Fit to be tied
ATHENS — Briana Scurry isn’t greedy.
After notching a shutout of Greece in the Olympic opener last Wednesday and another against Brazil on Saturday, the Dayton, Minn., native wasn’t upset about conceding her first goal Tuesday night to Australia.
“That’s the only place that goal could have gone,” Scurry said. “If you’re going to give up a goal like that, that’s fine with me.”
The United States led 1-0 until Joanne Peters’ well-placed header from 12 yards out, into the upper right hand corner of the goal, tied the game in the 88th minute at Kaftanzoglio Stadium in Thessaloniki. Still, the goal did little to shake Scurry’s confidence.
With a 2-0-1 record, the U.S. won its group and will face Japan in the quarterfinals Friday in Thessaloniki.
American defender Cat Reddick said playing in tight games should benefit her team.
“We definitely had some bumps in the road, but it’s good bumps,” Reddick said.
Top-ranked Federer ousted
Top-seeded Roger Federer crashed out in the second round of the Olympic tournament, losing 4-6, 7-5, 7-5 to Tomas Berdych of the Czech Republic.
Federer, who won Wimbledon the past two years and replaced Andy Roddick atop the rankings in February, was undone by poor serving and a string of unforced errors.
The Swiss star, who looked sluggish, was broken by the 74th-ranked Berdych in the last game of the match.
Edwards booted from Games
U.S. sprinter Torri Edwards was knocked out of the Olympics for good when an arbitration panel upheld her two-year drug suspension, rejecting her arguments that she took a banned stimulant by accident.
Edwards had been considered a medal contender in the 100 and 200 meters at the Athens Games. She inherited the world championship in the 100 when Kelli White forfeited that crown because of drug use.
Greek sprinters in hot water
Sprinters Kostas Kenteris and Katerina Thanou left a hospital Tuesday, facing questions from prosecutors, fellow Greeks and the IOC about their missed drug tests and motorcycle accident.
“I am suffering a great injustice, and I want to say I never used banned substances,” Kenteris said.
The sprinters have a hearing today with the International Olympic Committee, which wants to know why they missed drug tests in the Olympic village last Thursday.
A few hours later, the sprinters were taken to a hospital with cuts and bruises suffered when their motorcycle skidded on a road.
Kenteris, the reigning 200-meter champion, is the country’s most celebrated athlete and Greece’s best hope for gold in track.
Thanou, the 100-meter silver medalist in Sydney four years ago, is Kenteris’ training partner.