U.S. Open Update

The first week of a major tournament typically produces a few underdogs who win the hearts of the crowd by battling their way through the grueling three out of five set matches just to make the final 16. This years US Open is no different. With the typical superstars running through the draw in predictable form, the stage is still set for a Nadal vs Federer final. While it would be difficult to imagine either not making it, there are a few relative no names to pay attention to in the upcoming week. For example, Jaun Martin Del Potro has won four strait tournaments coming into the U.S. Open and is poised for an upset. He is one of a generation of 18-20 year olds(led by Nadal) who have torn on to the scene and are sure to be frequents in the later rounds of majors for years to come.

An election for the ages.

Having just recently turned 22, this is the first presidential election that I have paid attention to with any rigor. In the past, I have been quickly turned off at the first sign of personal attacks and petty accusations about things so far from politics that I cant find the point. Politicians sacrifice their personal respect to launch a few 'heart darts' in hopes of winning a couple more votes. This year however, I am completely hooked in to the passive aggressive and sometimes just aggressive tactics and strategies that the two parties use. Obama's speech closing the convention was far and away the most powerful and well delivered speech I have seen in my lifetime. Then to wake up the next morning to find the McCain people sending the media on a rat race to pin down their pick for vice president, ultimatly deciding on the least likely of candidates all in an attempt to underscore Obama's glory from the night before was endlessly entertaining. Maybe it's because I am older and understand the issues and the historical significance defining this election. Or maybe it's because for the first time people my age actually care, either way, I am hooked.

The book 'Freakonomics'

I am approaching the end of the book Freakonomics, A Rouge Economist Explores the Hidden Side of Everything by Stephen Dubner and Steven Levitt and immediatly it has launched towards the top of my all time favorites list. Levitt and Dubner essentially make the point that a correlation does not always equal a cause. Just because two things are consistently correlated, does not mean that one is causing the other, like a lot of 'conventional wisdom' will tell you. They take some of this basic 'convential wisdom' and turn it upside down, offering very unique angles on both important and simply interesting subjects.

One last chance.

With the Olympic excitment fading and fall classes starting, there is still good reason for the modest sports fan to keep paying attention. While the Olympics gave the slowest time of the year for proffessional sports a much needed boost, the culmination of summer would never be complete without the start of America's biggest tennis tournament, the U.S. Open. This year the drama is especially high with four time defending champion Roger Federer coming in seeded number 2. While Rafael Nadal has more than earned the number 1 overall ranking, it is outragous to seed a man who has one this Championship four years in a row, number 2. The stage is set for these two champions to meet in the final, giving Federer one last chance to slow down Nadal's inevitable take over of the tennis world, and defend the only major title he still holds.

where did all the integrity go?

With sports producing record high ratings and unprecedented levels of revenue, things would seem to be going pretty well. Unfortunatly, they are not. In the past, when an incredible sports milestone was achieved it was seen as heroic and inspirational. Today, when a record is broken or an underdog emerges, the first explanation always involves doping, or cheating, or fixing.

There are examples from every sport, from the former NBA referee Tim Donaghy who is serving jail time for his role in fixing games, to the Tour de France, which has lost every ounce of credibily and prestige that it once had with a laundry list of failed drug tests.

Because sports have evolved into a billion dollar industry, there is a lot more at stake. When talent is recognized at an early age, the child immediatly becomes a financial investment to either earn a college scholarship, or to go pro and make millions, when realistically very few will achieve either one. These children are put on a pedestal from such an early age that the sport they are so good at no longer is being used as a tool to teach lessons about life, competition, and hard work. Rather, the child is given preferential treatment that becomes normal for him or her. An example is O.J. Mayo, an NBA rookie from USC. He was allegedly given more than $30,000, free electronics, food, clothes, and who knows what else while in high school and at USC by a man attemting to cash in on a kid who would one day get rich in the NBA.

There are examples in every sport, of integrity being thrown aside to cash in on a lucritive industry. While these things are not unprecedented, the frequency and creativity of cheaters seems to be at an all time high. From the steroid era in baseball, Spygate and Mike Vick in football, to Davydenko allegedly fixing tennis matches, the intergrity of professional sports has given way to a financially driven enterprise concerned more with revenue than the athletes that produce it.