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2014 Sochi Olympics Winter Games Medal Count.
CS&T/AA Graphics
Updated: 2/11 2:26 PM
| # | Country | G | S | B | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Norway | 4 | 3 | 4 | 11 |
| 2 | Canada | 4 | 3 | 2 | 9 |
| 3 | Netherlands | 3 | 2 | 3 | 8 |
| 4 | United States | 2 | 1 | 4 | 7 |
| 5 | Russia | 1 | 3 | 3 | 7 |
| 6 | Germany | 4 | 1 | 0 | 5 |
| 7 | Austria | 1 | 3 | 0 | 4 |
| 8 | Sweden | 0 | 3 | 1 | 4 |
| 9 | France | 1 | 0 | 2 | 3 |
| 10 | Czech Republic | 0 | 2 | 1 | 3 |
| 11 | Slovenia | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 |
| 12 | Switzerland | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| 13 | Italy | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| 14 | Japan | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| 15 | South Korea | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 16 | Slovakia | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 17 | Poland | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 18 | Belarus | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 19 | China | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| 20 | Finland | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| 21 | Britain | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| 22 | Ukraine | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
How 'bout them Chicago Blackhawks? Five reasons the United States could totally medal in Sochi Olympics.
By Sean Leahy
The men’s ice hockey tournament at the 2014 Sochi Games is expected to be the most thrilling and popular even at the Olympics. We’re breaking down all 12 teams until the tournament begins on Wednesday, Feb. 12.
The United States competes in Group A in the 2014 Winter Olympics. They're coached by Dan Bylsma of the Pittsburgh Penguins. Here are five reasons why they could totally medal in Sochi:
1. Goaltending
OK, maybe the U.S. goaltending isn't entering the tournament as strong as many predicted, but they still have Ryan Miller. The MVP from the Vancouver Games has posted a .923 save percentage this season (.926 at even strength) and as he showed in 2010, he's capable of being that "hot" goaltender in a short tournament. But will Dan Bylsma lean his way?
1. Goaltending
OK, maybe the U.S. goaltending isn't entering the tournament as strong as many predicted, but they still have Ryan Miller. The MVP from the Vancouver Games has posted a .923 save percentage this season (.926 at even strength) and as he showed in 2010, he's capable of being that "hot" goaltender in a short tournament. But will Dan Bylsma lean his way?
2. Ghosts of 2010
The U.S. came within a goal of defeating rival Canada and winning gold in Vancouver. They weren't expected to go that far, but they surprised everyone along the way. Now the USA Hockey mindset has changed and gold is the expectation with this team. GM David Poile and his staff pieced together the roster like jigsaw puzzle to suit the international ice and to win gold. While some members of the 2010 team have moved on from the loss, Ryan Miller has said he's not entirely over how things ended four years ago.
3. Big ice not a big problem
The 2006 Olympics were the last played on international ice. The U.S. went 1-3-1 in group play and fell to Finland in the quarterfinals. The other time we saw big ice was 1998 in Nagano, where the Americans went 1-2-0 and lost to the eventual gold medal-winning Czech Republic in the quarterfinals. But as Chris Peters pointed out, times have changed and these players have plenty of experience winning on the bigger ice surface at various levels of international play.
4. Scoring balance
Eight players on the U.S. squad have reached 20 goals in the NHL this season. In four years, the likes of Phil Kessel, James van Riemsdyk and Patrick Kane, among others, have blossomed into offensive forces. There are no true numbered lines at all-star tournaments like the Olympics, so it certainly helps Bylsma and company that any one of their lines on the ice is capable of providing offense when needed.
Eight players on the U.S. squad have reached 20 goals in the NHL this season. In four years, the likes of Phil Kessel, James van Riemsdyk and Patrick Kane, among others, have blossomed into offensive forces. There are no true numbered lines at all-star tournaments like the Olympics, so it certainly helps Bylsma and company that any one of their lines on the ice is capable of providing offense when needed.
5. They're due
We haven't seen the U.S. on the podium at an Olympics outside of North America since the 1972 Games in Japan. It's been 42 years. Thirteen players are back from the 2010 squad that won silver. USA Hockey has grown leaps and bounds in terms of player development. Anything less than gold for them will be a disappointment, even though the "underdog" tag will be played up.
OK, C’mon, Can They Really Medal In Sochi?
Once again, the Americans are considered an underdog in the tournament. With the likes of Canada, Russia and even Sweden receiving a lot of the top buzz, it's tough to predict where the U.S. will finish. But c'mon, This is Team USA we're talking about. They embrace the underdog role. If Ryan Miller, or whoever, ends up winning the no. 1 job and plays the position like he did four years ago, they could find themselves on the medal podium -- possibly on top.
We haven't seen the U.S. on the podium at an Olympics outside of North America since the 1972 Games in Japan. It's been 42 years. Thirteen players are back from the 2010 squad that won silver. USA Hockey has grown leaps and bounds in terms of player development. Anything less than gold for them will be a disappointment, even though the "underdog" tag will be played up.
OK, C’mon, Can They Really Medal In Sochi?
Once again, the Americans are considered an underdog in the tournament. With the likes of Canada, Russia and even Sweden receiving a lot of the top buzz, it's tough to predict where the U.S. will finish. But c'mon, This is Team USA we're talking about. They embrace the underdog role. If Ryan Miller, or whoever, ends up winning the no. 1 job and plays the position like he did four years ago, they could find themselves on the medal podium -- possibly on top.
10 Things to Know About Olympic Hockey.
By Jim Litke, The Associated Press
2014 Sochi Olympics USA Hockey Team Sweaters
The ice surface is bigger, the pay non-existent and what used to mean bragging rights around the world in the days of dueling superpowers counts for less now that everyone wound up on the same side of capitalism. The trade-off is that you might see one, and as many four, hockey games better-played than anything in an entire season of National Hockey League contests. Here's a look at the upcoming Olympic men's hockey tournament.
