It’s been a while since we’ve delved into the world of fantastic sports videos on the internet, but don’t worry – When Sports Go Viral is back!
This time around we’ve got some hilarious stuff from the NBA, a pretty funny blooper from some NCAA track and field action, and an instructional video about how to get fired from your post as the manager of a professional soccer club!
Let’s start out with the NBA, where model Kate Upton has teamed up with the Oklahoma City Thunder for “Take a Supermodel to Work” day.
Edmonton hockey fans not only had the Oil Kings to cheer about the weekend.
Some of the best midget players in Canada participated over the last week in Leduc.
In yesterday’s final of the Telus Cup, the Red Deer Optimist Rebels, the team representing the Pacific region of Alberta and British Columbia, defeated the Phenix du College Esther-Blondin of Quebec 6-5 in dramatic fashion of the National Midget AAA Championship as the game went into double overtime.
The Rebels also delivered a remarkable comeback as they scored four times to overcome a 5-1 third period deficit.
Nick Glackin recorded a hat trick, including the overtime winner as the Rebels won their first national Midget title.
Jamie Sale and David Pelletier (Wikimedia Commons)
It was a special day at Canada’s Sports Hall of Fame in Calgary on Thursday as the announcement was made on who will be inducted in the October ceremonies.
Among the nine people inducted are five Albertans– figure skater Jamie Sale and speed skater Jeremy Wotherspoon of Red Deer, bobsledder Pierre Lueders and hockey player Scott Niedermayer of Edmonton, and Daryl “Doc” Seaman, the former owner of the Calgary Flames.
Sale reached stardom when she won an Olympic Gold medal with David Pelletier (also being inducted) at the 2002 Olympic Games in Salt Lake City in pairs figure skating.
Wotherspoon, who broke the World Record in his career in the men’s 500m and 1000m speed skating disciplines, recorded a remarkable 67 victories in his World Cup career.
Lueders, won an Olympic Gold medal in bobsled for Canada in the two-man at the 1998 Olympic Games in Nagano and an Olympic Silver medal at the 2006 Olympic Games in Turin.
Canada continued its rich history of success at the Boston Marathon on Monday.
Josh Cassidy of Oakville, Ontario won the Gold medal in the men’s wheelchair racing. His time of one hour, 18 minutes and 25 seconds was a World Record that he set by two seconds.
Diane Roy of Sherbrooke, Quebec won a Bronze medal on the women’s side. Wesley Korir of Kenya won the Gold medal on the men’s able-bodied side and Sharon Cherop won the Gold medal on the women’s able-bodied side.
For Cassidy, it was the second biggest win of his career, He previously won the London Marathon in 2010.
For the first time in the history of the Women’s World Hockey Championship, Team Canada entered the championship final going into Saturday night as the heavy underdog.
Well Team Canada not only made things interesting against an American team that thumped them 9-2 just a week before, but beat Team USA in their backyard by a score of 5-4 at the Gutterson Field House in Burlington, Vermont.
Hayley Wickenheiser set the tone early in this one with a shorthanded goal to give Canada the early lead.
However what I will remember most of this game was the spectacular goaltending by Edmonton’s own Shannon Szabados, who was on the cover of Alberta’s Prospect Magazine for their special Olympic issue prior to the 2010 Olympic Winter Games in Vancouver.
Szabados might have shutout the Americans 2-0 in the Olympic Gold medal final, but one could argue she had to make significantly more quality saves tonight, in a game where Team USA outshot Team Canada 44-39.
Team Canada is back in the final of the Women’s World Hockey Championship. Friday afternoon in Burlington, Vermont, Meghan Agosta, Laura Fortino and Marie-Philip Poulin each scored a goal and an assist as Canada beat Finland 5-1 in the semi-final game.
Agosta, was a huge force on the Canadian side, notching nine shots on goal. Canada’s opponent tonight is once again the United States, who hammered Switzerland 10-0 in the other semi-final. The game can be seen live on TSN at 5pm.
Here are the other events I’ll be watching this weekend:
Saturday–NHL Eastern Conference Quarterfinal Game 2–Washington Capitals @ Boston Bruins–NBC–1pm–The Capitals lost game 1 despite a brilliant goaltending performance by Braden Holtby. The Bruins meanwhile got a stingy defensive effort Thursday night as they only allowed 17 Washington shots in 61:18 of action. The Capitals simply won’t win many games in the series if Alexander Ovechkin only gets one shot. The Capitals sniper did record seven hits, but needs to find the offensive side of his game again. Tim Thomas is the only goaltender in the playoffs so far to get a shutout.
Literally one day out as the Calgary Flames head coach Brent Sutter has found work– at least of the temporary variety.
On Friday, Sutter was named Head Coach for Team Canada at the World Hockey Championships in Helsinki, Finland and Stockholm, Sweden. Sutter will be joined on the bench by Assistant Coaches Kirk Muller of the Carolina Hurricanes and Guy Boucher of the Tampa Bay Lightning.
Yesterday the Flames announced that they mutually parted ways with Sutter.
Team Canada will play seven round robin games in a new format this year. The top four teams in the two eight team pools will go on to the playoff round in Helsinki.
In 27 hours and counting, the Kill Jills hit the track at the Olympic Oval for their first regulation bout in Alberta’s largest roller derby tournament, Flat Track Fever.
