Federer and Nadal on Opposite Sides

I had to repost this from Greg Couch on Fox Sports. Great story on two semi-opposing viewpoints and their impact on those around the two "rivals", yet good friends. Such things can happy to us all in families and this about a family...

You might have heard that Federer and Nadal — the greatest, nicest individual rivalry in sports — are having a tiff. Nadal complains that the tour has too many mandatory events, is too grueling, has almost no offseason and is beating up the players. Federer, as the president of the player council, doesn't seem to notice.

"For him, it's good to say nothing," Nadal said. "Everything positive. 'It's all well and good for me. I look like a gentleman,' and the rest can burn themselves."

Nadal is right. Federer is oblivious. But this is a much bigger problem than two superstars bickering. The players are in serious need of a union. So many of them know it, but they just can't seem to figure out how to get it done. At the US Open in September, Nadal, Andy Murray and Andy Roddick went in unity to tournament officials to complain about being forced to play on slippery, rained-on courts just to make TV networks happy.

"It's the same old story," Nadal said. "All you think about is money."

That seemed to be the beginnings of a union. Now, Federer suddenly is an obstacle. And Nadal is example No. 1 of why the union is needed. So the rivalry takes on a different tone.

What makes Nadal an example? The thing is, at just 25, he is starting to get old. He can feel it. He can see it.
On the court at the Australian Open Wednesday, the year's first major, he had a knee brace on his right leg. His shoulder was hurting. He was using a heavier racquet in an attempt to drive through serves and get points over with quicker.

Also, he isn't running as fast as he used to.

The other day, his knee popped so loudly and painfully while sitting on a chair, that he had to have tests done, and considered withdrawing from the tournament. Instead, he did beat Tommy Haas, 6-4, 6-3, 6-4, to advance to the third round.

"I love the game and there's a lot of things I'm grateful for," said Nadal, who is VP of the player council. "The game has allowed me to lead a fantastic lifestyle. But to finish your career with pain all over your body? Is that a positive? No.

Click on the link because there is much more.

Aussie eyes on Bernard Tomic to break the drought

Teenager Bernard Tomic will be carrying the hopes of a nation on his young shoulders. It has been a long time since the heyday of Australian tennis with champions like Rod Laver, Ken Rosewall, John Newcombe, Lew Hoad, Yvonne Goolagong and Margaret Court. Aussies ruled the courts during a twenty year span from the early fifties through the early seventies. The last of this group was Mark Edmondson who stills remains one of the lowest ranked players to ever win a major. Sadly, Eddo was the last local to win the Australian Open whose 2012 version begins tomorrow in Melbourne. Sure, we have had Pat Cash and Lleyton Hewitt on the men's side since then, however, although great champions, they were the exception, not the rule.

Tomic yesterday won his first major tournament in the Kooyong Classic against American Mardy Fish who was a revelation in 2011. This was no mean feat as Fish is currently sitting at No. 8 in the ATP Tour rankings. Tomic has shown great promise for a number of years and looks like making good on this showing. For Australia, it just might herald a new era in tennis if Tomic can do well in the Open. With gutsy Samanatha Stosur breaking through to win the U.S.pen last year, Australians may finally have something to cheer about with an Australian winner of their homegrown championship. With Ashleigh Barty, the number 2 ranked female junior in the world, maybe Australia is poised for a return to some of their glory years! Aussie, Aussie, Aussie, Oi, Oi, Oi.

Freestyle skiers hit the halfpipe despite Sarah Burke’s still-critical injury

Sarah Burke, a 29-year-old who now calls Whistler home, remained in critical condition at University Hospital in Salt Lake City after a successful operation Wednesday to repair a tear to a vertebral artery that caused bleeding in her brain.

Burke remains at the University of Utah Hospital in critical condition. She is under close monitoring by a multidisciplinary team coordinated by neurointensivist Safdar Ansari.

