Tuesday's sports briefs

Former Olympian Antonio Pettigrew, a sprinter stripped of a 2000 gold medal after admitting to doping, was found dead in the backseat of his locked car early Tuesday in eastern Chatham County, N.C.

Authorities said they are unsure if his death was accidental or a suicide.

County Sheriff's Maj. Gary Blankenship said Pettigrew's car was found parked to the side of a bridge. Blankenship said there was evidence that the 42-year-old Pettigrew had taken sleeping pills and there was no sign of foul play.

Pettigrew's death was confirmed by the University of North Carolina, where he was an assistant track coach.

Bolt done for the year

Coming off a rare loss on Friday at 100 meters, Olympic and world champion Usain Bolt is cutting his season short, saying he won't race again in 2010 because of tightness in his lower back.

Dec. 2: Miami at Cleveland The NBA unveiled its full schedule Tuesday. On Dec. 2, LeBron James will visit Cleveland as an opponent for the first time, a game that'll come nearly five months after he went on television to announce that he was spurning the Cavaliers and taking "my talents to South Beach" to join Dywane Wade, Chris Bosh and the Miami Heat.

• Indiana Pacers forward Danny Granger dislocated a finger on his shooting hand on the opening day of the U.S. national team's training camp in New York.

Kahne finds ride for 2011 Kasey Kahne finally has a ride locked down for 2011, at Red Bull Racing, where he will spend one season before moving to Hendrick Motorsports. Kahne signed on to replace Mark Martin in the No. 5 Chevrolet at Hendrick in 2012, and team owner Rick Hendrick had to find a place to keep his new driver for one season.

2011 Sprint Cup schedule takes shape

The NASCAR Sprint Cup series will visit the 1.5-mile Kentucky Speedway for a 400-mile race on July 9, 2011. Kentucky is the first new venue to join the Cup schedule since Chicago and Kansas were added in 2001. Kansas Speedway announced it will host a second race next year.

College football: Penn State coach Joe Paterno has been nominated for the highest civilian award in the country, the Presidential Medal of Freedom.

Horse racing: The Louisiana Derby is now a $1 million prep race for the Kentucky Derby, making it the richest race ever to be run in New Orleans. The 1 1/8-mile race for 3-year-olds is scheduled for March 26, 2011.

Gymnastics: Bridget Sloan will be unable to defend her overall title at the U.S. Championships this week in Hartford, Conn., because of ankle and shoulder injuries. She will compete only in the balance beam.

Tennis: Andy Roddick (undisclosed illness) withdrew from the Rogers Cup in Toronto.

Golf: Jaclyn Sweeney (Andover, Mass.), Rachel Rohanna (Waynesburg, Pa.) and Erynne Lee (Silverdale, Wash.) were tied atop the leaderboard at 138 after the completion of stroke play at the U.S. Women's Amateur championship in Charlotte, N.C.

WNBA: The Seattle Storm (25-4) clinched the top overall seed in the playoffs by rallying for an 80-70 victory over the host Atlanta Dream on Tuesday night. ... The Washington Mystics moved three games ahead of Connecticut for the fourth and final playoff spot in the East with an 84-74 victory over the visiting Sun. Connecticut's Tina Charles recorded her 19th double-double, tying the WNBA single-season record.