Prefontane

1) How is Pre portrayed as a person and as an athlete?
Pre was portrayed as a cocky but driven athlete.
2) Does he appear to be a likable character?
Because
3) What arrogant thing does Pre do to one of his teammates?
He proclaims himself as the best.
4) What lesson does Pre teach a 9 year old boy?
Pre teaches him to  not run ahead of the pack.
5) What current controversy with college athletics is introduced in this movie?
The crossover from being an amateur to professional athlete is highlighted.
6) What was one of Pre's goals in High School as a runner?
He proclaimed that he would be competing in the Munich Olympics.
7) What are the living conditions in the Olympic Village? What do these conditions remind us of?
The conditions of the Olympic Village were less than expected. The beds were on the floor and the rooms were not painted. It reminds me of the Sochi Olympics.
8) What Olympic scandal took place during the Munich Olympics?
There were a group of terrorists who held the Israel athletes hostage and killed most.

Donald Sterling

With the work of people such as MLK this country has come a long way, with people like Donald Sterling forcing a step back. America has developed a zero tolerance for this kind of behavior, and the NBA did the right thing in eliminating the negativity and ignorance of Sterling. 

Don't Strike Out

     Coming from an extremely successful season the Boston Red Sox have a lot to live up to. They are entering the 2014 season as the reigning World Series Champs, showing their city what's up. In the past we've seen teams continue their stride to yet another victory, and others crumble under the pressure to live up to the standards set. So far they haven't shown any superiority, going 5-8 and the season just starting. The question is, have they lost their momentum? Did they lose their reason to play? Last season they dedicated it to the Boston Marathon survivors and this year..what? I guess we'll see.

The Way To Gold

     We know that Olympic athletes sacrifice a lot for their sport, but does that mean sacrificing your integrity? For (former) ice skating champion Tonya Harding, that may just be the case. On January 6, 1994 there was an organized attack on Harding's opponent Nancy Kerrigan after a training session U.S Figure Skating Championships in Detroit. The attackers were Tonya's ex-husband Jeff Gillooly and his friends using a club and slamming Kerrigans knee. 
     Though all were brought to justice, the men getting jail time, Harding receiving 3 years probation along with a fine and being banned from USFSA, it's a question of what the limits for these athletes are. It's one thing to do anything for the sport you love, and another to be so willing to do literally anything in order to be the best. It is a sad realization that some athletes can turn out to be so low and desperate. In a world where we see so much lack of integrity and respect, it is heartbreaking to see people we look up to be nothing but the same.

SanDONEsky

     When we hear on the news about another sports sensation being convicted of a crime,it's always a "not again" thought going through our mind. But do we ever think of the possibility of them being set up? Dottie Sandusky shows us the other side of the claims.

     It was two years ago when young boys started lining up making claims that Penn State assistant football coach Jerry Sandusky had sexually abused them. The number racked up to 52 charges and sent Sandusky to jail for a 30-60 year sentence. When the topic of sexual abuse comes into play there is never a question about it being anything else but a nightmare. An interview with Jerry's wife shows us the other story behind these convictions.

     Throughout it all, Dottie Sandusky has stood tall by her husband. Her beliefs are that money is the cause of so many boys stepping forward. She claims that she never had any reason to believe that her husband was doing any of those crimes in their house. She continues to visit Jerry each week of his sentence, both with smiles on their faces.

     People often believe that anyone with power in this world can get away with anything. In this case we are seeing Jerry Sandusky serving his sentence, while his wife fights for his innocence. I believe that in this case justice is being served and no matter how hard they try, a claim of sexual abuse never goes unpunished.

     

World Cup 2k14

Do you believe that following this years World Cup soccer will become a more well respected and popular sport in the US like it has been in other countries for so many centuries?

Algarve Cup-It's That Time Again!

            With the FIFA Women's World Cup only a year away, the team and head coach Tom Sermani are taking this time at the Algarve Cup to take a look at the progression of the sports high flyers. With the first game for the US women less than a day away, it is time to get serious about the first step into the World Cup.

     At this Tournament in Portugal we will see Group B (Sweden, Japan, Denmark, and the US) play their first games, as well of groups A and C. It's as simple at the winner of each group with play the winner of the other until the two top countries play on March 12th for the title. 

     We can see from the record that the US women hold of 52-10-9 at this Cup in the past we can look forward to a challenge again this time around. With the depth that this team has to offer we can expect Tom Sermani (his first time coaching the US at this tournament) to be playing around with the line ups and seeing some of the young kids that have been called up to this camp to see a little playing time.

     The US have their first match March 5th against Japan with kickoff at 7:45 a.m ET.

Team Players or Team Haters?

     We've been hearing the name Lolo Jones since to summer of 08' as the up and coming future of USA hurdling. When she made it to the finals she was pulling away from the pack, seemingly taking her last strides towards gold, when tragedy struck. She clipped the 9th hurdle (of 10), losing her stamina and ultimately finishing in 7th place. She later stated that the problem was caused by and injury to her spine, leaving her unable to feel her toes and therefore unable the feel the hurdle. She had surgery to repair the problem and had her sight set on London.

