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David Picker
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Feb 4, 2001
Hingis, Davenport make Toray Pan Pacific final
There's the good Martina Hingis and then there's the bad Martina Hingis. For a while it wasn't clear which one would decide Saturday's semifinal against Bulgaria's Magdalena Maleeva at the Toray Pan Pacific Open.
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Feb 3, 2001
Hingis cruises past Sugiyama at Toray Pan Pacific
Ai Sugiyama had royalty in her corner at the Toray Pan Pacific Open on Friday. Prince Akishino and Princess Kiko showed up at Tokyo Metropolitan Gymnasium just before the start of her quarterfinal match. Only one problem: The queen of women's tennis awaited Sugiyama on the other side of the net.
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Jan 31, 2001
Sugiyama tops Inoue at Toray tourney
It was a bittersweet day for Japanese tennis fans on Tuesday. On the one hand, Ai Sugiyama won her first-round match at the Toray Pan Pacific tournament. On the other, Haruka Inoue was on the losing end.
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Jan 30, 2001
Anna set to sparkle at Toray Pan Pacific
Now that the Super Bowl is over, are you ready for some tennis?
SPORTS / SPORTS SCOPE
Jan 4, 2001
2001: A Sports Odyssey
Welcome to the first Sports Scope of the 21st century. By now you've probably read a zillion stories about the sporting year in review. Have no worries; this column looks toward the future. Here are 13 fearless predictions for the Year of the Snake. Wager at your own risk!
SPORTS / SPORTS SCOPE
Nov 30, 2000
Ignore the skipper and go west, young men
What on earth has Bobby Valentine been smoking these days? The guy is a great manager and he keeps us sportswriters in business with witty quotes and humorous antics. But this time he's gone too far. We're talking Siberia here. In a recent interview with the Boston Herald, Valentine expressed his feelings...
SPORTS / SPORTS SCOPE
Nov 10, 2000
Alomar keeping eye on the future
Picture this: It's the year 2010 and the Yomiuri Giants are gunning for their first title in 10 years. It's late in the season and they desperately need a win. With two out in the bottom of the ninth, an aging batsman strolls to the plate. You've seen him a million times before on both sides of the Pacific....
BASEBALL / MLB
Nov 7, 2000
Revenge - and then some!
Things weren't going well for Livan Hernandez even before he set foot in Japan. On Sunday evening at the Tokyo Dome, they got even worse.
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Oct 26, 2000
Everyman Redgrave anything but in boat
LONDON -- From across a crowded room, Steve Redgrave hardly looks like a legendary athlete. He's lanky, excessively polite and his hair is thinning at an alarmingly quick rate. He walks around wearing a sheepish grin and his laugh is loud and long. If you didn't know any better, you'd swear he's the...
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Oct 20, 2000
World Sports Awards name 75 finalists for 2000
LONDON -- The year 2000 has been good to many of the world's top athletes. For a select few, it just got even better. The World Sports Awards 2000 announced the names of 75 finalists at a press conference in London on Wednesday. Athletes such as track star Marion Jones, golfing sensation Tiger Woods...
SPORTS / SPORTS SCOPE
Oct 19, 2000
These World Sports Awards rated 'X'
LONDON -- In Felix Baumgartner's eyes, Mike Tyson probably looks like a wimp, Tiger Woods possesses no useful skills and David Beckham is merely the guy who married a Spice Girl. Baumgartner's world is worth following, if you can stomach it. All the Austrian does for a living is confront death as if...
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Oct 7, 2000
Purple princess outdukes Dokic
Serena Williams might aspire to be the queen of women's tennis, but for now she's merely aiming to be a Toyota Princess.
OLYMPICS
Sep 13, 2000
Dream Team coaching: perhaps the easiest job in Sydney
Want to know if the U.S. men's Olympic basketball team goes for the jugular each time out? Interested in who will give the Dream Teamers the toughest time Down Under? How do the American hoopsters handle criticism over being too good?
SPORTS / SPORTS SCOPE
Sep 7, 2000
Dream Team foes face mission impossible
I left Team USA's practice on Tuesday with one lingering thought: poor Angola. At the time, I didn't even know exactly where Angola was (it turns out it's just north of Namibia along the Rio Cunene, if that helps any). But here's what I already knew about the country: It has a basketball team that's...
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Sep 6, 2000
U.S. team a nightmare for Spain
OMIYA, Saitama Pref. -- Tuesday's game between the Dream Team and Spain was a surprisingly close affair -- for the first 20 minutes, at least. After that, the heavily favored U.S. turned the contest into a blowout.
SPORTS / SPORTS SCOPE
Jun 22, 2000
How 'bout them Dallas Cowgirls!
This was one assignment I didn't want to miss.
SPORTS / SPORTS SCOPE
May 25, 2000
You say Fusaichi, I say Fusaichi
Whenever a Japanese name enters the sporting world's lexicon, all sorts of problems arise. Take the Nagano Olympics for example. Is it pronounced NA-ga-no or Na-GA-no? The foreign media wrestled with this question for two straight weeks during the winter of 1998. The confusion trickled down to the masses...
SPORTS / SPORTS SCOPE
Apr 20, 2000
Loose lips can sometimes sink skips
After the New York Mets lost their season opener in Tokyo last month, a few players headed to Roppongi for some beers. On their way to hailing a taxi, one of the team's starting infielders turned to his teammates and said: "I'll tell you one thing about Bobby Valentine. He's the smartest mother (expletive)...
BASEBALL / MLB
Mar 30, 2000
Cubs take historic opener in Tokyo
One small step for the Chicago Cubs, one giant leap for Major League Baseball.
BASEBALL / MLB
Mar 28, 2000
Giants give Cubs rude welcome to Japan
Monday night's game was supposed to be Sammy Sosa's moment to strut his stuff. It quickly turned into the Hideki Matsui Show.

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A store clerk tries to cool things down in front of their shop by spraying a hose.
Is extreme weather changing the way Japan shops?