"Sarah remains in critical condition in the Neuro Critical Care Unit,” said Ansari. "With traumatic brain injury, our care is focused on addressing the primary injury and preventing secondary brain damage, as well as managing other injuries sustained at the time of the accident; all of which requires close monitoring and intensive care. At this moment, Sarah needs more time before any prognosis can be determined."

Medical experts say such a tear can cause bleeding that disrupts blood flow to the brain, which in serious cases can lead to brain damage or death.

Doctors are monitoring her brain function before making definitive pronouncements about her chances of recovery.

Because of her situation, members of the French team training at the Park City superpipe didn't want to talk about the accident.

"We know her and love her and hope she's going to be better," Guenet said. "We send our best to her family and her husband, too. We know him, too."

Burke, a four-time Winter X Games champion in halfpipe skiing, has been one of the leading pioneers to have it included in the Olympics.

She was considered a favourite for the Sochi Games and was gearing up to defend her latest X Games gold medal this month in Aspen, Colo., when she suffered a devastating injury Tuesday afternoon.

Six-pack Serena is cut and set to run

WHEN everyone is talking about a body part in the build-up to a grand slam tournament, it usually means that one of the key players is struggling to pass a fitness test.

 

But in the case of this year's Australian Open, it is not Serena Williams's dicky ankle that has grabbed the nation's attention, but her finely honed six-pack, which was caught on camera when she went out to practise on Rod Laver Arena in a crop top.

It was a revealing moment, in every sense, and you had to wonder whether Williams was sending a signal to her rivals. Could those sharp-edged abdominals mean that she is readying herself for a tilt at the big prizes this year?

Williams likes to act the part of the couch potato. She told reporters that ''I've actually never liked sports and I never understood how I became an athlete. I don't like working out; I don't like anything that has to do with working physically.'' The physical evidence tells a different story. There can be little doubt that Williams, who has declined to appear in any tournaments since the US Open last September, has been putting in the hours.

If she can improve her speed around the court then Williams still has a strong enough game to destroy any of her younger challengers. When she made her comeback last year, Williams had spent a year out of the game and undergone surgery, not just for her wounded foot but for a life-threatening blood clot as well. It was hardly surprising that she was a little slow. Yet even then, she was good enough to reach the final of the US Open, where it took a career-best performance from Sam Stosur to stop her.

Stosur should be a challenger here. There are several other strong contenders: not only Kim Clijsters - who has been drawn in the same quarter as world No.1 Caroline Wozniacki - but Wimbledon champion Petra Kvitova and China's Li Na, last year's runner-up at Melbourne Park.

Telegraph, London
Simon Briggs

Canadian skier Sarah Burke critical day after accident

Canadian freestyle skier Sarah Burke was in critical condition Wednesday, a day after she was airlifted from the mountains of Utah to a Salt Lake City hospital with injuries after a training accident in the superpipe. The nature of Burke's injuries has not been disclosed.

In a statement released by Burke's publicist, a doctor at University of Utah hospital says Burke "sustained serious injuries and remains intubated and sedated in critical condition."

Chris Nelson, assistant vice president for public affairs at the hospital, said Burke was having surgery Wednesday afternoon.

The 29-year-old Burke is widely considered the foremost pioneer for her main sport of freestyle halfpipe. She lobbied aggressively to have it included in the Olympics, where it will debut in 2014.

"She not only gave the sport legitimacy but opened the door into a much broader spectrum," said Peter Judge, the CEO of Canada's freestyle skiing program.

She is a four-time Winter X Games champion and had been scheduled to defend her 2011 title later this month in Aspen, Colo.

Burke fell while training at a personal sponsor event at the Park City Mountain resort, an accident that witnesses said didn't look as bad as it turned out to be, Judge said. She was on the same halfpipe where snowboarder Kevin Pearce suffered traumatic brain injury after a near-fatal fall on Dec. 31, 2009.

Burke's husband, freestyle skier Rory Bushfield, was with other family members at the hospital.
"Sarah is a very strong young woman, and she will most certainly fight to recover," Bushfield said in a statement.

