Adidas Dreams

There was a young boy who wished he was good at basketball.  One day he went with his friend Jay to the experts and bought a pair of basketball shoes that fit him perfectly.  The young boy loved his shoes because they were the shoes of his dreams.  Jay said that they are cool.

The young boy and Jay played basketball after school when they decided to have fun.  Jay is the better player.  Jay could dribble and lay-up and shoot the ball.  Jay could outplay the young boy even when the young boy tried his best.  The young boy asked Jay, “What is your secret?  How come you are so good at basketball?”  Jay answered, “Skills.”

Jay made the young boy practice dribbling and shooting.  The young boy was tired of drills; he was beginning to lose interest in basketball.  The young boy wanted to be good at ball magically.  Jay heard his thoughts and said, “You want to know a secret magic trick and it works?”  The young boy asked, “Skills?”  Jay placed the ball in his hands and cherished it.  Jay told him, “There was a great player who slept with his ball.  If you have the ball in your hands alot, you’ll have better handling of the ball.”

That night the young boy was so tired from playing basketball that he didn’t take a shower and kept his dirty clothes on when he went to bed.  He took the basketball and his shoes to bed too.  The young boy made a wish; he wished he was better than Jay at basketball.  He wished he was faster than Jay, taller than Jay, and better than Jay.

The next day was Saturday.  The young boy heard the doorbell.  He got up from bed and opened the door.  It was Jay.  Jay looked at the young boy and said.  “Change your clothes and take a bath.”  The young boy was glad to see Jay.  “Is it time for basketball today?”  Jay replied, “Give me the ball.  I’ve got more practice for you.”

When the young boy finished his bath, Jay was sitting on the couch.  The young boy said, “I’m ready.”  Jay told him, “We aren’t going to play basketball today.”  The young boy asked, “What’s going on, Jay?”  Jay made him listen, “I heard you last night…  I’m here to tell you one of the most important things about basketball.  Patience.  We are still young.  One day you might be taller than me, maybe even faster than me, but you won’t be better than me because you are missing patience.  I made you practice because you wanted to be better but I didn’t want you to stop having fun…  Remember when we bought those shoes?  That was fun.  And when we get a close game?  That is fun.”

Jay asked the young boy to sit down with him on the couch.  The young boy needed to say something to Jay; he wanted to say that he is tired of losing.  Jay said, “Don’t worry.  I can feel that you are having a hard time dealing with all these sports.  It seems like it’s the only thing that guys respect.  But it’s cool cause you are good at sports you just aren’t great.  I’m great but I’m not the greatest.” 

The young boy grew a smile and happily said, “I’m good?”  Jay answered back, “Skills.”  They agreed and chilled out.  They passed the ball to each other in the living room and talked about girls.  The young boy was happy because they were spending their childhood in such a cool way.  He also felt a little sad because one day he would have to change his shoes for bigger ones.  The young boy thought about all the shoes he would have to wear and the time it would take to wear them.  He felt good.

Figure Skating is a Real Sport

For those who feel that figure skating is not a real sport, think again!  Just like any other sports, it is physically and mentally demanding that also comes with accidents and injuries.

Check this TSN report on Jennifer Dube and partner Bryce Davison. He slices her pretty face with his blade during their LP at the Four Continents Championships.  The video also includes some of the worst accidents in pairs skating. Beware. It’s not for the faint heart.

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The First Gay NBA Player

John AmaechiJohn Amaechi is the first NBA player to come out about his sexuality as a openly gay man on Wednesday. Amaechi played a total of five seasons with the NBA, which included playing for the Cavaliers, Magic and the Jazz.  Amaechi is one of only a handful of professional male athletes to come out openly after their retirement.  David Kopay a former NFL running back came out in 1977. Offensive lineman Rosy Simmons and defensive lineman Esera Tualo were more recent. MLB players like Glenn Burke, Billy Bean and Dave Pallone has also come out of the closet. Perhaps, the most famous openly gay athlete Martina Navratilova, praised Amaechi’s decision a courageous one, setting a good example to those who feared their sexuality, that they too are not alone.

Doc Rivers, the former Magic coach said on Wednesday night before Boston played the Miami Heat. “John Amaechi, when I was coaching him, was a great kid. He did as much charity work as anybody in our city, and he’s still doing it. That’s what I wish we focused on. “Unfortunately, we’re talking about his sexual orientation, which I couldn’t care a flying flip about.” “He was great for me, he was great for the team.”

