Sports Then and Now

Roger Federer and Justine Henin have been sporting similar colors and similar emotions during the Australian Open.

It was the first weekend of June 2009, and little more than a year after her dramatic retirement from tennis.

Justine Henin did not watch the women’s event at Roland Garros, for she had little interest in who would win the title she had refused to defend in 2008.

She did, though, watch the men’s tournament: “I feel closer to players like Roger Federer. And, of course, Roger was trying to win the only Grand Slam he had never won. Part of me wanted him to win but, in another way, I knew it would give me trouble mentally if he did.”

For like her male doppelganger, Henin had several times come within a whisker of winning the one Slam she was missing.

Her “trouble” was Wimbledon. If Federer—like her in so many ways—could scale his final mountain at the French Open, maybe she too could scale hers at Wimbledon. After all, Federer was in his 28th year and, in 2010, she would be too.

“You know that little voice we all have in our heads…it was telling me Roger winning the French was very special…it made me think how much I’d missed by not winning Wimbledon.”

That little voice bothered her so much that it made her pick up her racket. It then made her, three months later, announce her comeback to the Tour. Read the rest of this entry →

Considering how easily Larry Csonka and the Dolphins dismantled the Vikings in Super Bowl VIII, is this the worst Super Bowl of all-time?

With it being Super Bowl week (so big that it is actually two weeks), many writers or bloggers tend to look back at the previous Super Bowls to compile a list of the best plays, performances or games.

I decided to take this one step further by ranking all 43 Super Bowls from worst to best, with 43 being the worst and 1 being the best.

The criteria that I used to rank these Super Bowls was how competitive the game was, plus the amount of memorable moments or great plays that occurred, and the individual or team performances in the games.

This means that some blowouts would be ranked higher than others because something historic happened in that game, even though the game was not very competitive.

So without further adieu, I present to you a ranking of all 43 Super Bowls, starting with 43-31.

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43. Super Bowl VIII Dolphins-24 Vikings-7
This was the most boring Super Bowl of all time because the Dolphins ran the ball on 53 of 60 plays and scored two touchdowns on their first two drives of the game to build a 14-0 lead and eventually built a 24-0 lead in the middle of the third quarter.

Fullback Larry Csonka was the MVP of the game as he rushed for 145 yards on 33 carries and scored two touchdowns.

42. Super Bowl XXXV Ravens-34 Giants-7
Both teams combined for 396 yards of total offense, the lowest in Super Bowl history, and a record 21 punts.

What saved this game from being the absolute worst was the three touchdowns in a span of 26 seconds in the third quarter: a 49-yard interception return by Ravens defensive back Duane Starks, followed by a 97-yard kickoff return by Giants kick returner Ron Dixon, and ending with a 84-yard kickoff return by Jermaine Lewis of the Ravens.
Read the rest of this entry →

Lindsey Vonn could be one of the darlings of the upcoming Winter Olympics.

Get used to this face.

The tarnished images of Tiger Woods, Mark McGwire, and Gilbert Arenas are about to be replaced with the wholesome beauty of Lindsey Vonn.

Television and Internet viewers across the world will soon be inundated with endorsements and ads featuring the refreshing new face of the Winter Games.

While the rest of the sporting world has been obsessed recently with American football, MMA, and an assortment of scandalous revelations, the American winter sports teams have been quietly gaining momentum heading into next month’s Winter Olympics.

To those who are not avid followers of Nordic sports, this may come as a surprise, as the Americans have typically been viewed as being on the outer fringe of the ski world’s elite.

For example, in the 35 previous World Championships since 1925, America had claimed only three podium finishes. Last year, they claimed four golds, a silver and a bronze—second only to perennial powerhouse Norway in total medals!

And Ms. Vonn has led the charge. The reigning World Cup ski champion has enjoyed an exceptional year in defending her cup in this year’s ongoing series. Read the rest of this entry →

Allen Iverson has been selected to the NBA All-Star team for the 11th straight season.

