Blog Post #11- Marion Jones

Marion Jones Summary: 

  In 30 for 30's documentary, Marion Jones, Olympic gold medalist, was interviewed on her rise to fame, her fall, and the journey she has taken to come back into society. Marion was a sprinter for the United States National Track and Field Team. From the time she was around 9 years old, everyone knew there was something special about her. Marion could keep up with the fastest sprinters that were much older than she was. She was a great runner, but she did not want to be great. She wanted to be the best. With hours upon hours of training and a determined mind set,Marion was able to go on to become the fastest woman in the world. The problem with being the best in the world in anything is the amount of people that want to see you fail. Marion was always swarmed with people asking if she was using performance enhancing drugs and trying to get her to collapse under pressure. 

 Unfortunately, an investigative team took down an enhancement drug facility. They took records and found Marion's name along with a few other star athletes. Marion took the professional stance towards this out coming and excepted all punishments and consequences. Her judge sentenced her to six months in prison. Six whole moths for using performance enhancing drugs is a bit much. She was placed in a cell with an inmate that attacked her. She had to defend herself and ended up punching the belligerent woman in the face. With this violence, Marion was put in solitary confinement for 45 straight days.

  After her sentence was over, Marion used this experience to become a better woman. She now has three healthy children that she loves with her entire heart, and a compassionate husband that supports her fully. Marion got back into basketball after she had her third baby and ended up making it to the WNBA. This only lasted a few years and Marion now spends her days speaking at schools and being a solid influential role model. 

Final- Norton Track Teams Win The State Meet

    Coming into the state meet, the Norton boys and girls teams were expected to do well, but no one thought every athlete would be at their top performances. The day of June 3rd, 2015 began at 12:00pm when the boys and girls teams packed their bags and left their high school for the biggest meet of the season for most of the individuals. The entire season was training and preparation for this meet. Every athlete going into their event wants the first place title. Both teams already had championship titles from the TVL Championship and the Division 4 State Relays, but the season would not be over until they put in their entire effort to be able to grasp the championship trophy knowing it's theirs.

   As they arrived at Norwell, the three boys and three girls entered in the pentathlon began their 5 event race. After a long 5 events, a few athletes came out on the top. Alison Whitman placed 12th overall, Mary Diestel placed 8th, and Emily Carlson placed 7th. On the boys side, Wyatt Simmons placed 6th overall, Ian Pereira came in 5th, and Nick Reynolds in 4th. After the pentathlon ended, the regular state meet began. The team had already earned a large amount of points and the rest of the athletes were ready to add to the total. 

  As the meet went on, there was a sense of pride throughout the athletes. Spectators and other competing athletes felt this and everyone seemed as though they were having the time of their life. Junior hurdler, Molly Bieksha, placed 26th overall after a full week off. She exclaimed, "I know that I have not been competing my best lately, but I am proud of myself for coming out here and giving it my all." Bieksha also said, "I absolutely love this team, and I can't wait to witness my teammates run, jump, and throw their hearts out as the night progresses." The night went on and the placements continued to run in. 

  On the boys side, Cam Stalters placed 8th overall in the discus with a solid throw of 117'5". In 6th place, Justin Ireland ran the 110 meters with a time of 11.58 seconds and Camden Cleathero in the 110 meter hurdles with a time of 16.13 seconds. 5th overall placements included Cam Stalters in the 110 meter hurdles with a time of 15.81, Joey Annand in the 2 mile with a time of 10:12.15, and Joey Annand again in the 1 mile with a time of 4:35.81. 4th place finishers were Justin Ireland in the 200 meters with a time of 22.78 seconds,and the 4x400 meter team of Griffin McLaughlin, Sean Cappellini, Parker Cleathero, and Chris Wrenn with a 3:35.39. For the third place finishers,Mike Tierney ran the 400 meters with a time of 50.89 and Adam Winairz in the 200 meters with a time of 22.49. Now the second placements included Abu Ceesay in the 100 meters with a time of 11.07 and Camden Cleathero in high jump with a height of 6'0". Finally, the first placers were Mike Tierney in the 400 meter hurdles with a time of 57.32, Cam Stalters in the javelin with a throw of 161'6", Abu Ceesay in the 200 meters with a time of 21.98, and the 4x100 meter relay of Justin Ireland, Camden Cleathero, Adam Winairz, and Abu Ceesay with a time of 44.02.

