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Gary Guzman is not a gambler when he's coaching football. He readily admits that he leans toward the conservative side when it comes to making decisions.

But Saturday night at the Kansas Shrine Bowl, an all-star football game for graduated seniors, he was faced with the ultimate risky decision.

Should he kick the extra point for a tie with 20 seconds remaining and have the Shrine Bowl end in a tie for the second time in its history since no overtime is played? Or should he go for two and the win?

Guzman, the West team coach, went for two and quarterback Cole Cherryholmes hit Mykael Thompson in the right corner of the end zone for a 29-28 victory. Thompson was named the West MVP, while Derek Rempe was the East's.

"I got talked into it," Guzman said. All the coaches "felt like we needed to go for the win. But it's easier when you're the assistant coach."

The dark-blue SUV pulled into the fire lane and stopped. It was dark inside.

A swarm of photographers crowded the Ford near the sidewalk, and a figure inside pointed to the man in the left side of the backseat. Three months after the Chiefs made Glenn Dorsey their top draft pick, word leaked Saturday that the star defensive tackle at LSU had arrived.

Then the doors opened, and four Chiefs players got out.

"Hey," said the voice from the left side of the backseat. "You've got the wrong guy."

It was second-year defensive tackle Tank Tyler in that SUV. The wait for Dorsey wasn't over yet.

Jeff Gordon has been hammered with the same question a couple of dozen times this weekend. He keeps getting asked about what it would be like to win the Allstate 400 at the Brickyard for a fifth time.

And he keeps rolling his eyes.

Gordon says he is more concerned about getting his first victory of the 2008 season than a fifth Brickyard victory.

The season has been a tough one for the active driver with the most Sprint Cup series wins.

The guy who has won 81 races in his career has been able to muster up a second-place finish and three third-place finishes, but he has yet to embrace a trophy.

When Wingnuts manager Kash Beauchamp approached Richard Salazar in June about moving from the bullpen to the starting rotation, Salazar's reaction eliminated any reservations about the move.

"I said 'How do you feel about starting?' " Beauchamp said. "The first thing that came out of his mouth was 'I've got the (guts).' That was the perfect answer for me. That means 'Give me the ball, I'll do what you want me to do.' And he's done it."

In a little more than a month, Salazar has gone from a reliable bullpen option to arguably the ace of the Wingnuts' staff. Since moving into the rotation on June 20, Salazar is 5-1 with a 2.72 ERA. In his last four starts, Salazar has pitched 26 2/3 innings and allowed four earned runs and 19 hits.

What makes Salazar's performance more impressive is that he has racked them up after making just four starts in his seven-year professional career before this season and none since 2006.

"If I had to pick a guy to start Game 1 of the playoffs, he'd be the guy right now," Beauchamp said. "Competitiveness, location, professionalism -- he's just got everything going for him. He just flat knows how to pitch."

In the hours after the merciful end to last season, coach Herm Edwards began plotting for a brighter Chiefs future. In between raindrops and tornado warnings, Edwards saw his vision come to life Friday when the Chiefs started training camp. Rookies were everywhere. Some played offense, some played defense. Some were starters, others came off the bench.

But as many as six were in significant roles.

"It's refreshing," Edwards said. "The (veteran) players have just kind of accepted it. The young guys have accepted that they're expected to play and expected to play well."

Both of Friday's practices were forced indoors because of storms, so the Chiefs couldn't even begin to unveil the scope of what they have planned for their rookies.

Two of them, tackle Branden Albert and fullback Mike Cox, were starting on offense. Another, cornerback Brandon Flowers, started on defense. He will be joined by unsigned defensive tackle Glenn Dorsey when he agrees to contract terms.

Football had always been just a game for DeAndre Howard. Yet, this week, thanks to the game, he's experienced some things that have little to do with a ball.

Howard, a Southeast graduate, is one of the 34 players on the West roster for tonight's Shrine Bowl in Emporia. The game is a fundraiser for the Shriners Hospital for Children.

While playing football is something that Howard has done for years, this experience has opened his eyes.

"We went to St. Louis to go to the hospital and see the kids," said Howard, who will play football at Butler Community College in the fall. "This has been a real good experience. It makes me feel important. I've never done anything for charity like this before."

