WASHINGTON, D.C. - Like a quarterback facing a game-long blitz, NFL commissioner Roger Goodell and the nation's richest professional sport absorbed a barrage of hits on Capitol Hill Wednesday, when a hearing on football head injuries produced sharp questioning and a finger-jabbing accusation from Rep. Maxine Waters (D-Calif.).
Waters, whose husband played in the NFL, was particularly incensed when Goodell refused to acknowledge a direct link between football and brain-trauma injuries.
"I believe you are an $8 billion organization that has failed in your responsibility to the players," Waters said. "I know that you dearly want to hold on to your profits. I think it's the responsibility of Congress to look at your antitrust exemption and take it away.”
The league's antitrust exemption, established in 1961, cleared the way for owners to reap billions in television revenue.
The hearing - convened by the House Judiciary Committee, chaired by Rep. John Conyers (D-Mich.) - was held before an SRO crowd in the Rayburn Office Building, among them two NFL Hall of Famers, Willie Wood and Jim Brown.
Wood, the former Packers defensive back, was in a wheelchair. Brown, perhaps the greatest running back in history, walked with a cane.
The hearing was called in the wake of a recent NFL-commissioned survey that revealed that retired NFL players may suffer from such irreversible brain diseases as Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy (CTE), and dementia, at rates far greater than the general population. Conyers said it was time for the committee to do "an expeditious and independent review all of the data."
The league has steadfastly downplayed the validity of any studies indicating a connection between playing football and the incidence of brain disease, maintaining that its own recent survey was widely misinterpreted.
Christoper Nowinski, a former Harvard football player and professional wrestler, is the founder of the Sports Legacy Institute and co-director of Center For the Study of Traumatic Encephalopathy at Boston University. He testified about his own years of concussion-related problems, while his colleague, Dr. Ann McKee, reported that she found "severe" brain damage in all 11 of the postmortem studies she has made of former pro and college football players.
"I am constantly surprised by the NFL's reaction to evidence that is overwhelming that we have a serious public-health crisis on our hands," Nowinski said.
Goodell repeatedly defended the league's actions and policies, saying he had spent more time and attention to the issue of brain injuries to NFL players than any issue in his time as commissioner.
"We know that concussions are a serious matter," Goodell said. "Our goal is to make our game as safe as possible."
Goodell said the league has dramatically improved pension and disability benefits for former players, and was committed to studying data to continue its efforts to reduce the risk of brain injury.
When asked by Conyers if he believed there was a connection between football-induced brain injury and neurological problems later in life, Goodell said the league wasn't waiting for the debate to unfold, but was taking all possible measures make the game safer now.
"I asked you a simple question. What's the answer?" Conyers said.
Goodell said that a medical expert would be best equipped to answer the question. Under further questioning, Goodell assured Conyers that the league would turn over all relevant player medical records to the committee, as did DeMaurice Smith, the new executive director of the NFL Players Association.
Over the objection of the ranking minority committee member, Lamar Smith, (R-Tex.) who said "the NFL does not need Congress to referee this issue," Waters, Anthony Weiner (D-NY) and other committee members, pressed Goodell and the panel of witnesses that included doctors, neurologists and safety advocates, along with former Giants George Martin and Tiki Barber.
Martin talked movingly of a former Giant teammate, a star running back whose once-prosperous life has been obliterated by CTE, leaving he and his family ashamed and embarrassed.
"(He) has been reduced to a shell of his former self," said Martin, executive director of the NFL Alumni Association, who declined to name his teammate. "This unfortunate scenario rings a far too familiar refrain among many NFL alumni."
Barber, for his part, said that the whole culture of the sport inclines players to minimize injuries, get back out there.
"I think a lot of it comes down to pride. I know when I was playing, I didn't want to come out of the game," Barber said.
Dr. Gay Culverhouse, former president of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, was sharply critical of medical practices in a league in which "the team doctor is not a medical advocate for the players." Rather, the team physicians are in cahoots with management to get players on the field no matter what.
