INDIANAPOLIS 500

Helio Castroneves won the Indy 500. The 135,000 fans in attendance mark the largest crowd assembled for a sporting event since the pandemic began.

TENNIS

After playing only one match at the French Open then refusing to answer questions in the post-match press conference (and getting fined $15,000 and a threat of expulsion from the tournament), Naomi Osaka announced she is withdrawing from the rest of the tournament because she doesn’t want to create any more distractions. She said on Twitter, “This isn’t a situation I ever imagined or intended when I posted a few days ago. I think now the best thing for the tournament, the other players and my well-being is that I withdraw so that everyone can get back to focusing on the tennis going on in Paris. I never wanted to be a distraction and I accept that my timing was not ideal and my message could have been clearer. More importantly I would never trivialize mental health or use the term lightly.”

BASKETBALL

In yet another example of fans gone wild, a man ran out on the court during the 3rd quarter of the Washington Wizards/Philadelphia 76ers game on Monday. After the game, Wizards coach Scott Brooks reprimanded the behavior of the fans this year saying, “But it’s unfortunate one fan here and there, it ruins it for everyone. There’s great fans in Boston and New York and Philly and DC, Utah. But there’s some that just need to, you know what, stay home. Your thinking is barbaric. Stay home. We don’t need you. We don’t need your dollars. Just stay home. Get away from us.”

The Playoff Update: Lakers and Suns series tied 2-2, Nets lead Celtics 3-1, Trail Blazers and Nuggets tied at 2-2, 76ers lead Wizards 3-1, Hawks lead Knicks 3-1, Jazz lead Grizzlies 3-1, and Mavericks and Clippers tied at 2-2.

MOTORSPORTS

Helmut Marko, part of Red Bull motorsports’ management team, suggested the Formula 1 drivers for his team should join together so they all could get infected with the coronavirus. According to Marko, “They are all strong young men in good health. That way they would be prepared whenever the action starts.” The rest of the team’s management vehemently dismissed the idea.

NCAA

The NCAA voted to grant an extra season of eligibility to spring sports athletes whose seasons were canceled because of the coronavirus. The waivers apply to athletes competing in spring sports including, baseball, softball, outdoor track and field, tennis, golf, rowing, lacrosse, men’s volleyball, beach volleyball, and women’s water polo.  The waivers do not include winter sports such as basketball. Athletes normally have four seasons out of a five-year time frame to compete in college sports, but this ruling will extend the eligibility for these athletes.  According to Council chair and the athletic director at the University of Pennsylvania, M. Grace Calhoun, “The council’s decision gives individual schools the flexibility to make decisions at a campus level. The board of governors encouraged conferences and schools to take action in the best interest of student-athletes and their communities, and now schools have the opportunity to do that.”

For a much-needed laugh this morning, check out SEC Shorts, a hilarious compilation of videos about football in the south. They recently put together a new video preparing fans (thanks to virtual reality headsets) for a year without football. Check it out.

FOOTBALL

According to reports, the new Alliance of American Football (which debuted last weekend) reached out to Colin Kaepernick about playing in the league. Kaepernick is said to have asked for $20 million or more to consider the offer. Alliance players earn $225,000 over three years (but are free in May to pursue NFL careers). AAF also reached out to former quarterback Tim Tebow, but Tebow declined as he’s at spring training with the NY Mets.

DAYTONA 500

Super Bowl MVP, Julian Edelman will serve as the honorary starter for NASCAR’s biggest and most prestigious race, the Daytona 500 on Sunday, Feb 17th at 2:30 pm. Edelman will wave the green flag to begin the race.

BASKETBALL

Tune in to a weekend of festivities including a dunk contest, three-point contest, and other challenges during NBA All-Star weekend in Charlotte, NC. The events all lead up to the big game featuring Team LeBron vs Team Giannis which starts at 8:00 pm on Sunday, February 17th.

