Now I get it: These are Olympic training grounds
A couple of days ago, I complained that streets in my neighborhood are virtual ice rinks in the winter because of all the leaves that clog the sewers. But after a weekend of watching the Olympics, I finally understand. The ice is there to train future Olympians.Silver-medal-winning ice dancer Benjamin Agosto is actually from my neighborhood, Rogers Park. (Note to my condo association: I don't care what you call this place, nobody believes this is Edgewater.) Gold-medal-winning speed skater Shani Davis spent much of his life just up the road in Evanston. Who knows. At some point early in their lives, these local champions must have encountered a frozen street and thought about putting on skates.
You just gotta love Davis, originally from the South Side, for putting on a White Sox cap after winning the 1,000 meters and then blowing off interviews with NBC reporters, who had earlier blasted him for actually standing up for himself. I wasn't super-psyched about the Winter Games until I started reading about Davis. Right now he's the only American I'm rooting for.
posted by teacherman @ 6:09 AM
2 Comments:
I'm not sure what you see in the article about Davis that makes you like him. (Besides being a White Sox fan of course)
He seems to:
1. Be very selfish (he needs to realize his hero Michael Jordan never won anything until he became a team player)
2. Be playing the race card (or his mother is). Sure his sport is dominated by white people and there probably is a certain level of racism just like anywhere in life.
There are better ways to handle it. Look at how the Williams sisters handled it in tennis. Sure they were hated at first(mostly because their father kept playing the race card) but have been warmly received by granting interviews and acting like champions.
To just isolate yourself is not the answer.
I'm so sick of Olympic Athletes particular American that have the attitude of "me" over "team and country".
I like Davis for these reasons:
* He's from Chicago
* He likes the White Sox
* He has an opinion, unlike many athletes
* He IS a positive role model, despite perhaps not having the best attitude sometimes. As for the Williams sisters comparison, there were other black stars in that sport long before them. The winter games, on the other hand, are lily white. He's had to overcome more than most athletes.
Post a Comment
<< Home