Who Sport What?

It's Been A While!

Apologies for the absence. I've been real busy on an exciting new startup that promises to transform the way sports federations and clubs communicate with those who have an affinity for sport.

Faster, Higher, Stronger And The Street

Any research into the sports that capture the imagination of today's urban youth will involved an inspiring foray into the world of Parkour. Started by David Belle in a Paris suburb, the movement quickly found its way into TV ads and films and has inspired adepts all across the world to test themselves against their surroundings.

Much has been written about Belle's early days in the sport, and about the different factions. But what strikes me most is the way in which Parkour has inspired young people all over the world to do first wonder at what can be achieved by the human body and then go on about achieving it.

Gradualism is a key tenet of parkour training: the only way to minimize risk start easy and ratchet up the challenge in small increments. Another is the absence of rivalry although there has been disagreement over the development of the activity, with some more interested in commercial gain than others. Red Bull has attempted to develop a competition format but this has tended towards emphasis of the spectacular (hardly surprising from the people who backed street luge and flug tag). Interesting to note, however, that the winner was decided by the competitors themselves.

For now though, I find a good game of Parkour tag to be far more impressive. And this one You Tube clip alone has been watched nearly 400,000 times..

You Can Run...

How many times has Dick Pound said it: "You can run, but you can't hide." ?

While nobody doubts that the world of Olympic sport has taken its drug problem seriously for some time, the U.S. Federal government long seemed to be leaving plenty of places to hide. Bush's State of the Union mention of steroids, oft-derided for not having had much of an impact, seems to have changed that. Federal agencies don't turn on a dime but clearly a culture-shift happened a couple of years ago whereby investigations into performance-enhancing drugs moved up the list of priorities. And now we're seeing the results.   They're impressive, international in their reach, and if records have been kept of customers, they are likely to result in many athletes facing serious problems. 143 arrests and 56 labs in the U.S. 26 raids in Denmark. Five labs closed in Germany.

The war on drugs in general is not one that will ever be completely won or lost. For sport though, it's  good to finally have some serious help on the side of keeping athletes and kids healthy.

Skateboarding And The Law

I've been busy of late, talking to skateboarders, those who would represent them and the associated industry. More American kids skate than play basketball "the national pastime". The golden age of skatepark construction seems to be upon us. Municipalities are finally providing well-lit places to skate, instead of just banning one of the few ways in which masses of teens actually get out and exercise.

Hot Springs, Arkansas, however, seems to be a little behind the zeitgeist. There is no skatepark there. On June 21, Go Skateboarding Day, some kids were skating in a downtown area where a ban is in place. Below is what happened next. There are still some places in need of an attitude change.

A Bad Day At The Death Mill

The Federal investigation into leading internet steroid supply house, Florida's Signature pharmacy, has netted 10 WWE "wrestlers". They have been suspended for violating the WWE's "wellness" policy. It seems Signature had also supplied the three most recent wrestlers whose deaths were probably related to drug abuse. Steroid Nation has the details here.

None of these athletes came up as part of any testing programme carried out by the WWE and it would seem fair to surmise that they were only suspended as a PR move once it was clear they would be publicly linked with the drugs. The ratings will tell the real story

An Interview With Dave Zirin

Deadspin has a great interview with Zirin, one of the most interesting American sportswriters.

To Err Is Human. But Robot Referees?

As sporting stakes are continually raised, so is the cost of refereeing error. The English Premier League will not see Rob Styles officiating next weekend, after his blunders effectively cost Liverpool their game against Chelsea on Saturday. Referee Styles awarded a dubious penalty and a yellow card mix up.

Not that Liverpool have much to complain about. The team scored a "phantom" goal against Chelsea in the semi-finals of the Champion's League two years ago, putting the celery-lovers out of the tournament. "Did the ball actually cross the line?" is a question that goes all the way back, doubtless, to the first game ever played. And after being found wanting with his response to that question in the Middlesborough v. Fulham game on Saturday, assistant referee Ian Gosling also finds himself benched.

It's all grist to the mill of the technology vendors of course. You remember: the ones who want to put radio chips in the balls to track them into the goal. Hawkeye, the camera-based system that has revolutionized tennis and especially cricket coverage is now, invevitably, being touted as a panacea. £250,000 per ground to install, if you please.

Technology can be great, especially when it enhances competition broadcasts. But demonstrate a lack of confidence in referees at the top of the game and you condemn the officiating of every game refereed by humans to to be dogged by questions of competence. Not to mention depriving Premier League fans and sportswriters alike the chance to examine and mourn the one that got away. Stick with the humans.

This Spin Is No Tight Spiral

Michael Vick is to plead guilty, so it looks like he's receiving sound legal advice. But on the PR front, things look lousy:

"Mr. Vick has agreed to enter a plea of guilty to those charges and to accept full responsibility for his actions and the mistakes he has made. Michael wishes to apologize again to everyone who has been hurt by this matter."

Ookie, if you want sympathy, say sorry to the dogs.

The USOC's Sweet Tooth

The USOC has signed a sponsorship deal with Hershey's chocolate. So alongside burger boxes and Coke cans, the Olympic rings  will now adorn.

It's easy to dismiss such deals as part of a world gone mad. The argument can be made that McDonald's and Coca-Cola now offer many more healthy choices than ever before. But healthy Hershey's chocolate? What's appropriate for kids growing up? A Kit Kat a day? A week? A month?

This is not the first foray into sports marketing for Hershey's, with the Reese's logo already plastered across a NASCAR team. And the USOC can hardly be expected to make a unilateral stand when all it relies on sponsorship for so much of its revenue. After all, Beijing 2008 is sponsored not just by Snickers, but by no less than three different beer companies.

China's 1,000 Boat March

Totalitarian states have long demonstrated the potential to achieve sporting success by bludgeoning their way to the top. China's march towards dominating the medal count at the Beijing Games, at least in terms of golds won, is no different. But it's hard to suppress a sigh of admiration when reading lines like the following, tucked away towards the bottom of a China Daily piece on the recent sailing test events in Qingdao:

"The government purchased 1,000 boats for young sailors with 10 million yuan ($1.3 million) donated by local companies.

"To teach these youth to sail, we have also held five training camps with coaches from seven different countries and we have sent some excellent young sailors to get trained in Kiel in Germany," Deputy Mayor Zang Aimin said."

In the 15th and 16th centuries, following a doctrine of Confucian inward perfection, China turned its back on seafaring. With no naval defense to speak of many port towns were handed over to foreign control after the Opium wars. Qingdao was outside of Chinese control for the first half of the 20th century, changing colonial hands often. It's heartening to see the city flourish and to see it flourish with sport at its heart. The beer is still good, too.