The Kansas Shrine Bowl has generated more than $2 million for the hospital over the years.

Cole Cherryholmes didn't have to fret over his inclusion on the West roster of today's Shrine Bowl -- his statistics were too hard to ignore.

Unfortunately for Cherryholmes, his college recruitment didn't come down to his gaudy numbers.

Sure, the 2,200 yards and 32 touchdowns he threw for as a senior at Remington, a Class 3A school located in Whitewater, attracted the scouts. The 14 wins and four losses as a starting quarterback were impressive, but those still weren't the numbers the scouts focused on.

The numbers were eye-catching on paper, but in person they didn't mean as much to Division I programs as the number listed as Cherryholmes' measured height -- 5-foot-10.

"I went to all kinds of football camps and they told me, 'Hey, if you were 6-2 we would have a scholarship for you,' " Cherryholmes said. "That was at OU and at K-State and at KU."

No one can ever accuse the Butler football team of backing down from a challenge.

For proof, look no further then the Grizzlies' season opener -- and first shot at defending their 2007 NJCAA co-championship -- on Aug. 28 at Cessna Stadium against 2006 NJCAA national champion Blinn (Texas) College.

Thursday, Butler head coach Troy Morrell, defensive end Zac Clark and athletic director Todd Carter held a press conference at Koch Arena to announce the game's corporate sponsorship, Pizza Hut and Taco Bell, and it's official name, "Battle of the Champions."

Having the game in Wichita resonates especially for Clark, a 6-foot-3, 250-pound North High product who started 11 of 12 games at Butler last season.

Clark was second on the team with 23 tackles for loss and 8 ½ sacks on his way to being honorable mention All-Jayhawk Conference.

Friday's Results

Liberal 4, El Dorado 2 (suspended, bottom fifth)

Hays 3, Nevada 2

Derby 7, Dodge City 1

As a kid, Rich Gossage's dreams never matched those of his father.

"My dad always said, 'You're going to play in the big leagues some day,' " Gossage recalled. "I pooh-poohed that. I would be like, 'Aw, dad, please don't say that.' And sure enough, here I am."

Gossage did more than just play in the major leagues. He became a dominant relief pitcher in a 22-year career that will receive its finishing touch today when he is inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame.

For Gossage, a shy, humble guy from the Rocky Mountains, what has transpired since those talks with his dad, Jake, is simply mind-boggling.

"I can't even really comprehend my career," said Gossage, elected in January on his ninth try. "Really, I just can't believe that a kid from Colorado, just a big fan of the game -- it's totally overwhelming being elected to the Hall and to have had the career that I had."

The Cleveland Indians traded versatile third baseman Casey Blake and cash to the Los Angeles Dodgers for two minor leaguers on Saturday.

Blake, a former Wichita State standout, is joining the Dodgers for the playoff push. They're one game behind the first-place Arizona Diamondbacks in the NL West. Blake, who has also played right and left field, is expected to play third for the Dodgers, who haven't gotten what they needed at the position from rookies Andy LaRoche or Blake DeWitt.

In exchange for Blake, the Indians got catcher Carlos Santana and right-hander Jonathan Meloan.

The Dodgers (50-52) have been looking for a dependable bat for weeks, and Blake's name first came up when the Dodgers were in trade talks with the Indians for ace CC Sabathia, who was dealt to the Milwaukee Brewers.

Blake is batting .289 with 11 homers and 58 RBIs, and he has been Cleveland's most clutch player, batting .398 with runners in scoring position.

You see Buck O'Neil before you see the Hall of Famers. You see Buck before you see the plaques, the artifacts, the art gallery or just about anything else here at the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum.

Once you're in the Hall, a life-sized, bronze statue of Buck will smile back at you. The depiction is of Buck's later years, maybe his 70s. He's wearing a three-button suit, pocket silk over his heart, with those enormous hands folded in front of him, holding a Monarchs cap.

"There's no question that's Buck," says Bob Kendrick, marketing director for the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum and a dear friend of Buck's. "Looking at it, there's something, you can feel that gentle spirit he has. It almost brings a calming effect, which he always had when he was around."

