A roundup of the sports information of the week
BADMINTON—World Champion ERLAND KOPS of Denmark lost the first game of the U.S. Open finals 7-15 to Thailand's Channarong Ratana-Saengsuang by reckless playing. Settling down to almost flawless play after that, he won the next two games 15-5, 15-4. World Champion JUDY DEVLIN HASHMAN, 27, the American wife of a British subject, won her ninth U.S. singles title by easily defeating British champion Ursula Smith 11-6, 11-3.
BASKETBALL—"We're the only team that can beat the Celtics. We can match their men, we can rebound with them and we can run with them. It's going to be a real slambanger," said Fred Schaus, coach of the Los Angeles Lakers, as his team downed the St. Louis Hawks in a seven-game semifinal and headed into the championship finals against Boston's ever-conquering Celtics. The Celtics, in turn, sparked by retiring Bob Cousy (see page 16); managed to get past unexpectedly tough Cincinnati in another seven-game semifinal. With that, the slambang started. Boston's Bill Russell was knocked down and had to be helped off the floor, Boston's John Havlicek suffered a severe ankle sprain and, still, Boston won the opening game of a real grudge match, beating L.A. 117-114.
BOXING—ERNIE TERRELL, 6 feet 6 inches, won a 10-round split decision over Cleveland Williams, 6 feet 4 inches, in a battle of giants in Philadelphia. Williams, ranked fourth among the heavyweights, was held off by a stiff left jab, opened a long cut over Terrell's eye, but was bloodied himself as Terrell rallied.
FOOTBALL—The NEW YORK JETS, the newly named version of the ponderous Titans, hired jobless Weeb Ewbank, made plans to invest heavily in the AFL market for a bright new team.
GOLF—KERMIT ZARLEY, NCAA champion from the University of Houston, shot an eight-under-par 280, beat the individual medal record by two strokes to win the All-America intercollegiate tournament in Houston. The defending Cougars won the overall team championship by taking the team medal trophy with 1,170, defeating Texas Tech 6-0 for the team match title, and winning the low two-ball championship with a 267 by Zarley and Wright Garrett. North Texas State won the low four-ball with 252.
HANDBALL—STEVE AUGUST turned 20 just in time to win the National Intercollegiate Four-Wall handball tournament. The University of Michigan sophomore defeated Boris Olin of the University of Texas, 21-12, 21-12. A West Point cadet, Peter Hall, won the class B singles over another Texas student, but Texas took the doubles title with a well-matched team of Ken Persenaire and Bob Roberts.
HARNESS RACING—ORBITER ($13.50), a comparative youngster of 5, was goaded furiously in the stretch by George Sholty to snatch the $45,000 Gotham Trot by half a length from 9-year-old Su Mac Lad whose earnings thus far ($586,599) should serve as some consolation.
HOCKEY—"Playing your home ice is worth two goals anytime," said Coach Sid Abel of the Detroit Red Wings, as the Stanley Cup playoffs moved to Detroit with Toronto leading 2-0. As if to prove his words, Red Wing Rookie Alex Faulkner, replacing benched Bad Boy Howie Young, snapped in two goals, and Vic Stasiuk netted another to give the Wings their first game of the series, 3-2.
HORSE RACING—SPEEDWELL ($16.50), 3-year-old daughter of Bold Ruler, broke badly but caught the leaders in the stretch under shrewd Willie Shoemaker to win the Prioress Stakes by 1½ lengths and match the filly record of 1:10 3/5. The Fitzsimmons-trained favorite, Fashion Verdict, was second.
Bold commander ($5.60) did retiring Sunny Jim (see below) proud by winning the Chesapeake Stakes at Laurel in a track record of 1:43 2/5, two lengths over Hot Dust.
Candy spots, under an exercise boy, loafed into stiff winds over six furlongs at Churchill Downs, was timed in 1:11.
Greek money ($11.50), undisturbed by the odds, went out early, won the Excelsior over heavy favorite Hitting Away at Aqueduct.
