Sports Then and Now

Ryan Miller was the Hockey Tournament MVP.

The Men’s USA Hockey team fell short in their quest for Gold losing 3-2 in overtime.

There was no Miracle On Ice or Squaw Valley.

However, this team has NO REASON to hang their heads.

No one gave them a shot at a medal. No one gave them a shot to beat Canada in their first matchup.

But that’s what America is all about.

No one gives us a chance but we always rise to the occasion.

We always rally around each other.

We always bounce back.

Team USA trailed 2-0 going into the second period and cut the lead to one. U.S. Goalie Ryan Miller was all world in this tournament and he kept his team in it yet again.

The Americans continued to attack and pressure the talented Canadian team. Team Canada netminder, Roberto Luongo looked shaky and let up rebound after rebound.

The clock worked against the Americans as they trailed by one with less than two minutes left. They could have mailed it in. They could have conceded to the country that invented the sport.

However, Americans don’t quit or give up, we persevere.

And persevere they did.

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Ohno stays upright during the 2010 Olympics 500-meter short-track finals.

What did I love about the 2010 Winter Olympics?

Without a doubt, it was Apolo Anton Ohno and the exciting world of short-track speed skating.  What a ride!

Yes, Ohno was robbed of a silver medal in the 500-meter short-track speed skating final.  Come on, ref!  The only fair thing to do was to start the race over or “replay the point, gentlemen,” because no one escaped the hands-on havoc during the last lap of that terrific race.

Ohno came into the final as the defending champion, having won the gold in the 500-meters four years ago.  But no one really expected him to repeat in 2010, although you can never count Ohno out.  The man simply does not know how to quit.

27-year old Ohno definitely was not the fastest man on the ice last night but he was the smartest and perhaps the most powerful, experienced and determined.  Like a cat with two more lives to spare, Ohno went after the medal and took his chances.

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The hit heard around Russia.

Alex Ovechkin is one of those players who can change the flow of a game with one play. Sometimes, it’s with a scintillating goal from some obscure position. Other times, Ovechkin just knows how to be in the right place at the right time.

Sunday during the Czech Republic vs. Russia game was a perfect example of Ovechkin’s good timing. While Ovechkin is known to be a great scorer, he is also known for delivering the big hit from time to time. It was in this game where Ovechkin put a hit on Czech superstar Jaromir Jagr that declared Russian control of the game.

In the final period Russia lead 2-1, the Czechs had to make some moves offensively to tie the game, and they had to do it soon. Jagr had possession of the puck on his way toward Russian territory.

Back when I played hockey, I rarely heard any other piece of advice as much as I heard, “Keep your head up!” Especially in open ice.

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Jean Claude Killy was one of the brightest stars of the 1968 Winter Olympics.

It was the 1968 Winter Games—Grenoble, France.

The distinctive and enduring Olympic theme Bugler’s Dream , was introduced that year.

Drug and gender testing made it’s first intrusion into The Games.

A worldwide television audience viewed the spectacle for the first time in living color.

Two names, above all others, emerged from those Olympics to be indelibly etched in our hearts and minds:

Ageless US figure skater Peggy Fleming emphatically and beautifully declared to the world that American figure skating was back – after the entire US team was wiped out in a tragic 1961 air crash.

Dashing French alpine skier Jean-Claude Killy stole hearts—and at least one of his three gold medals—before a frenzied home crowd on the slopes of Chamrousse.

While Fleming’s story fairly drips with drama and significance, the telling of that tale on these pages will have to wait for another time. Read the rest of this entry →

Team USA was jumping for joy with their win versus Canada.

On the eve of the Miracle on Ice and wearing throwback 1960 jerseys, Team USA made history again.

This time it was against Canada at its own game. It was the first time the US beat their neighbors to the north in Olympic play in the last 50 years.

No one gave the US squad much of a chance again.

It wasn’t the Soviets this time but a Canada team littered with NHL All-Stars.

Just like Jim Craig did 30 years ago, Ryan Miller kept his team in the game with save after miraculous save.

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OK – I confess.

2007 Winners of Dancing with the Stars Apolo Ohno and Julianne Hough.

I watched Apolo Anton Ohno on Dancing with the Stars and fell in love with him as he moved that gorgeous blond Julianne Hough around the floor.  He was, in a word, magnificent.

That radiant smile and generous persona lit up the airwaves.  The man knows how to please and how to dance…

How does that translate into Olympic speed skating?  Practically speaking, Ohno has become a cottage industry for the Olympics.  He has drawn his Dancing with the Stars fans in droves into this exciting Olympic event.  His charm and genuine good humor also endear him to speed skating fans and fellow athletes around the world.

Saturday night as he skated in the quarterfinals, semifinals and finals of the 1,000 meter short-track, it was difficult to watch, waiting for Ohno to do the seemingly impossible once again.  He has made a habit of finding a way to medal in cliffhanger fashion.

Last night in the semifinals where he had to finish in the top two, his original move to pass on the outside was thwarted and Ohno found himself in trouble once again.  But the wily American simply waited until there was a microscopic opening and darted past on the inside, securing second place and earning a spot in the finals.

I finally remembered to breathe as the replays began.

Did I fail to mention that Pacific Coliseum was packed.  Yes, there were two Canadian brothers skating in the event, but the cheers for Ohno also rocked the place as he has become a focal point for advertisers and commentators at the Winter Olympics held in Vancouver in 2010.

In the finals Ohno almost suffered the agony of defeat.  After making a daring move into second place with 2 1/2 laps to go, Ohno slipped, almost falling and found himself at the back of the pack in an instant. Read the rest of this entry →