Olympic gold medalist runs out of gas in paper chase

Don't know which of her losses was more shocking — the $30,000 or the footrace.

Doina Melinte lost her down payment on some land after three teenage thieves snatched her cash-stuffed purse and hightailed it from a gas station near Bucharest, Romania.

"I ran after them for about half a mile," she was quoted by ananova.com, "but could not catch them, and I lost them at some point."

The thieves should consider themselves doubly lucky: Melinte, 49, was the 800-meter gold medalist at the 1984 Olympics and still holds the European record in the 1,500.

Paging a boy named Sue

Johnny be good to England's cricket team, which credited a pregame dressing-room playing of "Ring of Fire" for its recent test victory over India that evened their series at 1-1.

"I'm the only guy that's sad enough to have Johnny Cash on his iPod," said Matthew Hoggard. "We had a rousing rendition, and that seemed to do the trick."

Don't take the Bus

Pennsylvania police are on the lookout after a Steelers-edition golf cart — painted black and yellow with owner Ronald Zorn's name painted on both sides — was stolen in the wee hours Sunday morning in Donegal Township, the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review reported.

If the cart was hot-wired, prosecutors warn, the thief faces an additional false-start penalty.

In case you missed it, Wednesday marked the 73rd anniversary of the day President Franklin Roosevelt signed a bill legalizing the sale of beer and wine, signaling the demise of the Prohibition Era.

"Think about how much the booze has affected the sports landscape," wrote Paul Katcher of sportsbybrooks.com. "Without it, we wouldn't have had Disco Demolition Night.

"No Pacers-vs.-Pistons-fans melee.

"No attack of Royals first-base coach Tom Gamboa by two guys even Kevin Federline can call white trash."

Talking the talk

• Jeff Gordon of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, after CBS' pre-tournament bashing of the NCAA selection committee proved unfounded: "Shouldn't Jim Nantz and Billy Packer have to work the Wichita State-George Mason game, as penance?"

• Reds reliever Kent Mercker, to The Associated Press, after his team acquired pitcher/rocker Bronson Arroyo from the Red Sox: "Our karaoke team just got better."

• Jack Finarelli of sportscurmudgeon.com, with some disturbing news from the recent NCAA Rifle Championships: "Army finished third."

• Mike Finger of the San Antonio Express-News, on prison prospects for Dwight Gooden after the former pitcher violated probation by snorting cocaine again: "The Doctor is in — for a long, long time."

Slow Death Dept.

From the Indo-Asian News Service comes word that possibly the world's oldest giant tortoise has died in Kolkata, India, at age 255.

The rival hare, we can safely assume, did beat him to that finish line.

Dwight Perry: 206-464-8250 or dperry@seattletimes.com