The Best Sporting Event No One Follows

One of the best and most undercovered events of the year is taking place this weekend. The European Tour Qualifying School Final is taking place in Girona in Spain. It won't get much coverage - I'm pretty sure it's not on TV, while the website of the European Tour itself isn't giving the Tournament much prominence.

Yet this is golf, and indeed sport, at it's purest. Men, and their caddies, playing for a living, for a livelihood. I'd love to talk about the stories but they're difficult to find out! I'd love to advocate that you follow it but, again, that's not the easiest thing to. The drama is easy to imagine though. One putt, one hooked shot, one lucky bounce could be the difference between getting a Card and not. Sure, it's for money rather than winning, but it's an event where dreams can come true...or not.

Yet I shall say this - good luck to the Irish who are competing in Girona this week. The Almost Daily Sports Blog wishes long, straight and true shots onto Michael McGeady, Simon Thornton, Michael Hoey and Johnathon Caldwell.

And for the rest of you, check out the account of the USPGA Final Qualifying School Tournament in John Feinstein's A Good Walk Spoiled. A compelling read, and a great book.

Fantastic F1 Finale In Store

Lewis v. Felipe.


McLaren v. Ferrari.


Tomorrow's Brazilian Grand Prix promises to be special. World Title deciders often fail to deliver but tomorrow's could be special. Today's Qualifying has thrown up a grid that should give us an interesting struggle for Hamilton, and the weather (80% chance of rain according to weather.com) will also give us another wild card to deal with.

I've been lucky this year to have attended two Grand Prix. Thanks to the fine people at Bridgestone for that one! I won't pretend that gives me an insight into the Championship battle, but I did on both occasions get to see Lewis up close. He is an affable guy, one who represents the sport well. In Barcelona he was good enough to show up and lend his support to the GP2 Series, while in Monza I personally witnessed him laugh at Italian fans who heckled him as he entered the paddock.

I'll still be pulling for Massa though. I've a bet on him.

Either way, most importantly and in all seriousness, my one true wish is for a good race, a tight battle and for a lack of controversy, something which has been all too prevident this season.

* * *

Also, as a quick aside, tomorrow's race will be the last covered by ITV in the UK for the foreseeable future. From 2009, the contract returns to what many call the sport's spiritual home at the BBC. I, for one, was delighted when I heard the news but tomorrow will nonetheless be an era for fans of the sport. ITV are unlikely to have a grand farewell like the BBC did in 1996 (though I did like the montage before today's Qualifying session) but when tomorrow's race ends, I know I will not be the only Formula 1 fan from this part of the world thanking Mark, Ted, Martin, Steve and even James for their work over the past 12 seasons.

There's Hope For Me Yet!

If this woman can get a job then surely even I can too!!




What a gaffe. God bless Youtube!

Yours,
Gavin Grace....your potential employee!

Time To 'Execute' Racism in Boxing

You have to learn one thing. You have to learn that slickness that black fighters have and then you'll really be a great champion.

Bernard Hopkins, speaking to Kelly Pavlik after winning their non-title 170 pound fight on Saturday.

What can you say about Bernard Hopkins? From the moment he entered the ring in Atlantic City on Saturday night, wearing (for the first time in many a year) his trademark Executioner mask, we should have known something was up.


What a performance.


For those of you who didn't see it, B-Hop dominated Pavlik from start to finish with a comfortable unanimous decision. I had it 118-107 but in truth it didn't matter - this was a (surprising) whitewash.


However, his comments after the fight (shown above, taken from Dan Rafael's account of the fight on espn.com) are sickening. Coming from the man who said he would 'never lose to a white boy' before he fought Joe Calzaghe, this is another racist statement which should not be tolerated.


I have no problem with Bernard as a fighter. Sure, he's not the most exciting to watch, but to see him mentally as well as physically deconstruct an opponent is a great sight. It is art. Yet for this statement to go virtually unnoticed is a disgrace.


Bernard - you are a first ballot Hall of Famer. In a time when boxing shoots itself in the foot with alphabet soup organisations and too many champions, you were for many years an undisputed champion in one of it's key divisions. In terms of dominance and superiority, you were a throwback to halycon fighters such as Sugar Ray Robinson and Carlos Monzon. Yet statements such as this, as well as your chequered history, make you unlikeable as a human being.


Now, more then ever, boxing needs strong leaders in the ilk of Ali, Louis and Marciano. MMA, though I don't rate it myself, has become a threat. It is taking money and attention out of boxing. Yet it is struggling as well, and in the fight of the pugilistic disciplines, 'faces' would go a long way. These men need to be likable, these men need to be exciting and, Bernard, it makes no difference if they're black or white.

Baseball = Politics?

Saw this picture just now, over here.

Is it a case of the second one will be right?

Or, one down one to go?

I know which one I want... but I won't say. Sport and politics should never mix... ;)

Agony and Ecstacy

So why do we like sport? That's a question I'm often asked. I'm passionate about my sport, just ask anyone who knows me, including Ash who's on the couch beside me watching the Gilmore Girls... and she says I'm sad.