1. HOME COOKING
Both of the United States' wins were earned on home ice, in 1960 and 1980, as was Canada's eighth and most recent. Nobody else has turned the trick. Russia has never played host to a Winter Games and hasn't been part of a gold-medal winner since the Unified Team in 1994 (and the Soviet Union dynasty before that). But nothing short of a title here is going to fly with generations reared on tales of the "Big Red Machine," especially since goalkeeping legend Vladimir Tretiak, serving as the Russian federation boss, is around to stir those memories.
2. CANADA TAKES A BACKSEAT TO NO ONE
Arguments over where the game originated continue until today. But there's no question who owns the modern version. The Canadians won the first Olympic tournament in Chamonix, France — scoring 122 goals and allowing just three along the way — and have added seven since. The Soviet Union won seven, including a stretch of four straight (five if you count the Unified Team), followed by the United States and Sweden with two each.
3. THE BIG SHEET
The return to the European-sized rink — 200 feet long by 100 feet wide — will give hosts Russia and the nine other European teams a better chance of taking down Canada and the United States. The extra 15 feet on each side — a combined 3,000 square feet larger than the NHL version — minimizes brawn by making it harder to check opponents and gives speedsters like the Russian duo of Alex Ovechkin and Ilya Kovalchuk and Swedes Erik Karlsson and Carl Hagelin more room to maneuver.
4. CROSBY VS. OVECHKIN, or MAGIC VS. BIRD, PART 2
Canadian Sidney Crosby and Russian Alex Ovechkin were part of the same rookie class, two of the most-touted youngsters ever to arrive in the NHL. Hockey has been portraying their rivalry as the game's version of Magic vs. Bird ever since, but so far it's been all one-sided. Crosby has a Stanley Cup and scored the game-winner against the United States in overtime to lock up gold at Vancouver; he's also the game highest earner.
5. A FINN AND PRAYER
Age might be just a number, but Finland's team could be mistaken for hockey's version of a retirement home. Finland's Teemu Selanne tops the "grizzled veterans" list here at 43, but the Czech Republic's Jaromir Jagr, who turns 42 during the tournament, is close behind. Throw in countrymen Sami Salo (39) and Kimmo Timonen (38) and the Finns win the trifecta. Runner-up goes to the Czech Republic, with Patrik Elias and Lubo Visnovsky (37) and an honourable mention each for Sweden's Daniel Alfredsson and Latvia's Sandis Ozolinsh (both 41).
6. YOU LOOK FAMILIAR, TOO.
By paying top dollar and scouring the globe for talent, the NHL has its hooks in nearly every top-flight player that will make the dozen national rosters. The Chicago Blackhawks and St. Louis Blues both have a league-high 10 skaters at the Olympics, representing five and six different nations, respectively. "There's a good chance," Chicago coach Joel Quenneville said matter-of-factly, "that somebody's going to come back with a gold medal."
7. CAN WE TALK ABOUT THIS?
Hockey players have been known to drop their gloves faster than a dirty diaper at the hint of a fight breaking out. There will be no shortage of violence here, but fisticuffs will be in short supply. That's largely because the Olympic rules, unlike the NHL's, require any player mixing it up to receive a 5-minute major AND a game- or match-misconduct penalty.
8. NHL'S LAST DANCE?
As recently as last week, Philadelphia owner Ed Snider was still complaining about past and present NHL decisions shutting down league play for two-plus weeks to accommodate the Olympics, "It's ridiculous, the whole thing is ridiculous. I don't care if it was in Philadelphia, I wouldn't want to break up the league." The NHL first came in 1998 and so far, commissioner Gary Bettman has been able to paper over differences among his owners to return. But the league has refused to commit beyond Sochi.
9. BEST GAME EVER
The prime minister was there. So was musician Neil Young and even "Star Trek" actor William Shatner beamed himself down to take in the 2010 Vancouver final between the United States and Canada. The moment Crosby's game-winner crossed the goal line, all of Canada exhaled and everyone who played in it can still look one another in the eye every time their paths cross in the future and remember the magic they created.
10. HOW FAR TO THE NEAREST IKEA?
About 185 miles north, a fact that might come in handy depending on which team underperforms the most. The U.S. team in Nagano was expected to medal, but started out with a loss to Sweden and griped the rink was too big. They barely beat Belarus and said their egos might be inflated, too. Then they did the "Late Show," followed by the "Late, Late Show," in which team members led partygoers up and down Chuo-dori Street until 5 a.m. Then they called off practice the next morning, lost to Canada by three goals and didn't find anything easy to beat until they turned their attention on the furniture in their Olympic village rooms. Said Keith Tkachuk, memorably summing up the experience after the Czech Republic beat the best American team money could buy and sent it packing: "The biggest waste of time. Ever."
Bear Down Chicago Bears!!! NFL teams entering uncharted territory when it comes to bringing in an openly gay player.
By Anne M. Peterson, The Associated Press
Any NFL team that drafts Michael Sam will be taking on much more than a rookie pass-rusher.
But experts say the smart approach for a team that signs the league's first openly gay athlete — from a marketing and public relations standpoint — is to simply let Sam's on-field play speak for him and his team.
"While this is a significant announcement given the sport, the general hope is that he's just accepted as one of the other men on the roster, and therefore his marketability is still simply tied to his ability to play well on the field and ultimately make the team," said Paul Swangard, managing director of the Warsaw Sports Marketing Center at the University of Oregon.
But experts say the smart approach for a team that signs the league's first openly gay athlete — from a marketing and public relations standpoint — is to simply let Sam's on-field play speak for him and his team.
