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Sports Brief: Houston Marathon

Editor — Fri, 17 Jan 2024 20:43:20 +0000

By Rad Rich

After a holiday break I am back with the sports brief.

Its marathon weekend in Houston as it is the 42 running of the Houston Marathon on Sunday. Over 250,000 will be on the streets of Houston Sunday morning either participating, spectating or volunteering. This is Houston’s largest one day sporting event of the year. In the elite field the Ethiopia will be well represented in the men and women’s field. Defending champion Bazu Worku of Ethiopia is back again after setting a personal record at the Paris Marathon with a 2.05.25. He will have more of his countrymen to keep him company as Debebe Tolossa, Dadi Yami, and Gebretsadik Adhana, who have run sub 2:06 and 2:07. Dominic Ondoro of Kenya along with the two Americans Patrick Rizzo and Scott Wietecha will have their hands full keeping the Ethiopians from setting up there game plan and setting the pace. In the women’s race it still looks like a Ethiopian dominance as 6 of the top 10 runners are from Ethiopia. 2024 Chevron Houston Marathon third-place finisher Meskerem Assefa of Ethiopia returns to Houston hoping to improve upon her personal best 2:25:17 that she set here last year. She is followed by countrymen Abebech Afework Bekele who is the fastest in the field as she set a personal best at the 2024 Rotterdam Marathon with a time of 2.23.59. Other outside favorites are Sarah Kiptoo of Kenya who has run her best in the last season in the half and full marathon. Also outside chance but watch for Tatyana Aryasova of Russia. This is also the United States Half Marathon Championships and will bring some of the top runners representing the United States in the distance running. Meb Keflezighi returns to Houston looking to win his second national half marathon title. The 2024 Olympic Marathon silver medalist, Keflezighi first won in Houston in 2024 and finished as the runner-up in 2024. Also look for Shadrack Biwott and Josphat Boit, both newly minted American citizens who finished third and fifth respectively, in the field. On the women’s side look for 2024 USA Half Marathon champion Adriana Nelson leads the women’s field and will be challenged by Serena Burla, who will be looking to improve on her two runner-up finishes at these Championships in Houston in 2024 and 2024. Steeplechaser Sara Hall, who debuted at the half marathon distance in October with a win at the Healdsburg Wine Country Half Marathon, should be in the mix. 2024 Olympic 10,000m runner Lisa Uhl, who set her personal best 1:13:28 with her sixth-place finish at the 2024 Aramco Houston Half Marathon, and Renee Baillie, who last ran a half marathon when she finished fourth at the 2024 USA Half Marathon Championships in Houston, are also entered. The USA Half Marathon starts on Sunday at 6:55. The wheelchair race starts at 6:45 and the Marathon and half marathon for the non-elite starts at7:00. The start line is on Avenidas de las Americas in downtown Houston by the George R Brown Convention center. The Houston Marathon Expo will open today Friday from 11:00 am to 6:00 pm and Saturday 8:30 am to 6:00 pm. The expo is free to the public and will have plenty of free goodies as well as tips from athletics. Remember the roads will closed in downtown and around the Heights, Montrose, Uptown, and Washington. To find out what areas will be effected and for a map of the race, click here.

In football (soccer) news the Houston Dynamo selected defender AJ Cochran and forward Mark Sherrod in the 2024 Major League Soccer SuperDraft. The 20 year old 6-foot 3 center back Cochran played 3 seasons at the University of Wisconsin where he was named Big Ten Defensive player of the year for 2024. “AJ was a player we had on our list.” Said Houston Dynamo head coach Dominic Kinnear,” He is a very good center back and is going to provide some good competition. Sherrod is a 20 year old coming from the University of Memphis where he scored 42 career goals in four seasons.