The whole of Utah wishes her all the best for a speedy and complete recovery!

FIFA Ballon D'Or 2011

Argentina’s Lionel Messi collected the FIFA Ballon d’Or, his third consecutive title while Japan’s Homare Sawa claimed her first FIFA Women’s World Player of the Year award at the FIFA Ballon d’Or Gala held at the Zurich Kongresshaus this evening.

Pep Guardiola, the Spanish coach of FC Barcelona, and Japan’s women’s national team coach Norio Sasaki were the respective winners of the FIFA World Coach of the Year for Men’s Football and FIFA World Coach of the Year for Women’s Football.

Messi’s and Guardiola’s FC Barcelona side concluded 2011 with victory in the FIFA Club World Cup in Japan, sealing another fine year which also included the UEFA Champions League, La Liga, Spanish Super Cup and UEFA Super Cup titles.

Japan’s women’s team, known as the Nadeshiko, memorably claimed their maiden FIFA Women’s World Cup with a thrilling performance, twice coming back from behind to eventually defeat the USA on penalties after extra time.

These awards were decided after a poll in which the captains and head coaches of the men’s (for the two men’s football awards) and women’s (for the two women’s football awards) national teams, as well as international media representatives selected by French football magazine France Football, voted for candidates in each of the four categories. Each group’s votes represented one third of the final result.

It was an unforgettable night, with many former and current football stars on the stage and on the red carpet. The international audience were entertained by Swiss music group TinkaBelle and British singer/songwriter James Blunt.

The FIFA Ballon d’Or was awarded for the second time tonight, following the amalgamation of the FIFA World Player of the Year award with the France Football Ballon d’Or in 2010.

Lionel Messi won the FIFA Ballon d’Or after polling 47.88 of the votes, ahead of Cristiano Ronaldo (21.6)%) and Xavi (9.23%).

Sawa, winner of the FIFA Women’s World Player of the Year award, led Japan to the title at the FIFA Women’s World Cup 2011 in Germany, where she also won the adidas Golden Ball as the best player of the competition and the adidas Golden Boot for her five goals. She collected 28.51% of the votes, ahead of Brazil’s Marta and Abby Wambach from the USA, who received 17.28% and 13.26% respectively.

Pep Guardiola secured the FIFA World Coach of the Year for Men’s Football award with 41.92% of the votes, ahead of Manchester United’s Sir Alex Ferguson, who received 15.61%, and Jose Mourinho, the Portuguese coach of Real Madrid (12.43%).

Meanwhile, Norio Sasaki led the FIFA World Coach of the Year for Women’s Football category with 45.57% of the votes, ahead of Pia Sundhage, the Swedish coach of the USA women’s national team (15.83%), and France’s women’s team coach Bruno Bini (10.28%).

FIFPro, the world players’ union, had invited 50,000 professional players from all over the world to select their best team of 2011, the FIFA/FIFPro WORLD XI. The honours went to the following all-star squad: Iker Casillas (Spain) in goal; Dani Alves (Brazil), Gerard Piqué (Spain), Sergio Ramos (Spain) and Nemanja Vidic (Serbia) in defence; Xabi Alonso (Spain), Andrés Iniesta (Spain) and Xavi (Spain) in midfield; and Cristiano Ronaldo (Portugal), Lionel Messi (Argentina) and Wayne Rooney (England) up front.

The FIFA Puskás Award for the “most beautiful goal” of the year as voted for on FIFA.com and francefootball.fr by more than 1.5 million fans was also handed out. This prize, created in honour and in memory of Ferenc Puskás, the captain and star of the Hungarian national team during the 1950s, went to Brazil’s Neymar for his fantastic goal in the Campeonato Brasileiro Série A match between Santos FC and Flamengo in São Paulo on 27 July 2011.