  Now on to the girls... Sixth place finishers included Amy Pereira in the shot put with a throw of 31'6.5" and Kassidy Campbell in the long jump with a measurement of 16'2.5". The fourth place finishers were Katie Bradley in he 1 mile with a time of 5:13.95, Isabella Berardi in the 400 meters with a time of 60.78, and Ashley Pelletier in the javelin with a throw of 103'9". Third placers were Kassidy Campbell in he 400 meter hurdles with a time of 65.82 and the 4x400 meter relay consisting of Isabella Berardi, Julia Palin, Kambrynn Bowman, and Katie Bradley with a time of 4:10.21. Second placements were Isabella Berardi in the long jump with a jump of 17'3.75, Kassidy Campbell in the 100 meter hurdles with a time of 15.82, and the 4x100 meter relay of Amy Pereira, Cece Browne, Ashlyn Hines, and Brook-Lynn Williams with a time of 51.38. And finally, Brook-Lynn Williams ran her heart out in the 100 meter dash with a time of 12.19 and in the 200 meter dash with a time of 25.01 which was good enough to win both events.

   With the prodigious amount of placements for each team, the boy's team ended the meet with a total of 108 points and the girl's team with 80 points. Both teams had never won the state title before. After the meet finally finished, both teams knew they had met their season goals. The night ended for the squad with a police and fire escort home.

Blog Post #10

Reading & Writing Task #1:

   In his article, "It was lightning and thunder", Will Grimsley revisits "the most controversial moments in boxing history". This fight was 50 years ago on May 25th and continues to spike argument to this day. Muhammad Ali and Sonny Liston went at each other for the heavyweight title. Although, the fight did not go as many planned. Muhammad Ali knocked out Liston with one punch just one minute into the fight. Jersey Joe Walcott (referee) held him back and Francis McDonough (timekeeper) watched the clock. Time ticked and the decision was made, this was the fastest heavyweight knockout ever in history. Many believe there was something more than just a knockout for Ali to win the heavyweight title. Some think it was the ex-champion referee, others the timekeeper, it may actually have been Liston, or it could have just been all academic. Even with all of the viewers ideas, no one actually knows for sure if the fight was true or fair at all.

  Throughout the article, Grimsley uses many rhetorical
strategies to keep readers captivated and into the story.
Grimsley implants important quotes throughout the article
to back up his statements. Without the use of these quotes,
readers would not take the article as a reliable read. The author also uses diction in an educated way. He begins with basic questions to connect readers and get them thinking on the topic. He then uses imagery with the scene of the knockout, and ends with the controversial issue with how the fight ended. All of these devices and Grimsley's use of diction truly made the article worth the read.

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Reading & Writing Task #2:

   Throughout the article, "The prodigal son returns to patriots", Mark Farinella speaks of the return of Patriots linebacker Brandon Spikes. Spikes was a Patriot for four years until he signed as a free agent to the Buffalo Bills back in 2013. Spikes was a very skilled player, but lacked professionalism. Spikes went on to play for Buffalo and after a year he has just been seen wearing his old blue uniform at a Patriots training camp. The New England Patriots signed Spikes to a one year contract for the possibility that Mayo or Hightower become limited after their off season surgeries. Spikes exclaims that he is a refined version of his old self. He believes that he is better managed, more professional, and wants to show Patriots Nation how far he has come in the process of growing up.

   Farinella uses many quotes from Spikes to really connect readers to the newly returned player. These quotes are seen throughout the article to create the allusion that Spikes is speaking out to fans. The purpose of the article is to inform fans of the arrival of their former beloved linebacker. It also tells of how the star player truly wants to improve his skills and become more of a leader to others on and off the field. With all of the promises put out, only time will tell if Spikes is really in it for the long run.

         

Blog Post #9- Deflategate

     After the 2014 AFC Championship, a controversy involving the air pressure in the footballs used by the Patriots came about. This problem is known as deflate-gate. The New England Patriots have been accused of deflating the footballs used during the victory (45-7) over the Indianapolis Colts for the AFC Championship title. Deflated footballs are liked more by quarterbacks because they are much easier to grip, throw, and catch. The accusation has been argued over by thousands of fans. Many agree that the footballs were deflated on purpose and in a cheating manner. On the other hand, others do not see the evidence as reliable to find the team guilty.

