Major supplement supply chain will pull ephedra products

General Nutrition Corp. (GNC), the nation's largest retailer of dietary supplements, announced that it will stop selling products that contain ephedra, a herbal stimulant that has been linked to heart and stomach problems.

"We believe that ephedra-based products are safe when used as directed," said Michael K. Meyers, GNC's president and CEO. "Nonetheless, the current business climate dictates that we move in a different direction."

Last year, GNC sales of ephedra products dropped 40 percent.

One of GNC's leading ephedra products is Xenadrine RFA-1, the diet pill that gained national notoriety in February when it was linked to the death of Baltimore Orioles pitcher Steve Bechler.

Any unsold supply of Xenadrine, TrimSpa and Stackers will be removed from stores by the end of June, GNC said.

GNC is a Pittsburgh-based retail chain that operates 5,300 General Nutrition Centers in the United States.

NCAA staff member garners SI attention

Deanna Garner, NCAA associate director of agent, gambling and amateurism activities, made Sports Illustrated's list of the "101 Most Influential Minorities in Sports," weighing in at No. 64, right behind boxer Oscar De La Hoya.

A former Marion County (Indianapolis) prosecutor for seven years, Garner has been with the Association since 1999.

The May 5 issue of Sports Illustrated said of Garner, "Your luck is usually up if Garner starts scrutinizing you."

Several Indiana criminals would probably agree with that analysis. As a former city prosecutor, Garner is used to dealing with all kinds of criminals, so the shady side of athletics doesn't deter her.

"My background has prepared me to do that," she said. "I dealt with hardened criminals who had committed murder, rape, all kinds of things. Most of the people I deal with now are not incarcerated, so there's no reason for me to be intimidated by them."

Garner also won't be cutting famous names any slack. One reason is her dedication, but it's also because she has no idea who's supposed to be influential and she really doesn't care.

"I'm actually not a sports fan," she said. "I don't know much about sports, and it doesn't really matter to me who people are. I've never been the kind to be star struck."

While Garner might not care, the magazine ranked her ahead of many stars in sports, including Indianapolis Colts' coach Tony Dungy, No. 66.

Hall of Champions presents CWS exhibit

The NCAA Hall of Champions in Indianapolis will debut an exhibit from May 4 through August 4 featuring memorable moments of the Men's and Women's College World Series and the NCAA baseball and softball championships in all three divisions.

The exhibit will highlight the Men's College World Series, now in its 56th year, as well as the Women's College World Series, an NCAA fixture since 1982.

Featuring the photography of Rich Clarkson and Associates, the exhibit also includes photos of famous Major League Baseball players such as Barry Bonds, (a former Arizona State University student-athlete).

Also on display is memorabilia from past NCAA championship teams and a baseball locker where fans can have their pictures taken.

-- Compiled by Kay Hawes

Number crunching

Looking back

More than 200 athletics administrators, conference officers and attorneys attend the NCAA's first Title IX Seminar in Dallas April 10-11 and engage in discussion regarding the three-part test the Office for Civil Rights (OCR) uses to determine if an institution complies with Title IX.

Four panel discussions highlight the session, as well as several round-table gatherings that allow participants to share experiences more directly.

"This was a tremendous seminar," Long Beach State University Athletics Director David P. O'Brien says afterward. "What we're finding out in the field is that there is confusion. We need clarity. This helps create a national debate. I think the seminars will help institutions learn to comply with something we still don't fully understand."

The first of the NCAA's two April seminars features panel discussion on athletics opportunities, financial aid, the OCR's three-part test and coaches' salaries.

OCR staff told participants that the federal agency does not rely on any one part of the three-part test over another when evaluating whether an institution is in compliance with

Title IX. Participants, however, say they are seeing evidence that the courts are focusing on the proportionality prong more than the others.

Norma Cantu, assistant secretary of the OCR, attends the second NCAA Title IX Seminar in Baltimore April 20-21 and tells participants that while the case for providing equal athletics opportunity is clear, there seems to be a misunderstanding about the compliance standards.

"This is particularly true about the standard applied by the department in determining whether a school provides nondiscrimanatory participation opportunities for males and females," Cantu says. "Since 1979, the position of the department has been that an institution will be found in compliance with Title IX if it meets any part of the three-part test.

"An institution has flexibility in choosing which part of the three-part test with which it will comply. The purpose of the three-part test is to enforce Congress' intent that neither men nor women will be discriminated against when provided opportunities to participate in athletics. OCR's bottom line has been, and will continue to be, one of fully executing the will of Congress."