FINISH LINE: Giants trade Shockey to Saints for two picks

The Rocky

Tuesday, July 22, 2008

Claudio Bresciani / Associated Press

Out she goes Adam Nelson of the United States competes Monday in the men's shot put in a downtown park at the DN Galan athletics event in Stockholm, Sweden. It's the first time an event was contested outside the main arena at an international athletics meet.

Shockey

Jeremy Shockey was traded to the Saints for two draft picks Monday, giving New Orleans a disgruntled star tight end who watched from the sideline while injured as the New York Giants surged to the Super Bowl title.

The Giants will get second- and fifth-round picks in the 2009 draft for Shockey, a four-time Pro Bowl selection who had 371 catches for 4,228 yards and 27 touchdowns with the Giants.

URLACHER REACHES DEAL The Chicago Bears and linebacker Brian Urlacher agreed to an $18 million contract extension through the 2012 season, according to the Chicago Tribune and Chicago Sun-Times

* The Arizona Cardinals signed second-round pick Calais Campbell, a former Denver South High School athlete.

* Receiver Chad Johnson said he'll report on time for the Cincinnati Bengals' training camp this weekend, but his surgically repaired ankle will probably prevent him from fully participating.

* Tampa Bay Buccaneers reserve safety Donte Nicholson was Tasered twice and arrested during a weekend scuffle with police officers at the entrance of a St. Petersburg, Fla., nightclub.

JONES SEEKS RELIEF Disgraced Olympic track star Marion Jones has asked President Bush to commute her six-month prison sentence for lying to federal agents about her use of performance-enhancing drugs and a check-fraud scam.

BUSH HONORS OLYMPIANS President Bush gave U.S. Olympians a rousing White House send-off to next month's games in Beijing, urging them to "compete swifter, higher and stronger" but also be mindful they will be "ambassadors of liberty" to the people of China and elsewhere.

* Defending champions Kerri Walsh and Misty May-Treanor of the United States qualified for the Beijing Games by topping the women's qualifying rankings in beach volleyball.

REPORT: TACTICS QUESTIONED Olympic gold medalist gymnast Dominique Moceanu says former coach Martha Karolyi should be removed from her role as national team coordinator, alleging on HBO's Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel tonight that her strict training regimen and diet restrictions are inappropriate.

TOO CLOSE TO CALL Two tough mountain stages and a time trial await in the Tour de France, which is building to its closest finish in years. Frank Schleck has a plan on how to keep his yellow jersey: Attack.

The Luxembourg rider knows he must go after Cadel Evans of Australia and Denis Menchov of Russia in the next two mountain stages. Then he hopes he has a big enough lead before the time trial.

"I don't remember a Tour as open as this, with three riders within 10 seconds of each other, and six riders within 50 seconds," Tour director Christian Prudhomme said.

CELTICS KEEP HOUSE, ALLEN The Boston Celtics re-signed guards Eddie House and Tony Allen, two role players from their title-winning team.

* The New Jersey Nets acquired guard Keyon Dooling from the Orlando Magic in exchange for cash considerations.

LUPUL EXTENDED Forward Joffrey Lupul and the Philadelphia Flyers agreed to a four-year extension, keeping him with the NHL's Eastern Conference finalists through the 2012-2013 season.

MEN'S TOURNEY ADDS WIE Fresh off a disqualification for not promptly signing her card at an LPGA Tour event, Michelle Wie has decided to play against the men - again.

Wie will play next week in the Legends Reno-Tahoe Open. She has yet to make a cut in a men's event.

TITLE BOUT Former heavyweight titleholders Nikolai Valuev (48-1) and John Ruiz (43-7-1) will meet for the vacant World Boxing Association title Aug. 30 in Berlin.

PLAYERS SUSPENDED Doubles specialists Frantisek Cermak and Michal Mertinak were suspended by the Association of Tennis Professionals for betting on tennis matches.

Neither player wagered on his own matches, and an independent hearing officer found no evidence of any intent to affect the outcome of matches bet upon, according to the governing body of men's tennis.