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Olympics • Eight years after winning Olympic medals in Athens, four track and field athletes from eastern Europe were ordered to hand them back Wednesday because of positive doping tests.

Lance Armstrong, meanwhile, can hold onto his bronze medal from the 2000 Sydney Games for a little while longer.

The International Olympic Committee executive board disqualified four athletes whose Athens doping samples were retested earlier this year and came back positive for steroids, including shot put gold medalist Yuriy Bilonog of Ukraine.

NCAA's Emmert pushes for stipends

College sports • NCAA President Mark Emmert is still determined to provide college athletes with $2,000 for expenses not covered by scholarships.

Convincing schools to go along with that might be as much about changing perceptions as changing the proposal.

In a surprise move last January, the Division I Board of Directors delayed implementing the stipends in the face of criticism from many colleges. The plan is still on hold, with a working group creating options that address the membership's concerns, but Emmert reiterated Wednesday his commitment to putting it into effect.

Jeter makes public visit after injury

MLB • Derek Jeter says his surgically repaired left ankle feels good and he expects to be the New York Yankees' starting shortstop on opening day.

Walking with a restrictive boot on his left foot, Jeter was at Yankee Stadium on Wednesday night to surprise more than 500 children from New York City at his Turn 2 Foundation's holiday party. It was his first public visit to the Bronx since having surgery in late October to repair the ankle he broke in Game 1 of the AL championship series against the Detroit Tigers.

From wire reports