On The Sidelines

Last week we told you how the New Zealand pair who won the 2,700-mile, trans-Atlantic rowing race in the boat, Kiwi Challenge, spent most of their time naked to avoid the abrasion problems caused by clothes rubbing against their skin.

This week we have the story of French pair Joseph LeGuen and Pascal Blond, whose second place in the race prompted celebrations in prisons across their native land.

LeGuen rowed the Atlantic single-handedly back in 1995 and spent some six months afterwards touring France searching for somebody who might be interested in partnering him in a twoman challenge.

After a talk in a high security prison in early '96, LeGuen was approached by Blond - then close to completing a 17-year sentence for manslaughter and who had previously served seven years for murder - who expressed an interest in taking part in the race.

"We settled everything in 20 minutes," said LeGuen. "Some people may find it strange that I have chosen a convicted murderer to row across the Atlantic with, but I look at Pascal as another human being, not a criminal."

The venture received the backing of prison officials, who paid for the boat, and inmates, who built it. During their crossing, until they crossed the finish line on November 30th, daily updates were given to inmates on their progress.

Irish pairing Eamon and Peter Kavanagh, meanwhile, finished in fifth place on Tuesday, but a number of boats still have quite some way to go, with mother and son team, Jan and Daniel Byles, from England, now scheduled to finish around January 24th, 1998.

Bizarre stuff from last month's edition of World Soccer, the British-based journal of the international game, in which editor Keir Rednedge points to the various provocations which English fans had to put up with on their recent excursion to Rome.

Michael Holmes, a World Soccer reader in Cork, was somewhat bemused to see Rednedge list amongst the wrongdoings of the Italian supporters their production of an Irish flag which was then waved in the direction of the English.

"This was a sick, provocative gesture which was either not appreciated by the Italian police or was, in effect, condoned by them," writes a shocked Rednedge.

How, wonders Holmes, do the poor English manage to restrain themselves when each Saturday they find themselves sitting alongside Irish fans and their Irish flags (you know, the ones with Liverpool, Man Utd, Arsenal and the like written across them) in grounds around England?

Donald Gowdy, a 66-year-old winner of a 5k road race at the Senior State Games in North Carolina was quoted in a recent edition of Sports Illustrated saying: "I'm not crazy about running. I just do it to stay in shape for fishing."

AC Milan are planning to send their players on a two-day course in advanced driving after a series of car crashes involving their major stars.

Two French midfielders have walked away unhurt from accidents in recent weeks, with Ibrahim Ba writing off his Mercedes first and Marcel Desailly then wrecking his Ferrari. Striker George Weah escaped injury two seasons ago after smashing his car while returning to his home in France.

Now club official and former player Daniele Massaro is organising the driving course at the famous Monza race track, home of the Italian Formula One Grand Prix.

Former Milan star, Marco Simone was in frank form when asked recently by an interviewer about his hobbies. Eschewing the regular claims on behalf of the magazine's fine interviews and short stories, he announced that he began "collecting Playboy when I first started masturbating", adding that "you can print that".

"I started collecting it in earnest four years ago and I bring home copies from wherever I am in the world. I have about 100 now," says the star, who describes himself as a "big admirer of the beauty of naked women."

And he's not the only one in the house apparently. "I leave them lying around on my coffee table," he explains, "but I sometimes find them in the bathroom and I know that my fiancee Carla has brought them in there with her."

Latrell Sprewell, whose attacks on his coach in training we let you know about last Saturday, was in less combative form this week after the 10-week ban imposed by his basketball team, the Golden State Warriors, was extended to a year by league commissioner David Stern.

"There were times I reached out and tried to rectify the situation," said Sprewell, who hit coach PJ Carlesimo several times and had to be restrained from making a second assault on him.

"The one thing I've learned now is I have to do a better job of controlling my temper," he said. "I know this conduct is not appropriate in society or professional sports and I accept responsibility for what I have done."

The change in Sprewell's tune - he was initially nonchalant about a 10-week suspension which would have cost him only his wages for that period - may just be as a result of the ban and the decision of the team to fire him from a four-year, $32 million contract.

He will have the opportunity to appeal the ban next month (when Johnny Cochran will represent him at an NBA hearing), but it seems that even if he does have it overturned, he may think twice before beating up team officials again.

Also IN the States, the US Olympic Committee has asked the FBI to investigate an internet site which offers to sell a number of different steroids to athletes, as well as providing tips on how to avoid detection of the substances during competition.

Price Power, the owner of the site, claims that he is doing nothing illegal, pointing out that: "I'm not selling anything that WalMart wouldn't sell," while he insists that similar products and information are available from up to 50 other sites accessible through the net.

USOC president Bill Hybl insists, however, that "the USOC is committed to ensuring a level playing field for all athletes and this kind of advertising has the potential to destroy the careers and health of current and aspiring Olympians alike".

And finally, would-be publishers of Alex Ferguson's autobiography were this week taking part in a bidding war for the rights to the book, which award-winning Sunday Times sports journalist Hugh McIlvanney will help the United manager to put together.

Bidding, which closed on Wednesday, was said to start at £450,000 and while no winner has been revealed yet it is believed that the final figure may approach the £1 million mark - double the current record for a sports book which Jack Charlton received for his 1996 effort.

Please send any correspondence to On The Sidelines, Sports Dept, The Irish Times, 11-15 D'Olier Street, Dublin 2 or e-mail emalone@irish-times.ie