Tennis is a beautiful, majestic sport.
Via: Julian Finney / Getty Images
Via: Julian Finney / Getty Images
Via: Clive Brunskill / Getty Images
Via: Julian Finney / Getty Images
The 43 Most Beautiful Grunt Faces From The French Open
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18 Rules Of Attending A Sporting Event As An Adult
Get it together people.
Don't piss yourself.
Via: Ryan Pierse / Getty Images
Don't riot.
Source: i.imgur.com
Don't try to shove your middle finger up a player's nose.
Via: Steve Mitchell/USA Today
Don't do ANYTHING this guy is doing.
Source: deadspin.com
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Michael Jordan, Muhammad Ali, And Serena Williams: The Most Impressive Athletes Of The Last Half-Century?
Amazing enough to let her mind wander as her body breaks down — and still return to dominate.
Via: Stephane Mahe / Reuters
Serena Williams won the French Open on Saturday with a 6-4, 6-4 victory over Maria Sharapova. It was only her second French title, the first having come eleven years ago.
Sharapova was no slouch today, breaking Williams twice and keeping the match close. Here she whacks a winner after her two previous shots, hit hard to opposite corners of the court, had gotten Williams off balance.
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Soccer Player Throws Dog Into A Fence, Is Attacked By Outraged Fellow Players
The dog is OK, though!
Recently, we had a little soccer game going on in Argentina.
Then a dog ran onto the pitch! Dogs are wont to run, but they are not wont to go on soccer fields, nor are they *wanted* on soccer fields, unless it was a soccer game played by dogs, which would be cool.
Then...oh shit. Dude, what are you doing with that dog. You shouldn't carry dogs that way: they're not watering cans. PUT THAT DOG DOWN.
NOOOOOOOOOOOOOO DON'T TRY TO THROW THE DOG OVER A FENCE DON'T DO THAT AHHH
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Conclusive Evidence That Words Can Be Hurtful
Sticks and stone may break their ACLs, and Tweets about looking like turtles aren’t a walk in the park either.
Last week on Jimmy Kimmel Live NBA players and analysts read mean tweets from fans and critics aloud. The results were heartbreaking.
"Is it me or doese rajon rondo look like that Turtle Name Franklin on Nick Jr?"
"Andre Iguodala sucks gazelle dick."
"what's the difference between Ron Artest and Metta World Peace? Nothing. They are both huge pieces of shit."
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Bunny Dunks Basketball Like A Boss
No, seriously.
His name is Bini and he wears the same number as Michael Jordan.
Source: YouTube | Via: From Hop To Pop
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Baseball Fan's Foolproof Plan To Jump Headfirst Into A Bush Somehow Backfires
Step one: jump into bush. Step two: ??? Step three: profit!
Last night, Braves right fielder Jason Heyward jacked a solo home run in the top of the 8th inning against the San Diego Padres — a shot that bounced into some landscaping next to San Diego's outfield bleachers.
Naturally, a souvenir like that is worth a little extra effort, and one fan went Mountain Dew Xtreme on everyone, launching himself fully into the bush kamikaze-style.
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CNN Stopped Covering President Obama's Speech To Talk About Tim Tebow
It’s Tebow time.
President Obama spoke in favor of the U.S. Senate's bipartisan immigration reform bill Tuesday morning.
All three cable news channels were covering his speech ... at first.
But then CNN cut away to New England coach Bill Belichick's first press conference since it was announced the Patriots signed Tim Tebow. Fox started talking about Plan B. MSNBC stuck to Obama.
Reporters asked Belichick 14 questions about Tebow. The last question was about how he felt about Tebow Tebowing. Belichick just said, "I think we’ve already talked enough about him."
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NASCAR Drivers' Bodies Are Deformed From Always Turning Left
And two other takeaways from reigning champ Brad Keselowski’s Reddit AMA.
Brad Keselowski, NASCAR'S defending Sprint Cup champion, took some time yesterday to do a Reddit AMA. There were three highlights.
Via: Drew Hallowell / Getty Images
When someone asked what he'd do if Doc Brown jumped out of a DeLorean and offered him the chance to compete in any given year. This is a question that should be posed to every athlete. His answer:
See a bitchin' winged car here. Keselowski also added that he picked 1998 because of the number of legendary racers who were in their prime at that point, specifically naming Dale Earnhardt, Jeff Gordon, Rusty Wallace, Mark Martin, and Dale Jarrett.
Via: Tom Pennington / Getty Images
This illuminating (and somewhat depressing!) response to a question about what the condition of his car during Friday's practice will often mean for Sunday's race result:
It has to be kind of a bummer to have two whole days to think about how you're probably going to lose.
