First off I would like to start by saying I feel that these blogs were very beneficial to us because it let us look back and review what we have talked about in class and take that information and share it with the rest of the class and others. I really enjoyed going through sport management 221 because I really like learning more about sports especially how sport has evolved and changed over the past 100 years. Although I had to get myself out of bed at 9:00 A.M every Tuesday and Thursday it was worth it because I got to learn more about the history and philosophy of sport. Next, what I really enjoyed about the class is the ethical presentations. I feel that these presentations given every time we had class were very interesting and I really liked listening and participating in the discussions after them.
After taking this class and looking back I can honestly say that I have learned a lot and some of the information that was taught can be beneficial. I say this because I am going into the sport management field and by learning about the history of sports I feel that it will give a better perspective to me about the sport I want to work in. I hope I can keep updating this blog in the future when major events happen in sports because I actually do enjoy writing a blog to get my feelings out on different situations. Finally I would like to say I am looking forward to next semester when I will be taking Sport and Gender with Dr. Spencer.
Friday, May 1, 2009
Circus on the ice
The 2009 NHL playoffs are in full gear as the first round just ended. I know a lot of the people in the SM 221 are not followers of hockey but I am sure a lot of you that watch ESPN have heard of the story I am about to talk about. In the first round two top notch teams played each other in a hard-hitting death match that lasted all seven games. The two teams that played were the chippy New York Rangers and the highly talented Washington Capitals. The series started out with New York dominating with their physical play. The series then turned around when super star Alex Ovechkin started lighting the lamp and put his team on the board. This brings me to the ethical issue that occured during this series . During game 5 at the Verizon Center in Washington D.C the New York Rangers were getting rocked 4-0. Coach of the Rangers John Torterella was getting quite upset and he took his anger out on the fans by throwing a water bottle at fans behind the bench. He was suspended by the NHL for one game. Ethically this is horrible, where is the respect. First of you are a coach in the NHL, you need to keep your composure and have respect for the fans. You don't see players throw their stick over the glass after they get hit and the fans cheer. It was reasonable for the NHL to suspend him and I hope he regrets what he did to the fans.
The second ethical issue that occurred during this series occurred during game six in New York. I will tell you that playoff hockey is in my opinion the best sport to watch during the playoffs. The players crank it up a notch and there is so much speed and hitting. There is a player for the Washington capitals by the name of Donald Brashear. Brashear is what hockey analyst call him a goon but this goon can excite a team through a fight or a big hit in which he was trying to accomplish. During game six a player for the New York Rangers was skating down the middle of the ice and passed off the puck. Donald Brashear came out of nowhere and blindsided him knocking him out and breaking a bone in his face. Although the playoffs are full of hitting and intensity the player for the Rangers didn't even had the puck. The NHL suspended Brashear for six games. This is kind of a harsh punishment because the Capitals need Brashear for his high intensity hits because it could cause a sway in the game. But I mean if you watch the video I will post at the end of this you will see that why the NHL suspended him.
Women's sport
Chapter 13 is all about the rise and decline of organized Women's sports. Radar goes through the topics of the athletic girl, early women's basketball, and the arrival of women sport's heroes. The first discussion on the athletic girl talks about the rise of women becoming more involved in athletics, and touches upon such athletes as Babe Didrikson, and Mary Outerbridge who started a ladies club in Staten Island. The next topic talked about is women's basketball and how it really started to increase. There was tournaments for girls that helped increase the popularity of the game for women. Finally, Radar discusses the topic of the women sport's heroes. Some of the women sport heroes listed were Gertrude Ederle, Suzanne Lenglen, Helen Wills, and of course Babe Didrikson.
I feel now women's sports are still on the rise. More and more women are becoming known as great sport athletes. I feel that my little sister has great potential to play professional women's golf, as long as she doesn't get burnt out. She was very close last year of making it to state as a freshman, and she can already beat me (I hate admitting that). Looking at other woman that have cam through the ranks are such athletes as Mia Hamm the soccer player, Annika Sorenstam, Lisa Leslie and many more. Sport for women have also came through the cracks tremendously in the past decade. The WNBA came into effect and was world know, the LPGA is also a very big association of Ladies golfers, and other sports such as soccer and tennis. Some heroes that can be looked at now in women's sport are women such as Annika Sorenstam who in my opinion is the Tiger Woods of women's golf, Lisa Leslie who is the equivalent to the Michael Jordan of women's basketball, and finally Mia Hamm, the greatest female soccer player that United States has seen. I feel that all of these women are heroes to sport because they broke through the barrier of sex and have become great athletes in their sport. Many young girls look up to these athletes and hope to be like them someday.
