Erica Wiebe is introspective.
Gabriella Papadakis stands tall.
Maryna Bekh-Romanchuk and Misha Romanchuk steal a kiss.
Andrea Vargas found some flowers for some rest time.
David Llorente reps Segovia.
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Skiing great Deborah Compagnoni and figure skaters Noemi Tali & Stefano Frasco help introduce Milano Cortina 2026's Futura logo, chosen after a public vote. On yesterday's International Transgender Day of Visibility, Olympic runner Nikki Hiltz gets personal. Ahead of last week's Volta Ciclista a Catalunya where he finished 21st), UCI.org chatted with Richard Carapaz, proud to represent Ecuador on the world stage and promote road cycling. World champion heptathlete Katarina Johnson-Thompson updates 22 Voices podcast listeners on her injury recovery, and her plans for Tokyo 2020 and Birmingham 2022. Team Great Britain marathon Olympic trials winner Chris Thompson is a "heart-warming story of hard work and persistence". Tanzanian marathon hope Alphonce Simbu articulates the difficulties athletes - particularly from farther-flung and less wealthy nations - face as they strive for Tokyo during the ongoing pandemic. The New York Times looks back with Mikaela Shiffrin on the unique challenges she faced as she embarked on the 2020/21 season. Jimmy Shea: 2002 Olympic skeleton champion facing severe legal issues. Rio 2016 medal-winning canoeist Steffi Kriegerstein struggles to recover from Covid-19 in time for Tokyo. Former Major League Baseball-er Ian Kinsler set to make his Olympic debut for Team Israel this summer. Can Tan Ya-Ting improve upon her Rio 2016 bronze at Tokyo 2020 and conquer the Korean team in women's archery? Speedy "try machine" Jordan Conroy is confident that Team Ireland can qualify for Tokyo 2020 at June's last-ditch qualification tournament for rugby sevens.  Pole vault legend Sergey Bubka talks pole vaulting, Olympics, and Laureus World Sports Awards with Armand Duplantis. Faster Skier has a nice profile on U.S. Olympic cross country skier Sophie Caldwell Hamilton as she closes her career. Fresh off scoring "the most important goal" of his career, Juan Carlos Obregon celebrates Team Honduras' qualification to the men's soccer tournament at Tokyo 2020. (in Spanish) LPGA star Inbee Park reiterates her eagerness to defend her Rio 2016 title after another tour win. Canadian BMX freestyler Corey Walsh pens a poignant social post and comes out as gay. More Canada: the CBC checks in with water polo star Krystina Alogbo, who's set to miss her Olympic debut, thanks to the Covid-19 pandemic. Daniel Andre Tande: improvement in his recovery from a much publicized crash in ski jumping. London 2012 medalist and three-time Olympian Saina Nehwal tells The Olympic Channel that maintaining fitness is the focus goal as she approaches Tokyo 2020 badminton. European Climate Pact Ambassador, and double OIympic medalist sailor, Hannah Mills talks "Big Plastic Pedge" sustainability with Olympic.org. Boryana Kaleyn does her part to bring Bulgarian rhythmic gymnastics back to the top, as she dominates the conclusion of the first World Cup of the year.  Russian figure skaters showed their dominance at the World Figure Skating Championships this weekend, as they won three of four events and half of the overall medals. Titles went to Victoria Sinitsina & Nikita Katsalapov (ice dance), Anastasia Mishina & Alexandr Galliamov (pairs), and Anna Shcherbakova (ladies, leading a Russian sweep).  Meanwhile, The New York Times looks at the challenges Black figure skaters face in the sport, and the unque platform they have to address them. Open water swimmer Marc-Antoine Olivier reviews the last year and looks ahead to Tokyo 2020 and beyond with FINA.org. Mexico's women's archery team is better poised to make a good run in the Olympics after a strong showing at the Pan American Championships. Only taking up 49er racing six years ago, Robert Dickson and Sean Waddilove overcame youth and relative inexperience to secure an Irish berth at Tokyo 2020's sailing. Rio 2016 medalist with Team Serbia's men's basketball, Nikola Jokic is having a banner year with the NBA. The Olympic Channel offers a look. Best wishes for a speedy recovery to Pyeongchang 2018 gold medalist Daniel-Andre Tande, after a serious fall at a world cup ski jumping competition last week. Artistic swimmer Isidora Letelier is looking forward to the opportunity that Santiago 2023 will provide sport in Chile. Austrian madison cyclists Andreas Graf and Andreas Mueller have waited since 2008 for an Olympic opportunity, and they're trying to take the Tokyo 2020 wait in stride.  ESPN.com checks in with some prominent Tokyo 2020 hopefuls - gymnast Morgan Hurd, volleyball star Kerri Walsh Jennings, diver David Boudia, and soccer player Becky Sauerbruun - as they reflect on the past year that deflected their Olympic dreams. Swimmer Mark Tewksbury, figure skater Eric Radford, and speed skater Anastasia Bucsis are 'proud to play' in a new children's book sharing Canadian LGBTQ athlete stories. Taekwondo star Pauline Lopez leads a new campaign to help inspire future sportspeople in the Philippines. Judoka Sam Chouchi relishes hearing the Belgian national anthem after his gold medal win at the Tbilisi Grand Slam this past week. Team USA profiles Ariel Torres, who took advantage of pandemic restrictions to focus on getting him closer to qualification in karate's Olympic debut at Tokyo 2020. Congratulations go to weightlifter Fernando Reis, belated winner of Brazil's first-ever IWF World Championship medal. He just set the Australian national 1,500 meter track record, but Oliver Hoare may not qualify for the national team for the Olympics. More Australia: Jared Tallent, race walking legend retires. 
Kai Kazmirek has a photoshoot.
Laura Peel flies.
Tommaso Dotti's feeling blue.
Sprinter Leon Reid tries his hand at modeling.
Luis Knabl and friends take a hike.
March 1970 in Sports History...An Immortal CrashGrowing up in the 1970s in the United States, a staple of Saturday afternoon television for me was ABC's Wide World of Sports. The show actually debuted in 1961, with host Jim McKay, and regularly featured a presentation of one, or more, 'lesser-known' sports. Thinking now, I may be able to credit at least some part of my sports fandom - and in particular, my international sports fandom - to regularly watching it. The show often featured skiing, figure skating, tennis, and more global events.  But what really stands out to me in my memory is the show's intro, featuring the line, "the thrill of victory...and the agony of defeat", used to describe the drama of the upcoming sports content (check the video link at the bottom of this article). And, indelibly linked to the "agony of defeat" was the image of a ski jumper crashing down and off the hill. Well, that ski jumper was Yugoslavian Vinko Bogataj, and the mishap was from a competition in Oberstdorf, West Germany in March of 1970. And luckily for sports television, ABC picked the footage as its go-to example of the potential disaster of sport.  Bogataj, interviewed years later, hadn't initially realized his would-be viral fame in the U.S. He had suffered a concussion and an ankle injury in the accident, but returned to competition a couple of months afterward. At the show's 20th anniversary event in New York, Bogataj began to sense his surprising place in sports history when boxing legend Muhammad Ali asked him for an autograph. Eventually a painter, Bogataj the ski jumper may not have won that 1970 competition, but he did earn a memorable place in sports history cherished by legions of sports fans. Wide World of Sports, with its Bogataj clip in use to its end, finished in 1998. That image of 'defeat' is immediately what I remember most of the show. Oberstdorf remains a prominent ski jumping and flying competitive destination. |
About This BlogHighlights from the world of Olympic sports athletes, as seen through the cheeky lens of one particular, passionate fan.
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