Via: Jared C. Tilton / Getty Images
This disturbing response when someone asked Keselowski one side of racers' bodies gets stronger than the other, due to the constant left-turn driving of the sport, he answered:
Via: Sean Gardner / Getty Images
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A Very Complete History Of LeBron's Receding Hairline
King James was blessed with a lot of gifts, but this was certainly not one of them.
Via: Bob McKay/Landov
Via: Tom Pidgeon / Getty Images
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Does It Matter That LeBron's Rapture-Triggering LeBlock Didn't Actually Matter?
Have you ever thought about what highlights really mean , dude?
In Sunday night's Game 2 of the NBA Finals between the Miami Heat and the San Antonio Spurs, with 8:20 remaining in the fourth quarter, Spurs center Tiago Splitter took off from the middle of the key with designs on a one-handed slam. Unfortunately, LeBron James stepped into the restricted area, leapt straight up, and blocked Splitter with such ease it almost seemed staged. The play resembled a crash-test dummy colliding with a stone wall.
The world went berserk about the play itself on Twitter and in posts that night/the next day. (Us included.) But in the game it took place in, the block — The Block? the LeBlock? — meant little to nothing. At the time, the Heat held a 19-point lead at home, and the Spurs' chances of mounting a comeback were, at best, wafer-thin.
This contradiction points to something odd about the way highlights are treated. They are, by definition, plays taken out of context. But their context is actually crucial to the way they're remembered. Let's call this idea the Highlight Legacy Index. Calculating a play's Highlight Legacy Index number involves two things: how spectacular it is and how important it was to the outcome of a game.
For example: at the end of Game 1, Tony Parker clinched a victory for the Spurs with this shot.
Source: ktlincoln
This shot won a playoff game. This shot came against the best player in the world. This shot slept with that girl/boy you really like. Tony Parker's dervish buzzer-beater affected a Finals game in a major way; LeBron's block did not. If we were to apply the Highlight Index (patent pending) to both plays, Parker's would score much higher. It was a little less spectacular but a lot more important. The LeBlock reached an equal level of saturation and ubiquity in the days afterward. But thanks to its lower Highlight Index score, down the road, the LeBlock will likely fade.
However, there is one exception: the Symbolism Quotient. If the Heat pull out a close series, or the Spurs win, LeBron's block will have been irrelevant both to the outcome of the game in which it occurred and to the series as a whole. But if the Heat win the series authoritatively, the block could get second life as a metaphor for their dominance, the epitome of Miami's power and authority. (Parker's shot is not subject to any symbolic retroactive reduction in importance, since it changed the result of a game, like Carlton Fisk's famous Fenway Park home run, which remains a classic highlight despite the fact that the Red Sox lost the 1975 World Series.)
So if you're a fan of LeBron's, this ups the stakes for the rest of the series. You want to remember this block as the epitome of a great recovery, not just as a footnote to a disappointing setback in his career. Tiago Splitter's dunk attempt was doomed from the start, but the fate of the LeBlock is still up in the air.
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Wait, Kanye West Was At "The Decision"?
WTF?
Okay, you remember the infamous LeBron James ESPN special The Decision, right?
Via: Larry Busacca / Getty Images
You remember all the kids at the Boys and Girls club in posh Greenwich, CT...
Via: Larry Busacca / Getty Images
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Heat Blown Out By Barrage Of San Antonio Role-Player Three Pointers
Just like Gregg Popovich drew it up. (Sure.)
When Gary Neal's buzzer-beating three put San Antonio up by six at halftime, it was only a sign of things to come in the second half.
The Spurs slowed pulled away during the third, but Neal put it out of reach for good early in the fourth with this three ...
... and this one that immediately followed.
Not even a waving Tiago Splitter could knock Neal off his game.
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Soccer Ramps Up Efforts To Support Gay Players And Fans
With an out gay player, Major League Soccer announces partnership to help advance equality efforts in the league. “The diversity found in our League has always been a point of pride for us,” MLS Commissioner Don Garber says.
Los Angeles Galaxy midfielder Robbie Rogers runs during the second half of the MLS soccer match against the Seattle Sounders in Carson, California May 26, 2013.
Via: Danny Moloshok / Reuters
With its first out gay player, Robbie Rogers, playing for the Los Angeles Galaxy, Major League Soccer is launching a new effort to stop anti-gay attitudes and encourage diversity that aims to build on existing league efforts at opposing discrimination in the league.