I feel now women's sports are still on the rise. More and more women are becoming known as great sport athletes. I feel that my little sister has great potential to play professional women's golf, as long as she doesn't get burnt out. She was very close last year of making it to state as a freshman, and she can already beat me (I hate admitting that). Looking at other woman that have cam through the ranks are such athletes as Mia Hamm the soccer player, Annika Sorenstam, Lisa Leslie and many more. Sport for women have also came through the cracks tremendously in the past decade. The WNBA came into effect and was world know, the LPGA is also a very big association of Ladies golfers, and other sports such as soccer and tennis. Some heroes that can be looked at now in women's sport are women such as Annika Sorenstam who in my opinion is the Tiger Woods of women's golf, Lisa Leslie who is the equivalent to the Michael Jordan of women's basketball, and finally Mia Hamm, the greatest female soccer player that United States has seen. I feel that all of these women are heroes to sport because they broke through the barrier of sex and have become great athletes in their sport. Many young girls look up to these athletes and hope to be like them someday.
Keeping tennis a classy sport
In chapter 12 Radar discusses how the sport of tennis goes public. Tennis started off with the English upper classes and rich Americans that played the sport on their prestige estates or in exclusive clubs. Tennis really started to become a public sport when two tennis players hit the scence, Big Bill Tilden and Suzanna Lenglen. Although tennis started becoming more of a public sport I feel that the game of tennis is still a sport that is very classy. If you go to a tennis match such as Wimbeldon, or the U.S Open, everyone is casual attire, and respect the game by being quite during the match until a player scores.
Looking at tennis a few years back there was a female player by the name of Anna Kournikova. Kournikova a very attractive Russian tennis player was in my opinion gave a negative impact on the classiness of the sport of tennis. She was in news tabloids, posed half-nude in magazines along with having dramaic problems with other sport celebreties. I strongly feel that tennis should be kept the way it is without her. Tennis is a very classy sport and by having her doing all of these controvesial acts gives tennis a bad look. I mean yes there are no rules that say she can't show off her body, or have a good time but I feel that it is an ethical issue that she should just play the game, and let the game stay classy. I previously talked about this in another blog about Danica Patrick. I may sound contradicting because there are woman that like to show off their body but in the sport of tennis I think that it just shouldn't fly.
Thursday, April 30, 2009
The hero's of coaching football
Chapter 11 that revolves around the Intercollegiate football spectacle touches upon the football hero as a coach. Radar talks about coaches such as Amos Alonzo Stagg, Knute Rockne, Glen "Pop" Warner, and Dana X. Bible. The book states that heroic status of coaches come from the belief that coaches played a far more important role in winning a game. Radar tells the story of Knute Rockne and how he came to fame at Notre Dame by adding a "unique formula" to the game. He was a charismatic coach, an amazing win-loss record, and a high number of supports throughout the nation. Both the media and his player loved him.
Although this chapter talks about collegiate football coaches as hero's I feel that in today's society many professional football coaches can be looked as heroes similar to the ones talked about in the book. Let's take a look at coaches like Tony Dungy, Lovie Smith, Mike Tomlin, and Romeo Crenell. If you look at the list I just named off you can see that all off these coaches are African American. I feel that it is awesome to see the diversity in the NFL and that these coaches can be looked at as heroes by some. We also discussed this in class through the racial and gender report. If we look more in depth at one of these coaches we can see how they are really a hero in the mind of some people. Tony Dungy, who is now a retired coach from the National Football League. He has done so much for the sport in my opinion and can be looked at as a hero. He was the first African Amercian head coach to win a Superbowl title, quite an accomplishment after all of his years involved in football.
Overall, I feel as if all of these coaches can be looked at as heroes by breaking the color barrier as a coach in the NFL.
