1. Art and Diseño

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 28, 2015
S P ORTS
From humble origin to king of US sports events
NEW YORK: From modest beginnings of cheap tickets and empty seats to $4.5 million for a 30-second
T V ad, the Super Bowl approaches its golden
anniversary entrenched as the undisputed king of
US sporting events.
Super Bowl 49 will pit the Seattle Seahawks
against the New England Patriots in Glendale,
Arizona, on Sunday and figures to join 21 previous
Super Bowls atop the list of most watched US TV
broadcasts. A far cry from the first Super Bowl clash
between the Green Bay Packers and Kansas City
Chiefs in 1967, according to Jerry Izenberg of the
(New Jersey) Star-Ledger, one of only two reporters
to have covered ever Super Bowl.
“ The 10 dollar ticket and it didn’t sell out,”
Izenberg, 84, told Reuters about recollections of the
first edition at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum.
Izenberg underscored the lack of hoopla by comparing access to then-NFL Commissioner Pete
Rozelle at the 1967 showdown to the State of the
NFL news conference now held at Super Bowls,
which draw over 6,000 accredited journalists.
Rozelle, busy attending court proceedings to
defend the league’s local TV blackout policy to help
attendance at the stadium, instead met with about a
dozen reporters in his hotel suite prior to the game,
the venerable columnist said.
“I learned more from that session than all the others put together. He sat on the couch and you could
ask him anything,” said Izenberg, author of “Rozelle:
A Biography.” “The first six years of the Super Bowl, I
interviewed guys (players) in their hotel rooms. Just
call them up and ask them what would be a good
time.” Now the NFL sells tickets to thousands of fans
to watch a massive throng of reporters mill around
the combatants at Media Day as the Super Bowl has
become more than a football game.
Robert Boland, a professor at New York
University’s Sports Management program, said it
“has almost everything that attracts someone who is
not a football fan.” Bob Williams, chief executive of
Burns Entertainment and Sports Marketing of
Chicago, said: “What’s really unique about the Super
Bowl is that it caters to the casual fan.”
Former CBS Sports president Neal Pilson, noting
the ubiquitous Super Bowl parties across the United
States, told Reuters: “It’s become a national holiday ...
a gathering together of the American public.” Said
Izenberg: “Step by step they turned this thing into a
quasi-religious, all-American holiday.”
SUPER INCEPTION
What began as a transition before a merger of
the upstart AFL into the established NFL, the Super
Bowl caught the public’s fancy when quarterback
Joe Namath of the underdog New York Jets of the
AFL guaranteed victory over the Baltimore Colts and
delivered a 16-7 win following the 1968 season.
By the 1970 campaign, the Super Bowl was just
the NFL title game. The Steelers, Browns and Colts
joined AFL teams in an American Football
Conference to balance with old NFL teams in a
National Football Conference, and winners met in
the Super Bowl.
The game’s popularity exploded with glamor
teams like the unbeaten Miami Dolphins, Dallas
Cowboys, San Francisco 49ers and Steelers dominating. Over time, huge TV ratings led to more creative
commercials to win attention and tickle viewers.
Halftime shows morphed from marching band
entertainment to must-see superstar extravaganzas.
A turning point came in 1992, after a competing
network heavily promoted a special footballthemed episode of a sitcom against the halftime
show and stole substantial ratings.
“The response was, ‘all right, we have to beef up
our halftime,’” said Pilson, now a media consultant
and professor at Columbia University.
In 1993, Michael Jackson performed at halftime
and the intermission program has been star-studded since. Ad revenues continue to climb, thanks to
social media.
“Twenty years ago, no commercial was ever seen
before the game. There were no sneak peeks that
are all over the place now,” said Burns. “Now every
Super Bowl advertiser is using social media prior to
the game and after the game to promote their
brand.” Expect the Super Bowl to continue to evolve.