"This is inexcusable. This is, in my mind, inhumane," said Culverhouse, whose account was refuted by Dr. Joseph Maroon, longtime team physician of the Steelers, who said that only one time has a coach ever questioned his judgment that a player sit out.
The most powerful testimony came from Dick Benson, whose son, Will, died shortly after suffering a helmet-to-helmet hit in a Texas high-school game in 2002.
'Don't let it happen again," Benson said to the committee, sobbing.
For Rep. Bill Pascrell (D-NJ), the co-chair of the Congressional Brain Injury Task Force, the core of the issue goes far beyond the NFL - to the estimated 3.8 million Americans who suffered a concussion last year.
Last year, Ryan Doughterty, 16, of Montclair, died from a brain hemorrhage after returning to play football, allegedly before he recovered from a concussion earlier in the season.
"I hope this hearing will generate a national conversation,spur innovation to equipment and lead to action regarding brain injury," Pascrell said.
Source: http://www.nydailynews.com/sports/football/2009/10/28/2009-10-28_goodell_hit_head_on_by_congress.html
Thursday, October 29, 2009
Wednesday, October 28, 2009
Agassi admits use of crystal meth
American Andre Agassi has admitted in his new autobiography he lied to tennis authorities about his use of crystal methamphetamine to escape a ban.
Eight-time Grand Slam winner Agassi said he wanted to share "my bad decisions which, in a few instances, nearly ended in catastrophe".
The 39-year-old, who retired in 2006, also stated it was "not easy being so candid" and "brutally honest".
Agassi admitted he used the drug with ex-assistant "Slim" in 1997.
"I felt my story was one from which many people could learn," he added in a video promoting the book.
Meanwhile, he also confessed in the book itself to a surprise lifelong hatred of the sport.
"I play tennis for a living, even though I hate tennis, hate it with a dark and secret passion, and always have," he wrote.
The Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) said it could not comment on Agassi's drug-taking revelation because it had withdrawn its doping case against him.
Agassi had lied to them that the use of the drug was accidental - and the failed test was kept secret by the ATP.
In response, the World Anti-Doping Agency (Wada) called on the association to "shed light" on the case.
Meanwhile, the International Tennis Federation (ITF) said it was "surprised and disappointed" by Agassi's remarks.
Writing about the first time he used crystal meth, Agassi said: "Vast sadness and regret" followed his taking of the drug.
"Slim dumps a small pile of powder on the coffee table," writes Agassi in his book, which the Times is serialising.
"He cuts it, snorts it. He cuts it again. I snort some.
"Then comes a tidal wave of euphoria that sweeps away every negative thought in my head. I've never felt so alive, so hopeful - and I've never felt such energy."
Crystal meth is classified in the UK as a class A drug - the category for those considered to be the most harmful and which attract the most serious punishments and fines.
It looks like small ice crystals and is a very powerful and addictive form of the stimulant speed, which can be eaten, inhaled through the nose or injected.
Agassi, who is widely considered to be among the greatest tennis players of all time, recounts in the book, which is called 'Open', about his introduction to the drug.
He was enduring the worst year of his professional career in 1997 as he struggled with a wrist injury, and his world ranking slumped to a low of 141 that November.
Agassi, who is married to former women's world number one Steffi Graf, explained how he had received a call from an ATP at that time to inform him he had failed a drugs test.
The Las Vegas-born star wrote a letter to the ATP to argue the use was accidental, blaming his former assistant Slim.
"My name, my career, everything is now on the line. Whatever I've achieved, whatever I've worked for, might soon mean nothing," Agassi writes.
"Days later I sit in a hard-backed chair, a legal pad in my lap, and write a letter to the ATP. It's filled with lies interwoven with bits of truth.
"I say Slim, whom I've since fired, is a known drug user, and that he often spikes his sodas with meth - which is true. Then I come to the central lie of the letter.