"While this is a significant announcement given the sport, the general hope is that he's just accepted as one of the other men on the roster, and therefore his marketability is still simply tied to his ability to play well on the field and ultimately make the team," said Paul Swangard, managing director of the Warsaw Sports Marketing Center at the University of Oregon.
Sam declared Sunday that he is gay in interviews with ESPN, The New York Times and Outsports. The Missouri All-American had already come out last August to his coaches and teammates, who respected his privacy.
Now Sam is entering uncharted territory as he prepares for the NFL draft. The SEC's co-defensive player of the year was projected to be a mid-round selection. At 6-foot-2, 255 pounds, Sam will likely have to transition to outside linebacker, which could impact where he's drafted.
But announcing he's gay could also have an impact on his draft status.
"I'm not naive to think there aren't potentially some owners or executives out there who will say, 'Eh, I'm not so sure now.'" said Golden State Warriors President and Chief of Operations Rick Welts, who came out publicly in 2011. "But also, I hope, there are a lot who would say, 'There's an opportunity to do something that I think our fans would actually embrace. And if we're supposed to win football games, if this guy helps us win football games, that's somebody we should have on our roster.'"
Sam, 24, joins a growing list of active athletes to publicly come out, including Robbie Rogers, a winger for Major League Soccer's Los Angeles Galaxy, and Brittney Griner, who plays for the WNBA's Phoenix Mercury. Conner Mertens, a kicker for Division III Willamette University, came out as bisexual late last month, and is believed to have been the first active college football player to publicly announce his sexuality.
Griner, as one of the WNBA's brightest stars, was the centerpiece of the Mercury's marketing campaign. She also made a point of supporting causes that are important to her.
"There was nothing about her that was difficult in marketing. We supported what she wanted to do with bullying and the LGBT community. We made those connecting points," said Amber Cox, president of the Mercury before leaving to go to the Big East last fall.
Nike has also thrown support to LGBT athletes, signing both Griner and Jason Collins, a former NBA player who came out last year, to sponsorship deals, and launching its "Be True" campaign. Profits from the #BeTrue collection are being donated to the LGBT Sports Coalition to support the goal of ending discrimination in sport.
Mark Elderkin of the Gay Ad Network, an online media platform for national advertisers, said NFL teams need only look at Sam's track record.
"They're going to make their choices based on who the best college athletes are. And they're going to choose Michael if they deem him the best pick. So, I think they need to focus on the facts, and his performance over the years, his All-America status and everything he's done for Missouri," Elderkin said. "Also his relationships with the fans, and with the positive energy he has around his teammates and their full support, shows that he's not going to be disruptive to the team in any way, but is going to add value."
But it's still a reality that gay athletes face a backlash. Derogatory comments were easily found among the positive posts on social media and other online commentary following Sam's announcement.
A Pew Research survey last year of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender adults in the U.S. found that just 4 per cent saw pro sports leagues as friendly toward LGBT people, while 59 per cent saw the leagues as unfriendly and 36 per cent saw them as neutral.
Still, even over the past year there have been significant overall victories in gay and lesbian rights, most notably two U.S. Supreme Court decisions in June. One ruling cleared the way for ending a ban on same-sex marriages in California; the other struck down a 1996 law passed by Congress that banned federal recognition of same-sex marriages.
It remains to be seen how growing tolerance extends to the NFL playing field.
"I think the point that's being made in a lot of the discussion is, 'Let's just move on,'" Swangard said. "If the guy makes a team, then he makes the team. His sexual orientation shouldn't be the story."
Just another Chicago Bulls Session… Noah has triple-double in Bulls' win over Hawks.
By BRIAN SANDALOW (Associated Press)
Joakim Noah scored 19 points as part of a triple-double, and the Chicago Bulls beat the Atlanta Hawks 100-85 on Tuesday night.
Noah added 16 rebounds and 11 assists, and Taj Gibson had 24 points and 12 rebounds for the Blues, who had six players score in double figures. That helped Chicago win its fourth straight against the Hawks and sixth in a row at home versus Atlanta.
The Hawks have lost a season-high four straight overall.
Noah had his fourth career triple-double and first since Feb. 28, 2013, against Philadelphia. He completed this one with an assist on Gibson's basket with 9:59 left in the game.
Chicago (26-25) won for the third time in four games and pulled a half-game in front of Atlanta (25-25) in the Eastern Conference.
After trailing by 27 during the second quarter, the Hawks mounted a rally. Atlanta cut its deficit to eight with 8:47 left in the fourth on Mike Scott's 3-pointer, but Chicago answered with the next six points.
The Bulls were without Carlos Boozer for the third straight game because of a left calf strain, and he was replaced in the starting lineup by Gibson.
Noah helped Chicago overcome Boozer's absence, as the Bulls outrebounded the Hawks 57-28.
Noah, who was presented his All-Star jersey before the game by Bulls general manager Gar Forman, had six points, six rebounds and six assists during the opening quarter.
He ended the first half with seven points, 11 rebounds, and eight assists for the Bulls, who led 58-39.
Coming off a 79-76 loss to Memphis, in which the Hawks held the Grizzlies to an NBA-record low one free throw, Atlanta's offense woke up too late. The Hawks shot 43.8 for the game after making 40 percent in the first half.
All-star forward Paul Millsap had 15 for the Hawks but his streak of four games with at least 10 rebounds was snapped as he had two. Lou Williams added 13 points, and Jeff Teague had 12.
Kyle Korver extended his NBA record streak of at least one 3-pointer to 119 games with a shot 15 seconds into the second quarter. Korver hasn't gone without one since Nov. 2, 2012, against Houston.
That was the lone highlight for Atlanta, which entered the night second in the Eastern Conference with 102.1 points per game. The Hawks were held in check by the Bulls, who came in allowing an average of 92.8 points.