Johnny Rotz rode another Big A winner, NO ROBBERY, the youngest and apparently only horse in the fifth race for 3-year-olds and up. He finished alone, by 10 lengths, in 1:34, only 2/5 second off the track record.
MOTOR SPORTS—ERIK CARLSSON, world champion rally driver and Monte Carlo winner, was leading a rapidly diminishing field of 84 production cars in the East African Safari when his tiny white SAAB, 841 cc, was attacked by a nearsighted ant-eater, put out of the race. Carlsson's fiancée, Pat Moss, overturned her Ford Cortina, also withdrew. The first half of the 3,132-mile race was deluged with rain as well as hungry wildlife, giving this 11th running of the world's toughest rally a new nickname: "The Sodden Safari."
ROWING—PRINCETON'S big varsity crew (averaging 6 feet 3 inches, 190 pounds) muscled out in front of a sophomore eight from Rutgers. COLUMBIA challenged Navy on the Severn, matched the favored Middies stroke for stroke and met the finishing beat to take their first victory over Navy since 1946.
TABLE TENNIS—The Orient divided the spoils at the world tournament in Prague; China took three titles, including the men's singles, Japan took the other four.
TRACK & FIELD—At an obscure midweek track meet prior to the Southwestern Relays JOHN PENNEL used Fred Hansen's vaulting pole, cleared 16 feet 4 inches—a new world record—and sprained his back. Three days later he beat Hansen with a puny 16 feet ¼ inch for a relays' record.
Keith Forman ran one mile in 4:05, two miles in 8:56.8 as Oregon beat Stanford 74-71.
Rex Cawley clocked 46.5, the season's second best time for the 440, won the 330-yard hurdles as USC overwhelmed Washington 106-39.
Charlie Mays won the two dashes, the broad and triple jumps, but Maryland still bowed to the forces of the U.S. Marines' unbeaten Quantico team.
Buddy Edelen set five American records during a 10-mile race in England but finished second to Me! Batty whose 48:13.4 is the third best time in history.
MILEPOSTS—BORN: a second son, Steven Charles, to Golf Champion Jack Nicklaus, who prepared for the family addition by winning the Masters.
FIRED: JOHN ALBERT GRAYSON, 47, after four years as basketball coach at the University of Washington. Although Grayson refused comment, his deliberate play patterns and 13-13 record were under severe campus criticism.
HIRED: As general manager of the Luders Marine Construction Company (builders of Weatherly, the America's Cup Defender); JOHN FLYNN, the soft-spoken Irish genius who served as genial family doctor to $2.5 million worth of 12-meter boats, impartially patched and polished defenders and challengers, found the answer to many of their ills in his cubbyhole office at the Newport Shipyard, but never saw a race.
REELECTED: RED KELLY, as Liberal Member of Canada's Parliament from York West, after a rugged campaign as center for the Toronto Maple Leaf hockey team in the Stanley Cup playoffs.
NAMED: The U.S. Winter Olympic JUMPING TEAM to participate in the 1964 Innsbruck Games: John Balfanz of Minneapolis, Jerry Goyen of Ishpeming, Mich., Dave Hicks and Gene Kotlarek of Dululh, Jay Martin of Minneapolis and Ansten Samuelstuen of Boulder, Colo.
RETIRED: JAMES EDWARD (SUNNY JIM) FITZSIMMONS, after 78 years in racing, trainer for three generations of Phipps family horses; with two Triple Crown winners (Gallant Fox and Omaha) and Derby winner (Johnstown). Explained Mr. Fitz, "My feet get tired." To replace, in part, the irreplaceable Mr. Fitz, the Phippses hired BILL WINFREY, who developed Native Dancer for Alfred Gwynne Vanderbilt.
UNRETIRED: HERB SCORE, 29, who had quit baseball after a six-year failure in a comeback attempt and a demotion from the White Sox to Indianapolis of the International League. "I didn't want to quit," said Score, who has been assured by Al Lopez that he will be recalled if he does well.
DIED: JOHN NELL, 23, and 130 pounds, by his own hand, when he was refused a renewal of his jockey license for being overweight.