“It’s really becoming a festival for a week. I’m not
sure we won’t see parties televised with a number of
entertainers and concerts,” said Boland, envisioning
a week-long, pay-per-view bonanza in the future.
Williams foresees global expansion. “I think it’s
only a matter of time before we see a Super Bowl in
London or in China,” he said. “Long term we’re going
to see that.” — Reuters
Dongfeng wins 3rd leg
of Volvo Ocean Race
SANYA: Dongfeng Race Team, led by
French skipper Charles Caudrelier, claimed
a slice of Volvo Ocean Race history yesterday when it became the Chinese entry to
win a leg of offshore sailing’s most prestigious event. After more than 23 days sailing from Abu Dhabi, Dongfeng arrived at
its home port of Sanya, Hainan Island, just
after daybreak to claim the 4,670-nautical
mile third stage.
Two teams from China have previously
taken part in the 41-year-old round-theworld race, but neither seriously challenged in the 2008-09 and 2011-12 editions. Dongfeng has shown itself to be a
real contender from the outset of the 12th
edition, finishing as narrow runners-up in
the opening two legs following the race
start on Oct. 4.
The win in Sanya, with over 45 nautical
miles to spare from the rest of the fleet,
leaves Caudrelier’s eight-strong crew top of
the overall leaderboard on five points with
six legs still to complete.
Dongfeng began the leg in the joint
lead with Abu Dhabi Ocean Racing and
Dutch boat Team Brunel. Abu Dhabi finished second and US-based Team
Alvimedica was third.
The Volvo Ocean Race , covering 38,739
nautical miles, visits 11 ports and every
continent before its scheduled conclusion
on June 27 in Gothenburg, Sweden.
This third leg was among the toughest crossing the Arabian Gulf before entering
the busy shipping lanes of the Bay of
Bengal and the Malacca Strait, and concluding through the South China Sea.
“It’s the most stressful leg I’ve ever done
in my life,” a relieved Caudrelier told
reporters, minutes after crossing the line.
“But the result is fantastic!”
Team Alvimedica, based in Newport,
Rhode Island, and sponsored by a Turkish
company, earned its first podium finish.
“It feels good to just be off the boat and
in China,” said skipper Charlie Enright of
Bristol, Rhode Island. “It’s awesome. It’s the
culmination of a lot of hard work and a lot
of things cooking at the right time.”
Enright said the sailing had been close
the last several days through the Strait of
Malacca and then along the coast of
Vietnam. He called the conditions “pretty
volatile” as the fleet had to dodge commercial shipping and fishing boats as well as
dealing with changing weather.
“It was pretty sketchy sailing,” he said.
Enright, a fan of the New England Patriots,
had a question for reporters. “Did the
Patriots really cheat?” he asked, referring to
the Patriots being investigated for using
under-inflated footballs in the AFC championship game.
Enright said the crew receives regular
updates about American football while on
the high seas, and plans to watch Sunday’s
Super Bowl at a sports bar. The next leg, a
5,624 nautical mile journey to Auckland,
New Zealand, leaves Sanya on Feb. 8. — AP
SCOTTSDALE: Tiger Woods hits his approach shot on the ninth hole during a practice
round for the Phoenix Open golf tournament. — AP
Africa will have a Tour
contender says, Ryder
LONDON: Africa’s cyclists can have the same
impact on the grand Tours as its runners had
on Olympic tracks, the man behind the continent’s first Tour de France team believes.
South African Douglas Ryder formed the
MTN-Qhubeka professional team in 2007 and
has made it his mission to build a roster made
up predominantly of African riders.
The team received a wildcard for this year’s
Tour and while it would be fanciful to suggest
all those wearing the distinctive black and
white stripes at the start in Utrecht will be
Africans, it is still a breakthrough moment.
“I believe in the potential of the endurance
gene that is very prominent across this continent and we wanted to get more Africans and
South Africans on to bicycles and see how far
they can go. Can they become the best in the
world?” he told Reuters.