Coming off a 3-3 road trip, the Bulls got off to a fast start. They took a 26-15 lead with 1:54 left in the first on Noah's dunk and ended the quarter leading 33-17.
NOTES: Bulls coach Tom Thibodeau said that Derrick Rose will ''most likely not'' practice with the team this season. Rose was ruled out for the season after tearing the meniscus in his right knee on Nov. 22. . The Hawks signed Cartier Martin to a second 10-day contract. Martin also played six games with the Bulls earlier this season. . Both teams have one game remaining before the All-Star break. ... Teague's brother, Marquis, was traded by the Bulls to Brooklyn on Jan. 21 for forward Tornike Shengelia. . Atlanta is 9-12 without Al Horford, who is out for the season because of an injured right pectoral muscle.
Sports Illustrated gives White Sox high mark for offseason moves.
CSN Staff
What Hawk Harrelson has described as a “bold” offseason by the White Sox has earned critical praise.
Sports Illustrated gave general manager Rick Hahn an A-minus for the way he conducted a busy offseason that saw Jose Abreu, Adam Eaton, Matt Davidson, Felipe Paulino, Scott Downs, Ronald Belisario, Adrien Nieto and Mitchell Boggs added to the team’s 40-man roster. While the White Sox haven’t addressed all their needs, SI gave them the second-highest grade in the majors. The St. Louis Cardinals received an A-plus.
“Chicago still has questions about how much offense it will get at catcher and in the middle infield, but there’s no doubting that general manager Rick Hahn has had a very good winter,” SI’s Joe Lemire wrote.
“Chicago still has questions about how much offense it will get at catcher and in the middle infield, but there’s no doubting that general manager Rick Hahn has had a very good winter,” SI’s Joe Lemire wrote.
The Kansas City Royals and San Francisco Giants also received an A-minus.
Sports Illustrated grades Cubs' offseason.
By Tony Andracki
How would you rate the Cubs' offseason?
Sports Illustrated gave final winter report cards for National League teams Monday, and the Cubs finished right in the middle of the pack — 10th of 15 teams.
SI gave the Cubs a "C," mainly for a quiet offseason in which the only big move was hiring new manager Rick Renteria.
SI feels the Cubs needed to address their starting pitching more (though the team's pursit of Japaense starter Masahiro Tanaka was referenced), but they like the moves the Cubs made, no matter how small. The trade with the Marlins for Justin Ruggiano and the improvements to the bullpen — Jose Veras and Wesley Wright — were among the minor moves heralded by Cliff Corcoran.
By comparison, the St. Louis Cardinals took the cake as the most productive winter among NL teams, with an "A+" grade. The class of the NL Central didn't break the bank with major acquisitions, but they didn't need to, instead acquiring role players like Jhonny Peralta, Mark Ellis and Peter Bourjos.
Among the rest of the division rivals, the Milwaukee Brewers earned a "C-," the Cincinnati Reds a "D-" and the Pittsburgh Pirates an "F."
Sports Illustrated grades Cubs' offseason.
By Tony Andracki
How would you rate the Cubs' offseason?
Sports Illustrated gave final winter report cards for National League teams Monday, and the Cubs finished right in the middle of the pack — 10th of 15 teams.
SI gave the Cubs a "C," mainly for a quiet offseason in which the only big move was hiring new manager Rick Renteria.
SI feels the Cubs needed to address their starting pitching more (though the team's pursit of Japaense starter Masahiro Tanaka was referenced), but they like the moves the Cubs made, no matter how small. The trade with the Marlins for Justin Ruggiano and the improvements to the bullpen — Jose Veras and Wesley Wright — were among the minor moves heralded by Cliff Corcoran.
By comparison, the St. Louis Cardinals took the cake as the most productive winter among NL teams, with an "A+" grade. The class of the NL Central didn't break the bank with major acquisitions, but they didn't need to, instead acquiring role players like Jhonny Peralta, Mark Ellis and Peter Bourjos.
Among the rest of the division rivals, the Milwaukee Brewers earned a "C-," the Cincinnati Reds a "D-" and the Pittsburgh Pirates an "F."
Watson focused on games, not names in Ryder Cup.
By DOUG FERGUSON (AP Golf Writer
This is what Tom Watson knows about the American with a big lead in the Ryder Cup standings.
Jimmy Walker is 35.
He already has three PGA Tour wins this year. And his hobby is creating photographs of the galaxy.
He already has three PGA Tour wins this year. And his hobby is creating photographs of the galaxy.
''The first book I read was, 'All About Astronomy,''' Watson said. ''If he makes the Ryder Cup team, maybe we'll have some common things to talk about.''
Watson was at Riviera on Tuesday, even though he is playing this week on the other side of the country in a Champions Tour event. It's typical for Ryder Cup captains to make appearances on the PGA Tour throughout the year to meet with the media and keep their eye on potential players.
Watson was at Riviera on Tuesday, even though he is playing this week on the other side of the country in a Champions Tour event. It's typical for Ryder Cup captains to make appearances on the PGA Tour throughout the year to meet with the media and keep their eye on potential players.
At 64, he is the oldest Ryder Cup captain in history. Some might be concerned that he is out of touch with today's best players.
Ten of the top 15 players in the U.S. standings have never played in a Ryder Cup. That includes Jordan Spieth, who was born just two months before Watson was captain of the last American team that won in Europe.''It was good to sit down at breakfast and see some of the old faces, like Davis Love and David Toms, but see some of the young faces, as well,'' Watson said. ''Had the opportunity to go down to the practice range and watch some of these guys try to hit it over that fence, which they have raised 30 feet up there. And it's good to be back on tour and to kind of get a little bit more knowledge of some of the players who might be on the Ryder Cup team.''
