Key question in Penn State case: Who is Victim 2?

HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — The case is highly emotional, with accusations delving deep back in time and numerous alleged victims. But for all its breadth, one chapter in the Penn State abuse saga outpaces the others: the alleged sexual assault in a team shower by former assistant coach Jerry Sandusky of a boy known only as Victim 2.

It's the allegation that Penn State acknowledges ended Joe Paterno's distinguished football coaching career and spawned criminal charges against two school officials.

But the only person who says he saw it happen is another assistant. Prosecutors don't know who the boy is, while Sandusky says he believes he does know, and that the now-grown man, referred to in court papers only as Victim 2, could exonerate him.

Even the timing of the allegation is in question, as is the age of the boy a decade ago.

All the conflicting information presents tough challenges for prosecutors — not just at the sex abuse trial beginning in mid-May, at which the defense does not plan to call the man, but also in the court of public opinion.

"I'm not trying to make light of the situation, but how can you say it's murder if there's no body?" said 1982 Penn State alumna Wendy Silverwood, a saleswoman from West Chester, Pa., who said she believes Paterno was not given a fair shake. "If you don't know who the victim is, and you can't identify and speak with them, how can you bring charges?"

As recently as Thursday, Sandusky's lawyer argued in court filings that there wasn't enough evidence to support the charges relating to Victim 2. Sandusky, 68, faces 52 criminal counts involving 10 boys dating to the late 1990s and denies all the allegations.

The lawyer, Joe Amendola, told The Associated Press that a young man contacted him after Sandusky's November arrest to say he believed he might be the person referred to as Victim 2. After meeting with him, along with his mother and adult brother, Amendola was left with doubts.

"I wasn't sure he was," Amendola said. "I'm still not sure. I haven't been able to verify it. Jerry's very sure."

Amendola said that the young man told him Sandusky had not abused him, but that he later obtained a lawyer and cut off contact. Amendola does not plan to subpoena the young man and declined to identify him or his lawyer.

"I don't want to put someone on the stand who might say something completely different," Amendola said. "And quite honestly, now that he's got a lawyer, he might say something different."

Records supplied by prosecutors indicate some purported victims have changed their stories, the lawyer said.

"Several of the kids, who are so-called victims now, initially said nothing happened," Amendola said. "And now they're victims."

Mike McQueary, who in 2002 was a graduate assistant for the football team, testified at the December preliminary hearing that he saw Sandusky and the boy, both naked, after hearing skin-on-skin slapping sounds. He called it "extremely sexual" and "some kind of intercourse."

McQueary said he reported what he saw in the locker room shower to Paterno and Penn State administrators Tim Curley and Gary Schultz. Exactly what he saw and what he told them are both certain to be hotly contested at Sandusky's trial, as well as at the pending trials of Curley and Schultz on charges they failed to properly report suspected abuse.

Penn State trustees have said Paterno's lack of follow-up after McQueary's report was behind their decision to summarily fire him in November, before the end of the football season. The dismissal of Paterno, who died in January of lung cancer, has rankled alumni and other supporters.

Even the year of the shower incident is in dispute.

Sandusky's lawyer said that his client is convinced it was in 2001, not 2002 as the prosecution has said, and that Sandusky offered to help Curley find the boy when the administrator asked him about McQueary's complaint. Amendola said Curley never mentioned McQueary's name, and Sandusky does not recall seeing McQueary.

Sandusky told Curley at the time that he knew the young man in question but they had been only horsing around, sliding around inside the wet shower, the lawyer said.

Sandusky said back then that "if Tim Curley wanted to verify that, Jerry offered to give him the name and number of the young kid," Amendola said. "Curley seemed satisfied with that," he said, and did not get the boy's name from Sandusky.

"The reason he remembers is that Jerry contacted him after that shower situation and said someone from Penn State may contact him," Amendola said. "He said nothing sexual occurred at that time between him and Jerry. In fact, the mother said Jerry was a godsend to the family."

Caroline Roberto, a lawyer for Curley, said only that Curley acted appropriately judging by what he knew at the time. Curley and Schultz have both denied the allegations and are asking a judge to dismiss the charges.

Prosecutors said this month in a court filing that they still did not know the boy's identity, raising questions about whether the man's lawyer contacted the attorney general's office.

Victim 2 is not the only mystery in the case.

There is a second alleged victim who has not been identified by investigators and is being called Victim 8. A grand jury report alleged he was seen by Penn State janitor Jim Calhoun in fall 2000 in athletic department showers with Sandusky, pinned against the wall as Sandusky performed oral sex on him.

Calhoun told another janitor and a supervisor what he saw, the grand jury said, but as of November suffered from dementia and was described as incompetent to testify.

Amendola considers the charges related to Victim 2 and Victim 8 the weakest part of the government's case.

