Finalist

Michael Andretti voted Driver of YearMichael Andretti dominated the 1991 Driver of the Year voting even more than he did the CART PPG Cup series on the way to his first Indy-car championship. Andretti, who won eight poles and eight of 16 races while winning the title, was the unanimous choice of a 12-member national panel of motor-sports writers and broadcasters in the annual voting announced yesterday.Andretti earned 108 points, all on first-place votes, and NASCAR Winston Cup drivers Harry Gant, Dale Earnhardt and Davey Allison split the 12 second-place votes.

WIMBLEDON, England - The day was unpleasant - dank and gray and worthy of producing grouches and grinches. So maybe Marat Safin's mind and body were swallowed up by the ugliness of the weather yesterday. If there is another explanation for a world-ranked tennis player abandoning his pride and bailing out on a final point while being featured on a show court at Wimbledon, then whining about the difficulty of dragging his cranky self around the grass courts of Wimbledon, it might be best not to learn about it. Safin, 24, the 19th seed, winner of one U.S. Open title and twice an Australian Open finalist, most recently in January, was summarily dismissed by 21-year-old Russian countryman Dmitry Tursunov, 4-6, 7-5, 6-3, 7-6 (7-1)

NEW YORK -- Women's tennis has never seen the likes of this. Raw emotion, chest bumping, a raucous crowd, stupid shots, brilliant shots and a 17-year-old girl driving both heropponent and the crowd crazy at Arthur Ashe Stadium on a sunny afternoon in the semifinals of the U.S. Open.Venus Williams, the African-American sensation, fought off a bumping incident on a change-over in the middle of the second set, stood up under No. 11 seed Irina Spirlea's self-inspiring shouts, won a war of intimidating all-court games and fought off two Spirlea match points, for a 7-6 (7-5)

After Monday night's show, Michelle Chamuel, Sasha Allen, The Swon Brothers, Holly Tucker and Danielle Bradbery all needed your votes. Last night's eliminations were the most pivotal of the season. Why? They reveal the three contestants who will move on to next week's finals. Starting off the live elimination show was a performance by Fall Out Boy, featuring our friend and “The Voice” contestant Michelle Chamuel. The band and Michelle performed “My Songs Know What You Did in the Dark (Light Em Up)

With “The Bachelor” casting call coming up at McHenry Row on June 28, here are a few tips to help you decide if being on the show is right for you. Men and women of ages 21 and older are encouraged to attend the event. But let's get real, not everyone is encouraged to show up. ABC and Warner Bros. have a list of 23 eligibility requirements and here are some things to consider before applying for the show: Am I a convicted felon? Have I been issued a restraining order in the past or am currently issued one?

The Food Network said today that  Dangerously Delicious Pies founder Rodney Henry of Baltimore will be a finalist on the ninth season of "Food Network Star. " The judges will be Alton Brown, Giada De Laurentiis and Bobby Flay in the competition to name the best and brightest new faces in food television. The season premiere will be at 9 p.m. Sunday, June 2. The network says that each episode before the Aug. 11 finale will feature a first-round Mentor Challenge, second-round Star Challenge and an elimination determined by the selection committee, including returning judges Food Network executives Susie Fogelson and Bob Tuschman.

The three finalists for the post of Columbia Association president are scheduled to take part in a public forum from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m today at the Stonehouse, the Long Reach community center in Long Reach Village Center. At the event, conducted by the association's board of directors, candidates will answer residents' questions submitted in advance. No questions will be taken at the forum, officials said. The three candidates are vying to replace outgoing President Maggie J. Brown. Association officials say the selection could be made in the coming days, and the new president is expected to assume office May 1. The finalists are: * Rob Goldman, 59, vice president of sports and fitness for the Columbia Association.

THERE were eight Marylanders (of 238 contestants) in the 67th national spelling bee in Washington recently. One of them, 12-year-old Kathryn Rougle, of Annapolis, made it to the seventh round before misspelling "intercalary." None of the Marylanders was from Baltimore.Not so in 1955. That May 19, just a year following the Supreme Court's school desegregation decision, a 12-year-old African-American girl from Baltimore stood in a pale yellow cotton dress in the auditorium of the Chamber of Commerce in Washington.

Five artists, including two photographers, a sculptor, a film director and one who works in multimedia, will be competing for this year's $25,000 Janet & Walter Sondheim Artscape prize. The five include Baltimoreans Stephanie Barber (multimedia), Matthew Porterfield (film) and Rachel Rotenberg (sculpture), along with two Washington photographers, Louie Palu and Mark Parascandola. Works from the five finalists will go on exhibit at the Baltimore Museum of Art 's Alvin and Fanny Blaustein Thalheimer Galleries beginning June 25. The winner will be announced July 9 at the BMA. This is the sixth year for the award, which is presented annually to a visual artist living and working in the Greater Baltimore area.