Author Nick: DeniseISmithson
Name: Denise I Smithson
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Baseball is certainly the sport we think of as America’s favorite pastime, but the reality is that baseball lost that title in truth if not in name years ago. While baseball will always have an important place in our national character and be enjoyed by children at play, the sport is no longer the important form of entertainment it once was. In this regard, baseball has lost its place to other sports and other types of entertainment.
Jason Kidd is a point guard for the NBA basketball team, Dallas Mavericks and is considered to be one of the best players of his generation. He led the New Jersey Nets to consecutive NBA Finals in 2002 and 2003.
As sad as it is, it’s time to say goodbye to the old Shea Stadium after 44 years of sports memories for all of us. It hardly seems possible that the Mets were an expansion team all these years after their cross-town American League rivals first took the field. It’s also hard to remember the stadium being called the Flushing Meadow Park Municipal Stadium, but that’s what it called until a movement was launched to name it in honor of William Shea.
One of the classic debates in sports is which is better, amateur competition in the collegiate ranks or professional competition in our sports leagues. People stand firmly on each side of the issue, and some people will even feel differently from sport to sport. The two most popular sports that face this comparison and debate are football and basketball.
The new stadium slated to replace Shea Stadium has been renamed Citi Field after a deal was negotiated with Citi Bank for naming rights to the tune of $20 million per year. Not bad for a team already looking at $400 million in income over the next two decades. There will also be a Delta Airlines area of the new stadium and another large area right behind home plate. There will be many amenities available to fans upon the opening of the new field.Once Opening Day 2009 rolls around, the new Jackie Robinson Rotunda will be unveiled – this is the entrance to the stadium; you may notice a certain resemblance to the entrance of the long lost Brooklyn Dodgers stadium, Ebbets Field.
Being one of the Masters Golf winners is quite an achievement and is one of the greatest honors an athlete can earn in the world of golf. The Masters is one of the four major championship tournaments and is held at the Augusta National Golf Club in Augusta, GA; a private golf club.
The American sports scene is a constantly changing landscape; the sports which were the most popular a century ago have lost their status and new sports have pulled ahead of the pack. However, it doesn’t take a hundred years for the priorities and tastes of American sports fans to shift. Tastes can change in a few decades or even a few years time. Sports go in and out of vogue for many different reasons; good timing, a stroke of luck or spectacular events.
13 Grand Slam singles titles, 4 Tennis Masters Cup titles, 14 ATP Masters Series titles and an Olympic Gold Medalist; Roger Federer is every inch a fine athlete. He currently holds many noteworthy titles in the tennis world. He had appeared in 10 consecutive Grand Slam single men’s finals of the Wimbledon Championships in 2005 through the 2007 US Open. He managed to secure 19 consecutive Grand Slam singles semifinals and holds outstanding records for the most consecutive in over 65 grass courts and 56 hard courts. For 237 consecutive weeks dating from February 2, 2004 to August 17, 2008, he was the number 1 tennis player in the world. He was even given the honor of the prestigious Laureus World Sportsman of the Year from 2005 to 2008. Today, Roger Federer ranks as world no. 2.
Earvin Johnson Jr., better known to us as “Magic” Johnson was born in 1959 in Lansing, Michigan. He started playing basketball seriously while a student at Everett High School in Lansing, MI and played at Michigan State as well – however, he was drafted by the LA Lakers in 1979. The son of a General Motors worker and a school custodian, Johnson was born into a large family and discovered his love of basketball as a child. Johnson claims that he even slept with his basketball!
Known as A-Rod to fans and teammates, Alex Rodriguez plays third base for the New York Yankees. Born in New York City’s Washington Heights neighborhood, Rodriguez moved to the Dominican Republic at the age of four. However, the family soon returned to the US and settled in Miami. Soon after, is father abandoned Alex and his mother, moving to New Jersey.