“I wouldn’t be surprised in the next three
years that a black African rider will be on the
podium in a Grand Tour.” Ryder believes in the
talents of Eritreans like Natnael Berhane,
Daniel Teklehaimanot and Merhawi Kudus, as
well as South African Songezo Jim and
Rwanda’s Adrien Niyonshuti.
Jim was the first black South African to
compete in a UCI World Tour event in 2013,
grimacing through the snow on the Milan San
Remo while Kudus completed last year’s
Vuelta despite a horrible first week crash.
“We are super scientific as a team and we
understand the power and data that comes
out of these guys, that’s why we believe this is
possible,” Ryder, who augments his African
contingent with seasoned pros like American
Tyler Farrar and Norway’s Edvald Boasson
Hagen, said.
“The only thing we can’t simulate is the
skills in the bunch. When you are riding in
Africa the road goes in one direction for 50
miles, you might see an ostrich or a buffalo.
“In Europe you have three-metre wide
roads, hundreds of riders, towns every 20km
with traffic furniture and roundabouts. In our
first year, five riders broke their collar bones.
You need time in the peloton to get that
rhythm.” Team sports director Jens Zemke
agrees: “We have some huge talent in our
team. The body structure. They look like long
distance runners, but it’s also about discipline,
experience, technical understanding and the
lifestyle.” Fast or slow, Ryder says his team,
that partly exists to promote the Qhubeka
Foundation’s work in giving bikes to rural villages, will not be stained by cycling’s curse,
doping. “There is no history in Africa of doping in cycling,” he said. —Reuters
BISCAYNE BAY: Stephanie Roble (right) falls into the water as she and Tripp Burd, of the USA, compete in the Nacra 17 class during the ISAF
Sailing World Cup Miami. Sailors from 63 countries are competing in the regatta featuring Olympic and Paralympic class racing. — AP
Park ‘shocked’ by
failed dope test
SEOUL: South Korean swim star Park Tae-hwan
has been left “shocked” by a failed doping test,
which local media said was a result of a local
hospital injecting him with testosterone.
Yonhap News agency quoted Seoul prosecutors as saying yesterday the hospital had testified it gave Park the shot but did not realise it
was against World Anti-Doping Agency regulations. The report said Park had already been
questioned by prosecutors, and that the doctor
who gave him the injection could face charges
of negligence.
A two-time world champion, Park became
the first South Korean to win an Olympic swimming medal when he powered to gold in the
400 metres freestyle at the 2008 Beijing Games.
His wholesome, clean-cut image and posterboy looks have made him one of the most celebrated athletes in South Korea, where he is
known affectionately as ‘Marine Boy’, and while
his performances in the pool have dipped in
recent years his popularity has never wavered.
The smiling face of endorsements for milk,
headache pills, air conditioners, and communications equipment, Park was also a goodwill
ambassador for the ‘Dynamic Korea’ promotion
aimed at boosting Korea’s image abroad.
Under the strict rules applied by doping
authorities, Park could still face punishment
even if he was unaware that he had been injected with a banned substance, and a lengthy ban
could derail his hopes of swimming at the 2016
Rio Olympics.
An official from the Korea Swimming
Federation, who asked not to be named, told
Reuters that the test had been conducted in early September, before the Asian Games.
The federation and Park had been informed
of the result in late October or early November,
the official said, adding that the swimmer would
have to attend a hearing with swimming’ s world
governing body FINA on Feb. 27 to answer the
doping charge. The official said other details
would be revealed at a news conference after
the prosecution had wrapped up its probe.
‘MORE SHOCKED THAN ANYONE’
Park’s agency, Team GMP, said the swimmer
had repeatedly asked the hospital if the injection contained illegal substances but had been
assured it was safe.