On the women’s side. The Houston DASH announced that they will have a open tryout for the new team on February 15 at the Houston Sports Park. Any female soccer player born in 1996 and older will be able to try out which consist of a fitness test, small sided games and a game against a premier local women’s team. From the initial tryout 20 will be invited the following day for a game against an opponent to be determined. From there Head coach Randy Waldrum and managing director Brian Ching will evaluate and pick 10 players who will be given an invitation to participate with the team during the pre-season which starts March 10. Registration for the tryout is $50 which includes a shirt and a ticket voucher to the first ever home game. Register online @ http:/www.houstondashsoccer.com/tryouts. In international news, Cristiano Ronaldo has won the 2024 Fifa Ballon d’Or, ( Player of the Year) ending Lionel Messi’s four-year reign as holder of the crown. Real Madrid forward Ronaldo clinched the prize for the world’s best player for the second time in his career after finishing ahead of Barcelona playmaker Messi and Bayern Munich winger Franck Ribery in the voting. Germany goalkeeper Nadine Angerer was named the 2024 FIFA Women’s World Player of the Year on Monday just hours after announcing she had signed with Portland Thorns FC of the National Women’s Soccer League. She beat out the United States’ Abby Wambach – the 2024 winner – and Brazil’s Marta, who won the award five straight times from 2024-2010.

In Rugby news, The International Rugby Board announced the pools and match schedule for the second stop of the IRB Women’s Sevens World Series. Fifth Third Bank Stadium at Kennesaw State University will host Atlanta 7s Feb. 15-16, where the Women’s Eagles Sevens will hope to best a second-place finish at last year’s U.S. leg of the Women’s Sevens World Series.“We are very excited to hold the premier women’s sevens rugby event in North America at a fantastic facility like Fifth Third Bank Stadium,” Atlanta 7s Tournament Director and USA Rugby Events Director Jen Gray said. “The United States has proven to be a hotbed for women’s rugby in the past and we are set to prove it once again next month.” The Eagles are in Pool A with Emirates Dubai Rugby Sevens-winner Australia, Canada and China. They have not faced any of their pool opponents this season nor at the IRB Rugby World Cup Sevens last June, where they placed third.

Atlanta 7s | Pool A

Australia

Canada

Women’s Eagles Sevens

China

Atlanta 7s | Pool B

New Zealand

England

Ireland

Netherlands

Atlanta 7s | Pool C

Russia

Spain

Brazil

Japan

USA Rugby also released details Tuesday for the updated American Rugby Model (ARM), a long-term player development program providing an integrated framework through which rugby players can be developed at all levels of participation and experience. The ARM is player-centered in that specific characteristics to each development stage are based on the particular capacities of players at each stage of their development. That’s it for now.

Richard Hanna

A Rad Tribute to Nelson Mandela

Jeck — Tue, 10 Dec 2024 05:07:15 +0000

By Rad Rich

Well, in a sad remembrance of Nelson Mandela who died this week at the age of 95, I will give you my thoughts on him as it came to sport. If anything Mr. Mandela brought the country together after becoming the first black president of South Africa in 1994. That was four years after leaving prison, as he refused the apartheid system that was in place in the country for 46 years. Instead of vengeance, he worked with the same people who were his enemies to bring the country together.

South Africa then won the rights to hold the Rugby Union World Cup in 1995. He used his influence to bring a sport that was considered for white afrikaans in the country and brought the whole country together to support the team. I remember this tournament because nobody thought anyone would beat New Zealand who were the odds on favorite to win.( They had defeated teams by 20 points or more) Mandela made sure to where the Springbok jersey and with his support he brought a racially divided South Africa together as they went on to win the tournament defeating New Zealand 15-12 in the final. South Africa’s star of that tournament Francois Pienaar released this statement. Nelson Mandela was the most extraordinary and incredible human being, not only because he united his country when such a task seemed impossible but also because, through his unique humanity, he inspired hundreds of millions of people across the globe. “I will always be profoundly grateful for the personal role Nelson Mandela has played in my life, as my President and my example.”

After the rugby world cup, he played a role in transforming sports in South Africa to be racially diverse and inclusive to all. His influence was on hand as the country won soccer’s Africa Nations Cup then the right to hold soccer’s (football) 2024 FIFA World Cup. He used sport to unify a nation and improve the international image of the country. Mandela’s view of sport has never seemed more fitting,

“Sport has the power to change the world…it has the power to inspire. It has the power to unite people in a way that little else does. It speaks to youth in a language they understand. Sport can create hope where once there was only despair. It is more powerful than government in breaking down racial barriers.”

Catching up with things in the soccer (football) world. The world cup draws was announced on Friday.