Reggie Jackson, Dave Winfield, Joe Morgan and Frank Robinson were among the dozen or so Hall of Famers to attend Friday's statue unveiling. Billy Williams called Buck "a father figure" and "a giant."

Several relatives of O'Neil were here, including his brother Warren, who fainted shortly after the ribbon-cutting. He was taken to another room and was back on his feet quickly.

Wingnuts 5, St. Paul 2 -- Brenan Herrera's three-run double eith two outs in the fourth inning was the key blow for the Wingnuts. Vic Davilla hit his first homer since joining the team Wednesday.

Umpires--Home, Thomas Newsom; First, Jon Moynihan; Third, Ron Teague.

Time--3:07. Attendance--7,467.

Wingnuts manager Kash Beauchamp brought with him to Wichita 10 years of independent league managing experience. He knows how to recruit players, where to look for them, and he has all the right connections within the game.

Beauchamp has used that knowledge this season as he has seemingly relentlessly pursued the right player to fill out the roster as a reliable bench player.

The year has seen Scott Dunham, Paul Bartolucci, Leivi Ventura and others attempt, ultimately unsuccessfully, to be mainstays.

Beauchamp thinks that he has finally found the right combination of reserves, however. Jimmy Baker is a power threat and Bub Bergstrom brings the intangibles Beauchamp looks for -- hustle and determination.

"Baker gives you a quality at-bat every time he goes up there," Beauchamp said. "He's very advanced mechanically and mentally for a rookie player in this league. And Bergstrom is a sparkplug. He's not a pretty player with the way he plays, but he gets the job done."

John Cook took a one-stroke lead in the Senior British Open on Saturday, shooting a 4-under 67 to capitalize on the mid-round collapse of Hutchinson's Bruce Vaughan.

Vaughan birdied the par-3 eighth to take a three-shot lead at 7 under, but then bogeyed four straight and Cook rolled in a 4-foot birdie at 13 for a two-stroke lead at Royal Troon.

The 50-year-old Cook, who was runner-up to Nick Faldo at the British Open at Muirfield 16 years ago, goes into today's final round at 6-under 207, leading Vaughan by one shot as he chases his first major on the Champions Tour.

"It's not that it would redeem (1992), but it would certainly help in my way. I won 11 times on Tour and that's not bad. I didn't capture a major unfortunately. I had a few chances I didn't capitalize on and that part is missing. I feel incomplete without having a major."

Vaughan came back with a birdie at No. 18 for a 69 and was one stroke ahead of Eduardo Romero, who had a 68. Tom Watson and Bernhard Langer both shot 71 and were another three shots back. Greg Norman, who had a bogey-free 67, was tied for sixth at 1-over 214.

Anthony Kim made nine birdies and an eagle in 21 holes Saturday in the Canadian Open for a share of the lead with Chez Reavie during the suspended third round at rain-softened Glen Abbey in Oakville, Ontario.

Kim, tied for 26th at 4 under through 15 holes when second-round play was suspended Friday night, went birdie-birdie-eagle Saturday morning for a 2-under 69, then added a bogey-free 64 in the third round to match the Wichita-born Reavie at 15 under.

"I've put myself in a good position," said Kim, seeking his third victory of the year. "I'm looking forward to the challenge tomorrow."

Reavie was 2 under through 16 holes when darkness ended play on the course saturated by more than 8 inches of rain in a week. He had a 25-foot putt from the fringe on No. 17 when he called it a day.

"When we got up to 17, I didn't want to putt. It was too dark to read my putt," said Reavie, the 26-year-old former Arizona State player in his first PGA Tour season. "We figured we had to play 18 in the morning, so what difference does finishing 17 do."

Junior Match Play

At Reflection Ridge G.C.

Third round

Championship bracket--No. 8 Jeff Jarvis, Phillipsburg def. No. 4 Clarke Fry, Manhattan, 20 holes; No. 15 Michael Gellerman, Sterling def. No. 14 Chase Chamberlin, Lawrence 5 and 4.

