5 Summer Olympic Storylines To Follow
Kon'nichiwa world.
This week marks one year until the Summer Olympic Games in Tokyo. They’re already off to a better start than Rio (although that’s probably no surprise to anyone) and there are new athletes and events in the spotlight.
It’s the most wonderful time of the year,
The Last Night’s Game Team
1. Baseball and softball are on the dance card for the first time in 12 years. A women’s softball game will be the first event of the 2020 Olympics. It’s being held two days before the Opening Ceremony and will be played in Fukushima, the site of the 2011 nuclear plant meltdowns. YOU GLOW GIRL HAS A WHOLE NEW MEANING
2. Karate, skateboarding, sport climbing and surfing will make their Olympic debuts. Hopes are that by adding these sports, more millennials fall in love with the Olympics. That being said, don't count out the “old” guys. There’s talk that 47-year-old surfing icon Kelly Slater might make a run at the inaugural event in Tokyo. NOT YOUR GRANDMA’S GAMES
3. Some of your favorite Americans are expected to return to Tokyo. The U.S. women soccer team is eyeing their first World Cup-Olympic back-to-back championships, Simone Biles will be the veteran on the gymnastics team, the “Flying Tomato” Shaun White could swap a snowboard for a skateboard and the queen of U.S. track, Allyson Felix, is on her journey back after an emergency C-section in November sidelined her. HI OLD FRIEND
4. Sponsors are clearly excited about the games with $3 billion already spent on domestic sponsorships, a record three times more than any other Summer Olympics. Mother Earth is excited too because the medals will all be made out of recycled gadgets, i.e. that old cell phone. SPIRIT FINGERS
5. Two storylines that are sure to be part of the conversation leading up to the games include the rules put into place by the International Association of Athletic Federations (IAAF) that limits the ability of certain athletes with high levels of testosterone to compete as women. Enter South African runner Caster Semenya, who claims the IAAF used her as a guinea pig to see how regulating her testosterone levels via medication affected her performance on the track. Then there’s New Zealand’s Laurel Hubbard, who could become the first openly transgender athlete to compete in the Olympics. Hubbard, who formerly competed as Gavin Hubbard, began transitioning six years ago and has been taking the weightlifting world by storm. THE CENTER OF DISCUSSION
Wednesday Wisdom
Let’s talk shop with the top three biggest stories in sports today including who is getting a little cosmetic work done, why we'll never be able to afford a sports team and proof men drive women to drink? READ
5 Things You Didn’t Know About The Olympics
After nearly a week of Olympic coverage, you’d think you’ve heard it all. We answer the questions you were too afraid to ask in today’s Five Things To Know.
After nearly a week of Olympic coverage, you’d think you’ve heard it all. We answer the questions you were too afraid to ask in today’s Five Things To Know.
Gold medal goodness,
The Last Night’s Game Team
Five Things You Didn’t Know About The Olympics
1. Ever wonder how skaters come off the ice without enormous wedgies? (You know you did). Some have been known to sew the bottom of their costume to their tights to keep everything in place. Gymnasts do something similar by using spray adhesive to keep their back tuck from becoming a full moon.
2. Real men wear pink and speedskaters wear blue. Why? Well no one really knows but there seems to be a consensus amongst the athletes that blue skates faster. That’s why you’ll even see teams that notoriously wear red, like Norway, wearing blue on the ice.
3. Have you watched the Olympians hurl down the tunnel of ice in the luge? You didn’t think there was room to hide anything in those skintight uniforms, but what you don’t really see is a vital neck strap. This strap helps the athlete hold their head up when they reach high g-forces. Do not try this one at home.
4. How do athletes in sports like skiing stay warm when they can’t wear a scarf? Athletic tape. They use athletic tape that resembles a giant Band-Aid to keep their nose and cheeks warm. It’s like a pore strip, only more patriotic. PICS
5. Coaches are an integral part of gold medal success but who pays for them? Athletes (or their families) typically pay for their coaches, putting them in a precarious financial situation. Different governing bodies (i.e. U.S. Figure Skating) have been known to also offer coaches medal incentives, similar to the athletes.
That’s not all folks
If you’re already over the Olympics or are looking for something else to talk about besides wedgies, here are the top three things happening in the world of sports. Find out what’s new in this year’s Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Edition, why Shaun White cried like a baby and which four-legged friend is 'best in show.' READ
I Have A Dream
Some of you might still be snuggled up in your warm bed on this MLK Day, while many of you are hitting the pavement to start a new work week. Regardless, of your career, color or creed, sports are a fantastic way to come together as one and root for the same team.
Some of you might still be snuggled up in your warm bed on this MLK Day, while many of you are hitting the pavement to start a new work week. Regardless, of your career, color or creed, sports are a fantastic way to come together as one and root for the same team.
Three cheers for humanity,
The Last Night’s Game
NFL (National Football League)
If you are worn out from your weekend and could use some extra sleep. The football playoffs lived up to their hype with the Minnesota Vikings taking home a huge win in the last seconds. Tom Brady and his New England Patriots are moving on and so are the Jacksonville Jaguars for the first time since 1999. Lastly, the underdog Philadelphia Eagles. The team embraced that role by wearing dog masks and burying the Atlanta Falcons for the win. PLAYOFF WRAP UP
Winter Olympics
That one day you’re finally not the last pick for the kickball team. Two of America’s biggest names in winter sports have officially claimed their spots on Team U.S.A in the Olympics, which is 24 days away. Lindsey Vonn and ‘The Flying Tomato’ Shaun White will once again be representing the red, white and blue.
Overtime
Singers Carrie Underwood and Ludacris have collaborated on a song, “The Champion,” that will be used during the Super Bowl and the Winter Olympics. You might as well get used to it. LISTEN
Sideline stat
In the crowd for the Minnesota Vikings playoff game was 99-year-old Millie Wall. The team surprised their super fan with tickets to attend her first playoff game. During the game she could be seen talking to commissioner Roger Goodell (who gave her tickets to the Super Bowl) and drinking her signature screwdriver with a splash of cranberry, before witnessing the first ever “walk-off” touchdown pass in playoff history. What constitutes a walk-off? MORE
Coaches’ corner
There will be a full day of NBA (National Basketball Association) games today and to honor the late, great Martin Luther King, Jr. on today’s holiday, teams will be wearing warm-ups inspired by his “I have a dream speech.” These statement pieces are also for sale with proceeds benefitting the National Civil Rights Museum. SEE