data-mm-id=”_j21hxf49n”>As countries around the world rush to contain the spread of the coronavirus, all patterns of society have seen disruption, including the sports world. The potential scale of the virus outbreak has led to cancellations, postponements, and matches played before empty crowds. Though the International Olympic Committee has stood firm on holding the 2020 Olympic Games as scheduled, not all event organizers have been as steadfast, and still others may be at risk.Possible effects on Euro 2020To celebrate the 60th anniversary of the UEFA European Championship, the 2020 edition will be held in 12 different countries across Europe. Unfortunately, with a superbug on the loose wreaking havoc on worldwide travel, UEFA could not have picked a worse year to host such a unique event.The tournament is scheduled to kick off on June 12th in Rome. Unfortunately, Italy is among the hardest-hit countries in Europe by the coronavirus. UEFA president Michele Uva made a vague statement to Italian broadcaster RAI that opened up the possibility that the organization could take drastic measures if things get worse.“We are monitoring country by country, and football must follow the orders of the individual countries. The sporting path will only be closed if the situation gets worse.”Possible effects on Formula OneIt stands to reason that one of the only truly global sports would be impacted by a global outbreak.The Chinese Grand Prix, once scheduled for April 19th in Shanghai, has already been postponed to an unknown later date. However, despite fears from their respective countries of the disease spreading to their shores, the season-opening Australian Grand Prix is still set to go ahead on March 15th, and the inaugural Vietnam Grand Prix is scheduled for April 5th.The all-electric Formula E series has canceled its own Chinese race, which would have been held March 21 in the island city of Sanya.Serie A matches played behind closed doorsItaly is the first European country to face a major coronavirus outbreak, and its soccer league has been forced to take serious measures. Last weekend, four matches were postponed, all of which were to be played in the northern part of the country. This weekend, five matches — including a major encounter between Juventus and Inter Milan — will be played to empty arenas. A Europa League match at Milan's San Siro stadium between Inter Milan and Ludogorets will also be played behind closed doors. It is unknown when the cancelled matches from last weekend will be rescheduled.Of course, the virus' effects on East Asian soccer have been far more dramatic. The professional leagues of China, Japan, and South Korea have postponed all matches indefinitely, and China's 2022 World Cup qualifying matches have been moved to Thailand. FIS Alpine Ski World Cup event canceledEarlier this month, the city of Yanqing was set to host China's first FIS Alpine Ski World Cup event, which would open the 2020 season and serve as the first Test Event for the 2022 Winter Olympic Games in Beijing. Both events, the men's downhill and super G, have been cancelled.“Although the risk level in Yanqing is low, the health and welfare of the athletes and all participants must take priority. It is also imperative that athletes can focus on their performance and particularly on the completely new and very challenging course," FIS president Gian Franco Kasper said.World Athletics Indoor Championships moved to 2021One month ago, World Athletics (the organization formerly known as the International Amateur Athletic Federation) announced that the World Athletics Indoor Championships, set to take place in Nanjing, China late this March, would be pushed back a full year to March 2021 due to concerns regarding the virus."We have considered the possibility of relocating the event to another country and would like to thank the cities that have volunteered to host the championships," a press release stated. "However, given concerns still exist regarding the spread of the virus outside China, we have decided not to go with this option, as it may lead to further postponement at a later date."Indoor athletic competitions typically take place in the late winter to early spring months, putting the Indoor Championships at the furthest end of the 2020 indoor athletics calendar even before the postponement.
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Forcing rookies to dress in costume is an MLB tradition that's as childish as it is time-honored. A gloriously dumb reminder that most baseball players are manchildren, forever stuck in high school. We are too; it's a major reason baseball players are perhaps easier to connect with than athletes in any other sport. The hazing ritual is usually reserved for the day before the last road trip of the year. All the team's rookies are forced to dress up in either a coordinated theme or a mishmash of glam nightmares, and then go out and sign autographs. Some teams have gotten an early start, while others have yet to reveal their big plans. Here, a collection of 2011's most fashionable rookies. Above, the Rays were apparently let loose in a Halloween superstore with 100 buc…
data-mm-id=”_dyfofa4th”>Rice-to-Montana. Aikman-to-Irvin. Brady-to-heck, anyone. Jones-to-Tate? Obviously, it's very, very, very premature to start writing Daniel Jones' Hall-of-Fame speech, even if New York Giants fans have already inducted him into their personal Cantons. But it's clear that Jones is the future, especially now that the Giants are back at .500 and appear competitive after winning their past two games with him at the helm. After an excellent preseason and a show-stopping debut against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, one that concluded with Jones handling matters himself via a game-winning rushing touchdown, the New York tabloids (and a certain First Take host) did the unthinkable: admit they might've been wrong about the Duke draft pick that went too high…