"I think that creates a problem for the commonwealth," he said. "And the commonsensical reaction would be, if the stuff really occurred, why didn't they come forward and say, 'I'm the guy'?"

State prosecutors, who need to be able to prove the ages of victims, declined to discuss the issue of the two identities.

"This case has been the result of an extensive investigation and an extensive grand jury investigation," said Nils Frederiksen, a spokesman for the attorney general's office. "We have a high degree of confidence in the case, but we're not going to discuss the strategy of how our prosecutors plan to present the case in court. It's just not appropriate."

To establish the age of anonymous children in child pornography cases, prosecutors sometimes have pediatric specialists apply standard measures of development, a technique that might be used in the Sandusky case.

"It's a little bit unusual to prove a child rape case this way, but it's also unusual to have an eyewitness to child rape," said Christopher Mallios, a former Philadelphia deputy district attorney who helps train police and prosecutors in sexual violence cases.

Jurors may wonder why the young men have not stepped forward, despite the detailed reports of abuse and the extensive publicity surrounding Sandusky's arrest. But that would not be surprising, Mallios said, given what he saw during investigations in Philadelphia of abuse allegations against Roman Catholic clergy members.

"A lot of the victims did not tell anyone about what had happened to them until well into their 50s," he said. "They just couldn't talk about it. Even when the investigators were able to piece together their identities by talking to other victims, some just wouldn't talk about it."

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Doctors doubt favoritism in Cheney transplant

CHICAGO (AP) — Doctors say it is unlikely that former Vice President Dick Cheney got special treatment when he was given a new heart that thousands of younger people also were in line to receive.

After spending nearly two years on a waiting list, Cheney received a transplant Saturday. The 71-year-old underwent surgery at the same Virginia hospital where doctors implanted a small heart pump that has kept him alive the past few years.

Cheney was recovering Sunday at Inova Fairfax Hospital in Falls Church, Va. He had severe congestive heart failure and had suffered five heart attacks over the past 25 years.

Dr. Allen Taylor, cardiology chief at MedStar Georgetown University Hospital, said Sunday that the heart transplant waitlist is "a very regimented and fair process, and heavily policed."

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Kentucky beats Baylor 82-70 in South Regional

ATLANTA (AP) — Kentucky is taking its highlight show back to the Big Easy.

With an NBA-like display from a young team filled with future pros, top-seeded Wildcats advanced to the Final Four for the second year in a row with a 82-70 blitzing of Baylor in the South Regional final on Sunday.

Michael Kidd-Gilchrist scored 19 points, Anthony Davis added 18 points and 11 rebounds, and Terrence Jones dazzled in all the overlooked areas, leading the Wildcats (36-2) to a Bluegrass showdown with rival Louisville in the national semifinals next Saturday at New Orleans.

For all the hoopla sure to surround that game in the basketball-crazed state, Kentucky won't consider the season a success unless it wins two more games — culminating in a national title.

"This team is playing for you and playing for each other," coach John Calipari told the predominantly blue-clad crowd when it was over. "Let's see if we can keep this thing rolling a bit."

This group sure has the look of a champion, shaking off an early blow by the Bears (30-8) — a very good team with a daring fashion sense that was simply no match for Calipari's latest group of Fab Freshmen. Kentucky took control with an early 16-0 run and led by 20 at halftime.

They might as well have cut down the nets right then.

Calipari, in his third season at Kentucky, just keeps recruiting the best high school players in the land, molds them into a top team, then sends most of 'em on to the NBA before they've barely had time to find their way to class.

Then he starts the whole process over again.

Two years ago, John Wall led Kentucky to the regional final. Last season, Brandon Knight helped guide the Wildcats to the Final Four. Now, with those guys in the NBA and Kidd-Gilchrist and Davis stopping off for what will likely be their only season in Lexington, Big Blue has a shot at what those last two teams failed to do — bringing Kentucky its first national title since 1998.

But all the talk about Calipari's one-and-done tactics, he's getting plenty of contributions from those who hung around beyond their freshmen year. Take Jones, a sophomore forward who passed up the draft. He scored just one point in the opening half, but his fingerprints were all over Kentucky's dominating performance: nine rebounds, six assists, three blocks and two steals and — most in the first 10 minutes.

Then there's Darius Miller, one of only two seniors on the roster. He gave up his starting role to Kidd-Gilchrist in this one — Kentucky essentially has six starters — but four points, two assists and two steals to the first-half blowout.

At one point, Kidd-Gilchrist had as many points as Baylor's entire team: 17 apiece. Kentucky led 42-22 at the break and Baylor never got any closer than 10 points the rest of the way.

The Wildcats left New Orleans earlier this month disappointed with a loss in the Southeastern Conference championship game.

Quincy Acy led Baylor with 22 points.