     By the time 2012 came along Jones had defended her indoor world title in 2010 but missed the majority of her 2011 season due to injury and illness. She qualified third at the Olympic Trials sending her to London with a promising chance. She made it to the finals coming short in 4th place. By the time this Olympics had come there was already controversy over the 31 year old Jones saying that she has become famous for failing. She has had teammates openly criticize her and a New York Times article stating her fame comes "not on achievement, but on her exotic beauty." Throughout the scandals Jones remained positive as she chose a new path for her life: bobsledding. 
     Introduced by friend Elena Meyers, Lolo decided to try it after the 2008 Olympics for fun. Though it is common for track athletes to also compete in bobsled, as seen from Jones' track and field teammate Lauryn Williams, a switch of sports carried with it the controversy. Jones was added to the Women's National Team in 2012 and was told she was not worthy of her spot, but proved herself by winning silver at the 2012 World Cup. She continued pushing through, setting her sights on Sochi 2014. She and teammate Jazmine Fenlator were added to the US Olympic roster after achieving gold at the 2013 World Championship in St. Moritz. Making the team brought deeper hate being throw at Jones, having teammates on the National Team saying that she was not qualified. 
     She trained her hardest and when February came around she was ready, or at least thought she was. On her first, and only, race in the Olympics she placed 11th coming in 3.36 seconds behind the leader, Canada. Although the other two US bobsled teams made it to the finals, she received a lot of hate from people close to the sport. Vancouver US Bobsled athlete Chuck Berkely tweeted "Absolutely no doubt that @KatieEberling would have done better for USA3. Hope the marketing dollars were worth it. #merit." Jones has been quiet about the hate received from bobsled but supported her other teammates in the final, watching them win silver and bronze. 
     She plans on taking a little time off and then returning for the upcoming track and field season. When asked about her future in bobsled, Jones simply answered "I don't know." 

Sam Michael-NFL

We are living in a world that is becoming less judgmental by the day, but in a separate world, the world of alpha sports, it’s going to take some time. We have already heard stories about bullying in the NFL and walking into the locker room will no doubt be difficult for upcoming NFL star Michael Sam. It takes courage to play in such a competitive league and even more to come in as the known underdog.

Fallen Patriot

Behind the beautiful dimples and heart warming smile of young football star Aaron Hernandez was a dark past starting from before the time he was born. His father Dennis was a known "bad boy" but managed to turn his life around for his two sons. He did everything possible to keep his sons away from the life he knew so well, but only so much could be done. Aaron's mother was a source of trouble, being arrested in 2001 for placing bets on sports. She was known for cheating on her husband until his death in 2006. The death of their father shook both of the Hernandez boys, but young Aaron didn't quite know how to handle it. His mother marrying a violent drug dealer and loosing his biggest rock was too much for him to deal with.
Hernandez found himself off in college being associated with crimes left and right. His coach tried as hard as he could to get him on the right path but kept loosing him to the bad influences. Through all of his falls, his coach kept playing him. This is a prime example of how through everything, coaches kept giving him chance ever chance, never showing him any real punishment which is a very real reason why everything escalated so quickly. He was even given the opportunity to play with one of the top NFL teams even after his daft ranking was dropped so low.
The story of Aaron Hernandez is a prime example of athletes getting everything handed to them. Once you show any amount of promise you are basically carried through and any controversy or trouble, you have someone there to clean up your mess. Athletes need to realized that they cannot let their lives get out of control and placed in other peoples hands. 

Super Bummer

Well I guess I was wrong. I thought it was going to be a good match up and our boy Peyton just plum forgot. I knew Seattle was going to bring it on defense but did not expect Russel Wilson to do so well in his first Super Bowl and only his second season in the NFL. I has my bets placed on Denver but had a feeling in my heart that was secretly rooting for the underdog. I'm not happy I was wrong but I am happy that the team that deserved it the most was rewarded. 

I hate Bruno Mars. Let me just start with that. I honestly just watched it to see him flop but left the room after he started dancing. For me, the game was closer than his performance could ever be to Beyonce's. 

Looking back on the game having had time to set in, I think the Seahawks were ready for battle. They knew it was going to be a hard game and did not take it easy. The Bronco's on the other hand seemed to think this game would have been easier than it was. Peyton knew he couldn't throw deep balls because of Sherman in the corner but his runs weren't smooth enough for this to equal out. 12 seconds into the game when Peyton and his line had the miscommunication resulting in the 2 point safety was a foreshadowing of the game to come. The Seahawks offence shut it down when coming back from the half they scored and in the third answering to the Bronco's only touchdown. The team was on point and the best men are going to Disney World. (Just don't let Sherman near the children.)

As for Commercials I mean, who didn't love that Budweiser puppy?!

SuperBowl Prediction

It's about to be SuperBowl time and I'm feeling strong about the Bronco's taking it home. This game is going to be the best defense vs the best offense in league; there couldn't be a better match. Although they're not my pick, I would like to see the Seahawks take it and give the 12th man (and Richard Sherman) something to be proud of. So overall I am expecting the Bronco's, but rooting for both teams to make this a great game.

Intelligence Overrated?

When looking into some of the top NCAA colleges in the country some astonishing facts were found. There have been numerous incidents of student-athletes competing at not only a high ranking NCAA school but with an academic record to match and having severely low academic abilities. There are many reports of supposed "extra help" coming from the athletes academic advisers. To me, I find this to be extremely true, and extremely sad. I didn't want it to be true but going on college tours, they have mentioned to me that playing soccer will provide me with extra assistance. I can tell that the major sports of basketball and football grab a lot of attention and are necessary for colleges to thrive, but some of these finding are nauseating. It is good that these kids are given the chance to go to college, but their substantially low academic ability is somewhat of a disgrace.