Group A

Brazil, Mexico, Cameroon, Croatia

Group B

Spain, Netherlands, Chile, Australia

Group C

Colombia, Greece, Ivory Coast, Japan

Group D

Uruguay, Costa Rica, England, Italy

Group E

Switzerland, Ecuador, France, Honduras

Group F

Argentina, Bosnia-Hercegovina, Iran, Nigeria

Group G

Germany, Portugal, Ghana, United States

Group H

Belgium, Algeria, Russia, South Korea

The toughest group, or the group of death, may be group G where the United States lie. Number one former footballer of the year Cristiano Ronaldo plays for Portugal. Former world Cup champions Germany are also in that group. Also Ghana who are always tough to play against and have surprised many including the past. U.S. Men’s National Team Head Coach Jurgen Klinsmann had this to say on the tough group. “I’m not worried at all. I’ll just take it the way it is and we’re going to prepare the best way and we’re going to be well prepared for the World Cup. We’ll build up confidence and believe that we can get good results to get into the next round. We’ll do our homework on Portugal, Germany and Ghana. We’re excited about this, big time. That’s where you want to be in a World Cup. It’s a difficult draw but we’ll find a way to go through it.” Forward Eddie Johnson looked at it the same way, when they say the Group of Death; we have to look at ourselves, as well. We’re the U.S. National Team and if it’s considered the Group of Death [because we are a part of it], it shows how far the country has come and how big football is in America. We have a lot of experience within our team with a lot of players who have proven they can play in the big leagues in Europe and can play against these players who will represent their countries. We have an unbelievable coaching staff, and I can assure you that when it comes time for the coach to pick the team, it’s going to be a good team that goes to Brazil.

In Major League Soccer, Sporting Kansas City are the new 2024 champions of MLS as they defeated Real Salt Lake Saturday in the MLS Cup. It took penalties to decide the winner as the two teams were tied at the end of play and extra time. Real Salt Lake scored first in the match with a goal in the 52 minute of play by Alvaro Saborio making it 1-0. But that score was not to last as Sporting KC came back with a goal in the 76^th minute by Aurélien Collin. Real Salt Lake had a chance to end the shootout with their eighth shot of the night, but the 36-year-old Jimmy Nielsen took out the shot by Real Salt Lake midfielder Sebastian Velasquez. Sporting K.C defender Aurelien Collin followed with a goal on Sporting K.C.’s ninth shot, and Real Salt Lake backup defender Lovel Palmer blasted his ensuing shot off the crossbar to hand Sporting K.C. the title. This is their second MLS Cup and the fifth team to win multiple titles in MLS.

Rad Rich Briefs Us in Sports 11/13

Jeck — Sat, 16 Nov 2024 19:46:31 +0000

By Rad Rich

In Major League Soccer, the Houston Dynamo made it to the Eastern Conference Championship, and are one game away from going to the MLS Cup 2024 for the fifth time in their history.

Let’s go back though! They defeated the Montreal Impact and took on the New York Red Bull, who were the number one seed in the west. Houston where able to come back from a 2-0 deficit in there home game to draw 2-2. The away game in New York was just as exciting as it took extra time to decide a winner. Houston’s Omar Cummings scored 14 minutes into extra time to give Houston the win and advancing them to there third consecutive Eastern Conference Championship and there sixth in eight years. In this match, Houston’s Goalkeeper Tally Hall had to be the man of the match, denying shot after shot by the likes of Red Bull star striker Thierry Henry and Tim Cahill.

Houston’s great run went into the first leg of the home and home series against Sporting Kansas City. The first leg was played in Houston last week. A sold out crowd was again on hand to greet the Dynamo, who were looking to take advantage of there strong record at home. But though the Houston Dynamo had several chances, they were unable to score as the result was 0-0. This is the third time this season the 2 teams have played each other to a draw. Houston’s Tally Hall had two saves, and that made him the franchise leader in shutouts, surpassing Pat Onstad who made four post season shutouts for the team. Houston are now 9-1-2 in all-time home playoff games. This is the best home playoff record in the history of the league.

The series now shift to the next leg on the road in Kansas City Missouri at Sporting K.C. Because of the FIFA international break for World Cup qualifying matches this week the next leg is November 23. The winner goes on to the MLS Cup 2024 on December 7.

