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THESSALONIKI, Greece It would take something special to upstage Usain Bolt at the World Athletics Special. Carmelita Jeter provided it.
The American sprinter, 29, ran the fastest women's 100 meters in 11 years, winning in 10.67 seconds and blowing away world champion Shelly-Ann Fraser. It was easily the best performance in an event marked by pedestrian efforts from athletes tired after a long season.
“When I got into the race and the gun went off I didn't think, I just ran to the line,” Jeter said. “Everything felt slow, and when my coach says that it feels slow, it's actually fast.”
Her coach, John Smith, said after the race that he was “still in shock” after seeing his athlete become the third-fastest woman of all time. Only world-record holder Florence Griffith-Joyner and Marion Jones have had faster times. Griffith-Joyner's record from 1988 is 10.49, while Jones clocked 10.65 in 1998.
Jeter trailed Fraser at the start but flew past her for a small measure of revenge after losing to the Jamaican at last month's worlds in Berlin. Associated Press
Leonard Chuene, South Africa's top track official, is returning to the board of the International Association of Athletics Federations to fight for Caster Semenya, the runner whose gender has been questioned.
Chuene has accused the IAAF of humiliating the women's 800-meter world champion and violating its privacy rules in its handling of her case.
The IAAF ordered gender tests on the runner, saying questions had been raised about her muscular physique, running style and recent stunning improvement in times.
Cycling
American David Zabriskie won the first professional stage race of his career, holding onto his 30-second lead during a 71.4-mile ride through the streets of downtown Kansas City in what could be the final stage for Tour of Missouri.
Its three-year sponsorship deal with the state complete, the Tour of Missouri will have to convince state legislators to continue funding a cycling race at a time when they're trying trim expenditures in a weak economy.
Gymnastics
Italy has captured its second gold medal of the rhythmic gymnastics world championships on the final day of the competition in Mie, Japan.
Hockey
The Buffalo Sabres have signed restricted free agent forward Drew Stafford, 23, to a two-year deal worth $4 million.
Motorsports
Rubens Barrichello picked up his second win in three races to lead Brawn GP to a 1-2 finish at the Italian Grand Prix in Monza, Italy, that put the British team in the driver's seat for the Formula One title.
Barrichello and teammate Jenson Button both used one-stop strategies to get the sweep at the Monza circuit and severely hamper Red Bull's championship aspirations.
Soccer
The Charlotte 49ers women's squad (4-2) dropped their second straight home match as they fell to 15th-ranked Georgia, 3-2. The Bulldogs are 6-0-1.
The Davidson men team (2-1-0) fell 3-1 to visiting Coastal Carolina (2-2-1).
Kyri Bye-Nagel's 23rd career goal was the game-winner as she led the Davidson women (3-4-0) to a 1-0 win at High Point (1-7).
Eddie Gaven's penalty kick in second-half stoppage time gave the host Columbus Crew (11-4-9) a 2-1 win against the Houston Dynamo (11-8-7).
Maicon Santos and Sacha Kljestan scored goals, and Zach Thornton finished with his ninth shutout to give host Chivas USA (11-9-3) a 2-0 victory against the New England Revolution (9-8-6).
Wnba
The Atlanta Dream will be forced out of their home arena for the first round of the playoffs because of “Sesame Street.”
The Dream is set to play their first home playoff game Friday night against Detroit at Philips Arena. But “Sesame Street Live” already had booked shows for next weekend at the downtown arena, so the Dream will play at Gwinnett Arena, about 25 miles northeast of Atlanta.
Kerri Gardin had 23 points, eight rebounds and five assists to help the host Connecticut Sun (16-18) beat an injury-prone Indiana Fever team 95-85.
Indiana (22-12) begins its best-of-three playoff series Thursday at the Washington Mystics.
Essence Carson scored 17 points and host New York Liberty (13-21) beat the playoff-bound Washington Mystics 86-65.
Candace Parker scored 24 points, grabbed 14 rebounds and blocked three shots to lead the visiting Los Angeles Sparks past the Phoenix Mercury 81-78 in the regular-season finale for both playoff-bound teams. The Sparks (18-16) open the postseason at home Wednesday against Seattle.
Nicole Powell had 27 points and set Sacramento's single-season scoring record as the Monarchs (12-22) cruised to an 88-66 victory against the visiting Minnesota Lynx (14-20) in the season finale for both teams.
Obituary
Jack Kramer, a world-renowned tennis player in the 1940s and early '50s and a well-known businessman and tennis promoter in Southern California for more 60 years, died late Saturday night at his home in Los Angeles. He was 88.
The cause of death was a soft-tissue cancer that was diagnosed in July.
Kramer, the No. 1 player in the world for much of the late 1940s, won the Wimbledon men's singles title in 1947 and the men's U.S. Championships, the forerunner of the U.S. Open, in 1946 and '47. He also won seven other Grand Slam titles in doubles, all at Wimbledon or the U.S. Championships. Observer news services
