Bolt’s Biggest Challenger Still Blooming

Usain Bolt just won another 200m sprint, this time at the IAAF Paris Diamond League meet on the freshly-laid track in the Stade de France in Saint-Denis. He finished well off the 19.75 he had targeted, crossing the line in 20.03. It didn’t matter, because once again he was the first over the finish line. He won in Rome in May, knocking off fellow Jamaican Asafa Powell with a 9.91. He won at 100m in Ostrava five days later, running a 9.91 to... Read More

NTSF 102: Final majors of 2010 in cycling and tennis, soccer’s tournament cycle begins anew and more…

Wow… seems that the beer my wife bought me last night really did a number on me. As I sat in front of the computer on Wednesday, digesting the 22 ounces of Bourbon County Brand Stout by Goose Island Brewery (13.0% alcohol by volume) and trying to finish up stage recaps from the Vuelta and musings from the U.S. Open and yes, this column as well, I instead felt my eyelids falling, falling, falling… Read More  Read More

NTSF 101: Rushida sets new record, cycling gears up for Vuelta, U.S. Open previews and more…

It’s funny how we can procrastinate sometimes despite having everything laid out in front of us. I started this column back on Saturday, diligently starting the process of building the news and notes of the week as I always do. The skeleton inputted online, I then went about my daily writing and slowly fleshed out the article from there. But with just this introduction and the conclusion left to write, I tabled the piece and went about my day... Read More

NTSF 099: Bolt bettered in Stockholm, wider meanings of relegation, Spanish bullfight ban and more…

I am a Non-Traditional Sports Fan by instinct, a writer by trade… and a cook to pay the bills. Unfortunately, working a job in catering has a tendency to throw off my cadence. The summer doldrums — you know, the ones that fans who remain attuned solely to the rhythms of American sport often decry this time of year — are most acutely felt in the way my work schedule lines up. See, this is the golden time of year for a guy like me.... Read More

NTSF 098: FIFA sanctions, tectonic shifts in cycling, new F1 leader and more…

The calendar turns yet again into August, a month stacked with events galore for sports fans around the globe. We’re gearing up for the start of club seasons throughout European soccer, with teams already vying for spots in the UEFA Champions League main draw with just one qualifying round left now to decide the field. Tennis gears up for the last Grand Slam of the 2010 season, the hard courts of the Billie Jean King National Tennis Center... Read More

Next Page »