With Baylor's Heisman Trophy winner Robert Griffin III cheering on the Bears from the stands, Acy tried to send a message early on that Baylor would not be intimidated by the Wildcats.

With Jones in the clear and going in for a fastbreak layup, the 235-pound Acy came up from behind, took a whack at the ball but mainly just crashed into the Kentucky player, sending him flying into the Baylor cheerleaders along the baseline. Jones was OK, and the officials doled out a flagrant foul on Acy after looking at the replay.

Jones made one of the free throws, Kentucky missed a jumper and the Bears, seemingly inspired by Acy's bravado, ripped off an 8-0 run that led Calipari to call a quick timeout. He already had yanked Doron Lamb from the game for trying to make the highlight reels rather than taking a layup. The sophomore guard passed up a clear path to the basket, instead opting for a lob pass to the trailing Davis.

The big man missed the dunk, hanging on the rim as Baylor grabbed the rebound and took off the other way for a basket.

After Quincy Miller hit an uncontested 3-pointer from the top of the lane to give Baylor a 10-5 lead, Calipari lashed into his young team — and, boy, did they respond.

Sixteen consecutive points, an NBA-like display of defensive dominance and easy baskets that sent the Georgia Dome, and the predominantly blue-clad crowd, into a frenzy.

Cat-Lanta, indeed. Too bad RG3 couldn't suit up for the Bears, who couldn't wear the neon-green home uniforms they had specially made for the tournament. As the lower-seeded team, they switched to another special uniform, this one black and camouflage with neon trim.

Turns out, blue was the dominant color.

Jones displayed his all-around game, coming up with three steals and swatting away a shot by 5-foot-10 Pierre Jackson like this was a game between men and boys. Kentucky fed off his defense, running the court at every opportunity for layup after layup. Kidd-Gilchrist had three of 'em, along with a slam by Davis that made up for the one he missed.

Darius Miller hit a jumper, and even little-used freshman Kyle Wiltjer knocked down a 3-pointer, pumping his fist and smiling as he trotted back down the court.

There were plenty of smiles from the folks in blue, though Kentucky did get a scare early in the second half when Davis went down with an injured left knee.

The 6-foot-10 freshman was driving to the basket when he banged knees with Baylor's Perry Jones III, going down hard along the baseline. A hush fell over the massive stadium as Davis, writhing in pain, grabbed at his knee. Finally, he limped to the bench, but it was clear the injury wasn't too serious when the trainers kept flexing the leg, then rubbed it with an ointment to ease the pain.

After just a few minutes, Davis got up and headed to the scorer's table, checking back into the game.

The Kentucky fans broke into a huge cheer of relief.

There's still work to do in the Big Easy.

___

Follow Paul Newberry on Twitter at www.twitter.com/pnewberry1963

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Obama squeezes N. Korea to change, China to help

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — Trying to muscle North Korea toward peace over provocation, President Barack Obama is broadening his squeeze play from the heart of this tensely divided peninsula, pressuring China to show more influence and warning North Korea that it is headed toward a crippling "dead end" of isolation.

From this capital teeming with pride, Obama sought for a second day Monday to contrast the success of the South to the impoverished North, whose nuclear and missile tests have kept its neighbor on edge and itself on the wrong side of the world community. Already, he said, looking into the North from near the border was like witnessing a "time warp" of despair.

In a speech at Hankuk University, one of Seoul's top-ranked schools, Obama will campaign against the spread of nuclear material and weaponry with North Korea's shadow figuring large. The North plans to launch a satellite with a long-range rocket next month against fierce objections from world powers, as the same technology could be used to fire a missile.

Obama will also try to build diplomatic force by turning to China, North Korea's main ally, when he meets with Chinese President Hu Jintao. That conversation is among a flurry of engagements for Obama, including a final meeting with departing Russian President Dmitry Medvedev, on the sidelines of a major Nuclear Security Summit.

In a news conference here Sunday, Obama challenged North Korea's pride and its plans, questioning whether its new, young leader, Kim Jong Un, was even truly in charge. Obama's trip comes as North Koreans mark the end of the 100-day mourning period for longtime leader Kim Jong Il, who died of a heart attack in December.

"It's not clear exactly who's calling the shots and what their long-term objectives are," Obama said. "But regardless of the North Korean leadership, what is clear is that they have not yet made that strategic pivot where they say to themselves, 'What we're doing isn't working. It's leading our country and our people down a dead end.'"

Obama then set some blunt expectations for China, questioning how much it was helping to ease tensions with North Korea by turning a "blind eye to deliberate provocations."

"That's obviously not working," Obama said. He said he did not doubt China shares the goal of a nuclear-weapons-free North Korea, but that it had to act on that.