Watson knows a lot more than he lets on. He realizes that there's still six months to go before nine players earn a spot on the team, and three weeks after that before he has to announce his three captain's picks.
Besides, he's more interested in the game than the name on the bag.
What stood out to him about Walker's most recent victory Sunday at Pebble Beach was not how a six-shot lead dwindled to one, or even that Walker made it tough on himself by knocking a 25-foot birdie putt some 5 feet by the hole to create more drama than he intended.
''What Jimmy Walker did this last week is what I'm looking for on that last hole,'' Watson said. ''That's not an easy putt to make because that putt doesn't break. It just doesn't. You can play it right edge and it just hangs on the right edge. It doesn't break. And he made it. That's what I'm looking for, the guy that's going to make that 5-footer to win or to tie. That's what I'm looking for - the guts it takes to do that.''
Watson's watched the last Ryder Cup at Medinah, and as much as he admired Europe for the greatest comeback ever by a visiting team, it ripped his heart out to see the Americans let another one get away. He's well aware that Europe was a combined 25-under par on Sunday, compared with 8-under for the Americans. And he probably knows that of the 13 matches that went the distance at Medinah, the Americans won the 18th hole just one time.
From his experience as a captain, making putts is out of his control. His job is to find the right players and the right combinations.
NBCSN to launch 'NASCAR America' Feb. 24.
NBC Sports news release, NASCAR.com
Daily 5 p.m. ET show blends news, analysis and inside access.
The day after the next Daytona 500 champion is crowned, NBCSN introduces NASCAR AMERICA, a new 30-minute daily show dedicated to the nation's longstanding fascination with speed and stock car racing. Making its debut on NBCSN at 5 p.m. ET on Monday, Feb. 24, and returning each weekday at the same time and place, NASCAR AMERICA will cover the sport from all angles, delivering news, highlights and access to NASCAR's dynamic stars and personalities. The announcement was made today by Sam Flood, Executive Producer, NBC Sports and NBCSN.
Each episode of NASCAR AMERICA will bring fans closer to everything that drives this American pastime with in-depth access to the drivers, crew chiefs and team owners that are integral to the sport, opinions and analysis from NASCAR's most prominent personalities, and exclusive looks inside the high-tech race shops and storied racing venues that dot the country.
"NASCAR AMERICA will engage the true racing fan in a number of ways, providing viewers with a mix of breaking news, storytelling and daily features," said Flood. "We're going to celebrate the traditions as well as the changing landscape of the sport from coast to coast with wide-ranging content that feeds America's passion for racing."
Originating from NBC Sports Group's International Broadcast Center in Stamford, Conn., as well as a new NBC Sports' studio located in the racing hotbed of Charlotte, N.C., NASCAR AMERICA's primary host is Rick Allen. Allen, who will usher in NBC Sports' live coverage of NASCAR Sprint Cup and Nationwide Series racing as lead announcer in July 2015, will interact daily with NBC Sports motorsports reporters Marty Snider and Kelly Stavast. Snider and Stavast, both based in Charlotte, N.C., will operate on location throughout the country to deliver the latest news and features on NASCAR's drivers and race teams. NBC Sports Group's IndyCar and Formula One play-by-play voice Leigh Diffey will also serve as host of NASCAR AMERICA.
Alongside Allen in the studio will be a constant rotation of guest analysts offering fresh perspectives and insights. Guest analysts who will join NASCAR AMERICA throughout February and March include NBC Sports NASCAR analyst Jeff Burton, Sprint Cup Champion Bobby Labonte, Kyle Petty, Ken Schrader, and crew chief Frank Stoddard. Future guest analysts, which will include former and current drivers and crew chiefs, NASCAR executives, and even prominent fans such as NBC Nightly News anchor Brian Williams, will be announced at a later date.
"The excitement and energy that the NBC Sports team is pouring into all the great ideas and concepts for NASCAR AMERICA has me convinced that this show will be special for race fans," said Burton. "I'm looking forward to contributing to NASCAR AMERICA, and watching it as well."
NBC Sports' unique position as a multiplatform media destination for not only NASCAR, but also Formula One, IndyCar and several other exciting racing series, provides the creators of NASCAR AMERICA with the ability to showcase a strong mix of motorsports coverage. As such, NASCAR AMERICA will regularly feature input from NBC Sports' IndyCar and Formula One on-air talent, including Leigh Diffey, Wally Dallenbach, Townsend Bell, Steve Matchett, David Hobbs and Will Buxton, each contributing from various locations around the world.
Background
On July 23, 2013, NASCAR and NBC Sports Group reached a comprehensive agreement that grants NBCUniversal exclusive rights to the final 20 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races, final 19 NASCAR Nationwide Series events, select NASCAR Regional & Touring Series events and other live content beginning in 2015.
With this partnership, NBC's 20 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race schedule includes a designation as the exclusive home to the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup, when the elite national series races through its final events of the season in an exciting and new elimination format. The Chase culminates with the season-ending championship event, which returns to network television in 2015 for the first time since 2009. Of NBC Sports Group's 20 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series events, seven will be carried on NBC annually, with 13 airing on NBCSN. Four of NBC Sports Group's 19 NASCAR Nationwide Series races will air on NBC, with 15 airing on NBCSN.
In addition to NASCAR's Sprint Cup and Nationwide Series races, NBC also obtained exclusive rights to practice and qualifying sessions for NBC's national series events during their portion of the season, as well as rights to broadcast the NASCAR K&N Series, NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour, NASCAR Toyota (Mexico) Series, the NASCAR Hall of Fame induction ceremony and NASCAR's season-ending banquets. Further, NBC is granted Spanish-language rights, certain video-on-demand rights and exclusive TV Everywhere rights for its NASCAR Sprint Cup Series and NASCAR Nationwide Series events.
