SportSpectator Blog

August 11, Week in Sports

::   OLYMPIC GAMES BEGIN IN BEIJING (Olympics)

::   PADRAIG HARRING WINS PGA CHAMPIONSHIP (Pro. Golf)

::   BRETT FAVRE TRADED TO N.Y. JETS  (Pro. Football)

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ON YOUR MARK…GET SET…GO!

The 2008 Olympics have officially begun, following the grandiose spectacle of the Opening Ceremony, which took place on Friday. The summer Olympic Games take place every four years.

One of the plot lines for this summer’s Olympics is Michael Phelps’ quest to win eight gold medals. If Phelps were to win gold eight times, he would beat the Olympic record set by Mark Spitz. Spitz was an American swimmer who won seven gold medals in 1972. So far, Phelps is off to a good start, winning the gold medal in his first event, the 400-meter individual medley–a race where the swimmers are required to use all four strokes–as well as his second event, the 4×100 relay, which the U.S. team won in dramatic fashion.

The U.S. men’s basketball team looked strong in their first game on Sunday. The team, led by LeBron James and Kobe Bryant, played against Yao Ming and the Chinese team and won by a score of 101-70.

Tragedy also struck the Olympic Games on Saturday, when the father-in-law of one of the coaches of the U.S. men’s volleyball team was murdered while visiting a historic site in Beijing. Reports so far have indicated that it was just a random, isolated instance of violence, and that the victims had not been targeted because they were foreigners.

Quote of the Week: “I’m not downplaying this race by any means, but I have to put that race behind me. I have to act like it never happened because I have so many tough races ahead of me.” — Michael Phelps, after winning his first gold in Beijing

Further Reading: ”Handicapping Phelps’ run at Olympic glory” — Pat Forde, ESPN

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WHO NEEDS TIGER? PADDY HARRINGTON TAKES TWO IN A ROW

Padraig Harrington, who won the Open Championship earlier this year, won the PGA Championship on Sunday. The PGA Championship is the fourth and final Major tournament of the golf season.

Other than Tiger Woods, no golfer has won two Majors in a single season since 1998. In that sense, Harrington’s feat is all the more significant. Furthermore, there are only three other golfers who have ever won the last two Major tournaments in the same year.

Harrington came back from three shots behind to win over Sergio Garcia. Garcia is one of the best golfers in the world, but he has never won a Major tournament. It is also his second narrow loss to Harrington in a Major. In 2007, Harrington beat Garcia in a playoff to win his first title at the Open.

Quote of the Week: “I think I was willing them into the hole at that stage. You have to get focused and give it a go.” — Padraig Harrington, on his critical putts down the stretch

Further Reading: ”Harrington secures second major in a row with PGA win” — Associated Press, via USA Today

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B-B-B-BRETT FAVRE AND THE JETS

Late Wednesday night, the Brett Favre melodrama came to a conclusion when the Green Bay Packers traded their future Hall-of-Fame quarterback to the New York Jets. Favre’s destination has been a question mark for weeks–now that he is a Jet, the Favre story will continue to draw attention, but it will no longer be front page news.

The Jets have won their division just four times in the past 40 years. In recent years, many critics have traced the team’s problems to an unstable quarterback situation. Chad Pennington, the Jets quarterback, though well liked by Jets fans, has suffered from years of injuries and it has been no secret that the team no longer considered him the quarterback of the future. Now that the Jets have Favre leading the way, they have instantly become a contender in their division–the AFC East.

Quote of the Week: “Big Apple hype guarantees the chronicles of Favre will remain overblown, but at least we’re done being hostages of speculation.” — Jerry Brewer, Seattle Times

Further Reading: ”From Green Bay to Broadway: Favre Is a Jet” — Judy Battista, New York Times

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WHAT TO WATCH THIS WEEK

:: OLYMPICS: The Olympics continue this week and run through August 24th. A schedule of the events is available here. Finals are marked in gold.

