Nshima & Curry

How to end the Kenyan domination

When it comes to marathons, there are seemingly two classes of runners: (1) Kenyans and (2) everyone else. The Kenyans usually beat everyone else. Actually, "beat" is inaccurate. How about "trounce"?  Well, that's not accurate either. How about "crush"?

How dominant have they been? The Boston Globe offers some clues, noting that Kenyans have won all but four Boston Marathons since Ibrahim Hussein's victory in 1988. In recent years, they've owned all five World Marathon Majors.

Since 2000, Kenyans have claimed Boston, Berlin, and Chicago six times apiece, London and New York four. "It's one of the most impressive streaks in sports we've ever seen," says New York race director Mary Wittenberg. [Link]

They've been especially dominant at the Boston Marathon largely because the race's organizers believe in inviting the best runners from around the world, no matter their country of origin. And invariably, many of them are Kenyan. In last year's world rankings, 68 of the top 100 marathoners were Kenyan, and seven of them finished in the top ten at Boston.

If Boston's elite field seems lopsided with Kenyans, that isn't a problem for the BAA. "I've heard comments over the years that it'd be nice to have an American win again," says Morse. "But we've always subscribed to the view that we should invite the best to be here, wherever they're from. I don't think it's a negative that the Kenyans have continued to dominate." [Link]

No, it's not a negative. But we really should give the non-Kenyans a fighting chance. I propose that we change the rules slightly:

1. All participants must run 26 miles. Kenyans must run all of them backwards.

2. All participants must wear running shoes. Kenyans must also wear ankle weights.

3. All participants must sign an injury waiver. Kenyans must also sign autographs along the route.

4. All participants may refresh themselves at the water stations. Kenyans must also stop at the Starbucks coffee station.

5. All participants must pass a drug test. Kenyans must also pass the Medical College Admissions Test (MCAT).

I know what you're thinking: The Kenyans would still win.

Photo by Stuart Atkins

Go Royal Challengers! Beat the Kings!

Some years ago, I went to a National Football League game in Miami with a group of friends. My beloved Seahawks were playing the Dolphins. One friend had a pair of binoculars, so while the rest of us had trouble seeing everything from our end-zone seats, he was able to get a close-up view of every move -- up and down, side to side -- of the cheerleaders. It doesn't surprise me, then, that at least one team in the new Indian Premier League is creating a cheerleading squad.

"The Washington Redskins Cheerleaders, deemed the 'First Ladies of Football,' will be traveling to India on April 10th to create the first ever cheerleading squad in that country for cricket's Royal Challengers Bangalore, part of the new Indian Premier League (IPL), in their inaugural game on April 18th."

Twelve cheerleaders, 18 days, four cricket games, a second wave of training and the following claim: "By the time this project is complete, the Redskins Cheerleading department will have spent over 10 weeks creating a new cheerleading world in India." [Link]

I have three questions about this:

1. Will they be able to create a good cheerleading squad in such a short time? Probably not, even if they hire a bunch of dancers from Shahrukh Khan movies. Cheerleading is an art form. You have to know how to shake stuff -- and I'm not talking about the pompoms.

2. What kind of outfits will the Royal Challengers Cheerleaders wear? I have a feeling they'll be a tad more conservative than the "First Ladies of Football," who, as you can see from the picture, often show a part of the human anatomy you don't always see in America: ribs.

3. How many men will actually watch the cricket? India is a cricket-crazy country, so many men will undoubtedly keep track of all the batting and bowling, whenever the cheerleaders are taking a break.

Column: Lock up the dissidents, the Olympics are coming

As the 2008 Summer Olympics approach, many people are scratching their heads and asking, "How in heaven's name was Beijing selected as the host city?" The answer is simple: Beijing was chosen because Baghdad was unavailable. Actually, the International Olympic Committee wanted to encourage China to emulate previous hosts and pursue democratic principles. China, in turn, pledged to be good hosts, promising to make athletes and other guests comfortable and, for at least three weeks, suspend all human rights abuses.

It's a good arrangement, really, opening the door for future Olympics to be held in places such as Tehran, Iran, and Pyongyang, North Korea. I don't know about you, but I'm really looking forward to the 2020 Guantánamo Bay Olympics. By then, waterboarding will be an official event.

The Beijing Olympics are destined to be the most successful games in Olympic history. And if you don't believe me, just ask any Chinese journalist who isn't in prison. "Best Olympics ever," they will say. "That's what we've been told."

If you're a foreign journalist who disagrees, that's okay. You have the freedom to say what you want, while people in China have the freedom to believe whatever their government lets them.

Venus and Serena Williams in saris

I've always liked Venus and Serena Williams, not just because they're great tennis players, but also because they're usually good sports. If it were possible for the sisters to move up a notch in my book, the photo on the right (from The Hindu, via SAJAforum) did the trick. (Here's another photo.) They wore the saris at a players party on the eve of the Bangalore Open.

The sisters donned the traditional Indian costume - complete with gold earrings and bindis on their foreheads - as they joined fellow competitors at the Southern India bash. While Venus - who has a keen interest in style and trained as a fashion designer - stepped out in a cerulean blue affair, Serena had opted for a striking saffron creation which revealed her uber-toned stomach.