'Do they have the belief?' - Klinsmann misfires as he calls out USA stars for not playing in Champions League.
By Ives Galarcep
Imagine you are the manager of a national team and two of your best players just made career moves you deem to be backward steps in their evolutions as players. You weren’t crazy about either move, but a bigger concern for you is the message it might send to the next generation of players. You have recently signed a new contract keeping you around for two World Cups and while outright criticizing two of your best players just four months before a World Cup isn’t advisable, you feel you need to let it be known where you stand philosophically.
What do you do?
What Jurgen Klinsmann chose to do is send a not-so-subtle message to the U.S. national team pool, both current and future, about striving for the highest levels of the game. He laid out a challenge of sorts by saying that, in his view, Americans have the talent but not the confidence to challenge for places at the highest levels of the game.
“It needs to take the U.S. team, in a World Cup to go into at least a quarterfinal, if not a semifinal, to give more credibility to American players," Klinsmann said in a TV interview with ESPN. "But it’s also the American players, when they go to Europe, to prove it, that they become big players in Europe. So it's also down to do they have the belief? They have the qualities, but do they have the belief?
“Because you go into a European top club and if you want to play in a top five, six teams in England or in Germany or in Italy, you have 15, 16, 17 national team players on the roster. So you have to kick somebody out. I think the American player still doesn’t have this last belief that they can kick somebody out. This is something that they have to build.”
For Klinsmann, the key goal for American players should not only be to play in Europe, but to reach the highest levels of European club soccer, which means competing in the UEFA Champions League.
“We need players one day, like Brazil, like Argentina, that play Champions League. Champions League in Europe is the crème de la crème," he said. "This is where the trend is made in the Champions League. In European Champions League. The way they play this year in the Champions League, you will see it in the World Cup in Brazil in summer. The systems, the approaches, because it is the best of the best. We do not have players there.
"My wish is that, maybe after the World Cup, we get Jozy Altidore, our No. 9, into a Champions League team, or Tim Howard becomes goalkeeper of a big, big team. We have good players, but we don’t have the belief yet that we belong in there.”
Klinsmann’s didn’t say anything that most followers of the national team disagree with, except maybe for the whole “Americans don’t have the belief yet” part. A curious message indeed because it leaves you wondering just who he might be referring to.
It isn’t tough to figure out who he was talking about. Clint Dempsey and Michael Bradley left two Champions League contenders in top European leagues to return to big paydays in Major League Soccer. To some, those decisions could be seen as capitulation on the part of the players who chose to get paid rather than keep fighting to climb the stature ladder in Europe. Clearly, Klinsmann feels this way, though he stops short of calling out the two U.S. national team stars by name.
In the case of Dempsey, he didn’t really give up Champions League soccer out of a lack of belief so much as he made a calculated decision to grab the last big payday of his career rather than facing a seriously uncertain future at Tottenham. MLS and Seattle made him an offer he couldn’t refuse, and his decision to take a payday bigger than any he could find in Europe wasn’t really about fear, but about making a reasonable career decision.
Bradley’s decision to return to MLS was far more of a stunner, not just for U.S. fans, but for Klinsmann. At 26, Bradley still figured to have as many as a half-dozen more years in Europe, and as much as he wasn’t a regular starter at AS Roma, he did get his share of playing time. He could have easily stuck out the rest of the year in Italy, but would it really have been a wise move to say no to Toronto FC’s astronomical offer when his future at Roma was pretty unclear? And does anybody honestly think Bradley of all people left Roma out of fear of competing for playing time, something he’d been doing in Europe for the past eight years?
Who else exactly could Klinsmann have been talking about? There isn’t a long list of American players turning down offers from Champions League clubs, at least not for lesser challenges. Sure, Altidore could have gone to PSV Eindhoven last summer and been much closer to Champions League soccer, but nobody would call moving to the English Premier League a lesser challenge. As for Howard, there isn’t a line of Champions League teams beating down his door even as he continues to put together strong seasons in England.
Michael Bradley and Clint Dempsey may be the headliners for returning U.S. national team players, but they haven't been alone in coming back to the States. Carlos Bocanegra, Clarence Goodson, Maurice Edu and Michael Parkhurst have all returned to Major League Soccer, having decided to ink large deals to keep them in North America. Will the spat of returning players help improve MLS to the point that the league produces more quality for the national team, or will the smaller number of top players in Europe be an issue for the U.S. national team in the long run?
Klinsmann’s comments weren’t about sending a message to Dempsey and Bradley though, because let’s face it, the ship has sailed on both those players achieving Klinsmann’s ideal. No, what the U.S. head coach was probably trying to do in making those comments was to send a message to the players still plying their trade in Europe, and the next generation of talent coming up the pipeline.
The last thing Klinsmann wants is up-and-coming talent to settle for big paydays in MLS rather than challenge themselves by striving for playing time in big teams across Europe.
If Klinsmann is really worried about Dempsey, and more so Bradley, establishing a new trend for American players, he really shouldn’t be just yet. Both Dempsey and Bradley are exceptions to the rule. Two American players who turned multiple years of success in Europe and with the national team, which helped raise their stock and profile enough to lead MLS teams to break the bank with mega-deals that paid well above market value for them.
That hasn’t stopped there from suddenly being a belief among some American fans that we could see more top Americans coming to MLS, like Altidore or Aron Johannsson, in the hear future. Don’t hold your breath folks. Younger American players doing well in Europe will stay in Europe because none of them have achieved the type of status that will lead to the kind of gigantic offer from MLS it would take to make MLS an option over Europe.
Hearing Klinsmann’s comments makes you wonder how much he is concerned about a growing trend. Dempsey and Bradley aren’t the only U.S. regulars to recently sign deals with MLS. Omar Gonzalez inked a multi-million dollar deal, and Matt Besler and Graham Zusi are both on long-term deals as well.
