It has been a whirlwind year for the Sparks' Candace Parker.
She led Tennessee to a second straight national championship in women's basketball, was the first pick in the WNBA draft, took the league's most valuable player and rookie-of-the-year awards, and helped the U.S. win a fourth straight Olympic gold medal.
Now Parker has been selected female athlete of the year by members of he Associated Press.
"Wow, that's amazing," the 22-year-old Parker said. "It's been a great year from so many standpoints. I haven't really had a chance to sit back and let it all sink in."
Her selection Tuesday ended a five-year run in which a golfer (Annika Sorenstam, then Lorena Ochoa) won the award -- the longest streak of any sport.
Parker received 36 votes from members of the Associated Press, barely edging Ochoa, who had won the previous two years. Ochoa won seven times on the LPGA Tour, including her second major at the Kraft Nabisco Championship, and led the money list for the third consecutive season.
Ochoa finished one vote shy of becoming only the fourth three-time winner of the award. Rounding out the top five were gymnast Nastia Liukin, swimmer Dara Torres and gymnast Shawn Johnson. Parker is only the third basketball player to win the women's award, joining Sheryl Swoopes in 1993 and Rebecca Lobo in 1995.
SOCCER
Jamaican goalie signs with Galaxy
The Galaxy has signed Jamaican goalkeeper Donovan Ricketts. An experienced goalkeeper at the international level, Ricketts, 31, joins the Galaxy after previous stints with Village United of the Digicel Premier League in Jamaica, Bolton Wanderers of the English Premier League and Bradford City of League Two in England.
Details of the contract were not disclosed.
Ricketts, who is 6 feet 4, was a member of Jamaica's 1998 World Cup squad as a 21-year-old. He has an 11-7-6 record in 24 World Cup qualifying matches.
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Almeria has signed former Mexico coach Hugo Sanchez to lead the Spanish club. Sanchez takes over for the remaining 22 league games this season, with a contract option for the 2009-10 season should he keep the struggling club in Spain's top league. . . . AS Roma captain Francesco Totti is expected to be out for up to two months because of a leg injury. . . . Arsenal's last hopes of hauling itself back into contention for the Premier League title seemed to disappear when captain Cesc Fabregas was ruled out for as long as four months because of ligament damage to his right knee.