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ALL-SPORTS UPDATE

 

ACTIVE SEASON

:: BASEBALL

MLB (Pro. Baseball): As the second half of the season moves forward, teams will be jockeying for spots in the post-season–either by winning their division, or by taking the Wild Card spot. [Official MLB Website]

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:: FOOTBALL

NFL (Pro. Football): The pre-season runs through August, and the regular season begins in September. [Official NFL Website]

NCAA FOOTBALL (College): Practice sessions for college football begin in summer, and the regular season begins in August. USA Today released their rankings for this season, placing Georgia as the number one team. The Associated Press has not yet released their rankings. [NCAA Football, ESPN]

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:: GOLF

MEN’S GOLF: While there are professional tournaments throughout the year, the most important tournaments are the four Major Championships: The Masters, U.S. Open, The Open (The British Open), and the PGA Championship. Now that the PGA Championship is over, mainstream golf news will most likely revolve around Tiger Woods’ return from injury and preparation for next year’s Majors. [Official PGA Website]

NOTABLE PLAYERS: Tiger Woods, Phil Mickelson

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:: TENNIS

MEN’S AND WOMEN’S TENNIS: While there are professional tournaments throughout the year, the most important tournaments are the four Grand Slam tournaments: the Australian Open, French Open, Wimbledon, and US Open. The U.S. Open begins on August 25th. [USTA Website]

NOTABLE PLAYERS: Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, Maria Sharapova, Ana Ivanovic

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OFFSEASON

:: BASKETBALL

NCAA MEN’S BASKETBALL (College): Now that the tournament is over, college basketball news will focus on which players leave their schools for the NBA, and which college teams land the premier high-school players for next season. [CBS Sports]

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:: HOCKEY

NHL (Pro. Hockey): The Detroit Red Wings defeated the Pittsburgh Penguins in the Stanley Cup Finals, completing the 2007-08 season. [Official NHL Website]

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:: BASKETBALL

NBA (Pro. Basketball): The Celtics defeated the Lakers to win the NBA Finals, ending the 2008 season.  [Official NBA Website]

July 21, Week in Sports

::   PADRAIG HARRINGTON WINS BRITISH OPEN (Pro. Golf)

::   AMERICAN LEAGUE WINS ALL-STAR GAME (Pro. Baseball)

::   JOSH HAMILTON SETS RECORD IN HOME RUN DERBY  (Pro. Baseball)

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DOUBLE YOUR PLEASURE: HARRINGTON DEFENDS OPEN TITLE

On Sunday afternoon, Padraig Harrington won the British Open–one of the four Major Championships in professional golf. Harrington’s win was especially impressive because he also won the Open in 2007; no European player in more than 100 years has produced back-to-back victories at the Open. On top of it all, Harrington won the championship while playing with an injury.

With Tiger Woods out for the season with an injury, everyone knew that there might be some surprising names at the top of the leaderboard at the Open. However, none of those names was more surprising than that of Greg “the Shark” Norman. The 53-year old Norman, once one of the world’s best golfers, is no longer perceived as a real threat in the golfing world. However, Norman was winning the tournament going into Sunday’s final round, before he dropped a number of strokes due to the rough winds and tough playing conditions.

After Harrington’s victory at the Open, there is only one Major Championship remaining–the PGA Championship, which is played in August.

Quote of the Week: “Padraig played brilliantly today, even though he tried to let it get away in the middle of the round. He came back and performed brilliantly, and he finished like a true champion.” — Greg Norman

Further Reading: ”As Norman fades, Harrington cruises to second British title” — Associated Press, via USA Today

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WAY PAST BEDTIME: AL DEFEATS NL IN 15 INNING ALL-STAR GAME

The American League won the 2008 All-Star Game, defeating the National League by a score of 4-3 in the 15th inning. The American League has not lost to the National League in more than a decade.

The game was a record five-hour stalemate, with both teams threatening to break the 3-3 tie multiple times before Justin Morneau ultimately scored the winning run on a sacrifice fly. Both teams used every single available player on their rosters, and both teams were running out of pitchers as the clock ticked closer to 2 a.m.