Partnering with the You Can Play Project, a program started by Patrick Burke to fight homophobia and transphobia in sports, Wednesday's announcement by the MLS follows a similar partnership announced by the National Hockey League in April.
"The diversity found in our League has always been a point of pride for us. Our MLS WORKS 'Don't Cross the Line' initiative is a strong statement that we are a league that stands against discrimination," MLS Commissioner Don Garber said in a statement. "We are proud to partner with You Can Play to ensure that all of our fans and players know that MLS is committed to providing a safe environment where everyone is treated equally, and with dignity and respect."
The effort aims at improving the environment for both players and fans, as You Can Play's president, Patrick Burke noted.
"This partnership with MLS and the MLS Players Union confirms the message that MLS will not tolerate discrimination of any kind inside the locker rooms, on the field or in the stands. We will be able to provide vital resources directly to the players, while also ensuring that every soccer fan feels welcome to attend MLS events," Burke said.
Rogers made his comeback to the game following a brief retirement after he came out earlier this year on May 26, after having announced his trade to the LA Galaxy just a day earlier.
Rogers is the first out gay man to play in the leading five major league team sports of baseball, basketball, football, hockey or soccer.
Todd Dunivant, an LA Galaxy defender and member of the MLS Players Union executive board, supports the effort, saying in a statement, "As MLS players, we believe that our clubs are strongest when everyone feels safe and included in the locker room. In addition, we love our fans and want all of them to feel safe in our stands. We are excited to work with You Can Play to ensure that both our locker rooms and our stadiums are welcoming to the LGBT community."
According to a news release announcing the partnership, You Can Play will build upon MLS' existing anti-discrimination education and training resources and it will provide players with the ability to seek counseling or ask questions confidentially.
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USA Soccer Continues Surprising Streak Of Being Good
The stars and stripes storm over Panama as if they were digging a canal. (Too soon?)
The soccerin' fools of the U.S. Men's National Team are currently enjoying one of their best stretches since Jurgen Klinsmann took over as head coach; after a historic victory over Germany in a friendly match earlier this month the team has run off consecutive World Cup-qualifier wins over Jamaica and Panama.
Via: Ted S. Warren / AP
In last night's 2-0 victory — which easily could have been a four or five goal win — both connections were beautiful. On the first, Jozy Altidore extended his scoring streak to three games on a perfect feed by Fabian Johnson.
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Quarterback Feeds Giraffe
San Diego Zoo hosts San Diego football players.
Via: Ken Bohn / San Diego Zoo
An excellent tip arrived in the inbox yesterday featuring this sentence: "San Diego Chargers quarterback Philip Rivers scored points with giraffes at the San Diego Zoo earlier today as the quarterback fed the animals their favorite food: tasty biscuits." You can see Mr. Rivers and the tasty biscuits above. The giraffes pictured are Nicky (a 15-year-old female, the lower giraffe) and Silver, a 20-year-old male (the upper giraffe). There are five other Masai giraffes in San Diego besides these two, including a month-old baby.
What exactly makes these tasty biscuits so tasty? A zoo spokesperson says they're made of soy beans, sugar beet pulp and alfalfa meal with nutrients added.
Here's what sugar beet pulp looks like, apparently.
Via: web2.mendelu.cz
MMMMMMMM! Sugar beet pulp: it's what's for dinner, when Philip Rivers is cooking!
One final BONUS PICTURE: quarterbacks holding a bird! That's Charlie Whitehurst, left, and Mike Hermann with Matilda, a kookaburra. (And Meredith, a Charger cheerleader.)
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Meet Lean Mean Danny Green, The Spurs' Sharpshooting Finals Hero
Green — who was cut by LeBron’s Cavaliers back in 2010 — is a major part of why the Spurs now lead the Heat two games to one.
In Game 3 of the NBA Finals, the favored Heat lost by an insane 36 points in San Antonio. The biggest reason why were these two role players: Danny Green and Gary Neal, who combined for 13 threes.
Via: Eric Gay / AP
Lean Mean Danny Green — who, in a delicious twist of irony, was cut by the Cavs after playing with LeBron in 2009-10 — has been the coolest story of the Finals so far. A second-round pick, he's now a Spurs starter who's become one of the league's best three-point shooters; he shot 42.9% this year and had the eighth-most three-point field goals in the NBA. And through three Finals games, he's only six threes shy of the record for most in a Finals.
Walking through his threes from last night shows how effective — and weirdly likable — of a player he's become.
He didn't hit his first until midway through the second quarter, burying one in the corner. Dwyane Wade cannot leave Green in the corner like that.
