Knucklehead of the Week
Hope Solo added to her jerk resume after the U.S. women’s soccer team was upset by Sweden in the quarterfinals of the Olympic tournament. The American goalie didn’t get much action in the match because the Swedes loaded up on defense and chose not to do a lot of attacking. After the Swedes won on penalty kicks, Solo called them “cowards” for putting a premium on defending their own goal. Classy. I’m sure the Swedes’ decision made a boring sport simply unwatchable, but the strategy worked. At least Solo didn’t assault anyone after the match.
The kids are going back to school this week, which means no more brushing their teeth at midnight while I’m trying to sleep. Throw in the start of football, and this is a great time of year.
Lilly King is one of my all-time favorite athletes. The teenage swimmer from Indiana won the gold medal in the 100-meter breaststroke in Rio, setting an Olympic record. In the process, she defeated her Russian rival who has failed two drug tests in the past three years but somehow was allowed to compete.
After King edged Yulia Efimova, she refused to soften her stance on the drug cheat. It was so refreshing to see an athlete speak out instead of going all PC when the cameras are pointed their way. Nothing like a little U.S.-Russia throwdown to get the red, white and blue blood circulating.
I wish Gabby Douglas would speak her mind because I'd love to know what she was thinking during the gymnastics competition. Douglas was ripped for her indifferent body language on the medals stand after the U.S. team won gold. Then during the all-around competition, for which she didn't qualify, she wouldn't even stand up to applaud as teammates Simon Biles and Aly Raisman finished 1-2.
I get it that she was disappointed, but there’s something to be said for being a good teammate. Plus, she should be smart enough to realize that she was costing herself some serious endorsement income.
The NFL owes more than an apology and ticket refund to the fans who trekked to Canton last week for the Hall of Fame Game that was cancelled because of bad paint or something. If the grounds crew can't figure out how to prepare a plastic field, perhaps it's time to go back to natural grass.
Imagine driving from Green Bay with the family, buying meals, paying for hotel rooms. Then the game is cancelled, ruining your Brett Favre buzz. You might expect something like this in amateur sports, but the NFL should be better than that.
Trending up: Kayla Harrison, LeBron James, Simone Manuel. I watched Harrison's gold-medal Olympic judo match and I'm not sure what I saw. Something about ippon. It looked like Harrison was toying with her opponent until the last 10 seconds of the 4-minute match. That's when, in the blink of an eye, she tossed her opponent to the mat. The French athlete immediately surrendered and the Middletown star had her second straight gold medal.
Trending down: Alex Rodriguez, Serena Williams, Jonathan Waters. The Yankees must really despise A-Rod, who played his final game Friday. They cut him loose 18 homers shy of Babe Ruth, and now he's now the highest-paid "special advisor" in the history of advising. A-Rod's "complicated" time in the Bronx ended with a cameo at third base (after he pouted when Joe Girardi refused to start him in the field). One last bit of drama.
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