Category Archives: sport
Longboarding in Spain
I don’t know about the music, I watched it with Stevie Wonder playing.
Filed under skateboarding, sport
Gou Miyagi, the best skateboarder I’ve ever seen.
Glen E. Friedman has two more of Miyagi’s videos at his blog. Go there for the rest of this series.
Filed under documentary, learning, skateboarding, sport
Documentary on hockey enforcer Boogaard
There has been a lot of discussion about football injuries and concussions. The New York Times is building a fascinating case study about an NHL enforcer. Here is the short film about Derek Boogaard. I’m impressed with the access and the tone.
Filed under documentary, sport
Fair playing field my ass
I like sports because you can occasionally see a really good scrap — sure, some folks win by being faster or bigger, but there are also those underdogs for whom tactical innovation and hustle are their way to victory. I like the epic showdown between a hitter and a pitcher. And I like it because I thought it was basically fair. Of course I was a fool.
This is exactly what Southern Methodist University’s researchers did when they examined more than 3.5 million pitches from 2004 to 2008. Their findings say as much about the enduring relationship between sports and bigotry as they do about the synaptic nature of racism in all of American society.
First and foremost, SMU found that home-plate umpires call disproportionately more strikes for pitchers in their same ethnic group. Because most home-plate umpires are white, this has been a big form of racial privilege for white pitchers, who researchers show are, on average, getting disproportionately more of the benefit of the doubt on close calls.
via What baseball tells us about racism – Race – Salon.com.
Ungh.
Filed under communication, race, sport
East regionals grit and generosity
Roller Derby in 2011 is astounding because it is simply great sport. I just finished watching the London roller girls (the London Brawling ‘natch) defeat Montreal’s New skids on the block 137-135.
If you like football, soccer, basketball, baseball, cricket, rugby, race car driving, gymnastics, or the olympics, then you should watch the last period of this bout. The competitive frenzy will affect almost anyone.
Competition in roller derby is accelerating weekly. Internet broadcasts allow previously regional strategy developments to get shared, and the players in London have obviously been studying Derby News Network (DNN). They showed incredible hustle and an excellent ability to play the fast/slow modern derby. It was one of the best bouts I’ve seen all year and these two teams were fighting for the fifth and sixth position rankings! They struggled, fought and scrapped — trading body blows and sending jammers wheeling through the pack often on one roller skate (and at least twice by jumping over competition). I can’t imagine the physical strain — and this was each teams third bout of the tournament.
London arrived ranked tenth, then beat the then-ranked number seven Carolina team on friday. They then lost to number two Philly on saturday. And here on Sunday they suit up and give blood on the track for the fifth place. It was fun as hell to watch.
And kudos to Montreal. I noticed Montreal early in the season when the traveled to the traditional stronghold of badass derby — the pacific northwest and won some games. Unheard of for a random team to show up and shock champs. But Montreal seem to be well-suited to the struggle, and play a friendly game despite their extraterrestrial neon outfits.
Montreal lost to Carolina on friday, beat Dutchland handily and then sunday faced London.
Now the champs. Charm city is wrecking Pittsburgh for 3rd. And then Philly (Heavy Flo Yo!) against Gotham. Good luck Philly, yer gonna need it.
Filed under roller derby, sport
Roller Derby east regionals
I’m about to watch Steel City take on the hard-hustling Montreal.
This is playoffs season for the roller derby fan. Get serious, get loud. Check it out if you don’t know derby. Free streams at the women’s flat track derby association.
My picks: Gotham, Charm City, and Montreal in that order.
Filed under sport
Sergio Romo and paternity leave
Photo: Joe Robbins Getty images.
ESPN has an interesting article on the new cultural changes associated with men and sport. I’ll highlight one case of SF Giants pitcher Sergio Romo who is taking time off from baseball to be with his family after the birth of a new child.
It’s hard to say for sure if Romo’s brief absence is going to impact the Giants’ postseason chances (the season-long lack of offense is much more glaring than any single pitcher’s missed games), but what isn’t difficult to see are his priorities. He chose family over career, something we’re used to seeing women do, but not men. It’s weird, I’m sure. But sometimes sports (or at least an individual athlete) is a step ahead of the rest of society when it comes to significant cultural changes.
A redefinition of what is considered manly would be yet another example of that.
via Mark Sanchez, Sergio Romo — their choices are ‘manly,’ too – ESPN.
Filed under feminism, human rights, sport
Life of refinement 