Park had been offered free treatment at a
local hospital two months ahead of the Sept. 19Oct. 4 Asian Games in Incheon, the South Korean
city west of Seoul which named its aquatics venue after the swimmer. “As a world-class swimmer
for the last 10 years, Park Tae-hwan hasn’t taken
so much as cold medicine, that’s how careful he’s
been due to concerns about doping problems
and illegal substances,” Team GMP said in a statement.
“Park is more shocked by this result than anyone else.” The statement said the 25-year-old had
passed several doping tests conducted during
the Asian Games.
South Korean athletes have been relatively
INCHEON: In this Sept. 21, 2014 file photo, South Koreaís Park Tae-hwan adjusts his goggles
after competing a menís 200-meter freestyle swimming heat at the 17th Asian Games. — AP
free f drugs scandals, though top badminton
player Lee Yong-dae was almost suspended for
the Asian Games after administrative errors led
to him missing doping tests. A one-year ban
imposed by the Badminton World Federation
was wiped out after the country’s governing
body said it had failed to keep the federation
apprised of the player’s whereabouts. The news
also comes just months after Park’s great rival,
China’s Sun Yang, was found to have failed a
doping test. Sun, winner of two gold medals at
the 2012 London Olympics, served a threemonth suspension in 2014 after testing positive
for the banned stimulant trimetazidine during
the national swimming championships last May.
The China Anti-Doping Agency could have
imposed a longer ban but said it decided on
three months because Sun had been given
medication, normally used to combat angina,
by a doctor to treat a heart issue and was
unaware it had been added to WADA’s banned
list this year. — Reuters
LPGA season opens in Florida
OCALA: Top-ranked Park In-Bee of South Korea and
second-ranked New Zealand teen Lydia Ko will try
to follow stellar 2014 campaigns with hot 2015
starts when the LPGA season begins yesterday.
The inaugural $1.5 million Coates Championship
in suburban Orlando, Florida, marks the opening of
a 33-event global calendar offering $61.6 million in
prize money.The opening tournament features a
field of 120 with a Wednesday to Saturday schedule
to avoid a final-day conflict with American football’s
Super Bowl spectacular.
Park, the 2013 Player of the Year, and Ko, whose
three wins last year included the season-ending
Tour Championship, will be joined by 91 of the
world’s 100 top-ranked players, including 2014
Player of the Year Stacy Lewis, fellow American stars
Michelle Wie-the reigning US Women’s Open champion-and Lexi Thompson, Norway’s Suzann
Pettersen and South Korea’s Ryu So Yeon.
“I feel really comfortable coming into the 2015
season,” Park said. “It was a very short off season, but
I feel like I did the things that I really needed to get
done, worked on the swing, worked on rehab, my
body, worked on a little bit of few things here and
there.” Park expects Lewis and Wie to be top rivals
again, but is very aware of a group of talented rising
young players. “Michelle played really good last year
and obviously Stacy is playing steady for last few
years and we’ve been competing for pretty much
everything for the last few years together,” Park said.
“If it’s like that this year that will be a really great
season, but I think there are a lot of new strong
players coming up to play.”
The tournament will also mark the LPGA debut
for 16 rookies trying to push their way into tour
stardom starting at the Golden Ocala Golf Club,
which features eight tribute holes to other famed
legendary courses, including Augusta National and
the Old Course at St. Andrews.
“The Coates Golf Championship has one of the
strongest playing fields the LPGA will see all season,”
said event director Lenny Francoeur.
Cheyenne Woods, the 24-year-old niece of 14time men’s major winner Tiger Woods, begins her
first LPGA campaign this week. She won her 2014
opener at the Volvik Ladies Masters on the Ladies
European Tour. “It feels great to officially finally be a
member.
I’ve had the privilege to play a few LPGA events
in the past, but to now be a member feels a little different, so I’m excited for this week and I’m excited to
finally tee it up,” Woods said. LPGA stars begin their
globetrotting next month with the Bahamas LPGA
Classic, the Women’s Australian Open and the LPGA
Thailand event plus the HSBC Women’s
Championship in March at Singapore. — AFP