Sir Alex Ferguson received the FIFA Presidential Award from President Joseph S. Blatter for his outstanding dedication, commitment and service to football. On 6 November 2011 Sir Alex Ferguson completed 25 years as manager of Manchester United. During that period the club have won over 30 different trophies, including 12 Premier League titles, five FA Cups, two UEFA Champions Leagues and the FIFA Club World Cup.

The FIFA Fair Play Award was given to the Japan women’s team, who had to endure many hardships following the earthquake which struck their country in March 2011, and during which many people lost their lives. The team showed great courage to make it to the final of the FIFA Women’s World Cup 2011, ultimately lifting the trophy for the first time. The award was collected by the President of the Japan FA, Junji Ogura, and by the captain of the team, Homare Sawa.

Simone Farina was recognised on stage for his courage in denouncing an attempt to get him to fix a match. The player of Serie B club AS Gubbio in Italy was complimented by the FIFA President for his action and applauded by the audience.

Kaia Kanepi - Finally Realizing Her Potential

Estonia's Kaia Kanepi won the women's final at the Brisbane International triumphing over Daniela Hantukova in a 6-2, 6-1 display of power that never once saw her drop a break point. The match took just 74 minutes, as the unseeded Kanepi plowed through the field on her way to the top. Kanepi ranked at number 34 prior to the tournament spent much of the 2011 season in injury pergatory after reaching number 16 earlier in the year. It is a tribute to Kaia's determination and never-say-die attitude that she fought her way to a second career tour title. Her talent and hard work could see her propelled into a top ten player within months if she keeps her momentum going. It is truly amazing what a little self belief can do.

Texans Push Aside the Clouds

It can be really hard living in the shadow of an older, better-known brother, but occasionally the younger sibling breaks loose. This was the case today when the Houston Texas demolished the Cincinnati Bengals 31-10 and emerging from the shadows that the Dallas Cowboys have cast over the state. With the Cowboys not even making the playoffs the Texans seized the moment and won their first ever playoff game at their first attempt. While the daunting prospect of facing the Baltimore Ravens with their rookie third-string quarterback leading the way, Houston should bask in the moment and enjoy their historic win without worrying too much about next weekend. This blowout should fill Gary Kubiak's charges with great confidence and give them the momentum to take the game to their much more fancied opponents. Anything can happen, so it is just the time to cast aside all fears and give it 100%. Forget the Cowgirls, keep it coming Texans.

Rafa is back

It was really heartwarming for me to watch Rafa Nadal playing so well in Doha, Qatar against Mikhail Youzhny. The fleet-footed Russian proved a very capable and determined opponent and gave nothing to Nadal for free, who had to work very hard for his victory. Youzhny is a much better player than his ranking suggests and he put everything into this match. The Rafa that won the match was the Rafa of old - fearless, muscular and relentless. It bodes so well for the upcoming Australian Open, where with his shoulder on the mend, his battles against Novak Djokovic and Roger Federer will make for a superlative Grand Slam season.

Arrogance is no substitute for hard work

I am writing about Rex Ryan today because it is New Years Day, and the fact that the New York Jets lost their game to Miami and all chance of playing in the post season.  To me it proves the point that hot air, coming from the mouth of a player or coach, is never any substitute for real substance and hard work. Rex Ryan is a chump. It's not that he can't coach, because he obviously has some talent or wouldn't have made the NFC Championship game two years in a row. But that ability is subsumed in a rather pathetic need to be some sort of media celebrity or superstar, rather than leading his team responsibly and letting his players be in the spotlight.

I am actually happy that Ryan doesn't get to feature in the playyoffs again, because if his bragadoccio had won through again the swagger would have been unbearable. It will make my new year a little easier to put up with. Ryan needs to learn a couple of real important truths. His primadonna behavior only enrages opponents and makes them play above themselves, it seldom succeeds, and never for long. Shutting your mouth to remove all doubt (that your are stupid) is a really good policy and can keep an opponent guessing. None of the really good NFL coaches let their mouths sound off like Ryan. Get over yourself Rex and just do what you are paid millions to do without the unsolicited editorials!