This weekend I experienced the highs and the lows of sport, the reason that I follow teams, sportsmen, my country, my province.

On Saturday night the Chicago Cubs were dumped out of the MLB Playoffs by the Dodgers. Another sweep. Christ.. Now I'm not the biggest Cubbie in the world. I'm only a recent convert. Nonetheless, I really wanted them to win this year. It would have been great symmetry, 100 years after their last World Series win, five years after Steve Bartman. However, it was not to be.

By the way, Ozzie... Fuck you too.

Then, less than 24 hours later, Connacht took on Leinster in the Magners League in rugby. Oh Connacht... being a fan of the worst province in is the definition of a labour of love. We are given less money then every other team, and are less successful then the others also. Yet sometimes...sometimes the underdog wins. That was last night. Connacht beat Leinster 19-18. It was amazing. I cried. Genuinely, I cried. It was beautiful.

That's why I love sport. Joy, despair.. I laughed, I cried. It was everything that sport should be about. It was life at it's purest. Sport gives us moments we yearn for, ranges of emotion that re only otherwise hit in times such as family deaths, births and weddings. My life is sport. Sport is my life.

Lance Is Back

Astana? Astana? I've blogged about Lance before. I'm not a fan, but if his comeback brings attention to the world of cycling, in a positive way, then great. But to go to a team with the history of Astana....? Jeez Lance. You're making loving you even harder then I thought possible.

I'm A Cubbie

I love sport. If you don't know me, then you've probably gathered that by now. I hope. I am passionate. I love sport, and I love the teams I follow. Galway hurlers. Galway footballers. Galway United. Manchester United. Connacht Rugby. Kansas City Chiefs. Anyone who dons an Irish singlet. I follow them all.

I like other sports though, but sometimes I do so without following a team. I love the sport. I watch baseball, college sports in the US and can enjoy them without the manic obsession of devoting myself to one team. Tonight... I became a Cubbie.

I watched this film and, honestly, I cried. More than once. It is a piece of art - a stunning 90 seconds of video. It is the testimony of ten people, ten life-long Chicago Cubs fans. They range from 7 to 100 and all share one thing - they've never seen their side win the World Series. They are living through anguish - anguish known by Chiefs fans, by Connacht followers, by Galway United fans, by those of us who follow a side for reasons beyond the scoreboard. I empathise with these people - with Helen Kieling who has followed the Cubs for all of her life, and still hopes that she will experience the win some day, though she has all but lost her sight and hearing.

Sport gives hope. It gives pain and anguish, and pure joy. I love it. It gives me life. Watch this video - you'll understand.

Go Cubs.

Pollard Didn't Go Gillooly

I'm a Kansas City Chiefs fan. For my sins. Don't get me wrong, I love the red and gold. Love. There's a long story behind that, but feel free to ask some time.

We're set for a bad year. In fact, our high point may have been on Sunday when we lost to the New England Patriots. We will not get the same level of coverage again me thinks.

For those of you who don't know, Tom Brady is out for the season after a hit from our safety Brandon Pollard. It wasn't malicious. It just happened. It's a contact sport. I'm being neutral here. Honest. Check the hit out on nfl.com for proof. It did remind me of something though. The song below was written last year when the Patriots were invincible. It's very apt.



Explanation of title is here

The Premier League - Raging Bull Or Cash Cow?

It's transfer deadline day. Between work this morning (in Spin Southwest) and keeping an eye online since I came home, I've been keeping one eye on it most of the day. Well done the BBC!

The interesting move of the day, for me, is the purchase of Manchester City by a UAE based business group. SKY News say that these guys have ten times the money of Roman Abramovich and judging by the rumours today, they're willing to spend it too. They're just the latest club to be bought up by oligarchs - Aston Villa, Liverpool, Manchester United and of course Chelsea have all been purchased by owners from foreign lands in recent years.

I don't mind their origin. They can be English or Estonian for all I care. What does worry me is that these are businessmen, with their eyes fixed firmly on the ca$h they can make from these deals. SKY, Setanta (and increasingly foreign TV companies) have boosted the coffers of the Premier League as a whole. That money makes today one of the most fascinating days of the year, when (literally) hundreds of millions of pounds are spent on players from all corners of the world.

I worry about the future though. What happens when the bubble bursts? What happens when the owners pull out? Where will that leave the fans who have been loyal in the dark days of terraces, muddy pitches and All-English XI's? The bubble may not burst for some time - the Champions League etc. mean that the clubs have several sources of income. Yet, this will dry up in time. That's the nature of the market.

Speaking of the market, that very same commercialism has brought about these riches. It is the reason that the League is the strongest in the world. It is the reason that these oligarchs are here and, it is the reason that they cannot simply be banned/removed. The future is bright, for now, but in these times of economic uncertainty clouds will soon gather on the horizon.