   The accusation in the Wells Report, the report stating that Brady is guilty, is unjust. There is not one place where it specifically says that Tom Brady deflated or had anything to do with the deflation. Brady stated that he has never spoken to the staff in charge of the game balls and had no way of getting to them o change the PSI.    

   The situation of deflate-gate has been analyzed by many. After consideration, Patriots star quarterback, Tom Brady, has been found guilty of the deflation. The patriots have been fined a million dollars and Brady has a suspension to sit the first four out of sixteen games of the upcoming season. This means that Brady will miss the hanging of the Superbowl banner and the team will most likely suffer at least one loss without their starting star player. It is believed that Brady will get a lesser summon because of the lack of hard evidence against him. The punishment is overall extremely harsh considering that deflated footballs do not affect a teams ability to tackle.

   The problem with this this specific situation is that players that have committed violent and malicious crimes have gotten lesser sentences than Brady. One way that the NFL can resolve the situation is by taking away Brady's sentence or lessen it by a few games.
 
                                      

BP #8-"The Short Game" Summary and Analysis

Summary: The general argument made by directer Josh Greenbaum in his documentary, The Short Game, is that the best 7 year olds in the world have given up their childhood for the love of the game of golf. He proves that they don't have ordinary lives and spend as much time as possible on the green before and after school every single day when the children are interviewed about their daily routines. All of their hard work comes down to one weekend each year at the Junior Golf World Championships. Greenbaum suggests that the intensity of this sport is too much for a 7 year old when the game gets tough and the kids can't control their emotions and actions. In conclusion, Greenbaum's belief is that it is okay for a child to peruse their passions, but there must be a limit.

Analysis: In my view, Greenbaum is wrong because the children choose golf as more than a sport, but a lifestyle. They are obsessed with the game itself and the thrill of winning. More specifically, I believe that the 8 specific children followed for this documentary have the option of stopping if they don't want to compete anymore. Their parents support everything they do as long as they are not putting themselves in danger. They all have coaches and train in a safe manner. For example, Allen has a personal trainer and trains with him everyday, but he loves training and has a blast working up a sweat. This pushes him to be the best he can, and it paid off when he won the World Championship Tournament. Although Greenbaum might object that the children may not feel the choice to stop playing, I maintain that when the camera captures the laughter and fun that the kids have while on the course. Therefore, I conclude that the best junior golfers in the world play golf at such a high intensity because they want to prove to themselves that they can accomplish anything and because they absolutely love the game of golf.


Rhetorical Precis: In Josh Greenbaum's documentary "The Short Game"(2012) he shows the road to success of the best young golfers in the world. The directer first opens by showing each of the eight players personally, then captures the viewers with naive interviews, and to conclude he shows the outcome of the biggest tournament of the year, the world championship. He seems to have a public or general audience in mind because of the cultural diversity and laid back feel of the dialogue.

BP #7-Rhetorical Precis: Schooled--The Price of College Sports

     In Trevor Martin's documentary "Schooled-The Price of College Sports"(2013), he expresses that the NCAA brings in billions of dollars yearly because of the athletes' performances, but the specific athletes never receive a dime. The director first begins with a captivating introduction; he then lures in viewers with many sad and unfortunate stories, and to conclude he relates to viewers with pathos by showing troubled athletes due to money problems. His purpose is to expose the inappropriate nature of the NCAA rules in order to make the most money. He seems to have a public audience in mind because of the variety of examples and the vastness of the industry.

BP #5-Summary and Analysis of an Article: Bruins Lose to Flames in Shootout

     On Friday morning, the Boston Herald released an article summary of the Bruins game verses Calgary Flames that was played the night before. Author Steve Conroy, expressed his view on the hard fought loss for the B's. He quoted head coach, Claude Julien, many times. On Julien's thoughts of shootouts to determine the outcome of a game and his thought of how well his team played. Conroy also spoke of the white-knuckled shootout. Both teams missed the first six shots of the shootout. Then on the seventh, "...Patrice Bergeron put the B’s in the driver’s seat with the first goal of the shootout.." Right after that, "..the Flames got goals from Josh Jooris and waiver wire pick-up David Schlemko, sandwiched around a Milan Lucic miss, and the B’s had to settle for one point." The game was overall a hard fought win and the Boston Bruins will be playing tomorrow night at the TD Garden against the Philadelphia Flyers. They look to improve the imperfections and pull off a win for the night to set their record for the season at 32-22-10.

