When an at
By ANDREW BORGERT
Sports Editor
Reggie Lewis' death last Tuesday
brings the sports community face to
face with its own mortality.
In what has already been an
unbelievably tragic year in athletics,
Lewis is yet another painful
reminder that the athletes we make
out to be heroes are all too human.
It pains me to see such human
beings, the ultimate in physical
grace, strength and speed, brought
down in their prime.
Lewis, 27, was only beginning to
tap the talent that was in him. He
was described by a Boston sports
writer as the "bridee" between what
was and what would be for the
Celtics.
Lewis was named the team
Captain after Larry Bird's retirement.
He led the team in scoring the
last two seasons, and was an AllStar
in the 1991-92 season. His
death rocks the foundations of the
proud franchise. It also raises questions
about the physical peril that
all athletes are exposed to.
Lewis knew the risk he was taking
by playing basketball. Only
three months earlier he had collapsed
while playing against the
Charlotte Hornets in the NBA Playr\cc~
WHS.
Initially he was diagnosed as
having the same heart condition that
killed Hank Gathers, cardiomyopaKm!
Make a dz
If you have or have re
mononucleosis,or meas
contain valuable antibo<
Earn up to $400 a mo
week for more informat
Q
Serolo
Creating A Hei
* Minimum $50 per donation, donate u
For a limite
We need healthy ma
$20 per i
hlete dies...
thy. Lewis went for a second opinion
and was told it was a nervous
disorder that, if treated properly,
would not inhibit his career. He
took the chance and stayed with
basketball. It cost him his life.
I can discuss how his death will
effect the Celtics as a team or who
is leeallv resnonsihle for hie
? -c J 1 - ~ - """
death,but that's not the point. We,
as sports fans and media, forget the
athlete is made of the same skin,
bone and muscle that we are made.
When one dies, we are left wondering,
"If it can happen to them, then
when will it happen to me?"
Lewis follows the deaths of, in
no certain order, Dave Waymer,
Roy Campanella, Jim Valvano, Tim
Crews, Davey Allison, Allan
Kulwicki, Chris Street, Drazen
Petrovic, Don Drysdale, Arthur
Ashe and Steve Olin. It is a staggering
sum when all of the athletic tal
:
tin, hgcu i miu ucicmiiiiaiiun uiai
has left us this year is added together.
The sports community will adjust
and move on from these losses. The
nature of the business is change and
growth, more money and more marketing.
I think for me, and for many
others, the talk of ticket sales and
new contracts, player strikes and
owner lock-outs will ring a little
hollow when compared to the
humanity that makes sports so
important to us.
ite with us.
:cently had herpes,
les, your blood may
dies.
nth - in just 3 hours a
irm /-oil
V-/CAXX VJU U I .
Q
gicals
althier World.
p to twice a week; 11/2 hours to donate.
:d time only.
les with B blood type
donation.
NCAA report
funding for L
Rv SVFTO POSTIC
Staff Writer
With completion nearing of the national Gende
Equity Task Force's report on women in college ath
letics, the issue has become the most important singli
item facing the NCAA.
Mike McGee, who came to South Carolina with ;
reputation for naming women and minorities to majo
positions in the athletic department, has done his shar<
to promote equality in college athletics.
Kim Hudson, South Carolina's new volleybal
coach, says it was McGee's reputation as being i
leader in the gender equity movement that was one o
her attractions to USC.
"What Mike has done is remarkable," Hudson said
"I truly believe in Mike McGee."
Eighteen months ago, the NCAA formed the
Gender Equity Task Force to examine the financia
role womens' athletics play in the athletic community
The task force is to present its proposals to the NCA/
this month. The proposals will be voted on when the
NCAA's annual convention is held this January it
San Antonio.
The task force's formation came after several receni
court rulings against schools that violated the 1972
Title IX of the Civil Rights Act, which required
schools to offer equal athletic opportunities foi
women.
So far the committee has recommended a standard
that calls for resource distribution to women's athletics
that equals the percentage of women in a school's
ChiHAnf Ivvii; Tho ro^Ammon/lAtiAn
Jiuuvtu uw; . iuv i wv/iiuiivuuauuil UtU IU tUH
firmed.
McGee is a very strong believer in equal opportuni
ty in sports. He has hired women for several promi
tOZ
ports
for studonts/facu/ty
WITH US
MUFFLERS BRAKES
STRUTS C.V. JOINTS C
COMPUTERIZED WHEEL A
ASE Certified Mechanics
THE MIDAS MUFFLER We Ha
THE MIDAS GUARANTEE* Fi
THE MIDAS PRICE Quality At
FREE ESTIMATES Call or Driv
?85^2
AMERICAN & FOREK
2701 Millwood Ave 254-5068
(Across from ETV)
700 Bush River Road..798-6494
(Next to Shoney's)
Cayce: 992 Knox Abl
(Next to Mom
i * See Warranty Terms in Shop
i P '
-i />V* X- /nl%
iiLigiii tuaiL^c
ISC athletics
nent positions in the athletic department since coming
to USC some. Among the moves he has made to pror
mote gender equity are:
. For the first time, full time assistants for the
? women's volleyball, swimming and softball.
Two full-time women assistants in the sports
j information department.
r The move of the women's basketball offices to new
; facilities in Carolina Coliseum. The team already has
a new locker room.
1 Also planned are new locker rooms for volleyball
i and swimming and the hiring of a new senior woman
f administrator for the athletic department.
Since athletic departments at most universities cannot
increase their budgets, the redistribution of funds
to women's sports will pull money away from the
4 triArt' C CtVArtC frvrvtknll
? uivu o opui io, kopvv.iaiijr iVAJiuaii, wuiv.ii lias UIC 111UM
[ scholarships and is the main revenue generator for
. most universities' athletic departments.
i USC is working on a three-year plan to reduce
; scholarships. Head Football Coach Sparky Woods, in
i an interview with The State, described the current
scholarship limits as being at the "bare bottom."
t This coming year, 88 football players will receive
\ scholarships. That number will fall to 85 the next
I year, according to NCAA compliance coordinator
David Didion.
USC Women's Basketball Coach Nancy Wilson
1 believes, nevertheless, that women's sports are going
to be better attended because of the increased publicity
equal opportunity brings, thereby generating more
- revenue.
" a 1- ? - -
A Competitive Price
e In
GN CAR SPECIALISTS
2752 Decker Blvd 788-0613
(Across from Dent School)
812 Elmwood Ave 252-6760
(Next to Lizard's Thicket)
)Ott Dr...796-5794
and Pop's)
Midas Muffler Shops
ijuiiig uicic me cimuyci, pcopie are going 10 oe
apprehensive," Wilson said, "But changes are always
beneficial."
K
> shocks springs
:atalytic converters
lLIGNMENT & BALANCING
ve The Right Muffler For Your Car
or As Lone As You Own Your Car