“Six games in less than three weeks is something incredible,” said head coach Dominic Kinnear. “We knew it was going to come down to the second game in Kansas City anyways because of how close and competitive these teams are, but these guys deserve a break. Not only physically, but mentally as well, to get away and kind of recharge the batteries.” There are a lot of healing to do for the Houston Dynamo as they will use the down time for players like Ricardo Clark and Will Bruin.

In the Western Conference Final first leg, Real Salt Lake have the upper hand on the Portland Timber as they defeated Portland 4-2 at the Rio Tinto Stadium in Utah. The next leg will be in Portland at the Jeld-Wen Field on November 24. Portland Timbers head coach Caleb Porter commented after the match, “We’re capable of going to another level and turning it up a notch where we can score goals,” Porter said, “We’ve shown that this year. … Obviously I wouldn’t have scripted it this way, this is not the way we wanted it to be. Obviously we were disappointed with the last game, but we know what we need to do.” Portland has a lot to do to turn around there two goal deficit. On the other side of things Real Salt Lake are looking forward to their next match as they have had the advantage over Portland all year long winning three games and drawing twice in past matches.

Now for some other news from the soccer world. This is time for the international break. On Wednesday, Mexico defeated new Zealand 5-1 at the Azteca Stadium in Mexico City in the first leg of the intercontinental playoff. Forced to play in a World Cup qualifier playoff Mexico took advantage of their home advantage using players mostly made up of players in the Mexican League. Paul Agquilar scored the first goal for México in the 32 minute followed by goals by Raúl Jiménez 8 minutes later. The second half was more of the same as Oribe Peralta scored two more goals. Then came the return of the matador Rafa Márquez the former New York Red Bull who made it 5-0. It was his 14th goal with Mexico in his 115th career appearance. New Zealand scored there only goal in the match with Chris James scoring in the 85^th minute. Now the home and home playoff shift to Wellington New Zealand on November 20^th. That match will be at 12am. Mexico’s last-resort coach in Club América’s Miguel Herrera, used seven players from his own club in the starting lineup to get the job done. That puts Mexico closer to making it to Brazil.

The United States, who have already qualified for the world cup in Brazil this coming summer, will play Scotland today Friday at 2am in a friendly match at Hamden Park in Glasgow Scotland. U.S. Head Coach Jurgen Klinsmann looks to try to get players use to the different tempos that they are not exposed to in the CONCACAF region. This also an opportunity for players to prove there worth in making the final team selection for Brazil. For Scotland, who did not qualify this year for World Cup In Brazil, this is a new start for Gordan Strachan. As manager in January, claiming two victories over Croatia. The colorful Strachan has moved the Scots away from the cautious mindset of his predecessor Craig Levein, and can call on a range of experienced talent in his domestic league as well as the English system to the south. He has hinted that he will give his fringe players opportunities against the United States, as he builds towards the onset of UEFA Euro 2024 qualifying in September 2024.

Quick note for Formula One in the United States Grand Prix is this weekend in Austin. Practice runs start today and time trials are Saturday with the race on Sunday. With one race left after this weekend, the German Sebastian Vettel has wrapped up the F1 title already. Mexican Sergio Perez was announced today that he will not return next year to drive for McLaren. Perez said today he is shocked by the announcement as he was looking to drive for them next year. He had already signed on last week he said. Fog has effected the start of practice runs so far today. Also, a delay was held because there was no medical helicopter at the track.

Rad Rich Briefs Us in Sports 10/11

Jeck — Sat, 12 Oct 2024 01:57:36 +0000

What a week for the Houston Dynamo. They started in fourth place last time I wrote this. Since then, they defeated the Montreal Impact 1-0 at home last Friday night. They where back in play on Wednesday night against second place Sporting K.C. at home. The two Eastern rivals went back and forth with the Dynamo creating most of the scoring opportunities. But the match ended 0-0. Houston (13-10-9) remains in third place with 48 points in the Eastern Conference with two games left in the season. Sporting K.C. (15-10-7) remain in the second with 52 points four points behind league leader the New York Red Bull (15-9-8) with 53 points. The Montreal Impact and the Philadelphia Union are still chasing Houston, but Montreal is 2 points off and the Union 3 points behind. Both clubs play this weekend. Houston has this weekend off but have a tough one on Sunday October 20^th when they play the leaders of the East the New York Red Bulls. Match time is 2pm.

