European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - January 19, 1995, Darmstadt, Hesse                                St on Rai Tinfo town seats by . Fallstrom St. Lou is apr the wooing of the los Angeles rams in t quite Over yet. Before St. Louis fans can relax and enjoy their new nil team the City must sell. 40,000 permanent seat licenses to prospective season ticket holders in Only seven weeks. That was a significant subplot to the City a euphoria on tuesday when the rams made it official that they re leaving Southern California after 49 years. A a we Are obliged to show that we Are a football town Quot said former Missouri sen. Thomas Eagleton president of fans inc. A a it a put up or shut up time to be Blunt about  the City already has emptied its pockets for the rams who la get a new $260 million domed stadium to play in with an annual lease of Only $250,000 a $15 million practice facility and $15 million in assorted relocation fees.  also control a 30-year stadium lease that could bring in As much As $30 million a year and St. Louis is paying off the rams $30 million debt to Anaheim. More is required mostly because of St. Louis reputation deserved or not As a City that a lukewarm on football. So today fans inc., the civic group that courted the rams seriously for four months will provide details of its pal plan a athe pals will g6 from $250-54,500, depending of seat location and must be purchased before fans buy season tickets that la go for Between $25-545 a game. If St. Louis does no to sell 40,000 pals by March 10, two Days before nil owners meet in Phoenix to vote on the switch the rams can Call the whole thing off. \ a if we flunk the test. I  expect the rams to go Forward with their application a a Eagleton said. Rams president John Shaw did no to appear worried about any possibility the team would have to resort to a plan b 1994 4-12 1993 5-11 1992 6-10 1991 3-13 s a Quot 15-11 4 a a a a a a a a a is amps after they be already shut the door on Anaheim Calif. A i have absolutely no doubt it will work Quot Shaw said. Neither did operators at fans inc. Offices who manned Busy phones All Day. By mid afternoon spokesman Ray Mcdonald said 2,000 applications had been taken with an average of about six tickets per  a in a overwhelmed a a rams owner Georgia frantic re said at a news conference to announce the move and to announce she a added Columbia mo., businessman Stan Quot Kroenke As minority owner. A i done to think in be been this Happy since the last game we  after enduring the pratfalls of Bill bid will a cardinals for 28 seasons and Zero playoff victories St. Louis gets a team that historically has been a contender but that Hasni to fielded a Winner in five seasons sporting a 15-33 record the past three seasons. The rams were projected to lose 56 million this past season. Now there a so much Money the arrangement May have the appearance of a modern Day Holdup. Eagleton who led the negotiations for the St. Louis civic group fans inc., thinks not. A a it a expensive to get a team a a Eagle ton said. A no team is going to say a Here we Are, Kroenke paid frontiere 68, about s60 million for about 40 percent of the team contingent on the rams following through on the move to St. In Unis. He also has the right of first refusal to buy the team if frontiere decides to sell her majority ownership and said he a confident the fans will  a we need to make a Strong showing a Kroenke said. A i think the people of fit Louis will be right after  the news conference at the americans Center in the Shadow of the stadium under construction was More of a Pep rally. In a room decorated with Blue and Gold balloon goalposts St Louis civic the stars and stripes ports january 19,1995 Page 32 leaders congratulated. Each other while welcoming frontiere. All of the officials also signed an oversized a relocation  i have waited and wanted this Day to happen for a Long time a said rep. Richard Gephardt do. A i am confident professional football is going to be a huge Success in this  bringing Back pro football has been a Long ordeal for St. Louis. After losing the cardinals the City lost out in the 1993 expansion sweepstakes to Charlotte n.c., and Jacksonville fla., when squabbling among the ownership group Hurt the bid. A last fall we had our hearts broken a Westfall said. A the wound has healed. I have to be honest in be never been More excited about anything in my  the rams have agreed to play for the first month or so in Busch stadium. The domed stadium is be completed around oct. 25. A a a a a a Sampras courier Roll to straight set victories australian open by Dennis Passa Melbourne Australia apr Pete Sampras and Jim courier who owned the australian open for the past three years played wednesday As if they got the message done to let Down. Sampras the defending Champion and top seed and courier who won the grand slam tournament in 1992 and 1993, steamrolled through straight set victories and into the third round Boris Beckers loss to Patrick Mcenroe in his first round match tuesday appeared to Send a warning out to other top seeds done to take anyone for granted. Sampras and courier took. Heed Sampras beating slovakian qualifier Jan Kroslak 6-2, 6-0, 6-1 in 76 minutes and courier taking just four minutes longer to beat Italy s Cristiano Caratti 6-2, 6-2, 6-1. A a a a a a a everyone can lose to anybody if the other Guy is playing really Well a said courier who watched the Becker Mcenroe match. A Patrick just played a great match so that was a Tough draw for the first  others also Learned from the Becker upset plus losses tuesday by fourth seeded Goran Ivanisevic and women a fifth seed Gabriela Sabatini. No. 5 Michael Chang and no. 7 Michael Stich advanced wednesday As did women a no. 2 Conchita Martinez no. 3 Jana Novotna no. 6 Lindsay Davenport and no. 7 Kimiko Date. Fourth seed Mary Pierce of France beat South african Elna Reinach 6-1, 6-2 and Chang beat Morocco a Karim Alami 6-3, 6-4, 6-1 in night matches. Earlier Switzerland a Martina hinges the 14-year-old playing her first grand slam tournament lost in the second round to Japan a Kyoko Nagatsuka 6-3, 6-4. Pierce said she a playing with renewed Confidence. A i think a lot has changed and last year was a great year for me. I won a lot of things in my Tennis and off the court and i  a person and As a Tennis player in a More confident with  Sampras and courier said the relaxed atmosphere and Friendly crowds have helped them play better. A a it a always  to have that support when you Are a a a Sampras said of the warm reception he Sac playing corded corded at the National Tennis Center. His parents Are greek american and no City outside Greece has More greeks than Melbourne a half  meanwhile likes the quietness in the locker room and lounge. A a there a a lot less business going on a he said. Courier has moved out of the a ranks of menus Tennis from no 1 at the end of 1992, Down to third in 1993 and 13th at the end of last year. Its been a test of his resolve and could have been a test of some of his friendships. A i think that in a fairly difficult to befriend a courier said. A a in a pretty cynical. I done to let people get too close to me that i feel Are going to get close to me because of who my ranking says i am. A i tend to stay around the same people whether in a ranked 15 or whether in a ranked 1. In be got a lot of life to live after Tennis and i Hope my friends now arc going to stay the same  a courier looking relaxed at a pos match press conference said he and Andre Agassi Are becoming More alike. A we both started at opposite ends of the spectrum and we re probably each coming More into the Middle a courier said bringing his Index fingers together to make his Point. A a he a working a Little bit harder in a taking a Little More free time. I think we re both trying to come to a Middle ground a courier the ninth seed who is in Sampras half of Mary Pierce charges into a forehand wednesday in route to a 6-1,6-2 win Over Elna Reinach at Melbourne. The draw could meet Agassi in the final. In the meantime he a Happy to have a lot of attention directed at Sampras and Agassi. A whether the focus is on me or not i tend to go about my business a courier said. A i think that the focus is deservedly on those two Guys. They had great seasons last year and it is an exciting hopefully a budding new rivalry for the game that we desperately need.�?�0 246850