Consolation bracket--No. 5 Curtis Yonke, Overland Park def. No. 9 Mason Dick, Baldwin City 6 and 4; No. 10 Elliot Soyez, Florence def. No. 6 Riley Piles, Topeka 4 and 3; No. 13 Trevor Johanson, Maize def. No. 1 Markus Hilger, Garden Plain 1 up; No. 3 Joseph Winslow, Overland Park def. No. 2 Ben Lowman, Manhattan 3 and 2; No. 16 Harry Higgs, Overland Park def. No. 12 Aaron Mapel, Dodge City 2 and 1; No. 11 Eric Mode, Wichita def. No. 7 Eric Pfaltzgraff, Paola, 19 holes.

Rosters

West

Joe Bach, FB-LB, Liberal; Seth Beard, NG-T, Goddard; Andrew Braxton, RB, Salina Central; Anthony Cantele, K, Kapaun Mount Carmel; Cole Cherryholmes, QB-DE, Remington; Logan Dold, RB-DB, Garden Plain; Taylor Elder, RB-LB-S, Sharon Springs; Matt Fairchild, LB, Andale; Chris Gerber, FB-FS, Conway Springs; Chase Hartman, OL-DL, Hutchinson; Brad Holt, WR-FS, Great Bend; Deandre Howard, SS-LB, W. Southeast; Cameron Horesky, RB, Hoisington; Kevin Jerrick, LB-DE, Belle Plaine; Colby Kamm, TE-DE, Junction City; Devin Knox, OL-LB, Minneapolis; David Kraft, OL-DE, Mulvane; Jared Loomis, QB-LB, Macksville; Andrew Meyer, OL-NG, Rock Creek; Brian Palermo, RB, Chase County; Kirk Palmer, LB, Smith Center; Nick Puetz, OL-Dl, SE-Saline; Zack Puetz, OL-DL, Garden Plain; Aaron Racette, DE-LB, Oakley; Brett Steven, QB, Bishop Carroll; William Thacker, OL, Hutchinson; Mykael Thompson, WR-DB, Dodge City; Ethan Ungles, WR-DB, Andale; Jordan Voelker, TE-DE, Newton; Aaron Wedel, WR-CB, Salina Sacred Heart; Braden Wilson, RB-DE, Smith Center; Jamie Wollenberg, OL-DL, Hesston; Jacob Yoder, RB, Hillsboro;

East

Morgan Abel, DL-DT, Eudora; Mitch Albright, LB-FS, Galena; George Bazin, TE-DE, Louisburg; Tyler Bennett, QB-DB, Girard; Taylor Bozarth, LB, Mission Valley; Matt Calovich, T-NG, Shawnee Heights; Zach Carlson, TE-LB, Topeka Seaman; Anthony Ciambrone, OT-DE, Baldwin; Josh Cobb, DE, Blue Valley West; Gavin Cole, WR-CB, Marmaton Valley; Chris Duggins, C-T, Pleasanton; Jeremiah Fleming, OT-DL, Pittsburg Colgan; Kyson Ginavan, WR-FS, Olathe South; Swede Johnson, L, Basehor-Linwood; Tony Karleskint, TE-DE, Fort Scott; Tino King, TB-LB, Pittsburg Colgan; Quinn Kirsop, DE-LB, Lyndon; Aaron Kolich, C-DE, Olathe South; Nicholas Langford, L, KC Harmon; Caylor Luther, RB, Troy; Brett McConniff, QB-WR, Bishop Miege; Cody Moore, FB-L, Columbus; Bryce Murray, TE-De, SM Northwest; Edd Noonan, RB-LB, Emporia; Chris Rebant, RB-LB, Sabetha; Derek Rempe, QB-WR-FS, Centralia; Jake Rodewald, T-G, Royal Valley; Bobby Sanchez, T, Olathe North; Coltyn Seifert, RB-DE, Riverton; Nick Sloan, T-G, SM West; Jason Spradling, RB-DB, Louisburg; Adam VandeVelde, QB-DB, St. Marys; Jacob Wilson, RB, Pittsburg; Duane Zlatnik, TE-DE, Rossville;

Tony Stewart has spent his entire career emulating A.J. Foyt, his childhood hero who dazzled the young racer with a tough-guy bravado and swashbuckling style.

So when given a chance to pay Foyt the ultimate compliment, Stewart didn't hesitate: He'll use the No. 14 next season in honor of the four-time Indianapolis 500 winner.