Both colours have a special significance in India, where blue is associated Lord Krishna and represents calm, while saffron orange -- the country's favourite hue -- is considered auspicious as well as sacred. [Link]

An auspicious color indeed. Serena won the tournament, so perhaps we'll be seeing her in saffron orange again.  Unlike her sister, she's open to the idea, as she indicated to Madhavdas Gopalkrishnan.

Madhav: Is this the last time you will be wearing a saree?

Serena: No, not at all. I love India and this is my first time in the country. I hope to come back here a lot more often and wear more beautiful and colourful sarees. [Link]

That may not make everyone in India happy. At least one writer, Kimi Dangor of India Today, didn't care for the sari look.

... although the siblings pack quite a punch on the court, their sari-clad look turned out to be a definite double fault. [Link]

Far be it for me to question Dangor's judgment. I've got a feeling she knows a thing or two about double faults.

Free drinks and popcorn for only $400,000

A pair of Indiana schools are raising money to put artificial turf on their football fields and have they got a deal for you! Just give them 400 grand and you could see your name in big letters and bright lights.

Under the "Valedictorian Sponsorship Package" that grants naming rights for both high school stadiums, an individual or corporate donor must commit to a total gift of $400,000 spread over 10 years.

In return, the sponsor would also receive promotional signage at all stadium entrances, signage atop scoreboards, a mention on the schools' Recognition Pillar of contributors and VIP parking.

The schools would also provide four season passes to all school events and four concession passes entitling holders to free drinks and popcorn. [Link]

You hear that? Free drinks and popcorn!!! Until they mentioned free drinks and popcorn, I wasn't sold on the deal. I didn't think it was worth 400 grand. But getting free drinks and popcorn clinches it for me.

Now all I need to do is find 400 grand ...

The $250,000 Salutatorian level of commitment authorizes naming rights for a single stadium, while subsiding levels of support warrant a combination of signage and privileges. [Link]

What about free drinks and popcorn? Perhaps they're just going to give you free drinks, but no free popcorn. To get the free popcorn, you're going to have to fork over the extra 150 grand.

Contributions of $100 earn donors an engraved brick reflecting their support in a designated recognition area. [Link]

An engraved brick? I don't want an engraved brick. If I give 100 bucks, I want free drinks and popcorn!

Photo by churl

Short, overweight women need not apply

The Olympics are more than eight months away, but already China is trying hard to get some negative publicity for it.            

Beijing is seeking women presenters for medals ceremonies at the 2008 Olympics -- but only those who are tall and thin need apply.

Hundreds of young women will be recruited as volunteers to present medals and raise flags at ceremonies for the Games, which open on August 8, but they must meet stringent criteria. [Link]

Let me get this straight: You can't be short, you can't be overweight, and you can't have any testosterone? Perhaps male volunteers are being used for other tasks, such as beating up all the protesters.

"We have some very clear conditions and demands," explained Zhao Dongming, director of the Cultural Activities Department at Beijing's Organizing Committee for the Games.

"We have certain requirements for their height, since they are to present the medals to our athletes. They need to be of a height between 1.68 and 1.78 meters. That's above average." [Link]

1.78 meters? That's about 5-foot-10, tall enough to play center on the Indian basketball team.

There's no height requirement for the athletes -- some of those weightlifters are pretty short -- so why should there be one for the volunteers?

There was no requirement on their weight, Zhao said, but he added: "Generally speaking, they can't be too fat. Their figure should be good. They shouldn't be too heavy."

The guidance was so the women, who must be between 18 and 25 and university students, would fit into the uniforms being prepared for them, he said. [Link]

Ah, the uniforms. I knew there was a logical reason for this. It doesn't matter what you weigh, as long as you can fit into a Size 2 dress.

You also have to be 18 to 25 and a university student? I'm really disappointed in the Organizing Committee. If they had tried harder, they could have discriminated even more. They could have required all the women to be English-speaking, light-skinned and well-endowed.

Come on, China, we expect more from you.

Photo by Marc van der Chijs

Rugby World Cup unites South Africans

One thing I love about sports is the role it often plays in bringing people of different races and cultures together. Sure, there has been plenty of discrimination in sports historically, but the overall impact of sports has been positive. Just look at what's happening in South Africa, where everyone's celebrating the Springboks' 15-6 victory over England in the Rugby World Cup final on Sunday.

Smiles and congratulatory handshakes were the order of the day as office workers, shop assistants and street peddlers returned to their jobs after the Springboks triumphed in Paris.

Newspapers, ranging from the predominantly white-backed Citizen to the largely black-read Sowetan, heralded the unity engulfing the nation as it prepared to welcome the team home.

A huge crowd was expected to greet the players when they arrive at Johannesburg's O.R. Tambo International Airport this afternoon, kicking off several days of festivities, including a nationwide ticker tape parade. [Link]

White, black and brown -- they're all celebrating the victory. The blacks would rather win the soccer World Cup and the browns would rather win the cricket World Cup, but as the old African saying goes, "A World Cup in the hand beats two in the bush."

Although rugby is traditionally dominated by the country's white minority, particularly its Afrikaner community – descendants of the original Dutch and French settlers – the black majority has also been swept up in the fever.

Bars in Soweto, the sprawling black township south of Johannesburg, were packed with fans cheering the 'Boks' with the fervour of true believers. Eateries and bars in the giant Indian community in Durban also swayed with supporters. [Link]

White, black and brown -- united in showing their support, united in shouting, "Another beer please!"