Since the American League won the game, whichever American League team advances to the World Series this year will have home field advantage.

Quote of the Week: “I know I’ve never been so happy to score a run. The Red Bull started to wear off in the 12th.” — Justin Morneau, All-Star player

Further Reading: ”A Starry night to remember in New York” — Bob Nightengale, USA Today

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JUST JOSHING AROUND

During the first round of Monday’s Home Run Derby at Yankee Stadium, Josh Hamilton hit 28 home runs, setting a new record for the event.

Home Run Derby is purely an exhibition event, intended to give the sport’s biggest sluggers the chance to hit some impressive home runs. While it generally draws a decent amount of attention, the event itself typically tends to draw an unenthusiastic response from fans. Suffice to say, fans and players alike were astonished by Hamilton’s record-setting first round, in which three of his 28 home runs were 500 plus-foot monster shots to the furthest depths of Yankee Stadium. Hamilton, who plays for the Texas Rangers, has been one of the most inspirational stories this year. Just years ago, almost everyone had given up on Hamilton when his life collapsed due to his severe drug abuse. He has since cleaned himself up, fought his way to the major leagues, and having a truly outstanding season in Texas.

Ironically, Hamilton did not actually win the Home Run Derby. Since they reset the number of home runs, Justin Morneau of the Minnesota Twins was able to claim the victory. However, Hamilton’s first round performance will surely be the only thing that people remember about the 2008 Home Run Derby.

Quote of the Week: “It does seem kind of unfair that he didn’t get to win the whole thing. Anyone who was here won’t forget that performance.” — Justin Morneau, Minnesota Twins

Further Reading: ”Hamilton hits record 28 HRs in Derby first round” — Associated Press, via ESPN

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WHAT TO WATCH THIS WEEK

:: FOOTBALL — The Brett Favre saga will likely continue this week. Brett Favre appeared on national TV last week, defending his desire to return to play football this year. However, Favre and the Packers management are butting heads over the issue and it has not been resolved. In any case, the developments in the Favre situation will immediately become big news as they occur.

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ALL-SPORTS UPDATE

 

ACTIVE SEASON

:: BASEBALL

MLB (Pro. Baseball): As the second half of the season moves forward, teams will be jockeying for spots in the post-season–either by winning their division, or by taking the Wild Card spot. [Official MLB Website]

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:: GOLF

MEN’S GOLF: While there are professional tournaments throughout the year, the most important tournaments are the four Major Championships: The Masters, U.S. Open, The Open (The British Open), and the PGA Championship. The next event is the PGA Championship, which takes place in August. [Official PGA Website]

NOTABLE PLAYERS: Tiger Woods, Phil Mickelson

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:: TENNIS

MEN’S AND WOMEN’S TENNIS: While there are professional tournaments throughout the year, the most important tournaments are the four Grand Slam tournaments: the Australian Open, French Open, Wimbledon, and US Open. [USTA Website]

NOTABLE PLAYERS: Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, Maria Sharapova, Ana Ivanovic

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OFFSEASON

:: BASKETBALL

NCAA MEN’S BASKETBALL (College): Now that the tournament is over, college basketball news will focus on which players leave their schools for the NBA, and which college teams land the premier high-school players for next season. [CBS Sports]

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:: FOOTBALL

NFL (Pro. Football): The pre-season begins in August, and the regular season begins in September. [Official NFL Website]

NCAA FOOTBALL (College): Practice sessions for college football begin in summer, and the regular season begins in August. [NCAA Football, ESPN]

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:: HOCKEY

NHL (Pro. Hockey): The Detroit Red Wings defeated the Pittsburgh Penguins in the Stanley Cup Finals, completing the 2007-08 season. [Official NHL Website]

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:: BASKETBALL

NBA (Pro. Basketball): The Celtics defeated the Lakers to win the NBA Finals, ending the 2008 season.  [Official NBA Website]