I happened to catch the moment soccer history was made in this country when David Beckham entered the field in the 78^th minute of the LA Galaxy exhibition match against Chelsea on Saturday night.Chelsea won the match 1-0, but no one seemed to really care. It was all about watching Beckham, who was mostly on the sidelines due to an ankle injury. I hadn’t planned my evening to watch Beckham (sorry LA Galaxy) but when I looked up at the bar and saw the match on TV, I watched intently like everyone else in the room. I’ve got to admit, the most exciting thing about the game was watching the cameras follow all the celebrities in the stands, but I’m willing to keep an open mind. I played soccer growing up, my Kids play soccer now and I think it is an incredible sport. With that said, I just don’t see myself getting all that excited on a Sunday afternoon to watch 2 plus hours of a match where we might only see one goal scored. Another indication that soccer has a long way to go in becoming one of our “mainstream” sports is by looking at the navigation bars on any of the major sports internet sites. Soccer is hidden in the “other sports” category and not displayed prominently at the top of the page like NFL, MLB, NHL, Nascar, Golf and Tennis. It will be interesting to see if Beckham can help change this.

Watercooler discussion: Will Beckham change the way we view soccer in this country? Will soccer every overcome baseball or football as America’s sport

Danica Patrick finished 5^th in the Honda Indy 200 this weekend. This was her best finish so far in an Indy car race, although she might have finished even better if it were not for Tony Kanaan knocking her into the grass for a few seconds in the first lap. Kanaan excused himself by claiming that Danica was sliding.  For his third straight time (and on his 27^th birthday), Scott Dixon won the race.  

Watercooler discussion: Should Danica be getting this much attention just because she’s a woman? 

SF Giant Barry Bonds could break Hank Aaron’s prestigious home run record this week while he’s in his hometown of San Francisco.  Apparently baseball commissioner Bud Selig doesn’t plan on traveling to SF to see history being made. In case you haven’t been following, Bonds is not well liked because of the allegations against him for taking steroids.

Watercooler discussion: Is Bud Selig making the right decision in not attending the game?

I opened up the New York Times this morning and had the greatest surprise. As I’m sipping my coffee and flipping through the paper, I noticed an article about former NY Mayor and Presidential Candidate, Rudolph Giuliani on his way to a Nascar race at Daytona Beach. To my COMPLETE surprise, the article mentioned my book, The Female Fan Guide to Motorsports which Giuliani said he read in preparation for the race. For the complete article, click here: http://www.nytimes.com/2007/07/09/us/politics/09rudy.html?_r=1&oref=slogin

On to the news of the weekend……

Tennis

After a tense 3 hour, 45 minute 5 set match, was there really any doubt that Roger Federer would pull out the win over Rafael Nadal? This is Federer’s 5th straight Wimbledon title, which ties the record set back in 1980 by Bjorn Borg. At only 25 years old, Federer is considered by many to be the best men’s player EVER. Even John McEnroe said on ESPN recently that he’s never seen a player like him.

Talking about best players EVER, Venus Williams won the women’s final (big surprise) for her 4th all time Wimbledon title. She beat Marion Bartoli 6-4, 61. Venus just makes this all seem so easy.

Indy Car Flare up

Scott Dixon won the Indy Car (open wheel) race at Watkins Glen Grand Prix, but that’s not what everyone was talking about this weekend. After the race, Tony Kanaan came over to “talk” to Sam Hornish Jr because he was upset that he bumped his car. Hornish Sr pushed Kanaan and then the fracas began as Kanaan’s team knocked the father over. According to Kanaan, he was only approaching Hornish Jr to talk about the race and never intended to get into a fight.

Tour de France

The biggest bike race has begun. I can’t really watch this on TV, but I do like to hear about who’s in the lead and every time I get on a bike, I completely appreciate and am marveled by the endurance of this grueling race. The Tour de France lasts 20 stages (plus the prologue which is a 4.9 mile race through downtown London) for a total of 2, 206 miles. Don’t worry if you missed the fact that the race is already underway. We won’t even crown a winner until the race ends on July 29th.

Floyd Landis, last year’s champ, is still trying to defend his 2006 title against claims that he used illegal drugs to win.