I’m a little nervous, being fairly new at this roller derby thing…I only joined the league last October, and have yet to play a real bout. A few scrimmages, against our neighbours at Foothills, and amongst ourselves and the Dogs. But a real bout? with spectators, and announcers, and pressure…
Actually, that sounds pretty awesome! I mean, in real life, who gets to do what they love with a crowd of people cheering (or jeering) you on? Besides, since we’re a new team, there are quite a few of us who have never played in front of anyone. So we’ll figure it out together. And we have some more seasoned players on our team, to provide guidance and to keep our heads on the track instead of in the crowd.
So bring it. And come watch us leave our blood sweat and tears on the track for the first time. Whether we score more points than our competitors or not, we will come out of this weekend winners, because we have waged our first battle on the track.
Anticipation is building with Flat Track Fever less than 2 days away…Fans and players are getting ready, rosters are finalized, and Chinook City Roller Derby is set to host the biggest roller derby tournament in Alberta.
Action starts at 2:00pm Friday afternoon at the Olympic Oval onthe U of C campus, and goes all weekend long! Don’t miss the Kill Jills in our debut regulation bout at 2:45 pm as we take on CARDA…I don’t know if I’m more excited about playing or about watching the killer lineup of teams – Spokkannibals vs. Foothills will be a great matchup, and for the men, the Vancouver Murder vs. our own Glenmore Reservoir Dogs is one I’m looking forward to! Also, don’t miss out on the mini-derby matchups; the Juniors bring a new perspective on derby which has not been seen in Calgary to date, so bring the kids, a donation to the YWCA, and let the games begin!
With Flat Track Fever, Alberta’s largest Roller Derby tournament rapidly approaching (in 4 days!!!), many potential derby fans may be wondering what kind of rules govern this crazy alternative sport where women (and men, and kids) skate around a track for 30-60 minutes at a time. Don’t worry! Enlightenment awaits!
According to Wikipedia, the original rules for this fast-paced, very physical sport were designed in the late ’30s. The evolution of roller derby, which for most of its history has been classified as Sports Entertainment, into legitimate sport, is only as recent as 2007. Though, somewhat surprisingly, the basic rules to score points have not changed much.
Derby 101
Two teams skate on an oval track, in a series of jams (periods of play lasting two minutes or less). Five players from each team are on the track during the jam; four blockers (including the lead blocker, called the Pivot – she’s easy to spot because of the big stripe on her helmet cover),
and the Jammer (also easy to keep track of – she has two stars on her helmet cover).
Jammers - see the stars?
The group of blockers is called the Pack.
The Pack
To score points, the Jammers must skate through the pack and around the track to pass through the pack again, when they can score points. On this second pass, and on each pass after that for the length of the Jam, the Jammers score a point for each time they legally pass the hips of an active player on the opposite team. The first Jammer to make it through the pack on the initial pass has Lead status (a ref will be pointing at her), and this Jammer can call the Jam off at any time by touching her hands to her own hips three times in a row.
Jammer calling off a Jam
Simple enough, right? So then, if only the Jammer can score points, and her job is to get through the pack, the job of the blockers is to help their Jammer get through the pack. Oh, and also to stop the opposite team’s jammer from getting through the pack.
Blocking the Jammer
This is where the fit hits the shan, if you know what I mean! Hip checks, shoulder checks, booty blocks, pushing one of your own players into a player from the opposite team; these are all legal plays used by blockers (and jammers too) to make or close holes in the pack. Head butting, clotheslining, elbowing, tripping, and hitting someone between the shoulder blades are penalized by a one minute stint in the box, or, if they think you are really trying to hurt someone, by expulsion from the bout.
Now that you know the basics, when you come down to the Olympic Oval this weekend, you’ll know what to watch for. If you’re just coming for the fishnets and beer, well, we may just surprise you with just how much fun you can have when we have our skates on…
This week on the show we start out with the topic that’s on everyone’s mind – the feud between the Pittsburgh Penguins & the Philadelphia Flyers (and to a lesser extent, the Pens & the Rangers). We also look at a couple of fines handed down to coaches this week (including Edmonton’s Tom Renney) and we run down the upcoming match-ups in the first round of the NHL playoffs.
In the GABBYs: Mike Smith, Ray Whitney, Joey Votto, Alistair Overeem, the Orlando Magic & fans of the University of Kentucky. The Punchline this week is the Baltimore Orioles!
Calling all soccer moms, rock fans, alternative punks, zombie lovers, Ph.D. candidates, bus drivers, shoe fanatics, plumbers, recovering drug addicts, and all those with sun shining out of their asses.
You should come watch roller derby. Then, you should come out and play roller derby . Because literally, there is something for everyone, and everyone is welcome. That’s really what makes it alternative; it isn’t the tattoos and piercings that some of us wear, the independant music preferences or the crazy hair. No, what makes us alternative is the belief that if you show up to practice, and you want to play, you can. Whether you are Speedy Gonzales on wheels or just learning to skate, you are welcome, if you show up with attitude and willingness to play and learn.
If you like the idea of mutual respect between two women who are hammering into each other while trying to keep their balance on eight wheels, come on down to the Olympic Oval next weekend and feel the love. Derby style.
www.flattrackfever.chinookcity.ca
Saturday night in Burlington, Vermont might have been the site of the darkest five minutes in the history of Canadian hockey–male or female!
Five goals in the opening six minutes for Team United States against Team Canada at the Women’s World Hockey Championships en route to an amazing 9-2 thrashing. That’s right. Team Canada only gave up four goals in last year’s Worlds for the entire tournament.
Before I criticize some key areas of the Canadian National Women’s program, I need to praise the United States. Jocelyne Lamoureux, and her twin sister Monique are the two best female hockey players on the planet right now. Jocelyne scored two goals and one assist and Monique had three goals and three assists. The Canadian defense simply had no answer for the twins.
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