IndyCar champion Dan Wheldon is the British pilot, died in a crash at the last race in Las Vegas. Dan Wheldon, who moved to america from his native England with about winning the Indianapolis 500 and went on to twice prevail in the famed race, died Sunday following a massive, fiery wreck that involved 15 cars at the Las Vegas Indy 300.
Mr. Wheldon, 33, was one of the most popular IndyCar Series drivers.
He called the Indy 500 “the biggest sporting event in the world,” and his second and final victory there came in most unexpected fashion. Trailing rookie JR Hildebrand with one turn remaining, Mr. Wheldon was resigned to finishing second for the third consecutive year. (more…)
Diego Maradona and his deft left foot have struck again, but this time the former Argentina great had to apologize for it.
The sign was delivered to the Argentinian icon by his daughters having a special message from his grandson.
So when the supporter kept moving it, Maradona lost his rag and lashed out. (more…)
To give your inclement weather spirits a little pick-me-up, why not listen to the foreign language stylings of Yoann Gourcuff?
Seems that due to the snow in France, he and his teammates experienced some hardships whilst en route to training. Don’t panic – his mascara is all natural so there’s no smudging in his lash game.
In the above vid, Mr. G explains how he kept busy during the 1 hour commute from Bordeaux city center to Le Haillan, where the training ground is located. As he recounts an earlier car accident, which required police assistance, Gourcuff admits his delight (and subsequent gigglefest we imagine) as the policemen slipped and fell.
Yesterday we received news of a developing sex scandal that has taken the Aussie Rules Football League by storm.
However, at the time we didn’t necessarily feel the need to make any mention of it on our website.
After all, it seemed like just another one of your typical sex scandals that we have heard about over and over throughout the past year.
A 17-year-old high school student by the name of Kim Duthie is claiming to have had sex with several AFL players, including members of the St. Kilda club, whom she claims impregnated her during one of their encounters (the child was stillborn).
As for the players involved in the scandal, they were not punished because the sex was deemed consensual and Duthie lied about her age.
Displeased with the way she was treated during the entire investigation, Duthie has now taken her fight to facebook, where she released two nude photos of the St. Kilda players and claims to have 19-21 more, including images involving the use of drugs.
Seems like some pretty wild stuff. However, we tend to refrain from posting images of naked males on our website, leaving us with little reason to even talk about it, until now.
Thanks to this animated recreation of the entire incident, we have no choice but to now consider this story post-worthy.
I have always wondered why these European soccer leagues have decided to stage their regular seasons throughout the course of the cold winter months.
However, as a fan I always enjoy the sight of a snow covered pitch and the appearance of the classic orange ball.
And such a sight is even more incredible when it is accompanied by a spectacular goal, like the one scored by Lierse’s Wesley Sonck during their Belgian Pro League game against Racing Genk.
Tis the season of giving and Sonck’s bicycle kick goal was enough to give his team a single point following a 1-1 draw in this tough match against the league’s top team.
The UEFA Champions League is usually reserved for the best that European soccer has to offer, so you likely wouldn’t expect to see a goalkeeper line up to kick a slow-rolling ball, only to have it hop over his foot and into the net.
FC Twente keeper Sander Boschker was the victim of such a disastrous moment yesterday during a UCL match against Tottenham.
Thankfully for him, the match was rather meaningless as Tottenham and Inter had already secured their spots in the knockout round, while Twente will have to watch from the comfort of their own homes. However, they did manage to score an equalizer moments later, earning the tie in front of their home crowd.
Watching this clip took me back to my elementary school days of playing soccer-baseball, as I used to wonder how it was humanly possible to strike out. After all, how hard can it be to kick a soccer ball that is rolling directly at you no faster than three miles per hour? I guess for some, the answer to that question is “pretty damn hard.”
Second Division German Soccer League highlights typically don’t make the headlines unless they involve images of a leg being snapped in half, much like Matias Concha’s did last night during a match against Union Berlin.
In a race to chase down a loose ball, the Bochum defender slid while his counterpart, Berlin’s Macchambes Younga-Mouhani, opted to stomp his way into the challenge, taking out Concha’s leg along the way. It was a gruesome incident that left the Swede with fractures to his tibia and fibula, which will keep him out for the remainder of the season.