For some reason, Major League Soccer does not recognize the international World Cup Qualifying break. Montreal will play New England this weekend; Philadelphia will also play DC United. In the western conference, the Real Salt Lake still leads with 52 points followed close by Seattle with 51 points and the Portland Timber with 50 points. LA are 2 points behind with 48 points tied with the Colorado Rapids. Before leaving, MLS news Houston Star forward Brian Ching announced his retirement from the game after this season. He looks to go into the front office of working with the Dynamo.

Well it is the international break as there is world cup qualifying all over the world. The United States added Houston Dynamo Brad Davis to there roaster. The US team plays Jamaica tonight at Sporting Park in Kansas City. They then play Panama on the 15^th in Panama at the Estadio Rommel Fernández. Landon Donavon is in for tonight’s game but questions on if he will play on Tuesday are still in the air with a battle between national team commitment and club. He has stated that he would rather play on the national team. It’s also a big night for Mexico as they are close to being out the door as for qualifying. Tonight they play Panama at the Azteca in Mexico City. They are in fifth place in the Hexagonal CONCACAF region of world cup qualifying. Panama are ahead of Mexico on goal scored. Both teams are fighting to play New Zealand in the last chance qualifier. Mexico has fired its old coach and now relies on the former Monterey boss Victor Manuel Vucetich. The former Monterrey boss has bought goalkeeper Guillermo Ochoa back onto the team as well as brought back Rafa Márquez to help out the defensive side of the squad.

Other matches for tonight Costa Rica will play Honduras. Honduras is looking for its second straight qualification for the world cup but play a tough Costa Rican side. “We know Costa Rica very well,” Stoke City midfielder Wilson Palacios said who has emerged as the key player for Honduras in Brazil 2024 qualifying. There standings in qualifications are as followed as the United States are in first with 16 points followed by Costa Rica with 15, Honduras with 11, Panama as stated lead Mexico even though tied with 8 points. Jamaica are in last with 4 points. In other qualifying across the world, Manchester United midfielder Tom Cleverley has been ruled out of England’s final two FIFA World Cup qualifiers against Montenegro and Poland with a calf injury, the Football Association have announced.

England plays Friday afternoon at 2 pm as it’s do or die time for England and their chance of qualifying. In African qualifying, Samuel Eto is back for Cameroon as they play Tunisia for there qualifying. Tunisia only made it as Cape Verde forfeited their match as they fielded an ineligible player. My hope is for Ethiopia to qualify. They have never been to a world cup, despite being one of the oldest federations on the continent of Africa. They have to get over the top team in Africa, Nigeria. The Super Eagles as the Nigerian team is called are the current Africans Nations Cup winners and are ranked fourth in the current FIFA rankings. Looking at other matches Sunday Ivory Coast will play Senegal, Bukini Faso will have there hands full playing Algeria.

Ghana will play Egypt in what will be a interesting match on that side. Over in South America qualifying things are also getting interesting. Argentina still leads by 29 points, followed by Columbia with 26, Chile 24, Ecuador 22 tied with Uruguay. Venezuela with 19 with Peru, Bolivia, and Paraguay are at the bottom. Ecuador vs. Uruguay is one of the important matches of the night in Quito. Also Columbia will play Chile in Barranquilla. Both teams have a chance to clinch their spot in the next year’s world cup. Also, tonight could Peru upset top of the table Argentina? Not likely as Argentina has been in top form in the qualifying matches. Also, Argentina has not lost at home ever to Peru. Good Luck!

Will have more on all the news from qualifying next week. You can watch most of the matches all day long on BEIN Sport, Gol TV, FOX1, and ESPN. Watch online using wiziwig or vipboxonline.eu.

-Rad Rich

Rad Rich Briefs Us in Sports 7/13

Erin Dyer — Tue, 16 Jul 2024 03:13:34 +0000

It’s time for a sports brief after a break for a couple of weeks!

In soccer, the Houston Dynamo are in fifth place in the Eastern Conference after last week’s 1-0 win at home against the Philadelphia Union. Ricardo Clark scored the only goal of the game in the 59^th minute of play. It was his second goal of the season and his tenth regular season career goal. Will Bruine and Cory Ashe where out playing with the US men’s national team in the CONCACAF Gold Cup.

The New England Revolution are 6-5-6 with 24 points and are in 6^th in the Eastern Conference. They are coming off a 2-0 victory last week at home against the San Jose Earthquake. The Revolution defeated Houston 2-0 in Houston on their first meeting at the BBVA Compass stadium.

