Brian Joubert of France botched his quad combination yet still won the short program at the World Figure Skating Championships on Wednesday in Los Angeles.
Wednesday's sports briefs
The 2007 champion finished with 84.40 points, putting him 1.7 ahead of Evan Lysacek going into today's free skate.
Patrick Chan, Canada's up-and-comer, is third.
"I want to focus myself on speed, footwork, skating and confidence," Joubert said. "I don't want to do only jumps. The score is good today."
COLLEGE BASEBALL
Disgraced as pro, Palmeiro honored Rafael Palmeiro, who infamously wagged his finger at Congress four years ago while denying he used steroids and then tested positive a few months later, was elected to the College Baseball Hall of Fame.
Palmeiro, a four-time major league All-Star whose reputation was tainted by the positive test, was one of 10 former players and coaches elected for the hall's fourth induction class.
Palmeiro starred at Mississippi State from 1983 through '85 and was the first Triple Crown winner in Southeastern Conference history. He went on to get more than 500 major league home runs and 3,000 hits, but his chance of making that Hall of Fame is in jeopardy because of his positive steroids test.
COLLEGE FOOTBALL
Senate to look at BCS workings A group of senators will look into how college football determines its national champion.
The current system "leaves nearly half of all the teams in college football at a competitive disadvantage when it comes to qualifying for the millions of dollars paid out every year," the Senate Judiciary's subcommittee on antitrust, competition policy and consumer rights said in a statement announcing upcoming hearings.
Not surprising is that the main push comes from Sen. Orrin Hatch of Utah. People there were furious that Utah was bypassed for the last national championship despite going undefeated in the regular season.
The subcommittee's statement said Hatch would introduce legislation "to rectify this situation." No details were offered.
OLYMPICS
IOC and jumpers miss connections Female ski jumpers suing to get into the 2010 Vancouver Olympics figured the International Olympic Committee told them to go take a giant leap.
The IOC said, however, that President Jacques Rogge didn't receive their request for a face-to-face meeting until too late.
World champion Lindsey Van of the United States and Canadian national team member Katie Willis wrote to Rogge last week requesting a meeting while he was in Denver for IOC board meetings. That letter was sent to IOC headquarters in Switzerland and only made its way to Denver on Wednesday afternoon, too late. The women were told by IOC officials that Rogge had "reached out to them" via e-mail, and Willis said late Wednesday night she had received an e-mail offering a chance to schedule a meeting with Rogge.
Female jumpers want the IOC to reconsider its decision to bar them from the 2010 Olympics.
CYCLING
Armstrong still on for Tour Lance Armstrong was resting after surgery Wednesday, but he wasn't letting up a bit on plans to race the Tour de France in July.
Surgeon Doug Elenz inserted a steel plate and 12 screws to stabilize Armstrong's collarbone, broken in four pieces in a racing accident Monday.
"This was a challenge. It was a hard case," Elenz said.
Armstrong, 37, said he even intends to race in the Giro d'Italia in May.
"I think the Giro is still very doable," he said. "This is definitely a setback, no doubt. It's the biggest setback I've ever had in my cycling career, so it's a new experience for me."
Armstrong will begin training on a stationary bike in a few days. "Lance is going to be a patient who is going to push the envelope," Elenz said.
AROUND THE HORN
• Boxer Giovanni Parisi, a former Olympic and world champion, died in a car accident in northern Italy. He was 41. Parisi won the featherweight gold medal at the 1988 Olympics and held WBO lightweight and junior welterweight belts in the '90s.
ASSOCIATED PRESS
about the writer
College Hockey Insider: North Dakota-Denver series looms large, especially for the visitors

“We’ve got to start sweeping” is the Fighting Hawks' mantra, sitting at No. 23 in the PairWise rankings.