The "New Age" of the pitcher
As discussed in chapter ten there was "An age of the pitcher". During this period of time there was a decline in hitting and the reason why is because the sport of baseball came up with rule changes that gave the pitchers advantages against the batters. One of the rule changes was the size change in home plate. In 1900 they changed the size of home plate from a 12 inch square to a five sided figure that was 17 inches across. This new plate added 200 square inches and gave the pitchers a better advantage. The next rule implemented was they counted the first two foul balls as strikes. I feel that these rule changes did give way to what they called "the age of the pitcher."
I now believe in the 20th century there has been an even bigger advantage given to pitchers, and what this is, is the amount a different pitches a pitcher can throw, along with having many more back up pitchers to relieve them. I feel that through the years of baseball many new pitches have been invented and used more and more throughout the game. Back in the 1900's there was one pitch that batters despised and that was the "spitball". Now a days there are many options a pitcher has to strike out the batter. There are pitches such as the curve ball, slider, cork ball, screwball, forkball, change up, and the rare knuckle ball. I feel that since pitchers now have all these options of pitches it gives them a heavy advantage against the batters.
The other advantage I feel that pitchers have now over any other position is how many back-ups there are in the game. A team can have up to 15 pitchers. This is the more than any other position in baseball. If a pitcher is not doing well, or is getting tired a team has plenty of more options for relief. Overall I feel that these two advantages now in the 20th century give way the "The new age of the pitcher".
By watching this youtube video you can see how effective the curveball is against batters, and how it is an advantage for the pitchers.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KXHx32z64QY
I now believe in the 20th century there has been an even bigger advantage given to pitchers, and what this is, is the amount a different pitches a pitcher can throw, along with having many more back up pitchers to relieve them. I feel that through the years of baseball many new pitches have been invented and used more and more throughout the game. Back in the 1900's there was one pitch that batters despised and that was the "spitball". Now a days there are many options a pitcher has to strike out the batter. There are pitches such as the curve ball, slider, cork ball, screwball, forkball, change up, and the rare knuckle ball. I feel that since pitchers now have all these options of pitches it gives them a heavy advantage against the batters.
The other advantage I feel that pitchers have now over any other position is how many back-ups there are in the game. A team can have up to 15 pitchers. This is the more than any other position in baseball. If a pitcher is not doing well, or is getting tired a team has plenty of more options for relief. Overall I feel that these two advantages now in the 20th century give way the "The new age of the pitcher".
By watching this youtube video you can see how effective the curveball is against batters, and how it is an advantage for the pitchers.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KXHx32z64QY
Monday, April 6, 2009
My sport hero: Super Mario
In chapter nine Rader discusses about the age of sport heroes. It talks about such great athletes like "The Sultan of Swat" George "Babe" Herman Ruth one of the greatest baseball players to hit the diamond in my opinion. The "Galloping Ghost of the Gridiron" Red Grange, and the prizefighting champion Jack Johnson. Although all of these athletes are hero's to me, I would have to say that they are not even close to my sport hero.
My sport hero would have to be a man they called "The magnificent" Mario Lexmieux. Mario Lemiex played in the National Hockey League for a total of 17 years for one team and that is the Pittsburgh Penguins. He currently owns the Penguins after buying them after they called for bankruptcy in 1999.
There are many reason why Mario Lemieux is my hero. The first is the way he played the game of hockey. I mean he scored a goal in the NHL on his very first shot of his very first game. There are not very many people who can capture that feat. Along with that he broke many records and won many awards in the National hockey league. Along with being an amazing player on the ice he is an amazing person off the ice. He has done so much for the city of Pittsburgh and has donated a lot of money towards cancer research which brings me into my next point why he is my sport hero.
On January 12, 1993 Mario Lemieux made a very shocking statement to the world. He was diagnosed with Hodgkin's Lymphoma. Better known as cancer to most people. He underwent tremendous amounts of radiation therapy and fought through this killer disease. On his last day of his treatment he flew to Philadelphia and played...yes I said that HE PLAYED on his last day of radiation and scored a goal, but unfortunately the lost to the Flyers. He then later retired due to back pain but astoundingly came back out of retirement because he missed the game so much. This is why I really look up to him as a hero. He fought cancer, came back retired, then came back AGAIN. HE loves the sports and has so much dedication and passion for the sport of hockey. I think that anyone that is able to do that is a hero in my books and that is why he is the number one sport hero in my heart.
If you have a few minutes check out this video that talks about his career. It's pretty interesting and I'm sure you'll appreciate what he has done with the sport of hockey.
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