The reality is there is no mass exodus of Americans leaving Europe. Michael Parkhurst hit his peak by signing with a Bundesliga club and never seeing the field. Maurice Edu had spent more than a year wallowing in obscurity at Stoke City. They both moved to MLS because, for both, MLS was about on par with the options they had. Neither really turned down high-level Champions League Soccer.
A greater concern is the pipeline heading the other way and getting players like Matt Besler and Omar Gonzalez and younger prospects like Luis Gil and DeAndre Yedlin to make moves to Europe sooner than later. MLS hasn’t really shown a readiness to start splashing big bucks on young talent (Gonzalez being the exception) just yet, and if Klinsmann’s comments are resonating with anybody, it is with the younger generation who are surely aware Klinsmann is going to be around a while as U.S. head coach.
Klinsmann is absolutely right about there needing to be more Americans playing in UEFA Champions League to help increase the level of quality on the U.S. team. He is also right that a deep run in this summer’s World Cup would help the entire U.S. player pool’s profile overseas, which could lead to improved opportunities.
All that said, Klinsmann was probably reaching just a bit with the whole “Americans don’t believe” notion. The dearth of Americans playing Champions League soccer hasn’t been about a lack of belief, but a lack of talent, and until the talent level in the U.S. pool rises enough to make ignoring it impossible for bigger European clubs, we will continue to wonder just when Americans will be competing in the highest level of club soccer in the world.
Wichita State 78, Southern Illinois 67.
By The Sports Xchange
Wichita State found its outside shooting touch just in time to remain unbeaten.
The fourth-ranked Shockers made six of 13 3-pointers in the second half, closed the game with a 14-6 run and held off Southern Illinois 78-67 Tuesday at Koch Arena.
Wichita State (26-0, 13-0 Missouri Valley Conference) and No. 1 Syracuse are the only unbeaten teams in the nation.
Shockers guard Ron Baker scored 19 points, 13 in the second half. Wichita State forward Cleanthony Early added 18 points, 10 after halftime.
Guard Anthony Beane led Southern Illinois with 25 points.
Baker's 3-pointer gave Wichita State a 72-64 lead during the run that finally put away Southern Illinois (10-16, 6-7 MVC). Baker's foul shots with 1:54 to play gave Wichita State a 10-point lead.
The Shockers took a 57-48 lead in the second half with a 16-7 run. After struggling most of the game from 3-point range, the home team warmed up. Baker made his first in six tries for a 49-44 lead. Early's 3-pointer made it 52-46. Baker found guard Tekele Cotton for a three-point play, and forward Darius Carter's hook shot gave the Shockers a 57-48 lead.
The Salukis did not cave, no matter the noise and the pressure from Wichita State. Even without a post game, they found ways to score. Jalen Pendleton, a 6-foot-1 forward, drew fouls and scored in the lane against bigger players.
Beane carried the Salukis to a 21-19 lead despite being guarded by Cotton, Wichita State's top defender. He made five of his first seven shots, one from 3-point range, to score 11 points before halftime.
The Salukis led most of the first half and did not allow the Shockers to go on long runs or get the crowd roaring. Southern Illinois' zone defense kept the Shockers on the perimeter, and Wichita State shot poorly from outside. The Salukis limited them to one shot most trips and didn't allow Wichita State's size to dominate.
After tying the score twice, the Shockers took a 26-25 lead on a free throw by forward Nick Wiggins. The Shockers failed to keep that run going and Southern Illinois went up 29-26 on a three by guard Tyler Smithpeters. Wichita State forward Derail Green followed in a miss to cut the lead to one. Beane responded with his second three of the half to push the lead to 32-28 with 3:19 to play in the half.
Southern Illinois did not score again until Pendleton's free throw with 39.2 seconds remaining. Wichita State failed to take full advantage and trailed 33-32 at halftime.
Wichita State made two of 14 3-pointers in the first half.
NOTES: Wichita State junior F Darius Carter was named Missouri Valley Conference newcomer of the week after averaging 9.5 points and 4.0 rebounds in wins over Indiana State and Northern Iowa. ... Southern Illinois G Anthony Beane scored 20 or more points for the fifth consecutive game. The last Saluki with a run that long or longer was Troy Hudson in 1996-97 with six. ... Wichita State set a school record for longest regular-season MVC winning streak. The Shockers won 12 in a row in 1982-83 team, then again from the end of the 1963-64 season to the start of the 1964-65 season.
By Sam Cooper
The world of recruiting just got a little bit more interesting. In the past handful of years, social media has become an integral asset for college coaches to communicate with prospects. Now they’ll have another approved application to add to the list.
Beginning in August, the NCAA will allow coaches to use SnapChat with recruits.
Texas Compliance Follow
@TexasCompliance
NCAA says SnapChat permissible to use for recruiting correspondence in Basketball & most other sports beg. 8/1. This should be interesting.
In its new social media ed column, the NCAA specifically names SnapChat as a type of electronic transmission.
They could send a snapshot of a nice day on campus or a video of a celebrating locker room after a big win, but a coach could use other applications to do that too.
This is one to keep an eye on.
By Dan Wetzel
By the time Shaun White's second run through the men's halfpipe final fell apart and his reign as Olympic champion was over, you could all but feel the joy surge through the mountain air here. Well, at least among some.
Almost no one likes Shaun White anymore. Or so it seems. At least some of his fellow riders act that way, even though they owe the size of their corporate sponsorships to the redhead from San Diego.
Somewhere along the way he became too big, too corporate, too selfish, too good, or too whatever. Or maybe he was always that way, but grew human enough on the board that the others no longer feared taking shots at him. Maybe it's generational. Whatever it was, in private or public, the feeling here was clear.
