Olympics

SOCCER INSPIRES ATHENS: Greece's victory at the European soccer championship last week has united Greeks, and they are now confident the Olympic Games will be a success, according to a nationwide poll published Sunday.

The survey, published in the daily Eleftherotypia, found that 85 percent of Greeks are supportive of hosting the Aug. 13-29 Games, with 18.4 percent of them admitting that in the beginning they did not support the idea.

No margin of error was given in the Opinion S.A. poll conducted from June 30 to July 2. It involved phone interviews with 1,500 people over the age of 18.

The poll also found that, despite delays in the construction of some Olympic venues, 82 percent believe that the Games will be a success.

But the survey also revealed that 57.1 percent of Greeks don't know when the Games start, while 91.2 percent said they still haven't bought a ticket.

A month before the start of the Games, about half the 5.3 million tickets remain unsold.

AMERICAN'S BID NOT CERTAIN: American Malachi Davis slipped from third to fifth in the final strides of the 400 meters at the British Olympic trials on Sunday and failed to earn an automatic berth for the Athens Games in his adopted country.

Davis must wait until British selectors name a provisional Olympic roster on Tuesday to find out if he is headed to the Aug. 13-29 Games. His fifth-place finish makes him a long shot.

Davis, whose mother was born in London, won his heat Saturday, two days after arriving in Britain for the first time.

Tennis

GRAF ENTERS HALL: Steffi Graf was inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame on Sunday, presented by another of the game's greats: her husband, Andre Agassi. His speech brought Graf to tears.

"Not that this occasion isn't emotional enough," she said. "The best part of the tour is I ran into you. I'll be forever grateful for that."

Graf, inducted along with Stefan Edberg and Dorothy "Dodo" Cheney, won 22 Grand Slam singles titles and was ranked No. 1 for a record 377 weeks.

U.S. UPSET: Barbara Schwartz beat Lisa Raymond 10-8 in the third set Sunday to clinch Austria's upset of the United States in the Fed Cup quarterfinals.

Coupled with Barbara Schett's 6-3, 6-2 win over Chanda Rubin in the day's opening match, Schwartz's 7-6 (3), 4-6, 10-8 victory gave Austria a 3-1 lead in the best-of-five series.

The hosts wrapped up a 4-1 victory when Schett and Patricia Wartusch beat Martina Navratilova and Jill Craybas 6-3, 0-6, 6-3. It was Navratilova's first loss in 41 career Fed Cup matches; her regular doubles partner this season is Raymond.

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Hockey

YZERMAN REPLACED: Vincent Lecavalier will replace the injured Steve Yzerman on Canada's team for the World Cup of Hockey, joining Tampa Bay teammates Brad Richards and Martin St. Louis.

Team Canada named Lecavalier to the team Sunday after Yzerman told executive director Wayne Gretzky he would not be ready the tournament, which begins Aug. 30.

The 39-year-old Detroit captain injured his left eye during a Game 5 loss to Vancouver in the Western Conference semifinals and hasn't yet decided whether he will return for another NHL season.

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