Kings and presidents die, and nobody cares, Muhammad Ali once said. But Joe Louis died, and everybody cried.
Are they crying now for Muhammad Ali, who died Friday in Scottsdale, Ariz. of complications from Parkinson’s disease? No doubt.
Boxers are perhaps the most poignant of athletes, for in a sense, they absorb the blows for the rest of us. Boxing, the novelist Joyce Carol Oates observed in her nonfiction work, “On Boxing,” is “America’s tragic theater.” ...
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“Criterion” – the third planned book in my series “The Games Men Play” – is a tale of bloodlust and bloodlines set amid rival families in the equestrian world. So I was more than a little excited to see that Nacho Figueras – the polo star and Ralph Lauren spokesmodel – is presenting a series of romances, “The Polo Season,” written by Hudson Valley, N.Y. writer Jessica Whitman.
The first, “High Season” (Forever/Grand Central Publishing, $13.99, 351 pages) follows an upstate New York veterinarian as she threads her way among the 1-percenters of the winter equestrian circuit in Wellington, Fla. Will she find love with the dashing polo star who, too, has his challenges? Is there any doubt? ...
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There are few more intriguing themes in journalism and literature than that of the brilliant loser – the superb racer who for a variety of reasons fails to meet expectations, be it runners Zola Budd and Mary Decker, speed skater Dan Jansen or Thoroughbreds Spectacular Bid, California Chrome and, most recently, Nyquist; the juggernaut so dominant in the regular season and so vulnerable in the playoffs (the Stephen Curry-led Golden State Warriors battling the Oklahoma City Thunder in the NBA playoffs); and, most heartbreaking of all, the “perfect” performer who finds that perfection elusive when needed most (Serena Williams against Roberta Vinci in the semifinals of the US Open last year; Novak Djokovic against Stan Wawrinka in the finals of the French Open last year; and, my favorite ...
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Let the death knells start sounding again.
Rafael Nadal is out of the French Open with tendon damage in his left wrist, his serving arm, and the press has reacted with its usual lack of optimism.
As I’ve said before, I think Rafa and Roger Federer are still too competitive and invested in tennis as part of their identities to retire any time soon. Still, it’s a shame that we’ll be deprived of a potential Rafanole semifinal. But Novak Djokovic can’t afford to let down his guard. ...
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David Brooks – The New York Times’ columnist who never misses an opportunity to miss a point – wrote recently that the reason Hillary Clinton seems unlikable is that she has no hobbies.
Seriously. The column – which let Brooks in for no end of snark – had two flaws.
First, it presupposed that everyone needs a hobby, that being a workaholic is bad. Some people like to work and find the play in work, like the writer who’s a journalist but also a novelist. (That would be me.) Work isn’t stressful. People are stressful. ...
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What would we do without Nick Kyrgios? After years of aloof politesse (Roger Federer), passive-aggressive classiness (Rafael Nadal), molten anger lying beneath an earthy crust of sportsmanship (Novak Djokovic) and barely contained annoyance (Andy Murray), we have no-holds-barred, heart-on-his-basketball sleeve Nick – railing against the slings and arrows of his outrageous fortune.
During his first-round French Open victory against Marco Cecchinato of Italy, Nick was assessed a code violation after barking “Towel” at a ball person who responded with less than alacrity.
“How can you sit there and give me a code for that, but when (Novak) Djokovic pushes an umpire out of the way, that’s all right?” Nick asked chair ump Carlos Ramos. ...
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Still getting over Nyquist’s loss to Exaggerator at the Preakness. I know, he’s just an animal, I have no connection to him but still…We take these creatures into our hearts, don’t we? Did he peak too soon? Possibly. You’re undefeated, you’re that much closer to losing. Nobody wins forever, but the good news is that nobody loses forever either. Congrats to Exaggerator and it’s on to the Belmont Stakes. Here’s wishing Nyquist a career like California Chrome’s. Indeed, here’s wishing all the horses continued safe success. ...
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