31.   Reigning world champion Magdalena Forsberg of Sweden on Wednesday won the opening individual biathlon World Cup event here in Slovenia to maintain her overwhelming dominance in this sport.

32.   Reigning world champion, Scotsman Colin McRae, saw his hopes of defending the title disappear.

33.   Reigning world champions Yevgenia Shishkova and Vadim Naumov watched from the stands, with Shishkova complaining of an allergy.

34.   Reigning champion Mary Pierce, Anna Kournikova and Chanda Rubin are injured and unable to play.

35.   Reigning road champion Laurent Brochard of France is not racing after admitting taking banned substances as members of the disgraced Festina team.

36.   Reigning world champion Magdalena Forsberg of Sweden scored her third straight victory Wednesday by winning an individual biathlon World Cup event.

37.   Reigning world champion Alexei Yagudin triumphed in the international event, withstanding runner-up Michael Weiss of Fairfax, Virginia, and his equally flawless routine.

38.   Reigning world champion Jacques Villeneuve of Canada was fourth in a Williams, just two-thousandths of a second slower than Schumacher.

39.   Reigning world champions Maria Petrova and Alexei Tikhonov were only third.

40.   Shimizu also is reigning Olympic champion over the distance.