tingilinde

noting a classic football match

a new level of corruption

How soccer got to where it is today.

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The key acquisition who would turn Newcastle around wasn’t a new midfielder or a manager; he was a murderer. The club had been sold for $409 million to an investment group led by Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund, an almost endless reserve of cash controlled by Mohammed bin Salman, the country’s de facto head of state. In 2018, according to the US government, MBS had personally approved an operation to assassinate a Washington Post journalist. But as the news of the takeover sank in, the dismemberment of Jamal Khashoggi with a bone saw was the last thing on the minds of these supporters. To some, MBS seemed to be a point in favor of the deal. Outside the stadium and on social media, fans added a new flourish to the team’s uniform—they donned red and white head coverings, in imitation of the Saudi ruler. “We’re richer than you,” the crowd sang. One supporter wore an MBS mask.

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world cup accommodations

A look at the $200 per night flavor..

One has to remember that this place has an enormous number of "guest" workers working in conditions close to slavery. Having a world cup there is wrong in several dimensions .. but cold cash talks.

 

 

a miniature massage gun

About a half year ago a friend recommended the Hydragun massage gun over the competition.  Sukie got one and finds it works very well with a high quality construction.  It's also extremely quiet compared with the competition.  The company now has a smaller gun called the Atom  It's a bit less powerful (the power may not be an issue) and has fewer massage heads, but is more portable, less expensive and appears to be getting favorable review.  The company is having a $25 off Black Friday sale on the November 25 if you're interested (promo code BLACKFRIDAYFLASH).

 

 

 

from winning to not

A New Yorker profile on the compulsive leader of the Mercedes F1 team by Sam Knight.

Not the most pleasant person in the world, but one of those well-written New Yorker pieces.

 

 

 

 

the wrong way to do youth sports

It's become crazy in the US. 

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Youth sports in recent years have exploded into a $19 billion enterprise, by some accounts, but their ecosystem is built on a shaky foundation of nonprofit clubs, many run by volunteers. They operate as big businesses but have sloppy accounting and murky financial oversight.

Clubs across many sports, including soccer, basketball and volleyball, rake in hundreds of thousands of dollars per year from registration fees, fundraisers, private training and camps, but checks and balances on the flow of that money are often absent. As the industry continues to grow, many clubs find themselves vulnerable, and embezzlement scandals have fractured organizations and communities across the country — a youth basketball club in Omaha; a wrestling club in Mt. Morris, Mich.; and a soccer and lacrosse club Hanover, Pa.

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sailing adventure

Cassidy Randall on Sarah Goodall.

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In the heaving seas of the Southern Ocean, a small, red-hulled sailboat tossed and rolled, at the mercy of the tail end of a tempest. The boat’s mast was sheared away, its yellow sails sunk deep in the sea. Amid the wreckage of the cabin, Susie Goodall sloshed through water seeping in from the deck, which had cracked when a great wave somersaulted the boat end over end. She was freezing, having been lashed by ocean, rain, and wind. Her hands were raw and bloody. Except for the boat, her companion and home for the 15,000 miles she’d sailed over the past five months, Goodall was alone.

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generalist v specialist

David Epstein (author of Range) on Federer's development as an athlete.

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I don’t mention any of this to suggest that there’s one best way to parent or to develop as an athlete. Obviously, there are many different paths, even including those that end in the same place. But, according to sports science research, Federer’s path was more typical, and Tiger’s more the exception. Yet Tiger’s story might be the single most influential tale of development ever told, while even tennis enthusiasts usually don’t know Federer’s story.

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money and youth sports

Yet another piece on the rising costs and lowered value (for most) in youth sports these days.   Near the bottom of the page it links to an old NY Times piece on youth sports in Norway - a country that gets it right.  I'm told Finland has a similar model.

 

a retired athlete gone bad

Of course nothing will happen as he's a rich white hero - but Brett Fevre is a sleazy operator

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Favre has not been charged with a crime. But the evidence that links him to this scandal has further compromised the standing earned with his football success across a 20-year N.F.L. career, particularly in the state where he has been a favorite son. Text messages released in a court filing earlier this month showed Favre leveraging that status to secure funds for personal pet projects: a biotechnology start-up in which he had invested and a volleyball facility at his alma mater, the University of Southern Mississippi, where his daughter played the sport. The texts were first reported on by Mississippi Today.

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