At first glance, it doesn’t seem unusual to have Allen Iverson listed as a starter for the NBA All-Star Game. After all, Iverson has now been selected to 11 straight All-Star Games and has twice been named the game MVP.

However, what has made his selection to start the 2010 game somewhat controversial is that he is no longer playing at an All-Star level.

Iverson began the 2009-2010 season with the Memphis Grizzlies, but after three games was released and is now back with his original team, the Philadelphia 76ers. Though Iverson sports a 26.8 career scoring average, he is averaging only 14.3 points per contest this season and has only played in 21 games.

Even with his pedestrian performance, Iverson remained on the minds of NBA fans and was selected as a starter for the Eastern Conference.

As could be expected, the selection of a player clearly no longer among the best in the league has sparked a new round of controversy about the legitimacy of fan participation in selecting starters for league All-Star Games.

I have no intention of making a case for the inclusion of Iverson in the All-Star lineup based on his statistics this season, but I will spend all day if necessary defending the rights of the fans to have a say in which players appear in All-Star exhibition games for any professional sport.

For those who have forgotten, the original purpose of All-Star Games was to provide fans with a chance to see the best stars of the game, not necessarily to reward success in that specific season. While recognizing current greatness has become an integral part of the All-Star process, there should always be a place in these exhibitions for long-time fan favorites. Read the rest of this entry →

Bird and Person battled in an epic and deciding Game Five in the '91 NBA Playoffs.

In the ’90-’91 season, the Celtics were still one of the top teams in the NBA. They finished with a 56-26 record under head coach Chris Ford and won the Atlantic division. However, everything wasn’t rosy for the Celtics especially with Larry Bird.

Age and injuries were catching up with the “Big Three”. Kevin McHale only played 68 games, Robert Parrish miraculously stayed healthy and only missed one game, and Larry Bird missed 22 games to due to a compressed nerve in his back. This would be the injury that would cause Larry Legend to retire after the following season.

Bird, at age 34, would still have a productive season. He averaged 38 minutes per game, 19.4 points (which led the team), 7.2 assists, and 7.6 boards. However, he was a far cry from the Larry Bird of old.

The Celtics faced the Indiana Pacers in the first round of the Eastern Conference playoffs that season. Boston would split the first two games at the Garden before traveling to Indiana for Games 3 and 4. The Celtics would take Game 3 112-105, but they couldn’t close out the scrappy Pacers in Game 4. The series was tied 2-2 and set up a winner take all Game 5 back in Boston.

Larry Bird spent the night of May 4, 1991 in the hospital in traction due to his insufferable back pain. No one really thought Bird would be able to play in the deciding Game Five versus the upstart Pacers.

However, as people learned throughout Bird’s whole career, never count him out.

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Will cosmic forces decide which teams will play in Super Bowl XLIV?

Something cosmic is about to happen.

The New York Jets, a wild card team, continued to play over their heads, lead by a gangly, tall, brown-eyed, brunette quarterback, a strong running game, and a punishing defense, they surprised everyone winning two playoff games on the road in order to play the Colts.

Does that sound about right? Of course. It is the 2010 New York Jets.

Wrong. And right. It is also the 1969 New York Jets. Same description: wild card, tall dark and young quarterback, strong ground game, strong defense, wild card, playing over their heads as momentum builds.

In 1969 the quarterback was Joe Willie Namath. While lounging on Miami Beach in the week leading up to Super Bowl III, the kid couldn’t keep his mouth shut. He guaranteed a Jets victory.

In the first two super games, the NFL, represented by Vince Lombardi’s Packers, totally dominated their AFL opponents: Kansas City the first year, Oakland the second. Everyone just assumed that the Baltimore Colts would make it three in a row. This, especially because the Jets were a wild card. Most of the pundits had them at either the third or fourth best AFL club. Everyone expected the Jets to be dragged across the field and trampled at the Orange Bowl. Read the rest of this entry →