Sports briefs

Ruling expected on women's ski jumping

VANCOUVER, British Columbia — The British Columbia Supreme Court will hand down a decision Friday that could lead to women's ski jumping being included in the 2010 Winter Olympics, or it could result in the International Olympic Committee moving the men's event to another venue.

A group of 15 former and current women jumpers have argued that not being allowed to compete at the Vancouver Games violates the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms.

The women are seeking a court declaration that the Vancouver Olympic Games Organizing Committee, known as VANOC, must either hold women's ski jumping in 2010 or no ski jumping events at all.

"They say simply, if you're going to have a men's event, then you have to have a women's event," Ross Clark, the lawyer representing the women, said Thursday.

Clark wouldn't speculate on what the decision might be.

VANOC also declined comment.

Researcher: Time to trim two-a-days

COLUMBIA, S.C. — A top researcher on heat-related illnesses called on high schools to cut back two-a-day preseason football practices the way the NCAA forced college teams to do six years ago.

Douglas Casa co-authored a study from the National Athletic Trainers Association released earlier this year. He spoke Thursday to about 250 college and high-school athletic trainers at South Carolina Athletic Trainers Association.

The NCAA adjusted its football-practice guidelines in 2003 to mandate five days of single-session workouts to acclimatize to sweltering summer heat.

College "coaches were screaming about that before it happened," Casa said. "You don't hear anything about that now. They've found players are healthier, fresher and perform better during the season."

At least 29 high-school players have died from heat-related illness since 1995, sometimes, Casa says, because coaches and personnel don't react quickly enough to the symptoms. "Coaches think someone didn't do the proper conditioning over the summer or that they're a wimp, that they're no good for the team," he said.

The NATA guidelines call for five days of single-session practices. Once two-a-days start, they should be followed by a single-day session. The recommendations cover the first 14 days of practice.

Super middleweight tournament in works

NEW YORK — Showtime is putting the final touches on a six-man super middleweight round-robin tournament that will include two current champions and three former U.S. Olympians.