BP #4-Sports News Article: Bruins vs. Coyotes

 The Boston Bruins won 4-1 against the Arizona Coyotes at the TD Garden on Saturday. Chara, Bergeron, Lucic, and Marchand all scored, and Rask secured the lead by stopping all but one of the 32 shots taken on goal throughout the course of the game.   

Without playmaker David Krejci, out for 4-6 weeks with an injury, the team had to step up their offensive attack. With this being said, the team did just that. The Arizona Coyotes came into the game with an 8 game losing streak. Head Coach Claude Julien exclaimed that they were not focused on the Coyotes. The team was too busy focusing on what they needed to do to pull off their second straight home win. The team certainly did just what they came to the game to do. Brad Marchand had a remarkable game. He has been on a scoring spree and was the first of the 4 bruins players to hit the back of the net.

“I said to the guys before the game, ‘It’s not who we play but how we play right now until the end,’ ” coach Julien said. “That’s the approach we have to take. We can’t afford to be unprepared for games like this, just because of their record right now and what they’ve been going through. I think it’s important if we want to be in one of the playoff spots, that we have to be a team that’s ready to play on a nightly basis. There are a lot of reasons not to take these situations lightly and I think our guys responded well.” With a pep talk like this, who wouldn't want to go out and play their hardest? 

The team has been the first to score in the past few games but struggle to keep the lead. The team must keep up the drive and intensity right into the playoffs. The B's have 20 games left in the regular season to play before they either go into off season or the Stanley Cup Playoffs.  

Hoop Dreams

   "Hoop Dreams" is a documentary following two young talented basketball stars. The athletes were Arthur Agee and William Gates.  The documentary showed great opportunities, heart breaks, and the true struggle of growing up in Chicago. Both boys were given huge opportunities and promising futures. Unfortunately, the two were faced with major struggles in life. They struggled in school because they could only focus on what they loved, basketball. William also became a father at a very young age. The two athletes lived in hard conditions in small houses surrounded by drugs and violence. Fortunately, they were able to stay clear of them for the most part. This was because they were smart enough to know not to risk losing their goals in the future. Without basketball, one may believe that the two would not have finished high school and at least begin college. 

 One theme that was recognized from early on in the documentary is hope. Hope is shown through the major struggles of the boys' lives. Neither of them wanted to go to school and were struggling academically. Thankfully, there was always a little bit of hope that pushed them to continue perusing their education and play in a collegiate level. Also, hope is shown when one of the boys can no longer afford to go to his private high school. His mother lost her job and the family was not receiving the income that they needed. They had to send Arthur to the public school. They knew he was not getting as good of an education there, but hope showed the family that their son still had a the chance of playing basketball for a career if he applied himself enough. Without hope, the boys would not have done as much in life as they did.

The Impact of Professional Sports

 

 Professional sports impact and influence societies in various ways. Many ways are great and attract people together in a common connection of likes and dislikes. People can find ways to oversee racial tension and discrimination. Although, sports can also have a negative impact on a community of people. Violence can occur with bad calls and poor sportsmanship. Once players and viewers are invested into a specific game, there is no turning back. Whether an individual allows them self to be impacted in a positive or negative way is their own choice. However, once the decision is chosen, it is very hard to change thoughts. It is important to make the right selection in which way one is effected by a sport.

  Sports can be life changing. They can be an outlet of stress, anxiety, and really support athletes and viewers in a time of need. Neighbors and individuals that would not normally ally together can do so over a specific team or athlete. Just one team can have a tremendous influence on thousands of others. For example, right after the 2013 Boston Marathon Bombings, The Boston Red Sox won The World Series with strength and courage. With the city of Boston left in loss after such a tragedy, a championship win would surely lift spirits. The team united with morale,  many people truly reconstructed back into their old happy ways and life was almost effortless again.

  Sports can also be destructive and cause harm. It has occurred that after a team allows a loss, intoxicated and even just angry fans have gone out on to the streets of their beloved town or city and started violence. Cars have been flipped, buildings burned, and people seriously hurt and even killed. Athletes have received threats for not preforming at their best to win. In Superbowl XLIX, The Seattle Seahawks had an opportunity to win the whole game with just one run. Instead, the team attempted a pass and the throw was intercepted. The game ended in triumph and the New England Patriots won. Since then, the coach and players of Seahawks have been mocked, threatened, and even bullied by opposing fans and even their very own.

