It’s an issue that’s not going away any time soon, because it’s not easily resolved. In the wake of a wage-discrimination suit brought by several women’s soccer players against U.S. Soccer, tennis has been held up as an equal opportunity sport. But that was debunked in a recent New York Times article that explored not only the gap between male and female players’ pay but the disparity in the attitudes of the sexes on the subject.
Noting that the Grand Slam tournaments – Wimbledon and the Australian, French and US Opens – have equal prize money, Billie Jean king, who fought long for that equality, said, “To have equal prize money in the majors sends a message. It’s not about the money, it’s about the message.”
Trust me, it’s about the money. Because the money is the message. ...
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Read MoreThis has not been the best moment in the relationship between the traditional sexes. (And we have to say “the traditional sexes” when talking about men and women, because we are moving toward a time when people will define themselves as something other or by no gender at all.)
The situation between the sexes has gotten tense on the campaign trail – as we have practically daily proof – but recently the battle shifted to the sports world as five veterans of the U.S. women’s soccer team charged the U.S. Soccer Federation with pay discrimination in everything from per diems to compensation for participating in exhibitions. This despite the women’s superior achievements to the men’s team.
“We continue to be told we should be grateful just to have the opportunity to play professional soccer and to get paid for doing it,” Hope Solo told “Today.” “In this day and age, it’s about equality. It’s about equal rights. It’s about equal pay. We’re pushing for that.”
This comes on the heels of a misogynistic rant by Raymond Moore, then CEO of the BNP Paribas Open at Indian Wells, Calif., in which he said that the women rode the coattails of the men in tennis and that they should get down on their knees in gratitude. ...
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Read MoreWith so much happening in the world of politics, this blog has been neglecting one of its passions – sports and, specifically, tennis.
Well, no longer.
The sports pages today are full of a stratospheric Novak Djokovic, who in winning the Miami Open Sunday passed Roger Federer as the all-time ATP earnings leader with more than $98 million. Yowza.
But that’s just the beginning. The win made him the career leader in ATP Masters 1000 titles, with 28, and the first player to win the difficult double of Indian Wells and Miami four times. It also enabled him to extend his streak of consecutive weeks as No. 1 to 92.
Miami was also Nole’s 63rd title, moving him past coach Boris Becker with 714 wins. (By the way, 714 was the number of home runs Babe Ruth hit lifetime.) ...
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Read MoreThe admission by tennis star Maria Sharapova that she has tested positive for the banned drug meldonium offers its share of ironies.
Sharapova – the world’s most financially successful female athlete – has always benefited both by her talent and her looks.
But what looks good on the outside is not necessarily healthy on the inside. Sharapova – a Russian who trains in the U.S. – has a history of irregular EKGs and a family history of diabetes. There are conflicting reports about whether the drug, also known as mildronate, can actually alleviate those conditions. Its reputation as a performance enhancer stems from its ability to increase blood flow. ...
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Read MoreSo as the world knows by now – or at least the world that cares about American football knows by now – the Denver Broncos’ D got inside Cam Newton’s head at the Super Bowl Sunday night, frustrating the Carolina Panthers’ QB, who sulked on the sidelines and then through the postgame press conference he walked out on.
Outrage was swift among the Twitterati, who admittedly have their share of anti-Cam fans for a variety of reasons.
Roger Federer once observed that the athletic loss is doubly painful: You lose and then you have to discuss it immediately with the press. It’s enough to disturb anyone’s equilibrium. Newton can be forgiven his disappointment, of course. No one likes to lose or see his team – a surrogate for the self – lose. But losing with grace, like winning with grace, is a necessary part of the athlete’s arsenal. A sore loser just gives his opponents and detractors ammunition. ...
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Read MoreThe tennis match-fixing sort-of scandal is what journalists call “a story with legs.”
Yes, but does it have teeth?
We’ll get to Novak Djokovic’s wisdom teeth and their role in the saga in a moment. But first, our story thus far from the BBC and BuzzFeed News: Over a 10-year period, 16 players – half of whom are playing in the Australian Open, including a Slam winner – allegedly threw matches. No one has been named, because phone records etc. of the accepted bribes don’t exist. But the point seems to be that official tennis knew and did nothing. Everyone from Martina Navratilova to Roger Federer has said in effect to the investigators, Put up or shut up. ...
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Read MoreAs the story of tennis match-fixing continued to swirl Down Under – check out the Daily News’ back page – there was another shocker – Rafa’s out.
Rafael Nadal went down to fellow Spaniard Fernando Verdasco 7-6 (8-6) 4-6 3-6 7-6 (4-7) 6-2 in a four-hour, 40-minute first-round match at the Australian Open. Reportedly, it was a thriller but whom are we kidding? We’re a long way from the days when Rafa would blow Verdasco off the court.
Is it mental? Physical? A failure to shake up the coaching team? All of these? None? ...
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