A Not So Good Day in Sports

A couple of weeks ago when Ben Roethlisberger was involved in his motorcycle accident and the US failed to show against the Czechs in the World Cup, I thought that was a pretty bad sports day. Today made my statement from a couple of weeks ago look silly. One of the first things I saw when I got up was the news that former Miami and current Northwestern football coach Randy Walker died due to a reported heart attack. Walker coached at Miami for the majority of the 90s before going to Evanston, he's originally from Troy, OH. I did not get to meet him, but I did meet one of his kids at Miami, so I feel for her and the rest of the family. Everyone that knew Coach has only the best to say about him, he will be sorely missed. On top of that, in more of a disappoint to me, nothing as tragic as the passing of Coach Walker, the Tour de France has found itself in the middle of another doping scandal. As of this moment, 13 riders have been kicked out, among those being Ivan Basso and Jan Ullrich, two of the big favorites. No one man is bigger than the Tour, it will still be a great Tour, but it won't be as good as it could've been.

So, who's left that can win? Americans naturally haha:

• Levi Leipheimer is now the top returning finisher from last year's race that will be competing this year. He is solid in the time trial and in the mountains and now has good Tour experience. His team historically hasn't been strong, can they help him in the mountains? He won the Dauphine Libere, one of the big Tour tuneups, so he appears to be on form.
• Floyd Landis is unquestionably the leader of his Phonak team. This year, he won the Tour of California, Tour de Georgia, and Paris-Nice. He's had great days in the Tour before, can he have 3 great weeks.
• George Hincapie takes over for Lance as leader of Discovery. Known more for his high finishes in the spring classics, he has gradually gotten better at time trialing and climbing during his service for Armstrong. His win in the Pyrennes last year showed he could climb. Can he pull it off while dealing with the pressure of being the team leader?
• Alejandro Valverde could be the next big cycling star. He outsprinted Lance to the top of Courchevel last year before pulling out of the race as planned. Now he'll try and go all the way to Paris. Can he win in his first try at completion?
• Another name being thrown out there is Cadel Evans. A better climber than time trialer, you have to be wary of him getting in a breakaway and stealing time because he's just a great bike rider, period.
• Christophe Moreau is now 35 (seems a lot older now), and this is his last real shot at winning. With no clear favorite, can he give the French their first victor since Hinault in 1985?

It should be an exciting Tour, no one really knows what's going to happen. But the plan to win is still the same. Don't crash during week 1, ride a good time trial, get into position in the Pyrennes, then attack in the Alps.

Tomorrow is a solid summer sports day, the beginning of the Tour, World Cup quarterfinals, US Women's Open 2nd round (Annika, Michelle, and Paula are all there after round 1), and Agassi-Nadal at Wimbledon.

The fireworks were impressive Wed. night and everyone at our barbecue had a great time. The best fireworks show I've seen (and I forgot until the other night that I went) were the Cincinnati Labor Day fireworks on the Ohio River. I'm looking forward to a 4-day weekend to rest up, get a little break.