A dirty dozen military-themed sports links from a busy weekend (non-MMA notes after the jump): 1. Kennedy recap. Special Forces soldier Tim Kennedy lost in his second try at the Strikeforce middleweight title Saturday night in Portland, Ore., falling to Luke Rockhold via five-round unanimous decision — the same way he lost his 2010 title bout against Rolando “Jacare” Souza. Read the After Action review, with video, here. Click here for full coverage from our good friends at MMAJunkie. 2. Now what? Read Sherdog’s suggestions for Kennedy’s next fight, including what could be a make-or-break rematch with Souza. 3. From…
Browsing: National Guard
As part of an ongoing project about military sponsorship in professional sports, I’m in Daytona covering the #88 National Guard race team. Here are a few shots from today’s qualifying session at Daytona International Speedway. Stay tuned for more photos following Saturday night’s race.
Both major Memorial Day weekend auto races — NASCAR’S Coca-Cola 600 and the Indianapolis 500 — featured dramatic collapses by the drivers who entered the final lap in the lead. In NASCAR, Dale Earnhardt Jr. — who hasn’t won a Sprint Cup race since June 2008 — ran out of gas on the last lap of the Coca-Cola 600 in Charlotte. Kevin Harvick passed Earnhardt and won, while Junior ended up finishing 22nd. Earlier in the day, in an even more heartbreaking finish, rookie driver JR Hildebrand inexplicably hit the wall in the final turn of the Indy 500. He…
The New York National Guard’s newest soldier is bringing a bit of gold to the Army. Olympic gold medalist Justin Olsen enlisted during a ceremony Jan. 9 – and then flew to Europe to resume the World Cup bobsled season. Olsen, a private first class, will train as a human resources specialist. He also plans to apply for the Army World Class Athlete Program, which allows soldiers to juggle their military commitment with training and competitions. “I hope to be selected and, as a soldier-athlete, I hope that I can give back as much to the program as they are…
Former soldier Steven Holcomb piloted the USA-1 bobsled Saturday to the United States’ first gold medal in four-man bobsled since 1948. Along with teammates Justin Olsen, Steve Mesler and Curt Tomasevicz, Holcomb set the track record during the first heat on Friday and then set it again on the second run to take a commanding lead. Two more strong runs Saturday ensured the “Night Train” sled piloted by Holcomb would give the U.S. its first gold in the four-man in 62 years. The win caps an amazing journey for Holcomb, a former Utah National Guardsman who needed surgery in 2008…
In his final event of the 2010 Olympics, Army Sgt. Jeremy Teela and his teammates finished 13th overall in the 4×7.5 kilometer relay today in British Columbia. The relay event concludes Teela’s third Olympics, which saw him record the highest finish ever by an American in a biathlon event when he finished 9th overall in the 10 kilometer sprint on Feb. 14. Teela is a member of the Vermont National Guard and the Army World Class Athlete Program.
Utah National Guard Sgt. Shauna Rohbock fell short of the medal stand yesterday at the 2010 Winter Olympics. Rohbock and brakeman Michelle Rzepka finished sixth overall in the USA-1 sled. The USA-2 sled won the bronze medal, and the USA-3 sled finished fifth. The result was a disappointment for Rohbock, a silver medalist in the 2006 Olympics. ““It wasn’t the Olympics that I dreamed of for four years, but the U.S. got a medal today and that’s amazing,” said Rohbock, a member of the National Guard Outstanding Athlete Program. “That’s awesome. That’s all I want to see, is the U.S.…
Sgt. Jeremy Teela sat out yesterday’s 20-kilometer individual biathlon race at the Vancouver Olympics due to a sinus problem, according to a post on his Twitter page. “Sinus problems this morning I won’t be stating today sorry folks I’m bummed too but cheer on Wynn Roberts in his first Olympic race,” Teela tweeted. Teammates said Teela’s illness did not appear serious, and he sat out the race more as a precautionary measure to be ready for Sunday’s mass start race and next week’s relay, according to USA TODAY. Teela will start 28th out of 30 competitors in the mass start…
Sgt. Jeremy Teela was once again the highest-placing American in his second biathlon event at the Vancouver Olympics, but his 24th place finish brought him little satisfaction thanks to an inexplicable gaffe by a volunteer starter that marred the event. Teela, slated to start the 12.5-kilometer pursuit in the No. 9 position, left the gate ahead of the No. 8 competitor, thanks to an official who incorrectly told him to go. According to Teela, who was not immediately aware of the mistake, the mix-up caused him confusion on the course and undermined his strategy for the race. It also cost…