"It was pretty easy to decide on the number that my all-time hero had," Stewart said Friday before revealing the two Chevrolets -- one sponsored by Office Depot, the other by Old Spice -- that he'll drive next season when he leaves Joe Gibbs Racing to move into an ownership role at Stewart-Haas Racing.

Foyt, who was with the IndyCar Series in Edmonton, couldn't be on hand to see Stewart reveal the honor at his beloved homestate track. But in true Foyt fashion, he poked fun at his protege for an altercation Stewart had Thursday night with a USAC official at O'Reilly Raceway Park.

Stewart is believed to have knocked the headset off an official as they argued over a call made against Tracy Hines, who drives for Stewart.

I'm really not into awards shows. If I watch the Grammys or the Oscars or the MTV Movie Awards, it's really just to be able to carry on a conversation the next day with my coworkers over the proverbial water cooler.

"Did you see Britney last night? My God, that was unbelievable." That type of thing.

One reason I don't get into the awards shows is I feel a little out of touch.

I haven't seen most of the movies the Oscars focus on. Was Superbad nominated? I don't think so. Will Space Chimps get nominated? Hmm, no.

I'm even a little out of it when it comes to the music. I really thought no one listened to Bob Dylan anymore.

Unlike previous years, there are eight automatic selections for the United States team, instead of 10.

Previously the U.S. captain would select two more golfers to round out the team. This year, captain Paul Azinger will select four golfers for the U.S. team for the event in September in Louisville, Ky.

Through last weekend's British Open and US Bank Championship, Austin is ninth in the U.S. standings.

This week also marked the first standings without Tiger Woods, who had already qualified on points.

Based on Steve Stricker's top-10 finish in England, he jumped three spots to lead Austin 2556.568 points to 2380.733.

This was supposed to be a thrilling time for Dara Torres.

Preparing to swim in her record fifth Olympics at age 41 and with a chance to add to her pile of 10 career medals, she got the shock of her life.

Torres' coach, Michael Lohberg, was stricken with a rare, potentially fatal blood disorder that has left his star swimmer devastated and prone to crying jags two weeks before the Beijing Games.

"It's just been an emotional roller coaster. I'm in total shock," Torres said by phone Friday from the U.S. team's training camp in Palo Alto, Calif. "I cry a lot and get very emotional."

Torres found out Tuesday before practice that Lohberg has aplastic anemia, in which the bone marrow doesn't produce enough new cells, leading to fatigue, increased risk of infection and uncontrolled bleeding. Treatment can involve blood transfusions or a bone marrow transplant.

Through Friday's games

Batters

SAINT-AMAND-MONTROND, France -- Carlos Sastre handled his latest test, and is one step from the Tour de France title.

The 33-year-old Spaniard all but locked up victory by holding off Cadel Evans of Australia and other contenders in a decisive time trial in Stage 20 on Saturday -- a day before cycling's showcase event ends in Paris.

Worn down by an onslaught from Sastre's powerful CSC team during the three-week race, Evans couldn't muster the leg power he needed to erase a 1 minute, 34 second deficit, and was caught off guard by the Spaniard's skill.

Overall, after more than 84 hours of racing since the July 5 start in western Brest, Sastre leads Evans by 1 minute, 5 seconds, while Bernhard Kohl of Austria is third, 1:20 behind.

By the math of the Tour, that's close -- but just enough for the soft-spoken Spanish veteran to take home the yellow jersey today.

As a young figure skater, Denise Sarver wanted to go to the Olympics. Now she will, but not in the capacity she dreamed.

The 39-year-old Wichita native is one of 24 personal trainers from 24 Hour Fitness that are going to Beijing to operate a high-performance training facility. The facility was built as a joint venture between the company and the United States Olympic Committee, and will provide additional support to the athletes and their trainers. She left for Beijing on Thursday and will return Aug. 6.

Sarver, who now lives in Kansas City, was chosen from about 5,000 applicants.

"This is huge for me," Sarver said. "It's a once in a lifetime opportunity. I'm used to working with everyday people with either total fitness or weight-loss goals. I never imagined I'd be helping Olympic athletes."

It's those everyday people who helped Sarver get this opportunity. To be eligible for the trip, trainers had to be nominated by clients. In a field that can create a love-hate relationship, she garnered quite a bit of support. Twenty-two individuals submitted something on Sarver's behalf.