data-mm-id=”_cay7cdf7s”>Duke was thoroughly dissected by a hungry North Carolina State team last night. It was the most lopsided loss by a ranked Blue Devils side to an unranked squad in Mike Krzyzewski's four decades at the helm. He was, quite understandably, displeased with it all. And it's fair to say he didn't show much passion for the traditional post-game handshake line, breezing past Wolfpack coach Kevin Keatts at top speed.NC STATE UPSETS DUKE ?THEY'RE STORMING THE COURT IN RALEIGH! pic.twitter.com/r94ibBFMLJ— ACC Network (@accnetwork) February 20, 2020This predictably spawned a bevy of tweets and blog posts criticizing the coaching legend, who does seem to have a habit of being very chatty when he wins and far less engaged when he loses. That's not e…
data-mm-id=”_muso2pm44″>The second contest in the National League Division Series between the Los Angeles Dodgers and San Diego Padres was one of the best baseball games played this season. LA's 6-5 win was a brilliant display of the game at its finest. The result gave the boys in blue a 2-0 lead in the series, but the winding road it took to get there cemented the Padres and Dodgers as Major League Baseball's sexiest rivalry. Sure, the Red Sox and Yankees have more history, as do the Cubs and Cardinals and countless other matchups. But the Dodgers and Padres are both among the most talented teams in the game, have World Series aspirations, are littered with individual superstars and, best of all, they really don't like each other. All the elements are there for a compet…
data-mm-id=”_ygok9wp31″>Skip Bayless and Shannon Sharpe have been having more serious conversations than they normally would over the past few weeks. That continued this morning as Bayless revealed some details of his childhood. He spoke of Katie Bell, a black woman who worked for his grandmother in Oklahoma, to whom the job of raising him fell. He spoke of how she became like a mother to him and the lessons she bestowed. .@RealSkipBayless recalls his experience being raised by a black woman while growing up in Oklahoma City:"Everything I learned about right and wrong, black and white, I learned from Katie Bell." pic.twitter.com/bnx2oxzXm9— UNDISPUTED (@undisputed) June 10, 2020Bayless recalled his trips to church, where he was the only white person, and the compassion he w…
data-mm-id=”_9d7mja0h5″>Nathan Peterman looks like he will make the Las Vegas Raiders' final roster. In fact, the Raiders went through the trouble of reworking Peterman's contract which you would think they wouldn't bother with if they were about to cut him.The Raiders and QB Nathan Peterman agreed on a reworked contract for one-year, $1M, which is guaranteed, per source. He was previously due $2.133M, but it was not guaranteed. The team continues to value him as a developmental QB prospect in a year where QB depth is important.— Field Yates (@FieldYates) September 4, 2020Yesterday we talked about how Josh Rosen might become Ryan Fitzpatrick. Who knows what Nathan Peterman might hope to become because he is three years older with a much worse track record. Despite the …
data-mm-id=”_welriewei”>There was a time – a simpler time – when Pabst Blue Ribbon was just a beer. That time was college and buddy, that was a long time ago. They say that necessity is the mother of invention and people need beer that isn't beer, so let me introduce you to Pabst Blue Ribbon Cannabis Infused Seltzer. No, that's not just a collection of words, it is a product available in select California dispensaries. It combines the Pabst brand with pot and also touches on the seltzer arms race currently taking place in the beer industry. In the words of an old friend, what a time to be alive. It features no alcohol which I guess means it is just fizzy pot pop with a hipster twist? And I say that with the utmost respect. I am lame enough to have once re-imagined the PBR lo…
data-mm-id=”_ya12s5ubv”>About one year ago, we were getting ready for the San Francisco 49ers to take on the Kansas City Chiefs in Super Bowl LIV. The Niners came up short and Patrick Mahomes won his first Super Bowl. But the future was bright in San Fran with Kyle Shanahan and a ferocious defense leading the way. One year later, things have changed. The Niners were snakebitten to the point it nearly defies belief in their attempt to defend their NFC title in 2020, losing quite literally every important player for at least multiple weeks due to injury. Jimmy Garoppolo missed almost the entire year along with George Kittle. Nick Bosa tore his ACL. The team finished 6-10 and last in the NFC West. No use crying over spilled milk. It's tough to swallow, but sometimes this just happens…
data-mm-id=”_p3bd4jfdt”>Welcome to the playoffs, most of you. For the rest of you, let's finish out the year strong. Here are five players who you may think about starting or sitting this week. We'll do the heavy lifting for you and explain why you should change your mind, or stay the course. (All stats via ESPN PPR leagues)Jerick McKinnon, RB, Kansas City ChiefsAlright, alright, we'll get this one out of the way early. Yes, I was extremely wrong about McKinnon. You'll be pleased to know I paid the price as I followed my own advice and benched him in my most important fantasy league and will lose because of it. McKinnon scoffed at haters like me and put up a 34-point line against the Texans. He has a favorable matchup against the Seahawks this week. He is very much …
data-mm-id=”_dzg7ai3v6″>Earlier this week the Chicago Cubs released a pretty standard piece of content on their TikTok page. The video featured some of the hot dog vendors that populate Wrigley Field. It's not terribly unique from other teams that utilize their social platforms to show everyone how their gameday experience is unlike anybody else's. But from this video an unexpected hero emerged by the name of Antonio. You see, the Cubs asked the hot dog vendors to give their best hot dog yell for the TikTok. And when I first watched I had the standard blank stare of anybody who consumes too much Internet content. Then Antonio gave his yell and I absolutely lost it. In case you have not had the pleasure: i will buy five hot dogs from Antoniobravo @Cubs pic.twitter.com/niN8aOS2…