Wednesday, June 26, 2019
Breakdancing, or "breaking" as its known in the Olympic realm, debuted at the Buenos Aires Youth Summer Games in 2018, according to the Associated Press.
The sport's inclusion at the 2024 games, which will be held in Paris, hinges on a final decision in December of 2020.
If approved, it'd join skateboarding, sport climbing and surfing (all of which join the Olympics in 2020), as the newest Olympic-approved sports.
From the AP's article:
"It's important for us in our concept to put sports out of the stadiums and in the heart of the city,'' said Tony Estanguet, the Paris 2024 president.
Estanguet said the search for a venue will start Wednesday now that his fellow IOC members have added their approval.
Breaking will likely also be attractive to 2028 Los Angeles Olympics organizers. The sports program for L.A. should be agreed on in 2021, IOC sports director Kit McConnell said.
Surfing will spread the Paris Olympics out of the capital, potentially to the southwest French city of Biarritz, with sailing races already set for Marseille.
"Paris 2024 will choose a venue offering natural waves, as France boasts a number of well-known surfing spots on its Atlantic coast and in its overseas territories,'' the organizing committee said in a statement.
French Polynesia, the Caribbean and the Indian Ocean could all be proposed, International Surfing Association president Fernando Aguerre noted.
"There's a lot of options. A lot of them seem to be very, very positive,'' Aguerre said, adding that a decision was expected later this year.
All four sports must still prove themselves to Olympic observers and could yet be removed from the Paris program ahead of final approval by the IOC board.
It is too late to add a replacement should any fall short, Estanguet said.
Tags: Olympics , 2024 , France , Paris , Breakdancing , So You Think You Can Dance? , Dance Like No One is Watching , IOC , USOC , Image
Monday, June 24, 2019
The proposed legislation cleared its first hurdle, with the California Senate voting 31-4 in favor of the act last week.
The legislation, which wouldn't take effect until 2023, has drawn harsh response from NCAA President Mark Emmert, who threatened sanctions and penalties for member institutions, should the piece get passed.
Emmert threatened the membership status of the state's universities in a letter sent to USA Today, calling the legislation an example of institutional overreach.
"We recognize all of the efforts that have been undertaken to develop this bill in the context of complex issues related to the current collegiate model that have been the subject of litigation and much national debate," Emmert wrote in his letter to the committee chairs. "Nonetheless, when contrasted with current NCAA rules, as drafted the bill threatens to alter materially the principles of intercollegiate athletics and create local differences that would make it impossible to host fair national championships. As a result, it likely would have a negative impact on the exact student-athletes it intends to assist."
A spokeswoman for Assembly member Kansen Chu (D-San Jose), who will chair Tuesday's hearing, said Emmert's letter prompted Chu to seek an amendment from the bill's author, Sen. Nancy Skinner (D-Berkeley). Late last week, wording was added that says "it is the intent of the Legislature to monitor" the NCAA working group and "revisit this issue to implement significant findings and recommendations of the NCAA working group in furtherance of the statutory changes proposed by this act."
...
Emmert wrote that even though the bill would not take effect until 2023, "passage of the bill now will create confusion among prospective and current student-athletes and our membership. The impact of a prematurely passed bill would be difficult to untangle."
The next step for the proposed changes is a hearing and vote by the State Assembly's Arts, Entertainment, Sports, Tourism and Internet Media Committee on Tuesday, June 25.
From there, the legislation would head to the House Education Committee, which must vote on it by the close of the chamber's session on July 11.
Tags: NCAA , California , NIL , Pac-12 , Mark Emmert , sports , student athletes , Image
Friday, June 21, 2019
Dates:
June 9 with Tanya Witman
July 21 with Lori Huggins
August 18 with Nancy Gutierrez
7 to 8 p.m.
Bring your own mat!
Tags: Yoga Oasis , Westward Look Resort and Spa , yoga , Image
Friday, June 14, 2019
Both gents discuss the WCWS, which UCLA won over Oklahoma, touching on Arizona's brief run in the event.
The duo break down the Toronto Raptors' thrilling six-game victory in the finals over the Golden State Warriors, and what the injuries to Klay Thompson and Kevin Durant mean to the team's future.