Somewhere along the way he became too big, too corporate, too selfish, too good, or too whatever. Or maybe he was always that way, but grew human enough on the board that the others no longer feared taking shots at him. Maybe it's generational. Whatever it was, in private or public, the feeling here was clear.
"You know it's good for snowboarding, man," American teammate Danny Davis said of White finishing fourth, far behind winner Iouri Podladtchikov of Switzerland. "The world knows now that there are other snowboarders besides Shaun. It's great, man, because there are a bunch of good riders in our sport and they deserve some credit, too."
Deserved or not, this is reality. Even coming in fourth was met with scorn, another judging favor for White. They claimed he deserved lower.
Deserved or not, this is reality. Even coming in fourth was met with scorn, another judging favor for White. They claimed he deserved lower.
"Well, fourth was a gift, first of all," Davis noted, feeling no hesitation at smacking Shaun — even though Davis himself crashed twice, finished 10th and called the entire night "rats … a bummer."
If this was the end for White at the Olympics — he'll be 31 in 2018 — then it wasn't pretty.
A bad couple runs amid a week full of bad competitor comments. Two Canadians called him out earlier in the Games for dropping out of the slopeside event. They said his cited reason (a dangerous course) was really just a fear of losing.
And now Tuesday felt like a night not just to celebrate Podladtchikov, but the start of a whole new era.The entire thing was surreal, of course, because this enterprise owes White a debt of gratitude. This is one of the biggest nights of the Olympics in part because of his ability to break through to the mainstream masses. The primetime lights and array of global TV cameras here don't happen without him. And forget all the level of sponsorship and prize money in the pro ranks.
There'd certainly be snowboarding without Shaun White. It just wouldn't be as rich and as popular.
Or consider 10-year-old Ben Hughes of St. Louis, a leukemia survivor standing in the front row here at Rosa Khutor Extreme Park. During his 2 1/2-year run of chemotherapy and radiation treatments, he made a request of the Make-A-Wish Foundation: He wanted to come to the Sochi Games, and he wanted to watch Shaun White snowboard.
And so here he was, with his mom, Liz, right behind him, a sister, brother and father taking turns by his side.
During those years he was sick, Ben watched Shaun soar through the air. He drew inspiration. He found something to cling to. And when the doctors finally said Ben was cancer free and cleared him to attempt to snowboard himself, off the family went to the local Hidden Valley Resort, a small ski area in suburban St. Louis, where like his idol, "I get some air," Ben said with a smile.
Maybe it's not White's signature double corks, but … "small air," Ben said.
So the Hughes family stood all day in the snow, watching prelims, semifinals and at last the medal round, 10 hours straight. "Just one bathroom break," Liz said of her son. Earlier, after qualifying, White came through the media area, leaped the fence and went and said hello to the kid.
"I remember being that age, and I know he is a Make-a-Wish," White said later.
"It was pretty cool," Ben said.
Or maybe a kid making a wish to be here, of any place on the globe, to meet a snowboarder, of all the stars in the world, is what really carries value.
"For me, that's what it's about," White said. "It's the fans. It's the people who came tonight."
It's not that White did anything that nearly anyone else wouldn't also gladly do — the visit was brief and White didn't know Ben's name or his circumstances. He is the one they ask for, though.
"I think I have affected a lot of people," White said. "People who had never seen the sport before and people like that kid. I always want to be more than just a snowboard. This is a big part of who I am, but it's not all of who I am."
So how real is Shaun White?
As real as a 10-year-old burying his head on the rail in near tears after he watched his hero fail to medal, as real as a mom rubbing her son's back in a futile attempt to comfort.
Somehow this simple story — a guy gets so good, so innovative, so charismatic he almost demands the world pay attention to these new-age athletes — became complex.
It's easy to just call out Davis and the others for being selfish or ungrateful, but the internal dynamics aren't fully clear. The backlash against White was broad enough that it didn't feel like petty jealousy. There is something there. They probably didn't turn on their trailblazer for no reason.
"It was pretty cool," Ben said.
"I don't know if I've ever see him smile bigger," Liz said. "It was a dream come true. Oh, my, for him to be able to get to visit with Shaun White."
And so this is the other side. Maybe the other riders see White as just a marketing campaign taken to the extreme, too big for the sport, too far gone from the core values of this pursuit.
Or maybe a kid making a wish to be here, of any place on the globe, to meet a snowboarder, of all the stars in the world, is what really carries value.
"For me, that's what it's about," White said. "It's the fans. It's the people who came tonight."
It's not that White did anything that nearly anyone else wouldn't also gladly do — the visit was brief and White didn't know Ben's name or his circumstances. He is the one they ask for, though.
"I think I have affected a lot of people," White said. "People who had never seen the sport before and people like that kid. I always want to be more than just a snowboard. This is a big part of who I am, but it's not all of who I am."
So how real is Shaun White?
As real as a 10-year-old burying his head on the rail in near tears after he watched his hero fail to medal, as real as a mom rubbing her son's back in a futile attempt to comfort.
Somehow this simple story — a guy gets so good, so innovative, so charismatic he almost demands the world pay attention to these new-age athletes — became complex.
It's easy to just call out Davis and the others for being selfish or ungrateful, but the internal dynamics aren't fully clear. The backlash against White was broad enough that it didn't feel like petty jealousy. There is something there. They probably didn't turn on their trailblazer for no reason.
White is 27 and he couldn't find a way to win a third consecutive gold. He isn't going to retire. He is still going to make an estimated $15 million a year. He said he's taking a break and heading out on tour with his band.
Yet it's clear the king has been knocked down. No one fears him anymore, everyone is eager for the new day in snowboarding that began, in earnest, Tuesday night. Something happened here, something happened to snowboarding's big star.
Because apparently no one likes Shaun White anymore … except all the little kids who do.
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