"I say that recently I drank accidentally from one of Slim's spiked sodas, unwittingly ingesting his drugs. I ask for understanding and leniency and hastily sign it: Sincerely.
"I feel ashamed, of course. I promise myself that this lie is the end of it."
Agassi, who is often cited as one of the most charismatic players ever, writes that the ATP reviewed his case and, while he faced a minimum three-month ban, decided to believe his account and withdraw the charges.
His subsequent rise back through the rankings over the following two years, on the back of a gruelling fitness programme and the ignominy of playing on the lesser Challenger circuit, has gone down in tennis history.
In 1999 Agassi became only the fifth man to win all four Grand Slam titles with victory at the French Open. Three months later he added a second US Open crown and he ended the year back at number one in the world.
Former Wimbledon champion Michael Stich told BBC Radio 5 live the revelations raised questions about the ATP's handling of the matter.
He suggested Agassi was not suspended "because he was so important to the game".
The German said: "The fact that he was using it [crystal meth], escaped drugs tests and said he used it accidentally raises a lot of questions towards the ATP.
"Why was Andre Agassi not suspended if he tested positive and why was it never brought to the attention of the media and the players? Nobody ever heard about it."
An ATP spokesman said it commented on the results of drugs tests only when a violation had occurred, and so could not speak about the Agassi situation because it withdrew the case against him.
"Under the tennis anti-doping programme it is, and has always been, an independent panel that makes a decision on whether a doping violation has been found," he stated.
"The ATP has always followed this rule and no executive at the ATP has therefore had the authority or ability to decide the outcome of an anti-doping matter."
Expressing his disappointment about the revelation, Wada president John Fahey said Agassi was seen as a role model who should alert youths to the dangers of doping.
Fahey said he expected the ATP to "shed light on this allegation."
The ITF said tennis authorities were determined to keep drugs out of the sport.
"This should not be overshadowed by an incident that took place over 12 years ago," said president Francesco Ricci Bitti.
"The statements by Mr Agassi do, however, provide confirmation that a tough anti-doping programme is needed."
BBC Radio 5 live's tennis correspondent Jonathan Overend feels Agassi's legacy could be ruined by the revelations and will also damage tennis's reputation.
"This is sure to severely tarnish the reputation of one of the great champions," said Overend.
"I think it will have underlying implications for the sport in terms of the suspicion about some of the athletes and whether or not they are on drugs.
"The fact that Agassi lied and the authorities believed him has enormous repercussions. How many other cases may there have been like this?"
Source: http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/tennis/8329193.stm
Eight-time Grand Slam winner Agassi said he wanted to share "my bad decisions which, in a few instances, nearly ended in catastrophe".
The 39-year-old, who retired in 2006, also stated it was "not easy being so candid" and "brutally honest".
Agassi admitted he used the drug with ex-assistant "Slim" in 1997.
"I felt my story was one from which many people could learn," he added in a video promoting the book.
Meanwhile, he also confessed in the book itself to a surprise lifelong hatred of the sport.
"I play tennis for a living, even though I hate tennis, hate it with a dark and secret passion, and always have," he wrote.
The Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) said it could not comment on Agassi's drug-taking revelation because it had withdrawn its doping case against him.
Agassi had lied to them that the use of the drug was accidental - and the failed test was kept secret by the ATP.
In response, the World Anti-Doping Agency (Wada) called on the association to "shed light" on the case.
Meanwhile, the International Tennis Federation (ITF) said it was "surprised and disappointed" by Agassi's remarks.
Writing about the first time he used crystal meth, Agassi said: "Vast sadness and regret" followed his taking of the drug.
"Slim dumps a small pile of powder on the coffee table," writes Agassi in his book, which the Times is serialising.
"He cuts it, snorts it. He cuts it again. I snort some.
"Then comes a tidal wave of euphoria that sweeps away every negative thought in my head. I've never felt so alive, so hopeful - and I've never felt such energy."