The president's three-day trip here amounts to a reminder of the international struggles in his lap in the midst of a re-election year driven more by economic woes. He came to solidify pressure on North Korea, seek help with crises in Syria and Iran and advance a global effort he spearheaded to keep nuclear material from getting into terrorists' hands.

Obama wore a tired look after a 17-hour flight from Washington, a helicopter ride to the border zone, two sets of diplomatic talks, the news conference and an official dinner. But he succeeded in showing solidarity with his diplomatic friend, South Korean President Lee Myung-bak, and in cementing a lasting presidential image from inside no-man's land.

The Demilitarized Zone is a Cold War anachronism, a legacy of the uncertain armistice that ended the Korean War nearly 60 years ago. Hundreds of thousands of troops stand ready on both sides of the border zone, which is littered with land mines and encased in razor wire.

From a lookout point with binoculars is hand, Obama peered North, then South, within a football-field's length of the demarcation line.

He also shook hands and spoke briefly in the dining hall at a U.S. military camp just outside the 2.5-mile-zone, saying the troops were working at "freedom's frontier."

The United States has about 28,500 troops in South Korea, a deterrent force and a symbol of the military might Obama wants to keep in Asia.

The planned rocket launch by North Korea is yet another setback for the U.S. in years of on-again, off-again attempts to launch real negotiations.

North Korea walked away from international disarmament talks in 2009. Years of fitful negotiations had succeeded in ending part of North Korea's nuclear program but failed in stopping it from building and testing nuclear devices and long-range missiles that might be able to carry bombs.

Obama said the launch would jeopardize a new deal for the U.S. to resume food aid to North Korea, and the world community would likely respond with another round of sanctions.

The big consequence for North Korea, he said, would be one big blown opportunity.

"If a country can't feed its people effectively, if it can't make anything of any use to anybody, if it has no exports other than weapons, and even those aren't ones that in any way would be considered state-of-the-art ... then you'd think you'd want to try something different."

For his part, Lee said: "There is no difference of opinion between the U.S. and South Korea. We'll remain very calm and rational and we will be wise in dealing with the North Koreans if in fact they do go ahead with their announcement."

Obama has called nuclear terrorism the gravest threat the United States and the world may face. North Korea is a prime suspect in the proliferation of some nuclear know-how, along with missiles that could be used to deliver weapons of mass destruction.

___

AP National Security writer Anne Gearan and AP writers Jean H. Lee and Hyung-jin Kim contributed to this report.

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Syrian forces on offensive, Moscow says peace takes time

MOSCOW/BEIRUT (Reuters) - Russia offered "full support" for peace envoy Kofi Annan's efforts to end fighting in Syria on Sunday but said his mission would need more time as forces loyal to President Bashar al-Assad attacked Homs and other rebel strongholds.

Moscow also suggested foreign support for the Syrian opposition was the main obstacle to peace while U.S. President Barack Obama and Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan discussed how to get non-lethal aid to the opposition.

Western and Arab states have urged Assad to step aside to end violence which the U.N. says has cost 8,000 lives. Russia, a close ally of Assad, said he is ready to talk to his foes on reform and it is the rebels who must be pressed to negotiate.

With the Syrian army on the offensive around the country and the deeply divided opposition fearing Assad would use any talks to strengthen his forces' position and crack down harder, the prospect of a negotiated peace seemed more remote than ever.

Syrian activists said 27 people had been killed on Sunday, including 15 civilians, and a U.S.-based human rights group accused Assad's forces of using human shields in their efforts to crush the rebellion, which began more than a year ago.

"Syrian government forces have endangered local residents by forcing them to march in front of the army during recent arrest operations, troop movements, and attacks on towns and villages in northern Syria," Human Rights Watch said, quoting residents from Syria's northwestern province of Idlib.

Russian President Dmitry Medvedev, who will join Obama for a nuclear security summit in South Korea on Monday, told Annan, the Syria envoy for the United Nations and Arab League, he appreciated his efforts to end the violence.

"This may be the last chance for Syria to avoid a long-lasting and bloody civil war. Therefore we will offer you our full support at any level and in various ways in those areas, of course, in which Russia is capable of providing support."

It was not clear whether Moscow would increase pressure on Assad to comply with Annan's peace plan, which includes demands for a ceasefire, the immediate withdrawal of heavy armor from residential areas and access for humanitarian aid.

Russia has shielded Assad from U.N. Security Council condemnation by vetoing two Western-backed resolutions over the bloodshed, but has criticized the Syrian leader recently and approved a Security Council statement this week endorsing Annan's mission.

The former U.N. chief is due to fly to China, which joined Russia in the vetoes, after his talks in Russia.

"Syria has an opportunity today to work with me and this mediation process to put an end to the conflict, to the fighting, allow access to those in need of humanitarian assistance as well as embark on a political process that will lead to a peaceful settlement," Annan said at the start of his talks with Medvedev at a Moscow airport.

Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Gennady Gatilov said Annan's mission must be given more time before the Security Council considers further action. The Security Council statement this week threatened Syria with unspecified "further steps" if it failed to comply with Annan's plan.

"There are no deadlines, we need to see how the situation develops," the Interfax news agency quoted Gatilov as saying.

Annan's spokesman, Ahmad Fawzi, said he had "very candid and comprehensive discussions" in Moscow. Annan was "grateful for Russia's firm support for his mediation efforts in order to reach a swift and peaceful solution to this bloody conflict" and asked Russia to continue providing support.

Moscow has accused the West and Gulf Arab nations of being too one-sided, arguing that foreign political support for the opposition and contraband weapons supplies to rebels fuel the fighting in Syria, which hosts a Russian naval base.

Western and Arab leaders are due to meet in Istanbul next week to back the revolt against Assad and the Arab League and Turkey were pressing the opposition to unite beforehand.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov urged Annan to work with both government and opposition and said his mission needed full international support, the Foreign Ministry said.

"This entails non-interference in Syria's internal affairs and inadmissibility of supporting one side in the conflict," the ministry said in a statement after their meeting.

In the Korean capital Seoul, Obama and Erdogan discussed providing medical supplies and communications support to the Syrian opposition but there was no talk of providing lethal aid to the rebels.

"We worked on a common agenda in terms of how we can support both humanitarian efforts ... (and) the efforts of Kofi Annan to bring about much needed change (in Syria)," Obama said after his meeting with Erdogan, a sharp critic of Assad.

New York-based Human Rights Watch published videos, obtained from opposition activists, in which people in civilian clothes walk in front of several armed soldiers and infantry fighting vehicles. Activists say the army had compelled the men to walk in front to protect the soldiers.

The statement said that residents reported government forces placing children on tanks and inside security buses.

"The Syrian army's use of human shields is yet another reason why the UN Security Council should refer Syria to the International Criminal Court," said Ole Solvang, a HRW emergencies researcher.

It was impossible to verify reports independently because Syrian authorities have prevented foreign journalists and human rights workers from entering affected areas.

HEAVY SHELLING

Syria says rebels have killed about 3,000 members of the security forces and blames the violence on "terrorist" gangs.

Syrian troops have repeatedly targeted Homs, Syria's third largest city, and said last month they had regained control of Baba Amr, a neighborhood held by rebels for several months.

However, a surge in violence in other neighborhoods this week suggested the army was struggling to keep control.

Waleed al-Faris, an opposition activist from Homs, told Reuters that Sunday's shelling, using tank and mortar fire, was the worst he had seen.

"There are ten dead and hundreds wounded," he said. "I have not experienced shelling this heavy since Baba Amr."

In the southern province of Deraa, birthplace of the revolt, government forces and rebels clashed on Sunday.

"Thousands of soldiers and over a hundred military vehicles are attempting to enter the area of Lahat in Deraa province today, but they are clashing with rebels," said Rami Abdelrahman, head of the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, adding that at least five soldiers and three rebels had been killed.

The Syrian state news agency SANA said six "terrorists" had been killed on during dawn raid on a hideout in Deraa.

The SOHR said 27 were killed around Syria on Sunday, 15 of them civilians, during heavy shelling in the central city of Homs and northwestern province of Idlib.

In the eastern city of Deir al-Zor, Syrian troops conducted house-to-house raids in search of dissidents, SOHR said.

(Additional reporting by Alexei Anishchuk; editing by Philippa Fletcher and Giles Elgood)

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James Cameron begins historic quest

HONOLULU (AP) — Director James Cameron has begun his solo journey to explore a place only two men have gone before — to the Earth's deepest point.

The director of "Titanic," ''Avatar" and other films is using a specially designed submarine to descend nearly seven miles to the bottom of the Mariana Trench, an area 200 miles southwest of the Pacific island of Guam.

He began the dive Monday at approximately 5:15 a.m. local time, according Stephanie Montgomery of the National Geographic Society, where Cameron is an explorer-in-residence. That is early Sunday afternoon on the U.S. East Coast.

"RELEASE, RELEASE, RELEASE!" were the last words Cameron uttered before beginning the dive, according to a Twitter post from the expedition.

The scale of the trench is hard to grasp — it's 120 times larger than the Grand Canyon and more than a mile deeper than Mount Everest is tall. It was expected to take Cameron 90 minutes to reach the bottom aboard his 12-ton, lime-green sub called "Deepsea Challenger." Once there, Cameron planned to spend six hours collecting samples for biologists and geologists to study. The return trip to the surface was forecast to take 70 minutes.

There's considerable wiggle room built in, however, as the submarine Cameron helped design has the capability to support life for a 56-hour dive.

