U.S. women roll to soccer victory

Mia Hamm set up a first-half goal with a stutter step that left a Greek defender sprawled on the turf and covering her head in shame. By the time Hamm (above, left) scored on a solo run in the second half, the U.S. women's soccer team's 3-0 win over the host nation was complete Wednesday on the first day of competition in the 2004 Olympic Games. The Greeks took one shot and Briana Scurry earned her 70th career shutout. "A 3-0 victory in our first game, you kind of get the butterflies out," said Hamm, who increased her world records with her 152nd goal and 130th assist. Women's soccer is barely recognized in Greece - eight of its 18 players are Greek-Americans - and more than two-thirds of the stadium's 27,000 seats were empty when the game began, although the cheaper seats later filled to near capacity to increase attendance to 15,757.

Injured Serena pulls out of tennis

Serena Williams pulled out of the Olympics just hours before she was to travel to Greece with the U.S. tennis squad, joining injured Jennifer Capriati on the sideline. In New York to catch the team's flight, Williams saw a doctor and was told not to compete in Athens because of lingering pain in her left knee. "I have been advised that by playing, I could cause long-term damage to my knee," Williams said. She and sister Venus were slated to defend their doubles gold medal from the Sydney Games; Venus now will pair with Chanda Rubin. Serena was replaced in the singles draw by Australia's Samantha Stosur, who was competing in doubles and at No. 96 was the highest-ranked player not in the singles draw.

You can call her captain Bhardwaj

Mohini Bhardwaj, a Cincinnati native who is one of the oldest female gymnasts in Athens, was selected as captain of the U.S. women's gymnastics team. Bhardwaj, who will turn 26 on Sept. 29, had been considered a long shot for the Olympics.