How Did America Get So Good?

Today the United States sets the record for most medals ever won at a Winter Olympics. Whether the men’s hockey team captures the gold or the silver against Canada, America will own 37 medals.
By contrast, 30 years ago, when the 1980 U.S. hockey team pulled off the Miracle on Ice, the entire American squad won [...]

Miracle Anniversary

Last night’s U.S. men’s Olympic hockey victory over Team Canada came nearly 30 years to the day after the “Miracle on Ice,” in which the Americans stunned the Soviet Union.
If anything, the victory over Canada underlines exactly how unbelievable the “Miracle on Ice” was. At least this year’s American team is made up of National [...]

The Power of Inspiration

Olympic ski champ Picabo Street can now claim two gold medals — her own and Lindsey Vonn’s.
Street captured her own in the 1998 Super G Olympics, and served as the inspiration for Vonn’s gold in this year’s Olympic downhill.
Victor Hugo said, “Inspiration and genius–one and the same.”
Vonn got a dose of inspiration — and genius [...]

Walking the Walk

So the father was lecturing his son.
“When Abraham Lincoln was your age, he was walking eight miles to school,” the father said.
Replied the son, “When Abraham Lincoln was your age, he was president.”
See? Kids can lecture, too.
So it not enough for parents and coaches to talk the talk.
“What you do speaks so loud I cannot [...]

Sports’ Biggest Story

Through it all … the Olympics … the NBA All-Star Game … the Super Bowl … the biggest sports success story could well be coming from Storrs, Conn.
That’s home to the UConn women’s basketball team, which extended its winning streak to 64 games yesterday with a victory over St.John’s.
Who dominates like the Huskies do? Not [...]

The Olympic Flame

Today Filip Bondy of the New York Daily News writes about the American team’s high hopes in the Winter Olympics in Vancouver: “While you were dozing these past four years, your fellow Americans somehow became proficient at biathlon, ice dancing, snowboarding, luge, Nordic combined, women’s bobsled and a lot of events that normally make you [...]

Becoming a Hero

Thomas Morstead is a hero in New Orleans today for his onside kick that helped the Saints win the Super Bowl. But it wasn’t always that way.

On the day the Saints drafted him, they received criticism for “wasting” a pick on a kicker. And when he got to camp and started [...]

What Jerry Rice Means

Jerry Rice, along with six other players, is going into pro football’s Hall of Fame. His election surprised no one, but Rice himself didn’t want to assume anything.
“On draft day, I didn’t take that (getting drafted) for granted,” Rice said yesterday at the Hall of Fame announcement. “I didn’t take this (election) for granted.”
That’s probably [...]

Clubhouse Chemistry

No matter what they major in during college years, coaches need some sense of chemistry. Not molecular chemistry, but human chemistry.
Relationships mean everything to sports teams. Bad chemistry has doomed many a dream. Great chemistry can produce what seems to be an overachieving team.
This subject comes up because of a report from ESPNBoston.com that Rajon [...]

The Myth of the Gifted Child

New York magazine has printed an article called “The Myth of the Gifted Child.” It tells of exams taken by pre-school children in New York. Results can go a long way toward placing a child on a track to high-level schools.
There’s just one problem with this: the test could very well be worthless. Even [...]