She looks like the all-American girl, and Suzy Favor Hamilton is a track legend as this Big Ten video shows. She was a great runner, but her wholesome good looks made her in demand for all sorts of other reasons. Read about the scandal for this small town hottie according to a report by The Smoking Gun.
Author: Staff (Page 80 of 142)
The 2012 FIFA Ballon D’or will be awarded early next year, and of the 20 candidates up for this year’s prize, one name stands out. Barcelona and Argentina forward Lionel Messi is the outstanding candidate for the coveted prize and with good reason. Throughout 2012, he has scored a massive 82 goals in all competitions, just six away from breaking the record set by legendary Germany striker Gerd Muller. Messi is the overwhelming favourite to win the prize, but who are his rivals, and can they stop him?
One of the other two major candidates for the Ballon D’or is Barca teammate Andres Iniesta. The inventive attacking midfielder has helped Messi immensely throughout his career, supplying him with endless assists against many of their opponents, but one thing Iniesta has in his favour is international success. While Messi hasn’t quite delivered with Argentina, Iniesta has enjoyed unparalleled success with Spain, playing a key role in winning and retaining the European Championships and, most impressively of all, the World Cup.
The third candidate to make it through the 20-man shortlist is Messi’s greatest rival to date, Real Madrid’s polarising Portugal forward Cristiano Ronaldo. Ronaldo has a record that stands up against that of Messi, and unlike the diminutive Argentine, has a La Liga winners’ medal to show for his efforts in the past year. However, what may count against him is that Real’s title defence has stuttered, and that he has underperformed since September. This may count against him when the award is given out.
The odds with Ladbrokes Sport of Messi picking up the trophy for the fourth time in succession are pretty short, but it’s hard not to bet against him, even if he hasn’t won as much as Iniesta or Ronaldo in the past 12 months. Should the award go to one of the other two, it would be a huge shock.
While it may come as a surprise to many people, sports celebrities really do have relevant, real things to say that don’t revolve entirely around sports metaphors. Some of the more surprising entries on this list are a young football star who also authors children’s books, a motivational book by a disgraced world champion cyclist, and a sports memoir by one of the most celebrated novelists in America. All of these books are penned by people who are or were athletes. Some are funny, some painful, and some just outright strange. Here are the top seven books written by athletes!
1) Paper Lion
by George Plimpton
This riotous memoir of a literary type trying to make the third string for the Detroit Lions football team (I’m not even going to get into all the problems with that idea) is not a boy makes good story by any stretch of the imagination. What makes this book great is Plimpton’s candid and vivid description of life in the locker room, a place most fans will never get to see outside of television.
By Theo Walcott
Theo Walcott has made a big name for himself in UK football as the youngest player ever to be signed to the notorious Arsenal team from the Saints. He quickly added being the youngest player, at only a couple of months after his seventeenth birthday, to be invited to the England national football team. Bringing his experience as a striker to a quartet of children’s books with lessons such as perseverance, physical fitness, and the power of friendship and teamwork, Walcott proves that athletic doesn’t mean unable to communicate.
3) It’s Not About The Bike: My Journey Back To Life
By Lance Armstrong
When this book came out, readers and reviewers alike raved about the inspiring story of Armstrong’s fight against testicular cancer and his determination to win. However, the allegations of doping that have dogged Armstrong for a decade and a half finally exploded earlier this year, transforming an inspiring story into a punch line worthy of comedian Robin William’s sketch in “Live at the Met” supporting Armstrong and resulting in the stripping of numerous awards and accolades Armstrong had “earned.” It’s not about the bike, Lance? Truer words may never have been written.
4) Mary Lou Retton’s Gateways To Happiness
By Mary Lou Retton
In terms of sheer likability, impeccable personal conduct, and recognizability, Mary Lou Retton may well be the most popular female athlete ever to grace the planet, never mind the gym mat. Her transition from star athlete to wife, mother, and motivational speaker was capped off by gaining her author credentials. In Gateways To Happiness, Retton relies heavily but not entirely on athletic metaphors to discuss topics such as time management, adhering to a plan, and never giving up. This highly rated book is a must have not just for the content, but for the charmingly accessible way it’s written.
By Pat Conroy
While the name may not mean much to you, odds are you and/or your wife have seen The Prince Of Tides, starring Barbara Streisand and Nick Nolte and based on Pat Conroy’s book of the same name. Conroy takes a trip back in time to The Citadel, one of the most respected military academies in America, for an inside look at cadet life both on and off the court. Featuring a clueless coach and the stiff upper lipped command staff and cadets themselves, this book is an unflinchingly honest look at a place most writers consider taboo to write about.
6) I Can’t Accept Not Trying: Michael Jordan On The Pursuit of Excellence
By Micheal Jordan
Having a list like this and not giving a nod to the Duke of Dunk would be like talking about chefs and omitting Wolfgang Puck or Gordon Ramsay. In this short but memorable book, Jordan dissects the rules he lives (and plays) by, including tips on how to beat self-doubt and conquer fear, the importance of focus, and how to both lead and follow. This book is a must-have for anyone who’d like to get their team motivated by a man who has built an empire on doing exactly that.
7) You Cannot Be Serious
By John McEnroe
To round out the list comes this offering from the undisputed Bad Boy of Tennis. (Pre-McEnroe, the world thought there was no such thing!) This brutal, candid, funny, and honest dissection of his racquet-hurling antics on the court and his erratic behavior in his personal life is by turns savage and charming, just like “Johnny Mac” himself. While it’s not exactly motivational reading, this book is still worth giving an afternoon or two, especially on a day when you just “pulled a McEnroe.”
Article provided by Lovereading.co.uk/
Boxing generates little buzz these days, but when one of the few “big name” fighters out there gets knocked out, it’s still big news. Juan Manuel Marquez knocked out Manny Pacquiao last night in the sixth round, as Pacquiao literally walked into a straight line right hand punch.
The 8-4 Green Bay Packers are a touchdown favorite this Sunday night as the 4-8 Detroit Lions invade legendary Lambeau Field in an attempt to salvage their season. Conditions have certainly been worse at Lambeau in past battles, but the Lions will definitely face an uphill battle on what is expected to be a cold night in Green Bay.
The Packers of course have a very rich history, with the great Vince Lombardi standing at the top of the heap with his incredible teams from the 60s. The video above relives the story of the legendary “Ice Bowl” championship game between the Green Bay Packers and the Dallas Cowboys from New Year’s Eve in 1967 at a frozen Lambeau Field with windchill taking the temperature down to −70°F. We’ve all heard the “frozen tundra” line a million times and this is where it all started. The Packers has plenty of down years after that, but then returned to greatness with Mike Holmgren and Brett Favre in the 90s and then again several years ago with Aaron Rodgers.
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