The first and only time anyone dove to these depths was in 1960. Swiss engineer Jacques Piccard and U.S. Navy Capt. Don Walsh took nearly five hours to reach the bottom and stayed just 20 minutes. They didn't have much to report on what they saw there, however, because their submarine kicked up so much sand from the ocean floor they couldn't see much.

One of the risks of a dive so deep is extreme water pressure. At 6.8 miles below the surface, the pressure is the equivalent of three SUVs sitting on your toe.

Cameron told The Associated Press in an interview after a 5.1 mile-deep practice run near Papua New Guinea earlier this month that the pressure "is in the back of your mind." The submarine would implode in an instant if it leaked, he said.

But while he was a little apprehensive beforehand, he wasn't scared or nervous while underwater.

"When you are actually on the dive you have to trust the engineering was done right," he said.

The latest dive site, which is at the deepest point in the Mariana Trench, is named Challenger Deep after the British naval vessel HMS Challenger that used sound to first measure its depth.

The film director has been an oceanography enthusiast since childhood and has made 72 deep-sea submersible dives. Thirty-three of those dives have been to the wreckage of the Titanic, the subject of his 1997 hit film.

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Murray advances in walkover at Key Biscayne - CNN Sports Illustrated

KEY BISCAYNE, Fla. (AP) -- Venus Williams' career comeback now includes a come-from-behind win.

Williams erased a match point and rallied Sunday to outlast Aleksandra Wozniak 4-6, 6-4, 7-6 (5) in the third round of the Sony Ericsson Open.

Williams is playing in her first tournament since withdrawing from the U.S. Open last August after being diagnosed with a fatigue-causing autoimmune disease. The three-set victory was her second in less than 48 hours, and took nearly three hours.

Wozniak served for the match at 5-4 in the final set, but dumped a forehand in the net when she had a match point. The tiebreaker swung Williams' way when she smacked an overhead that clipped the net cord before landing softly for a winner and a 4-2 lead.

Her final shot was a 119-mph service winner.

No. 4-seeded Andy Murray advanced in a walkover Sunday when Milos Raonic withdrew because of a sprained right ankle.

Raonic said he doesn't believe the injury is serious. Murray, the 2009 champion, moved into the fourth round.

Grigor Dimitrov advanced by upsetting No. 7 Tomas Berdych 6-3, 2-6, 6-4. The 20-year-old Dimitrov improved to 1-9 against top 10 players.

No. 9 Janko Tipsarevic beat No. 18 Alexandr Dolgopolov 6-4, 5-7, 6-2.

In women's third-round play, No. 7 Marion Bartoli eliminated Simona Halep 6-4, 7-6, (6). No. 16 Dominika Cibulkova beat Zheng Jie 6-2, 6-0.

Copyright 2012 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

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U.S. World Bank pick to win broad support: Geithner

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Jim Yong Kim, the U.S. nominee to lead the World Bank, will win broad international support despite an unprecedented challenge by candidates from emerging economies, U.S. Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner said in an interview.

Washington's hold on the World Bank presidency is being contested for the first time by candidates from emerging economies. Two respected economists and diplomats, Nigerian Finance Minister Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala and former Colombian finance minister Jose Antonio Ocampo, have been nominated.

Kim, a Korean-American health expert, is well known among development experts for his work in fighting HIV/AIDS and bringing healthcare to the poor. President Barack Obama nominated him for World Bank president on Friday.

"The president was looking for a candidate who could command broad support across the world," Geithner told Reuters in an interview released on Saturday. "That's very important, because we don't make this decision alone."

"Dr. Kim's mix of skills will be particularly compelling to the bank at this time and I think the world will be very impressed with him," he said.

Emerging economies such as China, India, South Africa, Brazil and Russia have sought to use their growing economic clout to pry open the selection process for the heads of the World Bank and its sister organization, the International Monetary Fund.

The World Bank has always been headed by an American and the IMF by a European since their inception after World War Two.

Geithner said it was not a surprise that candidates from other countries had been nominated after a 2009 agreement by leaders of the Group of 20 nations for an open and transparent process to select leaders of the two institutions.

"We expected that to happen and think it is healthy for the institution as a whole," Geithner said. "But I can tell you from my conversations with developing and developed countries, I am confident he (Kim) will win broad support."

U.S. officials have acknowledged that giving up the World Bank presidency would make it difficult for the White House to obtain funding from Congress for the global lender, especially with lawmakers worried about mounting budget deficits.

The United States has also argued that it does not head any other global organization.

RECOMMENDED BY CLINTONS

After a broad search that looked at U.S. bankers, economists and politicians, Obama settled on Kim because the Dartmouth College president has a deep commitment to development issues, Geithner said. In particular, he cited Kim's experience in programs to fight HIV/AIDS and tuberculosis in impoverished nations, which he said demonstrated that the nominee could get things done in tough environments.