SMILE AT EM, DANNY
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Baseball Player Plucks Home Run Ball Out Of The Air
He makes this look easy.
In the first inning of the Angels/Orioles game last night, Angels outfielder Peter Bourjos leaped into the centerfield wall to make an unbelievable catch and rob J.J. Hardy of a home run.
Let's look at that from a different angle.
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25 Reasons Why Alex Morgan Is The Perfect Lady
It’s like an angel came down to Earth and decided to play soccer.
Because she looks smashing as a member of the Queen's Guard.
Via: Harry How / Getty Images
And adorable in front of the UK flag.
Via: Harry How / Getty Images
Even though she's American.
Via: Rich Lam / Getty Images
Lip bite.
Via: Stanley Chou / Getty Images
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NFL Comissioner, Other Americans Remain Resolutely Unenlightened On Racial-Slur Issue
In the last two decades, the nation has completely turned itself around on gay rights, but opinions on “Redskins” have barely budged. (Updated with a newly-discovered letter Roger Goodell wrote addressing the issue.)
Via: Library of Congress
Update - June 12: The website Indian Country Today obtained and posted a letter from NFL commissioner Roger Goodell about the "Redskins" name. The letter is dated June 5 and addressed to the co-chairs of the Congressional Native American Caucus, both of whom were among the 10 congressional representatives who'd earlier sent a letter to Goodell asking him to move to change the name. Goodell argues that "Redskins" in the context of Washington football has "from its origin represented a positive meaning distinct from any disparagement that could be viewed in some other context."
In the United States, you can usually assume that the civil rights situation for any given minority group is going to get better over time. The process may take, you know, hundreds of horrible years, but for the most part, a group that's getting crapped on can at least know that things will be somewhat less awful in the future. Twenty years ago, for example, it would've been seen as stupid or quixotic to propose legal gay marriage or run for president as a black man. Now Washington, D.C., is home to a black president running a government that's rapidly ending organized discrimination against gays and lesbians. But D.C. is also home to an insult to civil rights and basic human decency that's demonstrated a surprisingly un-American resistance to progress: a football team with a racial slur for a nickname.
That would be the Redskins, of course, whose name is once again in the news thanks to a National Museum of the American Indian panel and a D.C. city council member who suggested changing it to Redtails in honor of the Tuskegee Airmen WWII fighter pilots. Redskins owner Dan Snyder got self-righteous about declaring that he'd never change the team's name, acting as if his stand against the dignity of a tiny minority group were some profile in courage. What's more, the public seems to be behind him: Only 11% of those surveyed in a recent Associated Press-GfK poll thought the name should be changed. The AP notes that this number is up only four percentage points from 1992, the last time the Redskins played in the Super Bowl and the last time a national audience was polled on the issue. And four points is the margin of error on the poll.
1992 happened to be a significant year for the gay-rights movement as well: a case challenging Hawaii's refusal to allow gay couples to marry was pending before the state's Supreme Court, while presidential candidate Bill Clinton campaigned on the position that gays should be able to serve openly in the military. The court case resulted in a 1993 decision leading Hawaii toward same-sex marriage; Clinton's move on gay rights led Congress to pass the "don't ask, don't tell" policy in 1993 as well. It was, in many ways, the beginning of the national debate about gay rights that is ongoing today. And the contrast between Americans' progressing attitudes toward gay people and their attitudes toward this particular American Indian slur in these last two decades is...significant. According to Gallup, American sentiment regarding the legalization of gay marriage has gone from 68%-27% against to 53%-46% in favor in the last 17 years. Now 77% of Americans say they know a gay person; that number was only 42% in the year Clinton was elected.
No one in the NFL or Redskins organizations need wait until a majority of Americans oppose the use of "Redskins" to do the right/obvious thing and change it, of course. But some movement on that front might force their hand. It's said that the best way to get someone to change their mind on gay rights is to have one of their friends or family members come out of the closet. But Native Americans are only 1% of the population, a portion that's even lower in D.C., which makes sense, because "Our Most Popular Sports Team Is Called [Your Ethnic Group] Sucks" is not a good slogan for selling people on moving to your city. It's going to take something besides person-to-person interaction to change the national mood (and the mood of D.C. fans) on the issue. You'd think that thing could just be taking a half-second to realize that it's absurd to have a football team with a racial-slur nickname in 2013. But that's what a reasonable person watching the Redskins might've thought in 1992 too, and two decades later, only the names on the backs of the jerseys have changed.
Daniel Snyder.
Via: Evan Vucci / AP
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