The talk then turns to who Vondrak, as the resident Phoenix Suns fan, thinks the team should pick with the sixth pick in the NBA's draft on June 20.
Tune in each Friday for a new episode of the Weekly's only sports podcast.
Tags: WCWS , Kevin Durant , Golden State Warriors , Toronto Raptors , Kyle Lowry , Phoenix Suns , NBA Draft , Kawhi Leonard , Image
Monday, June 10, 2019
McQuillin who guided the Wildcats back to the Women's College World Series this spring for the first time since 2010, will join fellow Arizona alumni Rebekah Quiroz (head coach) and fellow assistant Jennifer Martinez on the Aztecs staff.
McQuillin, who is currently playing for the Cleveland Comets of the National Pro Fastpitch league, will assume her new role this fall, according to a PCC release on Monday morning.
The former Arizona ace pitcher was quoted in the PCC release as being thrilled to join Quiroz's staff.
“My hope in working with this team is to help further grow their knowledge of the game and for me to learn from the coaches at Pima as well,” McQuillin said. “I hope the pitching staff as a whole is able to work together to win Pima a lot of ball games. It is not easy to be a pitcher at this level but in working with Nicki, I feel that this staff will learn how to compete to the best of their abilities.”
Quiroz said she's thrilled to have McQuillin on-board, giving the Aztecs another venerable voice in the dugout next spring.
The PCC coach is hopeful that McQuillin's input can help the Aztecs improve upon their 30-28 record in 2018, getting the team back into contention for a NJCAA championship in the coming years.
"We (coaching staff) have the knowledge and the experience but Taylor is going to bring a deep and competitive edge just coming off her Arizona career," Quiroz said. "She is going to bring a different perspective. My goal is for her to work with our pitching coach Nicki Johnson as close as possible, Nicki is going to show her a lot especially how to hone her teaching skills. I am honored to have two Division I pitchers on my coaching staff to help mentor and motivate.”
Tags: Taylor McQuillin , Arizona Wildcats , Pima Community College , Tucson , NJCAA , WCWS , Image
Thursday, June 6, 2019
The former Arizona assistant coach, who was one of four assistants implicated in the college basketball bribery scandal in 2017, pled guilty to a single federal bribery charge earlier this year.
Richardson is the first college basketball coach to serve prison time for involvement in NCAA violations, according to CBS Sports.
The federal government was seeking a sentence of 18-24 months for the former assistant to Sean Miller, according to the article.
Lead prosecutor Noah Solowiejczyk told presiding judge Edgardo Ramos that Richardson's conduct deserves the strictest penalty possible, given his association with aspiring athletes, according to CBS Sports.
"The conduct was serious and has serious consequences," government prosecutor Noah Solowiejczyk said to Judge Ramos, citing the players and prospects whose eligibility was put into jeopardy because of Richardson's actions. "His job was to look out for them — he was doing the opposite."
Tags: Arizona Wildcats , Sean Miller , Book Richardson , FBI , Investigation , NCAA , Image
Among those selected were junior infielders Cameron Cannon (43rd pick, Boston Red Sox) and Nick Quintana (47th pick, Detroit Tigers).
Outfielder Matt Fraizer was selected by the Pittsburgh Pirates with the 95th pick of the draft, serving as the Wildcats' single pick of the third round.
The lone high school player from Southern Arizona to hear his name called this year was Sahuarita High School alum Jose Dicochea, who was picked by the Pittsburgh Pirates with the 254th pick overall.
Dicochea, who is currently signed to play at the University of Arizona, has until August 15 to sign a contract with the Pirates, which is worth up to $161,400, according to Baseball America.
Other local players to hear their names called were Arizona southpaw Avery Weems (170th pick, Chicago White Sox), and fellow pitcher Andrew Nardi (472nd pick, Miami Marlins).
Oro Valley native and Canyon del Oro alum Max Smith was drafted by the Minnesota Twins in the 31st round. The University of Nevada, Las Vegas product serves as the only non-Wildcat local to hear their name called this year.
Arizona pitcher Randy Labaut was the final player from the region to hear his named called, going to the Cleveland Indians with the 1,060th pick of the draft.