Crystal meth is classified in the UK as a class A drug - the category for those considered to be the most harmful and which attract the most serious punishments and fines.
It looks like small ice crystals and is a very powerful and addictive form of the stimulant speed, which can be eaten, inhaled through the nose or injected.
Agassi, who is widely considered to be among the greatest tennis players of all time, recounts in the book, which is called 'Open', about his introduction to the drug.
He was enduring the worst year of his professional career in 1997 as he struggled with a wrist injury, and his world ranking slumped to a low of 141 that November.
Agassi, who is married to former women's world number one Steffi Graf, explained how he had received a call from an ATP at that time to inform him he had failed a drugs test.
The Las Vegas-born star wrote a letter to the ATP to argue the use was accidental, blaming his former assistant Slim.
"My name, my career, everything is now on the line. Whatever I've achieved, whatever I've worked for, might soon mean nothing," Agassi writes.
"Days later I sit in a hard-backed chair, a legal pad in my lap, and write a letter to the ATP. It's filled with lies interwoven with bits of truth.
"I say Slim, whom I've since fired, is a known drug user, and that he often spikes his sodas with meth - which is true. Then I come to the central lie of the letter.
"I say that recently I drank accidentally from one of Slim's spiked sodas, unwittingly ingesting his drugs. I ask for understanding and leniency and hastily sign it: Sincerely.
"I feel ashamed, of course. I promise myself that this lie is the end of it."
Agassi, who is often cited as one of the most charismatic players ever, writes that the ATP reviewed his case and, while he faced a minimum three-month ban, decided to believe his account and withdraw the charges.
His subsequent rise back through the rankings over the following two years, on the back of a gruelling fitness programme and the ignominy of playing on the lesser Challenger circuit, has gone down in tennis history.
In 1999 Agassi became only the fifth man to win all four Grand Slam titles with victory at the French Open. Three months later he added a second US Open crown and he ended the year back at number one in the world.
Former Wimbledon champion Michael Stich told BBC Radio 5 live the revelations raised questions about the ATP's handling of the matter.
He suggested Agassi was not suspended "because he was so important to the game".
The German said: "The fact that he was using it [crystal meth], escaped drugs tests and said he used it accidentally raises a lot of questions towards the ATP.
"Why was Andre Agassi not suspended if he tested positive and why was it never brought to the attention of the media and the players? Nobody ever heard about it."
An ATP spokesman said it commented on the results of drugs tests only when a violation had occurred, and so could not speak about the Agassi situation because it withdrew the case against him.
"Under the tennis anti-doping programme it is, and has always been, an independent panel that makes a decision on whether a doping violation has been found," he stated.
"The ATP has always followed this rule and no executive at the ATP has therefore had the authority or ability to decide the outcome of an anti-doping matter."
Expressing his disappointment about the revelation, Wada president John Fahey said Agassi was seen as a role model who should alert youths to the dangers of doping.
Fahey said he expected the ATP to "shed light on this allegation."
The ITF said tennis authorities were determined to keep drugs out of the sport.
"This should not be overshadowed by an incident that took place over 12 years ago," said president Francesco Ricci Bitti.
"The statements by Mr Agassi do, however, provide confirmation that a tough anti-doping programme is needed."
BBC Radio 5 live's tennis correspondent Jonathan Overend feels Agassi's legacy could be ruined by the revelations and will also damage tennis's reputation.
"This is sure to severely tarnish the reputation of one of the great champions," said Overend.
"I think it will have underlying implications for the sport in terms of the suspicion about some of the athletes and whether or not they are on drugs.
"The fact that Agassi lied and the authorities believed him has enormous repercussions. How many other cases may there have been like this?"
Source: http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/tennis/8329193.stm
Saturday, October 24, 2009
Video: Who had more embarrassing goal, Pavelec or Toskala?