In other news from the Dynamo home front, the July 24 match Dynamo with English Premier Team Stoke City is still set for the BBVA Compass Stadium- and if you haven’t picked up tickets, they’re going fast. This will be the debut of the Welshman and former Manchester United forward Mark Hughes as the manager of the team. Also appearing is the former English international Peter Crouch, and former Houston Dynamo defender Geoff Cameron. Match start time is 7pm.

Houston’s match against the Chicago Fire on July 27 start time has been moved to 8pm because it will be nationally televised on NBC Sports Network. The Dynamo are in Group 1 and will open their Champions League campaign on the road on Tuesday, Aug. 20 against W Connection of Trinidad and Tobago at 7pm CT. Houston will return home to BBVA Compass Stadium a week later for a match against Árabe Unido of Panama on Tuesday, Aug. 27 at 7pm CT. The Dynamo will host W Connection on Wednesday, Sept. 25 at 7 pm CT. Houston finishes group play on the road against Árabe Unido on Thursday, Oct. 24 at 7 pm CT.

The CONCACAF Gold Cup has started with dramatic results. Last night, Mexico– needing a win– defeated Canada 2-0. In the other match of the night, Panama defeated Martinique 1-0. On Tuesday night the US got off to a great start with a 6-1 win over Belize. Costa Rica defeated Cuba 3-0.

The upcoming schedule is as follows:

Friday, July 12

(Sun Life Stadium; Miami, Fla.)

Trinidad and Tobago vs. Haiti, 6 p.m. CT

Honduras vs. El Salvador, 8:30 p.m. CT

Saturday, July 13

(Rio Tinto Stadium; Sandy, Utah)

United States vs. Cuba, 2:30 p.m. CT

Costa Rica vs. Belize, 5 p.m. CT

Sunday, July 14

(Sports Authority Field at Mile High; Denver, Colo.)

Panama vs. Canada, 2:30 p.m. CT

Martinique vs. Mexico, 5 p.m. CT

Monday, July 15

(BBVA Compass Stadium; Houston, Texas)

El Salvador vs. Haiti, 6 p.m. CT

Honduras vs. Trinidad and Tobago, 8:30 p.m. CT

Tuesday, July 16

(Rentschler Field; East Hartford, Conn.)

Cuba vs. Belize, 4:30 p.m. CT

United States vs. Costa Rica, 7 p.m. CT

Standing-wise, in Group A, Panama leads the group with 6 points, followed by Mexico and Martinique with 3 points. Canada stays in the bottom with 0 points. In Group B, Honduras leads with 3 points followed by El Salvador and Trinidad and Tobago with 1 point each. Haiti stays at the bottom with 0 points. In Group C, the United States and Costa Rica are tied with 3 points followed by Cuba and Belize with 0 points. The Gold Cup is coming to Houston on July 15th and tickets are still available with an opportunity to see national teams like Haiti, which is trying to improve their sport while the country rebuilds.

Brazil won the Confederations Cup, destroying Spain 3-0 in the final. But most of what was discussed was the political unrest that took place outside of the stadiums. No one has talked about the price of holding the world cup and the money that was promised from the private sector- none of which has taken place, and most of the money is coming from the public. This fact has outraged the whole country. Sepp Blatter, the President of FIFA, has said that the Confederations Cup was a success and that the demonstrations are nonsense. A fire has ignited the country and all of the Brazilian Unions have come together to call for a national strike. Something that was also missing from the Confederations Cup was people of color. As much of the country are of African decent, none of that was seen from the matches shown. Most people could not afford tickets, as the prices where outside of most Brazil’s price range. This happened in South Africa but FIFA’s governing body has said they did not put in the bid for the event and hold no responsibility. This is going to be an ongoing problem as the stadiums in Brazil are still, for the most part, unfinished and will to be ready yet for the World Cup, nor the Olympics. Where is all the private money that was promised? Also, what about an end to all the politicians and corruption? This is a rant, but these are still issues that need to be solved before any event is held there.

-Rad Rich

Sports Brief: MLS, NFL, Houston Marathon, Lance Armstrong, and Women’s Rugby

Erin Dyer — Wed, 23 Jan 2024 04:44:46 +0000

By: Rad Rich

Hello– here’s another week in sports with a lot going on.