Full results from this year's MLB Draft can be found on the MLB's website.
Tags: MLB Draft , Arizona Wildcats , CDO Dorados , Tucson , Oro Valley , Nick Quintana , Cameron Cannon , Boston Red Sox , Chicago White Sox , Sahuarita , Jose Dicochea , Image
Friday, May 31, 2019
The duo of Christopher Boan and Tyler Vondrak kick off their latest podcast with a breakdown of Arizona's performance in the Women's College World Series, including Thursday's 3-1 win over Washington.
They also break down the men's basketball non-conference schedule for Sean Miller's team, which includes much-awaited games against powers like Gonzaga and Illinois.
Friday's final segment covers the Wildcats' football schedule, with an eye on the team's three non-conference games against Hawaii, Northern Arizona and Texas Tech.
Tune in each Friday for a fresh installment of the Weekly's only sports podcast.
Tags: Sean Miller , Mike Candrea , Arizona Wildcats , WCWS , Oklahoma City , Washington Huskies , Pac-12 , Devonaire Doutrive , Arizona Football , Kevin Sumlin , Texas Tech , NAU , Hawaii , Image
Thursday, May 30, 2019
Tomey, who passed away from lung cancer on May 10, joins Olympic swimmer Amy Van Dyken-Rouen, Arizona Diamondbacks President Derrick Hall, boxer Michael Carbajal, Phoenix Suns star Tom Chambers and Northern Arizona University trainer Michael Nisbett in this year’s class.
The announcement, made public on Thursday, spotlighted the class’s impact on Arizona Sports, with ASEC trustees and members of the public voting on entrees for the hall of fame.
The stipulations for entree include either being a native Arizonan, being immediately recognized as an Arizonan, or having made significant contributions to the athletics community in Arizona, according to the ASEC’s announcement.
Tomey, who is the winningest coach in Arizona football history, posted a record of 95-64-4 in 14 seasons coaching the Wildcats, earning Pac-10 Coach of the Year in 1992.
A public memorial service for Tomey will be held at Arizona’s McKale Center at 9 a.m. local time on Friday, May 31.
The formal induction ceremony for this year’s class will be held at Scottsdale Plaza Resort on Friday, Nov. 1.
Tags: sports , hall of fame , Dick Tomey , Arizona Football , UA , induction , ceremony , memorial , coach , Arizona Sports Hall of Fame , Image
Monday, May 20, 2019
The Arizona Wildcats sent a sellout crowd of 2,705 softball fans home happy Sunday after dispatching Auburn University with ease.
The Wildcats (45-12) advanced to next weekend’s NCAA Softball Tournament Super Regional, after beating Harvard (5-1) and Auburn twice, by scores of 2-1 and 12-3.
Sunday’s matinee provided the final hurdle for Mike Candrea’s team, with junior shortstop Jessie Harper powering the Wildcats to a one-sided victory.
Harper smashed three home runs in the team’s win on Sunday, becoming the first Wildcat since Hallie Wilson in 2009 to accomplish such a feat.
The junior belted her first of three in the game’s third inning, smashing a two-run home run that gave the Wildcats a 3-0 lead.
The Tigers would answer back in their half of the third, scoring three runs on an error, a triple and a home run.
That would be it for the Southeastern Conference power, however, as junior Wildcat pitcher Alyssa Denham found her groove in the circle, limiting the Tigers to four hits in seven innings of work.
Candrea’s squad put Auburn away for good in the game’s fourth inning, scoring six runs on four hits, with redshirt junior Alyssa Palomino-Cardoza hitting a three-run home over the batter’s eye behind the center field wall.
Harper continued her tear from there, hitting two home runs, in the sixth and seventh inning, driving in three more runs to give the Wildcats a nine-run margin.
Harper finished the day with a 5-for-5 mark at the plate, driving in five runs for the Wildcats in the one-sided romp.
Palomino-Cardoza finished the day with two hits and four RBIs, while Rylee Pierce and Hannah Martinez had two hits apiece for the Wildcats.
Tags: softball , UA , Wildcats , Arizona , win , championship game , Jessie Harper , Auburn , NCAA , tournament , Image