If things don't work out at the Olympics, at least the U.S. basketball team should be ready for the World Series of Poker. The Americans left this gambling mecca Saturday and are headed for an even bigger one in Macau, where they will continue their preparations for winning gold -- and maybe strike some along the way.

After spending parts of three straight summers here, with an All-Star weekend thrown in, most players had their fill of Sin City. They'll find something new in Macau, a ferry ride from Hong Kong along China's Southeast coast that has surpassed Las Vegas in terms of annual money gambled.

Its casinos have a new group of fortune seekers coming.

"There's going to be a lot of that," guard Dwyane Wade said. "Everybody's got to make sure they've got their duckies ready. There's going to be a lot of table time for all of us."

It won't be all fun and games, though, for a team that promises to take the remainder of its exhibition tour seriously.

Canadian Open -- Chez Reavie finished the rain-delayed first round of the Canadian Open with a 6-under 65 and had a 64 in the second to take a two-stroke lead over Eric Axley at Oakville, Ontario.

At 13-under 129, Reavie, a 26-year-old PGA Tour rookie who was born in Wichita, matched the tournament record for the first 36 holes set by Scott Dunlap in 1996 when Glen Abbey played to a par of 72. The 129 total also matches the best on the PGA Tour this year.

LPGA Evian Masters -- Helen Alfredsson shot a course-record 9-under 63 to pull within a shot of leader Angela Park after the second round of the Evian Masters in Evian-Les-Bains, France.

Park shot a 68 in her second straight bogey-free round, giving her a 10-under total of 134.

The 43-year-old Alfredsson made four birdies on the front nine and five on the back at the Evian Royal Resort to beat the old course mark of 64 held by six players.

A minor league pitcher accused of throwing a ball that hit a fan during a bench-clearing brawl was charged with felonious assault in Dayton, Ohio.

Peoria Chiefs pitcher Julio Castillo was arrested Thursday following the fight with the Class-A Dayton Dragons, authorities said Friday. Umpires ejected 15 players and the team's managers following the brawl.

Castillo, 21, was scheduled to be arraigned Friday, Montgomery County Jail officials said. Video from the game shows Castillo angrily throwing a ball, but doesn't show where the ball landed.

BASKETBALL

Lakers restricted free agent guard Sasha Vujacic has agreed to a three-year, $15 million contract after emerging last season as a key member of the Western Conference champions.

Hutchinson native Bruce Vaughan shot par 71 Friday, taking a one-shot lead after the second round of the Senior British Open before heading for therapy on his troublesome left knee.

Vaughan, who has undergone three partial knee replacements over the past two years, totaled 3-under 139. John Cook (71) is one stroke back.

"It is my left knee which is why, when it hurts a lot, I don't tend to play so well," said Vaughan, the overnight co-leader. "But when I went out today, I looked at the scores and I thought that level par would be a pretty good number. So I am pretty pleased with that."

Vaughan had two bogeys, which he followed with birdies. The former firefighter, who took up golf at 20, is aiming for his first major win on the senior tour.

Tom Watson (71), Bernhard Langer (71) and Eduardo Romero (73) were another stroke back under windy conditions at Royal Troon links. Greg Norman shot a 72, including an eagle at the 16th, to finish eight strokes off the leader.

Girls

18 -- Elyse Bigler, Wichita, def. Hillary Hicks, Wichita, 6-4, 3-6, (10-8). 16 -- Hillary Hicks, Wichita, def. Emily Ramseyer, Wichita, 6-1, 6-1. 14 -- Tawni Griffey, Wichita, def. MacKenzie Morris, Salina, 7-5, 6-3. 12 -- Megan Wong, Wichita, def. Mary Meeker, Wichita, 6-7, 6-2, (10-6).

Boys

18 -- Mitchell Kibbe, Conway Springs, def. Rod Cuestas, Wichita, 6-4, 6-2. 16 -- Shane Kyral, San Benito, Texas, def. Avery Emmert, Maize, 6-1, 6-2. 14 -- Devin Kyral, San Benito, Texas, Def. Samuel File, Hutchinson, 6-0, 6-0. 12 -- Peter Horton, McPherson, def. Mason Born, Wichita, 6-4, 4-6, (10-7).