As for Younga-Mouhani, he was not booked for the foul and in typical soccer player fashion, hit the ground as if he were the one with the leg that had just been snapped in half.
Proof That Amateur Locker Room Boxing Is Amazing, Or Terrible, Depending On Who You Are (Video)
Amateur locker room boxing; where two combatants enter the ring, but only one leaves without suffering a nasty knockout and a subsequent case of brain damage.
This fight was no different, but those in attendance don’t appear to be even the slightest bit worried that there is a man laying unconscious on the floor after taking a devastating right hook to the chin.
Why help him out when you can just stand over him and snap some pictures?
Soccer goal celebrations are supposed to be a time when teammates can get together and bask in the glory of their accomplishment by either exchanging some friendly taps and shakes, or by putting together some choreographed moves for the fans.
But in Italy, it appears as though they have their own way of doing things.
Forget about the giant love-fest that typically ensues following a goal in soccer. Bari’s Francesco Caputo just wants to let out some rage. And he did just that following the equalizing goal against Cesena on Sunday by punching Emmanuel Rivas (who had just finished setting him up for the goal) directly in the face.
And as you would expect, Rivas refused to pass Caputo the ball for the remainder of the game.
Games are full of emotions, laughters, reasons, cries and much more. Lets look back on the moments that made us (and the players) cry, laugh and look away with embarrassment.
10 When Defeat Becomes Victory: Barring a cricket score by Ivory Coast against North Korea on Friday, it looks as if Ghana will be the only African nation, of the six that took part in the World Cup, to make it to the second round. And its passage was confirmed despite losing its final group game to Germany (Ghana still finished second). But the real moment of joy came a week earlier, when striker Asamoah Gyan’s penalty kick five minutes from time resulted in the first-ever African team to triumph on African soil in a World Cup. You can tell from their outpouring of joy that the players realized what a special moment it was. The only question now is whether the U.S. can avenge its 2006 defeat at the hands of the Ghanaians in their knockout clash on Saturday.
9 The Ball Is Round: If the controversy over those vuvuzelas wasn’t bad enough, we had to put up with players and coaches moaning about this year’s World Cup ball. Called the Jabulani (which ironically means “to rejoice”), it has upset many in the game, who have suggested it’s making life unfair for goalkeepers (such as this Rob Green gaffe for England vs. the U.S.) because of the way the ball moves in the air. But the carping seemed to cease when Brazil made the Jabulani bend to its will, scoring goals of beauty against North Korea and Ivory Coast. And the other team in that group, Portugal, managed a not unhealthy seven against the Koreans. As former player Alan Hansen said on the BBC, “The ball is the ball. It always has been.”
8 Danish Delight: For all the amusing and heartbreaking moments that come during a World Cup, sometimes you just want to focus on the goals. And one that hasn’t received the attention it deserves was scored by Denmark en route to defeating Cameroon 2-1. After falling behind early on, the Danes equalized, thanks to Nicklas Bendtner. His finish, from Dennis Rommedahl’s low cross, was merely perfunctory. But the sensational 60-yard (yes, 60-yard) ball from defender Simon Kjaer lit up the proceedings. You likely will not see a better pass in the entire tournament.
7 Giving England the Bird: There are many lows involved in supporting England. The constant expectations nearly always dashed. A star player getting red-carded. Or seeing what David Beckham is wearing now. But on the evening of England’s dismal 0-0 draw against Algeria, two moments stood out. Firstly, a bird nestled on top of the goal England was shooting toward, safe in the knowledge that it would not be disturbed by anything as shocking as an English attack. And as unbelievable as it sounds, in the second half, the bird went to the other goal, which England was now attacking!
After the match, an England fan, Pavlos Joseph, unwittingly ended up near the England dressing room (he claims he was looking for the bathroom) and allegedly gave Beckham (who is in South Africa as part of England’s technical staff) a piece of his mind over England’s dispiriting display, supposedly calling it a “disgrace.”
6 The Crying Game: He’s known as the “People’s” Wayne Rooney, but surely North Korean striker Jong Tae Se went one further than his English counterpart ever would when he couldn’t stop crying during the playing of North Korea’s national anthem. It was a rare show of emotion from a citizen of a country not known for wearing its heart on its sleeve. It was simply too much for the 26-year-old, as he and his teammates were the first North Koreans making a Cup appearance since the boys of 1966, who memorably got as far as the quarterfinals. No such luck this time around, but their tenacious performance against the mighty Brazil — the game was goalless at the break and North Korea managed to score in the eventual 2-1 defeat — might have made Jong not the only North Korean to shed tears of pride.
