Elie Seckbach, the Embedded Correspondent, brings his exclusive video reporting to FanHouse. Check back here regularly for more videos.
In this video we talk to tennis star Shahar Peer, one of the big stories in this year's Wimbledon. We also hear from tennis superstars Ana Ivanovic and Maria Sharapova on what it's like to compete against Peer. Around 1:00 into the video find out why you should think twice before messing around with Shahar.
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Christian News Site Calls Sprinter Tyson Gay 'Tyson Homosexual'
It's going to be an embarrassing day at the office for people who get their news from the Christian web site One News Now. The water cooler conversation about sports is going to get awkward when they say, "Did you see the record set by Tyson Homosexual?"
Yes, One News Now, which describes itself as providing "your latest news from a Christian perspective," calls the Olympic sprinter Tyson Gay "Tyson Homosexual."
Jim Buzinski of Outsports explains that the site has set a filter to change the word "gay" to "homosexual," and they don't bother to look at the context of the story before applying the filter. And that's how Gay became Homosexual.
How the Iraq War Killed Olympic Softball
This month's installment of HBO's Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel features a report on the International Olympic Committee's decision to get rid of softball, which will cease to be an Olympic sport after Beijing. There are a lot of reasons that the IOC got rid of softball, but the biggest one seems to be that the United States dominates softball, and most members of the IOC don't like Americans. And why don't IOC members like Americans? In large part, because of the war in Iraq. Influential Canadian IOC member Dick Pound said this:
"It's still perceived as an American sport and the U.S. flag has not been high internationally for awhile. [The Iraq war is] a very unpopular position taken by the United States. Here are a couple of sports that are particularly strong in the United States, 'So long.'"
(Via NewsOK.com)
It's not too late for softball -- or baseball, which will also be gone after this year's Games -- to return to the Olympics some day. But for now, the IOC just doesn't like America very much, and softball players are paying the price.
Marion Jones Sentenced: Six Months in Prison
Track and field superstar Marion Jones was sentenced this morning to six months in prison for lying to federal investigators about the BALCO steroid ring and for lying about a check-fraud scheme involving her ex-boyfriend, the Olympic sprinter Tim Montgomery. The sentence was handed down by U.S. District Judge Kenneth Karas, who had previously indicated that he would give Jones a stiffer sentence than prosecutors had recommended.
Lying to investigators is a serious crime, but the subject of athletes using steroids seems better suited for the International Olympic Committee and the track and field governing bodies to police for themselves, not for the federal government to get involved in.
Check fraud, however, has the potential to harm its victims, and that part of this story -- which has made fewer headlines than her involvement in BALCO -- makes it harder to feel sympathy for Jones. Montgomery, who is the father of Jones' son, has already been convicted of the check scam. By lying to U.S. Department of Homeland Security agents about it, Jones was trying to help Montgomery steal from innocent victims.
Jones must begin her sentence two months from today, March 11. The photo shows Jones, appearing to be in good spirits, entering Federal Court in White Plains, New York this morning.
Marion Jones Admits Using Steroids
Track and field star Marion Jones has admitted to using steroids prior to the 2000 Olympics and will plead guilty to lying to a grand jury about it, the Washington Post is reporting.
It has long been known that Jones had a connection to Balco, but Jones has always denied that Balco supplied her with steroids. However, Jones sent close friends and family members a letter recently in which she said she had, in fact, used steroids.
Jones, who won five medals at the Sydney Olympics, said she took the steroid known as "the clear" for two years beginning in 1999, according to the letter, which was read to The Washington Post by a person who had been given a copy of it. A person familiar with Jones's legal situation who requested anonymity confirmed the relevant facts that were described in the letter....Jones will now almost certainly be stripped of the five medals (three gold, two bronze) she won in the 2000 Games. She may also go to prison. And the reputation of a person who was once considered the greatest female athlete in the world has been forever changed.
"I want to apologize for all of this," she said, according to the person reading the letter, who spoke on condition of anonymity. "I am sorry for disappointing you all in so many ways."
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