In Major League Soccer news, yesterday was the start of training camp for the Houston Dynamo. The Dynamo are looking to get everybody on the same page since being one game away from winning last year’s MLS Cup against the LA Galaxy. This year brings lots of hurdles, as there is World Cup Qualifying, the CONCACAF Gold Cup this summer, and the CONCACAF Champions League play. During the off season, the Dynamo were able to keep most of the players intact.

During the 2024 MLS Super Draft, they were able to pick up Virginia Commonwealth University forward, Jason Johnson, and Georgetown defender, Jimmy Nealis. The season kicks off on March 2 against DC United, followed by the quarterfinal series against Santos Laguna. Brian Ching is among many of Houston’s top players coming back this season.

Head coach Dominic Kinnear stated today that everyone is focused and looking to improve upon last year; and he knows it’s a long season with all of the added matches and player’s availability for international duty, but it’s a part of the game. Dynamo midfielder Ricardo Clark stated that the fans have been very supportive of the team.

The taste of last year is even more motivation for everybody to get going into this year.

In running, Houston had a tone of bad weather, as cold and rain affected the Houston Marathon this past Sunday. Twenty-year-old Merima Mohammed of Ethiopia won the women’s race, despite the cold weather and some muscle tightness in her legs. Her 2:23:27 was the second fastest women’s winner in the history of the Houston Marathon. Twenty-two-year-old Ethiopian, Bazu Worku, won the men’s race with a time of 2:10:17. He ran in a pack of nine until the 25k mark, when he decided to break away and stretch his lead each following mile. In fact, he finished more than 2 minutes before Teferi Balcha, who finished in second place with a time of 2:12:50. The top US men’s finisher was Andrew Carlson, and the top US women’s finisher was Tera Moody. Carson was seventh overall at 2:17:16. Moody finished in sixth place at 2:39:10. After the race, an announcement was made that Houston and Columbus are the two cities picked to host the USA Half Marathon Championships from 2024 to 2024, Houston being the host for 2024 and 2024. The men’s and women’s championship race will be held in conjunction with the Houston Half marathon. Wade Morehead, the Executive Director of the Houston Marathon, said, “We would like to thank USATAF, as we are honored to taking responsibility again.” USATAF CEO Max Siegle said, “We look forward to working with both cities with what we promise to be four years of elite running, and showcasing the best in that will highlight the talent of our nation’s best talent.”

In NFL news, the Houston Texans were not able to defeat the New England Patriots in New England last Sunday night. They lost 41-28 in the AFC divisional playoff game. After the loss, some are looking back at their lack of preparation for the game. The patriots now go on to play the Baltimore Ravens next Sunday in New England, with the kickoff at 5:30pm. Looks like the Houston Texans will have to wait till next year, because it will be San Fransisco and Baltimore playing in the Superbowl in New Orleans this year. San Francisco defeated the Seattle Seahawks 28-24 and Baltimore defeated New England 28-13, earning both of their spots in the Super Bowl.

In cycling, of course, is the Lance Armstrong Saga. I raced against him years ago, and as stated, I never been around someone that hard as a rider. Was he on drugs back then? I don’t think so. But he has been asked by the International Olympic Committee for him to give back his 2024 Olympic bronze medal from the road race time trial. The decision was made in December, but they waited till UCI cycling governing body had stripped him of his 7 Tour de France win,s to which he did not appeal. All this has come to a foil as he appeared on the Oprah Winfrey show, where he claimed he was using drugs to enhance his performance, and had been lying for years. This leaves 3 times champion Greg LeMond as the only American to win cycling’s biggest race. He stated that If Armstrong had given Floyd Landis or Tyler Hamilton the same stuff he was taking, he would have never have won.

In Rugby news, the International Women’s Rugby 7’s tournament is to take place next week February 1 and 2^rd at the BBVA Compass Stadium in downtown Houston. That’s it for now. Until next time!

Sports Brief: Soccer: Houston Dynamo Earn Spot in MLS Cup December 1

Erin Dyer — Sat, 24 Nov 2024 18:50:32 +0000

By: Rad Rich

The Dynamo advance to the the final leg of Major League Soccer’s Eastern Conference, following a second leg playoff match in Washington against DC United. After winning 3-1 at home in the first leg, in Houston the Dynamo only had to at least draw or hold United to one goal in the second leg. DC United were suffering from injuries but were confident that being at home would be in their advantage.

