The Beat
THE TURINOLYMPICS have yet to start, but they already have one detractor. While carryingthe Olympic torch through a fashion district in Milan, designer Giorgio Armaniteed off on the orange-and-white tracksuit he was forced to don. "Icertainly wouldn't have designed it with these colors," he said. "Thesearen't even wintry colors. They are kind of Mexican."
• In the Februaryedition of Allure, Sheryl Crow posed in a wedding gown and said of her fiancé,Lance Armstrong: "I want to be where he is.... We'll have somebody ride upand sprinkle us over the Alps [when we die]." Last week, though, the couplebackpedaled. Crow, 44, and Armstrong, 34, who met in 2003 and became engagedlast year, issued a joint statement on Feb. 3, announcing "a very toughdecision to split up." (They declined to elaborate.) The planned nuptialswould have been the first for Crow (left) and Armstrong's second.
• Last weekLuther Campbell called Snoop Dogg a "pimp" and a "hood" afterthe rappers/coaches saw their youth football teams of 12- and 13-year-olds cometo blows at a charity tournament in Miami. Snoop, however, has no ill will."There's no beef, just love," Snoop told SI last week in Detroit, wherehe was attending the Super Bowl. "We'll play again," he promised."But next time we'll play in Los Angeles. On my turf. In my hood." OnSunday evening Snoop (who was wearing a leather jacket emblazoned with SUPERSTEELERS) stood atop a table at a PlayStation after party in the Gem Theatre,across the street from Ford Field, and waved a Terrible Towel before hangingout with country singer Hank Williams Jr. and Detroit native Kid Rock. At 1a.m. Williams, a close friend of Steelers coach Bill Cowher, took his new palsto a private bash for Steelers players and coaches, where he said he would"initiate" Snoop and Kid Rock into the Steelers family.
• Did you knowthat a not-for-profit group called Jewish Major Leaguers puts out a set ofbaseball cards focusing on Jewish players? The 2006 Update Edition paid tributeto Margaret Wigiser, a former All-American Girls Professional Baseball Leagueplayer, by issuing her her very own card. (She was the basis for a character inA League of Their Own.) One problem: She's not Jewish. When Wigiser (above)informed the group that she's Catholic, they began pulling the card from allsets that hadn't already been sold. (The initial run was 10,000 sets.) SaidMartin Abramowitz, president of Jewish Major Leaguers, "She is as proud ofher religion as we are of ours, and we respect her request."
PICTURE THIS
Even in retirement, Scott Stevens is a step ahead ofother NHL defensemen. During a ceremony to retire Stevens's number 4, theDevils adorned the aisles at Continental Airlines Arena with giant photographsof their former captain in action. Stevens is the first player to have hisjersey raised by the Devils, whom he helped lead to three Stanley Cups--thehockey equivalent of climbing the stairway to heaven--in 13 seasons.
SIGN OF THE APOCALYPSE
A Tacoma judge made her courtroom cheer "GoSeahawks" before sentencing a man convicted of manslaughter to 13 1/2 yearsin jail.
They Said It
STEVIE WONDER, Super Bowl XL pregame performer, whenasked if he has ever suffered a wardrobe malfunction:
"Not that I've seen."
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LOU CAPOZZOLA (PICTURE THIS)
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THEO WARGO/WIREIMAGE.COM (WONDER)
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COURTESY OF JEWISH MAJOR LEAGUERS, INC. (CARD)
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BRENDAN MCDERMID/REUTERS (CROW)