ADVENTURE SPORTS BY WINA STURGEON 6/3
WATCH OUT, SPEEDO
The Japanese are challenging Speedo with a version of the controversial LZR Racer swimsuit, but is it legal? That's what the world will learn on June 10, when Japan's swimming federation will announce its decision about whether to change contracts to allow its Olympic athletes to wear the LZR Racer or the Japanese version, or force them to wear the sponsor's suits. Swimmers wearing Speedo's hotly debated suit have broken 37 world records in the past six months.
The Japanese hope to win five Olympic medals in swimming. They will have to beat U. S. swimmer Michael Phelps, who currently is the holder of seven world titles.
TONY HAWK'S UPS AND DOWNS
Skate star Tony Hawk now has his name on another playground---amusement parks. The fourth Tony Hawk roller coaster recently opened at Six Flags Discovery Kingdom in San Francisco. But the ups aren't so high and the downs are far from legendary, according to disappointed coaster fans. While the world's fastest roller coasters jam across the tracks at 125 mph, Hawk's "Big Spin" goes only 31 mph. It's also small, about a tenth of the height of the more extreme roller coasters. For fans of the man whose name is synonymous with wild tricks and daring attitudes, the Big Spin is a real letdown.
WOMEN SKI JUMPERS SUE OLYMPIC LAWBREAKERS
Women ski jumpers from four countries are suing the organizers of the 2010 Vancouver Olympics. They are also saying that if women are banned from competing in ski jumping, men should be banned as well.
According to Canadian law, sports discrimination between men and women is illegal. According to the IOC, women have the same right to compete as do men. But women's ski jumping has not been accepted by the International Olympic Committee, which also eliminates women from the Olympic sport of Nordic skiing, since it includes ski jumping.
The lawsuit calls for a block to prevent Vancouver's organizing committee from holding men's ski jumping events if women are not also allowed to compete.
TOSS THAT HARD PLASTIC WATER BOTTLE!
Your Nalgene water bottle could be making you sick. Nalgene is that hard plastic that lasts and lasts without cracking. But in the past, it has been made with a chemical known as BPA, which is now believed to cause obesity, diabetis, hyperactivity, breast and prostrate cancer, among other nasty conditions. The longer a liquid sits in the container, the more BPA leaches out into the liquid.
Nalgene, which is a brand, now says it will stop using BPA. So you can toss your bottle and buy a BPA-free one. But that doesn't mean you are safe. The toxic substance is also part of the resin that lines food cans, and is often found in food containers for microwaves.