News In Brief

ETCETERAS

Earlier in the week, this space cited the case of two Georgia high-school students who were suspended for wearing Pepsi shirts to school on "Coke in Education Day." For the record, officials now say another type of discipline "may have been more appropriate" although they still consider the prank "disruptive." So, while Mike Cameron and Dan Moxley each served a one-day sentence, at least it won't appear in their permanent files.

Speaking of striking things from the records, Wurzen, in southeastern Germany, has removed a prominent name from its list of honorary citizens. Along with thousands of other communities, it conferred that status on Adolf Hitler during the Third Reich. But that detail was forgotten in the aftermath of World War II, when the region fell under Communist control - until a historian recently found the decree in an old file. Last week, town councillors voted unanimously - and without discussion - to rescind the honor.

New Men's Tennis No. 1 First for South America

Marcelo Rios of Chile is the first South American to be rated the No. 1 men's tennis player in the world. Rios moved ahead of Pete Sampras of the US by defeating Andre Agassi, also of the US, in straight sets to win the Lipton Championship. Rios is the 14th player to head the Association of Tennis Professionals weekly rankings. The honor roll of players who have held the No.1 rank and the date they became No. 1 for the first time:

Marcelo Rios March 30, 1998

Thomas Muster Feb. 12, 1996

Andre Agassi April 10, 1995

Pete Sampras April 12, 1993

Jim Courier Feb. 10, 1992

Boris Becker Jan. 28, 1998

Stefan Edberg Aug. 13, 1990

Mats Wilander Sept. 12, 1988

Ivan Lendl Feb. 28, 1983

John McEnroe March 3, 1980

Bjorn Borg Aug. 23, 1977

Jimmy Connors July 29, 1974

John Newcombe June 3, 1974

Ilie Nastase Aug. 23, 1973