"It was a pass, I think ... It was a just bad bounce. It hit the ice and went over my shoulder. Sometimes it happens. It just happened at a bad time." -- Ondrej Pavelec(notes) to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
Yeah, that about sums up the 178-foot goal Atlanta Thrashers goalie Pavelec surrendered to Washington Capitals defenseman Jeff Schultz(notes) last night that (a) gave Washington a 3-2 lead that became 5-2 (and, eventually, a 5-4 win) just 1 minute and 28 seconds later thanks to Matt Bradley(notes) and Chris Clark(notes); (b) began a sequence had Pavelec getting yanked for Johan Hedberg(notes) in what Coach John Anderson called "a mercy pull"; and perhaps most embarrassing, (c) gave Jeff Schultz a goal.
Take a look at what will surely be one of the NHL's biggest goalie goofs of the season (stick around for the final replay at the :50 mark):
Thrashers blogger Bill Tiller said it took "a bad hop up off the ice just before reaching him" but that "really, if you are a goalkeeper in the NHL you just cannot let that wind up in the net."
This is, of course, the second time in two years we've seen an NHL goalie let in a rink-length shot. Please recall March 17, 2008, as Toronto Maple Leafs keeper Vesa Toskala(notes) allowed an excruciating, slow-bouncing goal from nearly 200 feet away from where New York Islanders defenseman Rob Davison(notes) cleared it while shorthanded in the first period.
Two funky bounces, two awkward goals. We ask you, dear readers -- which long-distance goal is the most embarrassing: Pavelec against the Caps or Toskala against the Isles?
Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/nhl/blog/puck_daddy/post/Video-Who-had-more-embarrassing-goal-Pavelec-o?urn=nhl,197825
Wednesday, October 21, 2009
Jordan’s son not free to wear Air Jordans
The fight over the feet of Michael Jordan’s son is not over.
Last Thursday, Marcus Jordan, the Hall of Fame guard’s younger son, told the media that he’d honor the University of Central Florida’s contract with adidas by wearing all the apparel with adidas logos on it.
He would not, however, take the court in the shoes. Citing family pride, Marcus said he would be in Nike’s Air Jordans, named after his father, of course.
Soon after the comments were made, UCF athletic director Keith Tribble told AOL’s Fanhouse that the freshman could make the decision for himself since there had been a previous precedent set with a UCF football player who wore a different brand of shoe due to the fit.
But adidas spokesperson Andrea Corso told CNBC that no compromise had been reached with the school.
“We are in negotiations for a future relationship regarding the broader UCF athletic program,” Corso said. “What I can say is that these relationships are based upon agreed deliverables for both parties.”
Translation: The story that adidas had buckled on this one might be what UCF is saying, but it’s certainly not what adidas is saying. adidas officials won’t talk contract specifics, but it appears as though adidas might have the right to change the terms if they don’t get what they were promised.
While some might think this is all about Nike vs. adidas, it seems like it’s more about potential breach of contract. And although it’s bigger than Marcus Jordan, Jordan’s shoe defection is very public and could potentially be costly to the university.
We’re wondering in the coming days if Tribble is willing to take say, tens of thousands of dollars (maybe even hundreds of thousands) less on the shoe deal, to allow Jordan to wear his father’s shoes.
The Jordan brand doesn’t make softball uniforms like adidas does, but maybe Tribble is counting on the original MJ to bridge the gap in donations.
Source: http://rivals.yahoo.com/ncaa/basketball/news?slug=ys-cnbcairjordan102109&prov=yhoo&type=lgns
Last Thursday, Marcus Jordan, the Hall of Fame guard’s younger son, told the media that he’d honor the University of Central Florida’s contract with adidas by wearing all the apparel with adidas logos on it.
He would not, however, take the court in the shoes. Citing family pride, Marcus said he would be in Nike’s Air Jordans, named after his father, of course.
Soon after the comments were made, UCF athletic director Keith Tribble told AOL’s Fanhouse that the freshman could make the decision for himself since there had been a previous precedent set with a UCF football player who wore a different brand of shoe due to the fit.
