SPORTSREDEF PICKS
Can USA Gymnastics Be Trusted?, Five Pillars of Popovich, College Gameday, Chasing Ty Tryon, Fat Trick, Alabama's Longterm Foil...
Mike Vorkunov, curator January 11, 2018
QUOTABLES!
quote of the day
I've had rats thrown into my mailboxes, [expletive] left on my door, left in my mailbox, all over my trucks. You name it, it's been done to me.
sports
rant n' rave
rantnrave://

USA GYMNASTICS is in the middle of an existential crisis. For decades its gymnasts were sexually abused and the organization didn't or wouldn't stop it. It harbored a criminal doctor, LARRY NASSAR, who assaulted hundreds of gymnasts. No one seemed safe. Not ALY RAISMAN or MCKAYLA MARONEY. USA Gymnastics offered hush money to stop Maroney from publicizing her pain and embarrassing the organization. It extended past the top level. USA Gymnastics was broken on every level. Over the last two years we have learned that it was incapable of protecting the girls and young women it needed for OLYMPIC gold medals. With Nassar in jail and gymnasts demanding change, can one of US sports' premier institutions save itself? Has it caused itself irreparable harm? What other sports organization has ever been in such a situation? If there is a perception that it cannot safeguard its gymnasts, why should anyone join? Can USA Gymnastics change its culture? Have we heard the full story yet? SportsSET: "Can USA Gymnastics Be Trusted to Protect Its Athletes?"... We take refs for granted but those men and women have a hard job. It’s as physically demanding as anyone's in sports, save for the players. Read ESPN's EMILY KAPLAN on NHL refs. They have to stay in shape. They don't fly on charter planes. Their bodies are also ravaged by injuries. They study the rulebook in and out. It's a grueling job. Hockey players are tough. So are hockey refs... GREGG POPOVICH is the management guru you need... If baseball was played by robots, would MLB still have spring training?... From the office of the BROWNS general counsel... The Fat Trick is the only NHL stat that matters... WYOMING, home of the long distance runs... The IOC's RUSSIAN hacking scandal... The college safety who wants to find life on EUROPA, one of JUPITER's moons.

Mike Vorkunov, curator

January 11, 2018