Rose Bowl

Say Goodbye to Los Angeles

Centuries before William James coined the phrase, men have sought a “moral equivalent of war,” some human endeavor to satisfy the jingoistic lust of man, without the carnage of war. For some, the modern Olympic Games have ...

Belmont Park

Wishing I’d Played the Ponies

I was tempted to have a flutter on the Belmont Stakes last weekend. Not that I’m much of a horseracing fan. It’s only that I’ve been feeling exceptionally idle lately. When in this frame of mind, my instinctive response to the ...

Maria Sharapova

Women’s Tennis: Equal Pay for Inferior Work

I’ll let you in on a secret jealously guarded by the God of PC: Equal prize money for men and women at the Grand Slam tennis tournaments is an insult to every principle of fairness—including equal pay for equal work. The pay is ...

Fernando Valenzuela

Fernandomania No Mas

With the Census Bureau announcing this spring that the number of Hispanics in America has surpassed 50 million"€”a large majority of them of Mexican background"€”it's worth remembering the "€œFernandomania"€ that swept the ...

Football, Tribalism, and Racist Bananas

In sporting terms, America is very much an island with its own quaint customs. For this reason the etymologically unsound American version of "€œfootball"€"€”the world's most popular sport"€”mainly consists of throwing a ...

Andy Gray and Richard Keys

Sexism On and Off the Field

On January 22, Sky Sports announcers Andy Gray and Richard Keys were overheard joking about female assistant referee Sian Massey. Keys said: "€œSomebody better get down there and explain offside to her."€ Gray replied: "€œWomen ...

War Games

October is the busiest month on the spectator sports calendar, when we finally get to the baseball games that do matter, and most football teams still have hopes that their games will matter. Football knocked off baseball as America's ...

Blackballed?

Let's celebrate diversity! In Division 1-A college football, 19 of the top 20 players in rushing yards are"€”as sports fans expect"€”black. Yet, the #1 rusher is a white guy. Toby Gerhart, Stanford's 235-pound tailback, has piled ...


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