Boys Doubles

Carlos Sastre kept the Tour de France yellow jersey Friday, a day before a time trial that most likely will determine the winner of the three-week race in what the Spaniard calls the "opportunity of my life."

Sylvain Chavanel of France won the 19th stage after leading a two-man breakaway for his first stage victory. The Cofidis rider edged out Jeremy Roy of France at the end of the mostly flat 103-mile ride from Roanne to Montlucon.

The main title contenders finished in the main pack 1 minute, 13 seconds behind, and the top of the standings remained unchanged before today's time trial. The Tour ends Sunday in Paris.

"Today was a day to recover. Tomorrow will be the opportunity of my life," Sastre said. "I'm calm, but I especially want to fight to defend my yellow jersey. I'm going to go all out."

The Team CSC leader has a 1:24 lead over Frank Schleck of Luxembourg, with Bernhard Kohl of Austria third, 1:33 back. Cadel Evans of Australia is fourth, 1:34 behind, and considered the best time-trial rider among the top four.

When Antonio Margarito climbs into the ring tonight, Julio Cesar Chavez and Salvador Sanchez will be with him in the minds of Mexico.

When Miguel Cotto joins Margarito at center stage in the MGM Grand Garden, the WBA welterweight champion will be accompanied in spirit by Wilfredo Gomez, Sixto Escobar and the rest of Puerto Rico's past greats.

Neither fighter plans to disappoint his nation or his mythical entourage in the next episode of boxing's best international rivalry.

Cotto and Margarito are fighting for more than a 147-pound belt in the summer's most anticipated bout. Two boxing-mad nations are sending out their top representatives when Cotto, the unbeaten Puerto Rican champion, takes on Margarito, the latest star in Mexico's long line of beautiful brawlers.

"If you put one Puerto Rican boxer in front of a Mexican boxer, you're going to have a good fight," Cotto said. "It's great to be a part of this rivalry, to have the opportunity to have another chapter of this rivalry, to put this fight at the same level as others from the past."

Most television gossips are perky messengers of misfortune. As if to offset the malice of their trade, hosts like Mary Hart of "Entertainment Tonight" and Lara Spencer of "The Insider" are pageant-pretty, cheerful and unshakably sweet.

Wendy Williams, a radio DJ who recently began a four-city tryout as the host of her own daytime talk show on Fox, is a real-life scandalmonger, the kind of beauty-salon savant who wishes famous people the worst.

She has a bawdy and arch side, but she can be startlingly mean-spirited. If "The Wendy Williams Show" goes national, it could mark a turning point in television etiquette. Usually it is left to standup comics like Kathy Griffin or Mario Cantone to mercilessly mock celebrities who end up in rehab or jail. Nationally syndicated talk-show hosts follow the Oprah Winfrey model and wrap their celebrity klatches in a solicitous, redemptive tone; Montel Williams, whose long-running show was canceled last May, began his career as a motivational speaker.

Wendy Williams made hers as a trash talker.

She received a lot of attention in 2003 when Whitney Houston went haywire during a telephone interview on New York radio station WBLS-FM -- using a lot of bleeped language -- after Williams asked her, insistently, about her drug and spending habits.

THE DUO IS ON TOP OF ITS GAME IN "LOVE ON THE INSIDE"

SUGARLAND

'Love on the Inside _ Deluxe Fan Edition'

(Wingdings 171) ½ (Mercury Nashville)

Jennifer Nettles' in-your-face performing style is akin to the sensation of diving into a chilly swimming pool. Even if you know what to expect, her nasal twang still feels like a full-body slap. Thing is, she's got a terrific voice once you get used to it.

Wichita Grand Opera's next season will feature the return of favorite operas and familiar singers and conductors. It will include Tchaikovsky's "Swan Lake" ballet and an evening of Spanish flamenco music and dancing. And it will showcase an opera not frequently heard, Bizet's "The Pearl Fishers."

The WGO announced its opera and dance performances last week.

Included in the seven-event season will be Verdi's "Aida" and Rossini's "The Barber of Seville," last presented by the WGO four seasons ago. Besides the lovely "The Pearl Fishers" (by the composer of "Carmen"), the company will produce another light opera by Gilbert & Sullivan, "H.M.S. Pinafore."

