BRIEFLY : SAMPRAS TAKES FOURTH ATP TITLE.

Before he took the court for the final of the ATP Tour Championship in Hanover, Germany, Pete Sampras was voted the best tennis player of the past 25 years.

Then he went out and showed why he is worthy of the honor.

In a compelling demonstration of classic tennis, Sampras routed Yevgeny Kafelnikov 6-3, 6-2, 6-2 Sunday to capture his fourth ATP Tour championship.

``When my game clicks like that, I feel unbeatable,'' Sampras said.

Kafelnikov, the 1996 French Open, wasn't about to disagree.

Sampras, the world's No. 1 player for the fifth straight year, became the first player to win the ATP title in consecutive years since Ivan Lendl in 1986 and 1987.

Top-seeded Martina Hingis, once again was forced to play three sets, held off Lindsay Davenport to win the $450,000 Advanta Championships in Villanova, Pa.

In a matchup of the players who will enter this week's season-ending Chase Championships ranked No. 1 and No. 2, Hingis struggled before earning a 7-5, 7-6 (7), 7-6 (4) victory and the $79,000 first prize.

Andre Agassi, in a prolonged slump, endured another setback when he was beaten by Christian Vinck of Germany 6-2, 7-5 in the final of the $50,000 Luxor Las Vegas-USTA Challenger tournament.

Agassi, ranked No. 1 in the world for 30 weeks in 1995 and for two weeks early in 1996, has fallen to No. 141 entering his hometown tournament.

SPEEDSKATING:Susan Auch and Catriona LeMay-Doan won the women's 500 and 1,000 and Jeremy Wotherspoon won the men's 1,000 as Canada won three of four events in the final day of a World Cup speedskating event in Roseville, Minn.