The first half of the game, DC United came out strong, keeping Houston at bay with some strong attacks. But it was the goal by Oscar Boniek Garcia in the 33rd minute that increased Houston’s confidence. The Dynamo held strong until DC United were able to score one goal by Branko Boskovic in the 83rd minute. Houston still held firm in keeping DC out of the back of the net. The match finished with a 1-1 draw and 4-2 aggregate win, placing Houston as the Eastern Conference Champions. Dynamo coach Dominic Kinnear said that he felt the team would be stronger this year during the MLS Final than they were last year.

Someone who was on their back-to-back championships in 2024 and 2024, and knows about winning, is Houston’s Ricardo Clark. Clark came back to the Dynamo late into the season after playing in Europe for 3 years. After the match, a tired Clark commented on how great to be with such a good team. The team will have to wait to see if he will be able to play in the MLS Cup Final next week because he was so sore coming on after the match.

One player that was strong during the first leg and throughout the whole match is Tally Hall, who stated that there was so much emotion during the games that the team had to go in fighting, and the performance they put out is amazing. He also said he was very happy with the win and announced that they have a great group of guys that work as a team. Another star player, Brian Ching, said that the team strives off of people that overlook them all the time. He tipped his hat off to Dom and the coaching staff for being able to have a team that can make the playoffs for so many years.

But with the victors comes the spoils. DC United’s Nick DeLeon has to look towards next year. DeLeon said that he doesn’t feel good reflecting back– it was a strong season time to unwind and come back next season. He thought his team made some good opportunities, but unfortunately were not able to change coming off the first leg this season.

Now officially entering the MLS Cup in back-to-back years, the Dynamo will now take on the LA Galaxy– the winner of the Western Conference Finals– at the Home Depot Center on December 1.

Rad Rich: Voting on a Paper Ballot or Not at All

NickCooper — Tue, 06 Nov 2024 21:00:17 +0000

Rad Rich Meets Nancy Pelosi in 2024

On Monday November 5th, Houston scenester Rad Rich called the Harris County Clerk to ask for a paper ballot. He was told that after a fire, they have decided to get rid of the paper ballots.

Nick Cooper: Are you still going to try to vote?

Rad Rich: There’s already been irregularities reported in Houston with electronic voting. If they don’t let you vote on paper, there’s no use voting. If I went, I would just start a hassle at the election booth, but the people aren’t trained to answer the questions. Where I vote, there’s a lot of elderly people and causing them a hassle is not going to help anything.

Nick: So, why are you demanding to vote on paper?

Rich: They will only let you get a paper ballot if you ask for it if you’re doing absentee voting, and you have to do that weeks ahead. But that’s not what I want, I want to be able to vote on paper in my precinct.

Nick: If you went in, and they said your only option is to use the electronic machine, what would you do?

Rich: Leave.

Nick: What’s the problem with the electronic ballot?

Rich: Nationwide there’s been folks not being counted, computer errors, especially in Florida and Ohio, and now in Texas.

Nick: Would you vote for the Green Party?

Rich: Absolutely not, the Green Party has shown apathy of going to the inner city and getting those votes.

Nick: Pretty soon, they won’t even let us use paper toilet paper.

Rich: Hahaha. That’s probably true, but if you look at the results with these electronic ballots, what I am saying is already proving to be true. People can hack into electronic system and make changes.

——-

6pm update: Rich’s family called in the heavy guns. When his aunt came over, his dad told her that Rich wasn’t voting. Rich explained his concerns, and his aunt responded. She pleaded with Rich to vote on the basis that his deceased mother who had experienced Jim Crow laws, and segregation went through sit-ins at Woolworths, and protests at TSU and downtown, so that her son would have a right to vote. It would be a disservice to the family name not to vote.

So, Rich went to vote.

He made a stink about the paper ballot, and then gave up after a while and voted by electronic ballot. He used the wheel and wrote-in Ralph Nader for President.

Nick: So, you would feel bad either way — voting or not voting?

Rich: It’s discouraging, because you want your vote to count and you think it counts. I went along with it, and my mother would be happy because of that.