Ballet performances include the return of "Swan Lake" and also "Cinderella," set to music by Prokofiev.

A touring flamenco troupe, Jose Porcel's Flamenco Espanol, will complete the season's lineup.

Director Joe Locarro has no intention of trying to sell "Les Miserables," the final show this summer for Music Theatre of Wichita, based on what everybody already knows about it.

That includes the stirring anthems, the historical and literary roots -- even the famous turntable that revolved with much of the cast to allow audiences to view both sides of a street battle in 19th century Paris.

"Instead, I want to draw the audience into the show through new looks, new takes on the characters. I want the audience to discover things they hadn't seen before, like looking into an ever-changing snow globe," says Locarro, who played the student revolutionary, Enjolras, on Broadway before moving backstage to direct this version.

The music by Claude-Michel Schoenberg with lyrics by Herbert Kretzmer and Alain Boublil will still be around, of

course. No one would accept "Les Miz" without such showstoppers as "I Dreamed a Dream," "One Day More," "A Heart Full of Love" and "Do You Hear the People Sing?"

A conventional piece of poker advice is to play opposite the way your table is playing. If the table is loose and a lot of players are taking a flop, for instance, the idea is to play tight and wait for big hands to take down big pots.

Aggressive pro Kirk Morrison faced the opposite situation at the $10,000-buy-in World Series of Poker main event at the Las Vegas' Rio Hotel in 2007.

His table was playing tight in the opening level of $50-$100 blinds, so he set out to loosen up things.

"In situations like that, I wanted to show a bluff," said Morrison, winner of one WSOP bracelet. "I want people to give me action later on.

After a player in early position limped, Morrison limped from the cutoff with 2-3 offsuit, a bluffing hand if there ever was one. Both blinds also played.

They struggled to survive 70 million years ago. Now computer-generated animation gives new life to some of the most combative prehistoric creatures.

History's new "Jurassic Fight Club" offers a fresh perspective on familiar and lesser-known dinosaurs. Airing Tuesdays through Oct. 14, the series taps experts and sophisticated scientific research to piece together the ancient events behind recent paleontological finds.

Forensics and detailed reconstructions of clashes between predators illustrate new clues about dinosaurs, such as whether raptors had night vision and whether the animals could work in groups.

The premiere episode re-creates a case of dinosaur cannibalism. Deep cuts in the skeleton of a male Majungatholus indicated that the 9-foot-tall horned carnivore suffered a fatal encounter with a surprising adversary -- a female Majungatholus whose mating instincts were replaced by a need to feed.

Subsequent episodes include a look at the attacker of a Tyrannosaurus rex; a multiple-species battle that yielded more than 15,000 bones; and a face-off between an ice-age lion and an 11-foot-tall bear.

Mark Burnett expects the first line of his obituary to read: Found the American Dream.

Not the mastermind behind "Survivor," "Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader?" and "The Apprentice." Not the man who made reality TV a staple of American network programming.

"Think about it," the British-born Burnett said. "I came here with 200 bucks, no education, and was given a chance because, in America, everyone gets a chance."

Burnett's latest endeavor is "Jingles," an hourlong series in which eight teams vie to create the best ditties for commercials. The winners get $100,000 and, perhaps, jobs with an advertising agency. The weekly-elimination talent contest is set to premiere on CBS later this year.

We recently spoke to Burnett about the upcoming series and his other shows.

Gary Guzman is not a gambler when he's coaching football. He readily admits that he leans toward the conservative side when it comes to making decisions.

But Saturday night at the Kansas Shrine Bowl, an all-star football game for graduated seniors, he was faced with the ultimate risky decision.

Should he kick the extra point for a tie with 20 seconds remaining and have the Shrine Bowl end in a tie for the second time in its history since no overtime is played? Or should he go for two and the win?

Guzman, the West team coach, went for two and quarterback Cole Cherryholmes hit Mykael Thompson in the right corner of the end zone for a 29-28 victory. Thompson was named the West MVP, while Derek Rempe was the East's.

"I got talked into it," Guzman said. All the coaches "felt like we needed to go for the win. But it's easier when you're the assistant coach."