Rivers reaction was one of the few positive ones that came from the NBA community. Players like Hunter and James saw things differently.  Steven Hunter, a centre for the Philadelphia 76ers. “As long as he don’t make any advances toward me I’m fine with it,” he said. “As long as he came to play basketball like a man and conducted himself like a good person, I’d be fine with it.”   Lebron James, one of today’s hottest NBA player said “With team-mates you have to be trustworthy, and if you’re gay and you’re not admitting that you are, then you are not trustworthy. So that’s like the No1 thing as team-mates - we all trust each other. You’ve heard of the in-room, locker room code. What happens in the locker room stays in there. It’s a trust factor, honestly.” Clearly, both James and Hunters are idiots for thinking that someone’s sexuality defines your skills as a Basket Ball Player. 

Unfotunately, John’s decision to come out after his retirement will not make a difference he had hoped for in Professional Male Sports. It’s obvious that you must be a straight man or pretend to be a straight man to play at the highest level of your discipline.  Gays do not belong in the locker room.  John’s Amaechi’s book ‘Man in the Middle’ which will be released on Feb. 20 will give you an inside look in his personal life. But don’t’ get too excited, John has no intention of outing any other athletes.  (John Amaechi will discuss his book Sunday on “Outside The Lines” (9:30 a.m. ET, ESPN).

You’re Never Too Old!

You’re never too old to do anything! This was clear to me when I decided to take skating lessons in October 2005. I have never ice skated before, but I have been interested in the sport for a number of years now. I have always been an avid sports fan, but skating was one of my favorite sports to watch. Maybe because I liked judge sports, but I also found the sport interesting because it combined both beauty and athleticism, and yes from my experience this sport is difficult. I’ve had my share of sprained wrists, ankles, almost a broken knee and bruises that seems to take forever to heal.

Anything I do or try to do I have little patience for. I wanted to learn and do things as soon as possible. Jumps, that normally will take a couple of years to learn, I learned in a couple of months. My approach was to not be afraid to do anything; I’ll fall and fall, but like life I will keep getting up. I ended the year with all the jumps except the axel. My spins are kind of weak, as well as my edges and basic skills, this is because I’ve never taken the time to learn them and practice them. I found that I focused a lot more on the jumps. Click here for a short video of my skating.

So when this season started, I wanted to set goals for myself, specifically I wanted to improve my edges and basic skills. But along with that I’ve included the following goals:

Jumps: Axel and in combination. Double Jumps
Spins: Forward/Back scratch, sit and camel spin

Footwork: Straight line/Circular footwork

Edges: Outside and Inside spread eagle

I know that I will never get to Olympic or World class level. That is not my goal. I am doing this as a personal choice and challenge. I love challenges. I also found that skating has taught me a lot of things that I can use off the ice (discipline, patience, foundation, control, technique). For those who complain that you’re too old to start anything, think again. The best years of your life are between the ages of 20 – 60.

Keep coming back for progress reports on my goals. I’ll also include videos soon.

Andy Roddick Looks Ahead to the Future

Andy RoddickAlthough Andy Roddick lost to the now 3 time US Open Champion Roger Federer in yesterday’s finals, his optimism and positive attitude is appreciated and encouraging. The once No. 2 seated tennis player began the US Open tournament at No. 10 in the ATP ranking. And after yesterday’s game against Federer, he has moved to the No. 6 spot.

Roger Federer, the only man in history to win 3 consecutive Wimbledon and U.S Open Titles, remains at the No. 1 spot.

After a rough year for Roddick, he ends this season on a positive note, looking ahead to the future and becoming once again a contender amongst the very best in the world.

I Thought Agassi Retired…

I honestly thought he retired. I was 12 years old when I first heard the name Andre Agassi. I thought he was no longer playing Tennis, then again I haven’t been following Tennis like I use to when I was a child. In today’s media, you will usually hear names like Blake or Federer. 12 years later I hear his name again, as one of the biggest stories in this year’s US Open.

If you missed the match between Andre Agassi and Marcos Baghdatis on Thursday night during the US Open, be sure to watch the replays and highlights. It was a five-set match that lasted for four hours. It was nail biting and emotionally engaging game. A game that could of gone either way.

Baghdatis, at 21 years old was a worthy opponent. Agassi, at 36 years old is playing in his final tournament of his career at the US Open. This match exemplified, what an incredible athlete Agassi really is, and the impact he has had in this sport.

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