But adidas spokesperson Andrea Corso told CNBC that no compromise had been reached with the school.
“We are in negotiations for a future relationship regarding the broader UCF athletic program,” Corso said. “What I can say is that these relationships are based upon agreed deliverables for both parties.”
Translation: The story that adidas had buckled on this one might be what UCF is saying, but it’s certainly not what adidas is saying. adidas officials won’t talk contract specifics, but it appears as though adidas might have the right to change the terms if they don’t get what they were promised.
While some might think this is all about Nike vs. adidas, it seems like it’s more about potential breach of contract. And although it’s bigger than Marcus Jordan, Jordan’s shoe defection is very public and could potentially be costly to the university.
We’re wondering in the coming days if Tribble is willing to take say, tens of thousands of dollars (maybe even hundreds of thousands) less on the shoe deal, to allow Jordan to wear his father’s shoes.
The Jordan brand doesn’t make softball uniforms like adidas does, but maybe Tribble is counting on the original MJ to bridge the gap in donations.
Source: http://rivals.yahoo.com/ncaa/basketball/news?slug=ys-cnbcairjordan102109&prov=yhoo&type=lgns
Thursday, October 1, 2009
Nike, Vick do not have agreement
NEW YORK -- Nike said Thursday it does not have a "contractual relationship" with Michael Vick, a day after the quarterback's agent announced a deal with the manufacturer.
In a statement released Thursday morning, Nike said it has "agreed to supply product to Michael Vick as we do a number of athletes who are not under contract with Nike."
On Wednesday, Michael Principe, the managing director of BEST, the agency that represents Vick, announced the Philadelphia Eagles player had a new deal with Nike during a panel discussion at the Sports Sponsorship Symposium.
"He actually just became a Nike client," Principe said Wednesday. "He has a new deal with Nike that we're all very pleased about."
Principe declined comment Thursday.
Vick's agent, Joel Segal, said later Wednesday that Vick looked forward to continuing his relationship with Nike, adding that the player and company had agreed not to release terms of the deal.
Segal did not immediately return a call for comment Thursday.
Nike had initially declined comment Wednesday night.
Nike, which signed Vick as a rookie in 2001, terminated his contract in August 2007 after he filed a plea agreement admitting his involvement in a dogfighting ring.
Vick signed a $1.6 million deal with the Eagles, with a team option for the second year at $5.2 million. He was once a corporate star -- holding multimillion-dollar deals to market everything from sneakers to sports drinks. But those millions are long gone.
In July, Vick filed for bankruptcy protection while serving a 23-month prison sentence, saying he owed between $10 million and $50 million to creditors.
Source: http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/news/story?id=4521948
In a statement released Thursday morning, Nike said it has "agreed to supply product to Michael Vick as we do a number of athletes who are not under contract with Nike."
On Wednesday, Michael Principe, the managing director of BEST, the agency that represents Vick, announced the Philadelphia Eagles player had a new deal with Nike during a panel discussion at the Sports Sponsorship Symposium.
"He actually just became a Nike client," Principe said Wednesday. "He has a new deal with Nike that we're all very pleased about."
Principe declined comment Thursday.
Vick's agent, Joel Segal, said later Wednesday that Vick looked forward to continuing his relationship with Nike, adding that the player and company had agreed not to release terms of the deal.
Segal did not immediately return a call for comment Thursday.
Nike had initially declined comment Wednesday night.
Nike, which signed Vick as a rookie in 2001, terminated his contract in August 2007 after he filed a plea agreement admitting his involvement in a dogfighting ring.
Vick signed a $1.6 million deal with the Eagles, with a team option for the second year at $5.2 million. He was once a corporate star -- holding multimillion-dollar deals to market everything from sneakers to sports drinks. But those millions are long gone.
In July, Vick filed for bankruptcy protection while serving a 23-month prison sentence, saying he owed between $10 million and $50 million to creditors.
Source: http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/news/story?id=4521948
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