The Week Ahead
FRIDAY 20
OLYMPICS TENNIS MEN'S AND WOMEN'S SINGLES SEMIFINALS BRAVO 5 PM > Venus Williams's chances of defending her singles gold medal got better when sister Serena withdrew with a knee injury. As for a second straight doubles gold, the sisters were heavy favorites, but Venus now plays with Chanda Rubin.
SATURDAY 21
INDIANS AT TWINS FOX 1 PM > Three games under .500 at the All-Star break, the Tribe has gone 21--11 since and pulled within two games of the Central Division--leading Twins. • ALABAMA STAKES ESPN 5 PM >The field at Saratoga for the final leg of the Triple Tiara--New York's Triple Crown for fillies--features the winners of the first two jewels, Stellar Jayne and Ashado.
SUNDAY 22
MAJOR LEAGUE LACROSSE CHAMPIONSHIP ESPN2 1 PM > The league's fourth title game takes place at Boston U's Nickerson Field. • U.S. AMATEUR GOLF CHAMPIONSHIP ESPN2 3 PM > The 312-player field that came to Winged Foot in Mamaroneck, N.Y., on Aug. 16 will be down to two, who'll play 36 holes for the title.
MONDAY 23
CLASSIC DRIVE THRU: ANGELS AT ORIOLES, SEPT. 6, 1995 ESPNCLASSIC 9 pm > A must for clapping buffs: Cal Ripken Jr. breaks Lou Gehrig's record by playing in his 2,131st consecutive game and receives a 22-minute ovation. • HAPPY BIRTHDAY! Sonny Jurgensen turns 70. The Hall of Fame quarterback is now a Redskins radio analyst.
TUESDAY 24
OLYMPICS TRACK AND FIELD NBC 8 PM > Gail Devers, 37, goes in the 100-meter hurdles, an event she's won 10 times at the national championships but never at the Olympics. In the pole vault America's Stacy Dragila is the defending champ, but Russia's Svetlana Feofanova and Yelena Isibaeva beat her to the 16-feet barrier.
WEDNESDAY 25
OLYMPICS BASEBALL GOLD MEDAL GAME MSNBC 1 PM > It might be America's national pastime, but the U.S. nine were knocked out by Mexico in the qualifying round. Cuba is the favorite, but Greece--with a team comprised primarily of Americans--is a wild card.
THURSDAY 26
STEELERS AT EAGLES ESPN 8 PM > Free-agent pickup Duce Staley, who rushed for 1,000 yards three times in seven seasons with the Eagles, returns to Philly as a Steeler. • OLYMPICS TAEKWONDO FINALS CNBC 5 PM > Texan Steven Lopez, whose sister Diana just missed qualifying for the Games, tries for a second straight gold.
COLOR PHOTO
DANNY MOLOSHOK/AP (WILLIAMS)
COLOR PHOTO
JIM KIRCHNER/ICON SMI (LAX)
COLOR PHOTO
RICK RICKMAN/NEW SPORT/CORBIS (DRAGILA)
COLOR PHOTO
BOB MARTIN (LOPEZ)
B/W PHOTO
BEN M ARTIN/TIME LIFE PICTURES/GETTY IMAGES (CASTRO)
COLOR PHOTO
PHILLIP LEONIAN (JURGENSEN)
COLOR PHOTO
MEL LEVINE (HAT)
COLOR PHOTO
ANDREW WALLACE/REUTERS (HAFNER)