5 U.S.A.! U.S.A.!: The U.S., much like England, never seems to make life easy for itself. So it was surely meant to be that the two would find themselves paired together in Group C. All too often, the U.S. falls behind early and has to chase the game, which is exactly what happened in 2006 and in its opening two group games this time around, which the U.S. came back to tie. And despite not allowing Algeria to take the lead in the final group game, that decisive goal just didn’t look as if it would arrive, with one goal disallowed and numerous chances missed. But as the game entered the dreaded injury time, Landon Donovan justified his being called the greatest American player of all time by slotting in the winner — which meant the U.S. not only progressed from the group but topped it for the first time since 1930.
4 Vu-Vu Voom!: No matter your thoughts on those vuvuzelas, you must have a heart of stone if you didn’t like hearing them when the host nation, South Africa, scored its goals. Its first strike was the opening effort of the World Cup and a beauty of a goal. The wonderfully named Siphiwe Tshabalala fired in a left-foot rocket against Mexico, but Bafana Bafana couldn’t hold on, tying the match 1-1. Its one win came against the hapless French, and despite South Africa’s being the first ever hosts to not make it through the group stage, there could surely be no more profound remark than that made by supporter Walter Ramagwalivha, who said about those you-know-whats, “We’ll blow now with pain in our hearts.”
3 There Will Be Shocks: The first round always offers surprises — those with long memories might recall the U.S. defeating England in 1950 in the “Miracle on Grass” — and 2010 was no different. Switzerland, which couldn’t even manage a goal four years ago in Germany, knocked off Euro 2008 champion (and many people’s favorite) Spain 1-0. And New Zealand — which, unlike the Swiss, has no soccer pedigree whatsoever — rather comfortably held reigning World Cup champion Italy 1-1. But that was only the beginning of Italy’s woes, as it failed to qualify from the group stage after losing to Slovakia 3-2. Coupled with France’s early exit, it meant that for the first time ever, neither of the previous tournament’s finalists got into the last 16 at the subsequent World Cup. For any Italians of advancing age, it was surely as bad as Italy’s 1966 defeat at the hands of North Korea, which also resulted in its failing to get out of the group. When the team returned home that year, the Azzurri were pelted with tomatoes.
2 Diego Armando Maradona: There’s no denying that the Argentine manager is having a good World Cup. His charges have swept all before them, taking a 100% record into the second round, and probably look the likeliest (after rival Brazil) to lift the trophy for what would be a third time. But as entertaining as Argentina is on the pitch, it’s nothing compared to the value you get from its main man off it. When asked by the media about his unique kiss-and-hug management style, Diego Maradona responded by saying — fret not! — he still prefers women, specifically his girlfriend “Veronica, who is blond and 31.” He hasn’t been shy with footballing opinions either, dismissing the only other player who might be better than him, Brazilian legend Pelé, with a suggestion to “go back to the museum.” And UEFA president — and former French great — Michel Platini was described as a “know-all” (though Maradona apologized for that one.) No matter what happens from here on in, someone should commission a Maradona reality show immediately.
1 France Farce: French football wasn’t exactly in the rudest of health heading into the World Cup. A fortuitous handball in the playoffs from out-of-sorts striker Thierry Henry handed them a place in the finals at Ireland’s expense. But with pretournament form patchy at best and the squad not jiving with coach Raymond Domenech, the portents weren’t good. And so it proved.
A drab opening-day draw against eventual group winner Uruguay was followed by a comprehensive 2-0 defeat to Mexico, which also progressed from the group. Then things really livened up. Striker Nicolas Anelka allegedly insulted the coach at halftime, which led to his being sent home. The players decided to protest by refusing to train. And while they turned up for their final match, against host team South Africa, another defeat (2-1) meant the waiting bus — to take the team straight to the airport — wasn’t wasted. Back home (though they had to sit in coach. The shame!), the underperforming squad woke up the morning after to learn that President Nicolas Sarkozy was convening a high-level meeting to figure out what went wrong.
