EXACTLY WHAT WOMEN'S COACH GENO AURIEMMA HAS DONE. SO YOU'D THINK THE TWO MEN WOULD BE FAST FRIENDS. THINK AGAINBy Leigh Montville
VaultMama's Boy Growing up with five older brothers and an ex-con father made TERRELL DAVIS tough. But it took a remarkable mother to give him the strength to transform himself from aimless delinquent to Super Bowl MVPBy Leigh Montville
VaultNobody Saw It Coming Friends and family of Tito Lee, a 19-year-old Nashville football prodigy, never imagined he might kill himself, and they still don't know why he didBy Leigh Montville
VaultGolden Boy Michigan-bound quarterback and Yankees bonus baby Drew Henson--who also averaged 22 points in basketball and 4.0 in the classroom--is almost too good to be trueBy Leigh Montville
VaultHeavy Hitter Fast and formidable, 275-pound linebacker Levon Kirkland was one free agent the Steelers couldn't afford to let goBy Leigh Montville
VaultPassing Time At 35 and with nothing left to prove in Canada, little Doug Flutie is taking one last shot at making it big in the NFLBy Leigh Montville
VaultInvisible Man Quick, who has scored more goals in the last four years than any other player in the league? It's the Capitals' Peter Bondra, hockey's best-kept secretBy Leigh Montville
VaultGood Old Boys Led by geezers Karl Malone and John Stockton, the Jazz swept the young, overhyped Lakers to make the NBA Finals once againBy Leigh Montville
VaultCalled For Traveling APRIL 15 IS A DAY OF TORMENT FOR FOUR NBA REFEREES WHO PLEADED GUILTY TO TAX FRAUD AND LOST THEIR JOBS BECAUSE THEY CASHED IN AIRLINE TICKETS--AND DIDN'T REPORT THE INCOMEBy Leigh Montville
VaultUnbroken Spirit It took Orioles rightfielder Eric Davis's heroic battle with colon cancer to make fans appreciate that he's more than just a hugely talented player plagued by injuriesBy Leigh Montville
VaultPetr the Great By winning the Australian Open--and his first Grand Slam singles title--at age 30, Petr Korda gave himself good reason to jump for joyBy Leigh Montville
VaultSlice Girls Serena and Venus Williams cut up some top foes--and did some cutting up themselves--in AustraliaBy Leigh Montville
VaultKing Of The Worlds It took 26 years, but Bill Pilczuk of the U.S. finally made his mark as a championBy Leigh Montville
VaultWet and Wild A Chinese drug bust and a U.S. win in the 100 opened the worlds with a splashBy Leigh Montville
VaultSecond Sight Although he has lived in darkness for nearly 30 years, Gordon Gund never lost the vision with which he guides a business empire that includes the Cleveland CavaliersBy Leigh Montville
