Sports Briefs: Powell wins men’s 100 at Bislett Games

TRACK AND FIELD

Slow start doesn't shackle Powell

OSLO, Norway - Asafa Powell overcame a poor start to win the 100 meters in a photo finish at the Bislett Games yesterday, but fell short of clocking his 50th time under 10 seconds.

The former world record-holder from Jamaica finished strongly to win in 10.07 seconds, with runner-up Daniel Bailey of Antigua given the same time.

The race was Powell's second since returning from an ankle injury.

"It's not 100 percent," he said. "I'm still a bit cautious. I have two more races next week. Hopefully I can do better in both."

Other noteworthy results:

Sanya Richards of the United States won the women's 400 meters in 49.23 seconds for the fastest time of the year. Yelena Isinbayeva of Russia, who has set 14 world outdoor records, won the women's pole vault with a disappointing effort: 15 feet, 5½ inches.

NHL

Pens' Fedotenko accepts pay cut

PITTSBURGH - Ruslan Fedotenko signed a $1.8 million, one-year contract with the Stanley Cup champion Pittsburgh Penguins, becoming the third forward to take a pay cut so he wouldn't have to leave a mostly young team that expects to be a championship contender for years.

Fedotenko made $2.25 million last season, when he bounced back from a disappointing regular season (16 goals, 39 points) to get seven goals and seven assists in the playoffs.

Craig Adams ($600,000 to $550,000) and Bill Guerin ($4.5 million to $2 million) also accepted salary cuts to stay after the free-agent signing period began Wednesday.

In other NHL news:

• Free agent forward Mikael Samuelsson signed a $7.5 million, three-year contract with the Vancouver Canucks. The Swedish right wing spent the past four seasons in Detroit. He has scored 86 goals and 208 points in 466 career NHL games.

• Anaheim forward Teemu Selanne says his next NHL season will be his last.

Selanne, a 10-time all-star, celebrated his 39th birthday yesterday. He told the Helsingin Sanomat newspaper in Finland that a man his age doesn't belong in the NHL.

The Finnish-born Selanne entered the NHL 1992 at age 22 with the Winnipeg Jets. In his first season, he scored 76 goals to set a rookie record.

Selanne has scored 614 goals for Winnipeg, San Jose, Colorado and Anaheim.

• The Boston Bruins' Mark Recchi expects this will be his last season in the NHL.

Recchi said in a conference call yesterday that he likely will call it quits after this season. The 41-year-old signed a one-year deal with the team on Thursday.

A 20-year veteran and the sixth leading active goal scorer, Recchi has been part of three Stanley Cup-winning teams. He won with Pittsburgh in 1991 and 1992 and Carolina in 2006.

He has 545 goals and 897 assists for seven clubs. He had six goals and 10 assists in 18 regular-season games with Boston after being obtained in a March trade from Tampa Bay.

• Left winger Rick Nash and the Columbus Blue Jackets have reached agreement on an eight-year contract extension through the 2017-18 season. The Canadian Press reported the deal and said it is worth $62.4 million.

  SKATING

  A comeback for Kwan?

Michelle Kwan will skate before an audience for the first time in three years when she joins world champion Kim Yu-Na in Ice All-Stars 2009 in Seoul, South Korea, in August.

The five-time world champion and nine-time U.S. champ has been practicing and working out for most of this year. Her performance in Seoul could be an indication that competitive skating is still a possibility with the Vancouver Olympics looming.

Kwan, who recently graduated from the University of Denver and has been accepted into the master's program at Tufts, has not been in a competitive environment since a foot injury forced her withdrawal from the Turin Olympics in 2006.

BASKETBALL

WNBA star Taurasi cited for DUI

PHOENIX - Phoenix Mercury star Diana Taurasi was cited for drunken driving a few hours after she helped lead her team to victory over the Seattle Storm.

An officer stopped Taurasi early Thursday for speeding, police spokesman Luis Samudio said. The officer smelled alcohol and gave the player several field sobriety tests, according to a police statement.

Taurasi was then driven to a mobile DUI van, where she gave a blood sample, then was cited and released. Authorities did not know her blood alcohol content.

Taurasi scored 22 points and blocked four shots in Wednesday night's 93-81 win over the Storm. The guard is the WNBA's leading fan vote-getter for the July 25 All-Star game.

In other basketball news:

• Seth Curry scored 12 points to lead the United States to a 71-55 victory over France, sending the Americans into the second round of the FIBA under-19 world junior basketball championships in Auckland, New Zealand.

Gordon Hayward had 11 points and five rebounds as the U.S. stayed top of Group B with one pool match remaining.

COLLEGE FOOTBALL

Hokies snare another 2010 commitment

Virginia Tech has received its 11th football commitment for the Class of 2010, from Justin Taylor, a 6-3, 220-pound defensive end from South Stanly High in Norwood, N.C. Taylor also had scholarship offers from East Carolina, Arkansas, Auburn, Kentucky and North Carolina State, according to recruiting Web site Rivals.com. Recruits cannot sign letters of intent until Feb. 3. - From Staff and Wire Reports