Marion Jones believes public opinion is on her side in the steroid scandal swirling around her.
That was clear on a muggy Friday night in the Caribbean, where the track and field queen earned bigger cheers than the hometown athletes and dazzled the fans with two wins in the Jamaica International Invitational.
PHOTO: AP
The inaugural event drew plenty of stars: Gail Devers won the 100m hurdles, reigning world champion Maria Mutola took the 800m and Tim Montgomery was here, too.
Jones stole the show. She easily won the 100m in 11.04 seconds, then took the long jump to close out the meet. After the 100m, Jones thanked the crowd, smiled and waved to anyone waving at her.
"I felt really good," Jones said. "I was feeling the vibe because I love the weather. It's like paradise. It doesn't get much better than this."
She was competing for the first time outdoors in both events. Though the time in the 100m was relatively slow, Jones was pleased.
"I expected it," Jones said. "It's exactly where I want to be and it can only get better from here."
Though steroid allegations have dogged her, Jones still gets plenty of love from around the world. Cameras flashed and the fans got to their feet when Jones made her way to the starting blocks. She won going away over Aleen Bailey of Jamaica (11.19).
After Jones won the long jump in 6.74m over an hour later, the crowd cheered again.
Jones and Montgomery were among dozens of athletes -- including baseball sluggers Barry Bonds and Jason Giambi -- who testified before the grand jury that indicted Bay Area Laboratory Co-Operative (BALCO) founder Victor Conte. No athletes were indicted.
Both have denied involvement, and Jones said Thursday, "It's quite obvious that public opinion is on my side. Meet directors don't have any doubt that I'm a drug-free athlete and still want to invite me to their meets."
Montgomery had less success in the 100m than his girlfriend, Jones. American Darvis Patton won in a photo finish over countryman John Capel after lunging his head forward at the finish line. Patton took the race in 10.12, 0.01 ahead of Capel.
Montgomery, who holds the world record in the 100m, was fourth in 10.25 and didn't talk to reporters. His results so far this season have been a little disappointing. He finished third in the Mount SAC relays in 10.27 last month.
Patton, the 2003 US outdoor champion in the 200m, was pleased with his finish.
"I'm not as well known as other guys like Montgomery and Capel," Patton said. "I'm just trying to make a name for myself, trying to do well at meets like these and in Europe. So by the time the Olympics come around, I'll be in good form."
Gail Devers won the 100m hurdles in 12.50.
But the world's premier hurdler hasn't committed yet to competing in the US Olympic trials, slated for July in Sacramento, California Olympic gold in the hurdles is the only thing missing from the resume of the 37-year-old, who won gold in the 100m in 1992 and 1996.
"I haven't made any decision yet," Devers said. "I'm very pleased with my career this far. And if I decide not to go to the Olympics, I will be satisfied."
In other events, world indoor champion Savante Stringfellow continued his hot streak, winning the long jump with a leap of 7.81m. Stringfellow has emerged as the man to beat in the event heading into the Olympics.
Mutola won the 800m in 2:00.38, outdistancing American Hazel Clark, who finished in 2:01.46. Clark's sister-in-law, Jearl Miles-Clark, won the 400m in 51.50.
Four-time NBA all-star DeMarcus Cousins arrived in Taiwan with his family early yesterday to finish his renewed contract with the Taiwan Beer Leopards in the T1 League. Cousins initially played a four-game contract with the Leopards in January. On March 18, the Taoyuan-based team announced that Cousins had renewed his contract. “Hi what’s up Leopard fans, I’m back. I’m excited to be back and can’t wait to join the team,” Cousins said in a video posted on the Leopard’s Facebook page. “Most of all, can’t wait to see you guys, the fans, next weekend. So make sure you come out and support the Beer
Revelations of positive doping tests for nearly two dozen Chinese swimmers that went unpunished sparked an intense flurry of accusations and legal threats between the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) and the head of the US drug-fighting organization, who has long been one of WADA’s fiercest critics. WADA on Saturday said it was turning to legal counsel to address a statement released by US Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) CEO Travis Tygart, who said WADA and anti-doping authorities in China swept positive tests “under the carpet by failing to fairly and evenly follow the global rules that apply to everyone else in the world.” The
Taiwanese judoka Yang Yung-wei on Saturday won silver in the men’s under-60kg category at the Asian Judo Championships in Hong Kong. Nicknamed the “judo heartthrob” in Taiwan, the Olympic silver-medalist missed out on his first Asian Championships gold when he lost to Japanese judoka Taiki Nakamura in the finals. Yang defeated three opponents on Saturday to reach the final after receiving a bye through the round of 32. He first topped Laotian Soukphaxay Sithisane in the round of 16 with two seoi nage (over-the-shoulder throws), then ousted Indian Vijay Kumar Yadav in the quarter-finals with his signature ude hishigi sankaku gatame (triangular armlock). He
Rafael Nadal on Wednesday said the upcoming French Open would be the moment to “give everything and die” on the court after his comeback from injury in Barcelona was curtailed by Alex de Minaur. The 22-time Grand Slam title winner, back playing this week after three months on the sidelines, battled well, but eventually crumbled 7-5, 6-1 against the world No. 11 from Australia in the second round. Nadal, 37, who missed virtually all of last season, is hoping to compete at the French Open next month where he is the record 14-time champion. The Spaniard said the clash with De Minaur was