In coming weeks, Kim will visit nations in Africa, Asia and Latin America to try to convince them he is the best candidate to lead the poverty-fighting institution, U.S. officials said.

Kim was recommended to Obama by U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and her husband, former President Bill Clinton, officials said. Kim and his long-time collaborator Paul Farmer worked with former President Clinton on reconstruction efforts in Haiti following a devastating earthquake in 2010.

The White House has acknowledged it considered candidates tied more closely to Washington political circles, including U.S. Senator John Kerry, U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Susan Rice and former White House economic adviser Lawrence Summers.

"The president wanted somebody who had defined their life through a commitment to the cause of development but had also demonstrated an ability to solve complex problems in a creative way," said Geithner, a Dartmouth alumnus who played a lead role in the search for a successor for outgoing World Bank President Robert Zoellick.

Kim's development successes involving HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis and the provision of inexpensive medicine to the poor have received wide praise. However, some development experts say he lacks the economic credentials and diplomatic skills of rival nominees Okonjo-Iweala and Ocampo.

While the World Bank's mission remains focused on eradicating poverty, the rise of some once poorer clients such as China and India have forced it to also focus on impediments to development in emerging economies, including power supply and governance issues.

Okonjo-Iweala and Ocampo would bring more expertise in these areas, some development economists say. A senior Obama administration official said the bank has ample expertise and what is needed at the top is someone who can get things done.

The World Bank is involved in the design of health systems in developing countries, but its funding and influence in the area has been eclipsed by groups such as the Geneva-based Global Fund and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.

Geithner said Kim has "an incredible feel for what matters most in development and recognizes that for economies to grow they have to invest in expanding opportunities for their people, in healthcare and in education."

"Those are lessons that the most successful emerging and developing countries have learned and been forced to learn, and in that sense he has the ideal feel," Geithner added. "His experience comes from what he has done in the field, not just from his academic research."

People who had worked with Kim were impressed by his ability to handle complicated situations in tough environments such as Haiti, Geithner said. In Haiti, Kim was credited with persuading the government to take steps to avoid an outbreak of tuberculosis.

(Reporting by Lesley Wroughton; Editing by Paul Simao)

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Raisins and soy may ward off high blood pressure

Eating raisins and soy appears to help ward off high blood pressure, a key risk factor in heart disease, according to two studies presented at a major US cardiology conference on Sunday.

Munching on a handful of raisins three times a day helped people with slightly elevated blood pressure lower their numbers after several weeks, said one of the studies presented at the American College of Cardiology conference.

The randomized clinical trial -- believed to be the first formal measurement of raisins' benefits on blood pressure -- involved 46 people with a condition known as pre-hypertension.

That means their blood pressure ranged from 120 over 80 millimeters of mercury (mm Hg) to 139 millimeters of mercury over 89 mm Hg, or just higher than normal.

Compared to people who snacked on cookies or crackers, the raisin-eating group saw significant drops in blood pressure, in some cases lowering the top number, or systolic pressure, by 10.2, or seven percent over the 12-week study.

Researchers are not sure exactly why the raisins work so well, but they think it may have to do with the high level of potassium in the shriveled, dried grapes.

"Raisins are packed with potassium, which is known to lower blood pressure," said lead investigator Harold Bays, medical director of Louisville Metabolic and Atherosclerosis Research Center.

"They are also a good source of antioxidant dietary fiber that may favorably alter the biochemistry of blood vessels, causing them to be less stiff, which in turn, may reduce blood pressure."

A handful of about 60 raisins contains a gram of fiber and 212 milligrams of potassium. Raisins are often recommended as part of a high-fiber, low-fat diet to reduce blood pressure.

A second study on soy showed that daily intake of foods like tofu, peanuts and green tea helped lower blood pressure in more than 5,100 white and African American people aged 18-30.

The study began in 1985 and was based on self-reported data about the food the participants ate.

Those who consumed about 2.5 or more milligrams of isoflavones, a key component in soy, per day had significantly lower systolic blood pressure -- an average of 5.5 mmHg lower -- than those who ate less than 0.33 mg per day.

That daily level should not be hard for most people to reach -- a glass of soy milk contains about 22 mg of isoflavones, or nearly 10 times the amount needed to see an effect, according to the research.

"Our results strongly suggest a blood pressure benefit for moderate amounts of dietary isoflavone intake in young black and white adults," said Safiya Richardson, a graduating medical student at Columbia University's College of Physicians and Surgeons and the study's lead investigator.

"Our study is the first to show a benefit in African Americans, who have a higher incidence of high blood pressure, with an earlier onset and more severe end-organ damage."

Eating soy could be a way for people with slightly elevated blood pressure to avoid progressing to high blood pressure, and potentially ward off the need to take medications, she added.

