Waitress ices truck driver...And Earvin makes III...Farewell to two U.S. innovators

Separated
The U.S. champion figure skating pair of waitress Calla Urbanski and truck driver Rocky Marval, citing incompatibility. Urbanski and Marval were not romantically linked, but their split is further evidence of an epidemic among U.S. pairs: In April, Natasha Kuchiki and Todd Sand parted ways when Sand started skating with, and reportedly dating, Jenni Meno, who in turn left Scott Wendland. As Urbanski, who is 31 and has had seven skating partners, said, "You have to kiss a few toads before you find the right prince."

Born
Earvin Johnson III (20 inches; seven pounds, 15 ounces) to retired Los Angeles Laker guard Earvin (Magic) Johnson Jr. and his wife, Cookie. Although Magic retired from pro basketball in November after learning he had the AIDS virus, both Cookie and Earvin III tested negative for the virus.

Won
For a second time by Arkansas, the NCAA men's track and field triple crown, with a victory in the outdoor championships in Austin, Texas, to go with NCAA cross-country and indoor titles earned earlier in the year. Seniors Brian Wellman and Gary Johnson finished one-two in the triple jump to lead the Razorbacks to a total of 60 points, 13½ more than runner-up Tennessee. LSU won the women's crown with 87 points, six more than runner-up Florida.

Rallied
To a 21-17 victory over the Orlando Thunder in the World League of American Football championship game, a.k.a. the World Bowl, in Montreal, the aptly named Sacramento Surge. Sacramento trailed 17-6 in the fourth quarter when David Archer completed a 12-yard touchdown pass to tight end Paul Green and then connected with wide receiver Mark Stock for a two-point conversion. Surge linebacker Michael Jones intercepted a Scott Mitchell pass with 7:51 remaining, and four plays later Archer found wideout Eddie Brown in the left corner of the end zone for the winning TD.

Died
Carl Stotz and William France, both 82 and the fathers of American institutions—Little League baseball and the National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing (NASCAR), respectively. In 1938, while chatting with two young nephews, Stotz came up with the idea for a scaled-down version of major league ball. The three-team league he created in '39 grew into the corporation (with which he eventually feuded) that now governs 7,000 leagues in 60 countries. In 1947 France founded NASCAR to bring some order to the fragmented world of stock car racing. NASCAR became the most tight-knit, prosperous racing body in the world. France turned over the reins of the privately owned NASCAR to his son Bill Jr. in '72.

PHOTO

HEINZ KLUETMEIER

The pair didn't always lack levity.