"Any dietary or lifestyle modification people can easily make that doesn't require a daily medication is exciting, especially considering recent figures estimating that only about one third of American hypertensives have their blood pressure under control."

Soy and the isoflavones it contains work by boosting enzymes that create nitric oxide, which in turns helps to widen blood vessels and reduce blood pressure.

"Based on our results and those of previous studies, we would encourage the average adult to consider including moderate amounts of soy products in a healthy, well-balanced diet to reduce the chances of developing high blood pressure," Richardson said.

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Beijing loyalist to lead Hong Kong after fraught election

HONG KONG (Reuters) - An election committee of about 1,200 Hong Kong notables picked Beijing-loyalist Leung Chun-ying as the city's next leader on Sunday, after a fraught campaign which will intensify pressure on China to keeps its promise to allow Hong Kong a direct leadership election in 2017.

Hong Kong, a former British colony that returned to Chinese rule in 1997, is a freewheeling capitalist hub which enjoys a high degree of autonomy and freedom, but Beijing's Communist Party leaders have resisted public pressure for full democracy.

The city's seven million people have no say in who becomes their chief executive, a selection process which was marked by uncommonly high levels of public discontent at perceived interference by China.

Several dozen protesters inside the voting venue erupted in jeers and stood on chairs as the result was announced.

"We want direct elections immediately," they chanted.

Outside, up to 2,000 protesters, some of whom had camped out overnight, yelled slogans and waved banners to show their anger at being denied a voice. "Leung Chun-ying resign, Leung Chun-ying resign," they yelled.

Many spun colorful little flying discs into the air to symbolize a need to fling off such "small circle" polls.

Speaking after his win, the leader-elect who takes over from bow tie-wearing Donald Tsang, said he would work to ensure this is the last time an elite committee votes for a Hong Kong leader, pledging his commitment to direct elections in five years.

"I shall work with the whole of Hong Kong in the next five years to make sure that the 2017 universal suffrage chief executive election will work well."

Leung said he faced a daunting task, but added that he wanted to ease tensions while reaffirming the rule of law, human rights and freedoms.

"During the heat of the campaign, inevitably, passions were roused and strong remarks made," said Leung, showing little visible emotion after his win.

"Now that the contest is over, it is time to reunite, we must work in unison to be inclusive ... and once again instill positive energy into our community," Leung told reporters even as protesters tried to shout him down from outside the room.

"HEAVY INFLUENCE" RESENTED

Compared with previous chief executive elections in which a Beijing-backed frontrunner coasted into office, this one was marked by scandal and mud-slinging between the two main candidates.

It also brought into the spotlight the influence China's Communist Party leaders have over Hong Kong politics.

Henry Tang, the scion of a wealthy industrialist and a former head of the civil service, was widely seen early on as the Beijing-backed candidate, but his image was damaged by revelations of a love affair and a scandal over illegal construction at a family-owned villa.

That appeared to be enough to convince China to switch its allegiance to Leung, and lobby election committee members for votes. "Somehow Tang has managed to blow a fixed election," said a Western diplomat in Hong Kong, speaking on condition of anonymity.

Leung, 57, has been dogged by accusations of being a Communist Party member, which he denies.

He is a Hong Kong-born surveyor with deep Chinese connections and a reputation as a tough political operator with a more innovative policy vision, including building cheaper public housing.

Many dismayed residents demanded a fresh election with new candidates. Underlining their frustration, most of more than 200,000 people surveyed said they would abstain if given the chance to vote, according to a University of Hong Kong poll.

"This is the most blatant interference by Beijing into the domestic affairs of Hong Kong ... causing damage to the one country, two systems policy," said Democratic Party chairman Albert Ho, who also stood for election but won only 76 votes.

Hong Kong was promised a high degree of autonomy when it returned to Chinese rule in 1997 under a "one country, two systems" formula with a promise of full democracy as an "ultimate aim".

Though that has not been achieved, it remains a beacon of democratic reform and civil liberties in China, which wants to see the self-ruled island of Taiwan reunited with the mainland, perhaps under a similar formula.

The election committee, filled with business professionals, tycoons and Beijing loyalists, selected Leung with 689 of 1,132 votes cast as successor to the bow tie-wearing Donald Tsang, who cannot stand again.

Tang, Leung's main rival, got 285 votes.

"For this election, everyone feels the influence of Beijing is very heavy," said political analyst Johnny Lau, speaking inside the harbor-front convention centre where the vote was held. "(Leung) has created an aura of being a Chinese emperor that will make it more difficult to lead politically."

"This election has caused great divisions. His ability to gather public support will be quite weak because these frustrations have accumulated over many years," Lau added.

(Additional reporting by Tan Ee Lyn, Carmen Ng and Stefanie McIntyre; Editing by Anne Marie Roantree and Daniel Magnowski)

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