  Fortunately, I have personally decided to be impacted and influenced by sports in a positive way. I used to use gymnastics as an escape. When tensions would rise in my life and I felt as though everything was crashing down on top of me, I would go to my gym and work on my routines and skills. I was fortunately able to do this whenever needed. One may believe that without gymnastics, I would not be the person I am today. I also to this day use soccer and track in a positive way to impact my life. Track keeps me in shape and motivated to be a better person. I look up to my captains and teammates for advice and encouragement. There has always been a runner better than me. I'm always in second place, but I use this placement to show myself that I have more to improve on and there is always potential. Because I have had to stop competing in gymnastics, I now use soccer as an escape. I can kick around a ball whenever I need. So many less fortunate kids use the same strategies as I do to keep themselves going. The struggles may not be the same, but I can connect to many others with my interests and abilities in sports.

Super Bowl XLIX Reaction

   "Uncharacteristically cool and calm," claims Sports Illustrated journalist Greg Bedard, as he praises Patriots quarterback Tom Brady. During Superbowl XLIX last weekend, The New England Patriots had all odds set against them all through the second half. This was the game where all of the controversial reports and allegations would be set to rest. Thankfully, during the final quarter of the game, the team came together to pull of a victory. Many sports teams have done this before, and it feels great to know all of your hard work has paid off. For example, Norton girls indoor track and field has acquired their best record this year for the season. The team knew they would win every single meet as long as they beat Hopkinton. There was just one problem for the girls, Hopkinton had not lost in over nine years with a record of 144 straight wins. The team was working their hardest, but was unfortunately down a few points. The only way they could win the meet was if they swept high jump. Hopkinton has a very good high jump team, but Norton was knew they had to prove themselves. The girls came together in a time of need and preformed their very best, They did just what was needed to be done to win and the meet ended in triumph. To have a game or match that is so intense and deep that the players and spectators are invested until the very last play is amazing. The girls of Norton track and field certainly did not win the Superbowl, but the rush of a hard fought win is truly inspiring. All teams should strive for victories like these because the feeling of winning will never get old.

Super Bowl XLIX Prediction

   The New England Patriots are preparing to match up against the Seattle Seahawks in Arizona for Superbowl XLIX. The question on many minds throughout the past week is who will come out victorious? The Patriots have overcome media and low-life middle aged men complaining that the team played too well. The NFL took to this idea and came up with the theory that a patriots employee deflated the balls before they were put into play. This thought is completely disrespectful and unamerican. The New England Patriots played with all of their hearts and without a doubt won the game fairly. If the Patriots play this next game with the same attitude as the last, there is no reason as to why they will not win.

  Personally, one may believe that the Patriots will win the game. If this specific game is like the last, many individuals are going to complain and come up with an excuse as to why this hardworking team does not deserve their trophy. These people are fans of opposing teams that are still upset from a game when the Patriots most likely destroyed. These people are just trying to get some sort of reaction out of the media to take away from the glory. Overall, I believe that the patriots will come out on top as long as they do their job. 

Responding To 'Bruins bounce back from break'

     The general statement made by Denis Gorman in his work, Bruins bounce back from break, praises The Boston Bruins on their ability to pull off a win last night against The New York Islanders. He writes, "Kevin Miller helped he Boston Bruins get off to a winning start after the All-Star break." In this passage, Gorman is speaking of all of the good opportunities that came together which allowed the Bruins to pull through this game. Many players took some hard hits for a play to occur which in the long run helped the team come out on top. There is more to hockey than just scoring and saving goals. Every successful pass leading up to a shot should be praised just the same. The defense did a good job of coming back quick and cutting off angles. There was good communication among the players and it definitely showed.

   In my view, Denis Gorman does a good job of telling the end result of the game but misses some key points. The author lacks detail of the outstanding plays. An example of this is, Tuukka Rask had one of his best games of this season. Even though he did not have a perfect shutout, Rask stopped an impressive number of 43 shots through the course of the game. With a chance to lead the game, The Islanders took a shot and amidst all of the chaos, Rask preformed the save of the game and kept the team alive. After this save, the team was able to get themselves together and bring the puck back up ice. Now, with just 3.4 seconds left in the second period, Kevin Miller scores an untimely goal. Gorman did however talk about this play. This goal gave the team the boost they needed to finish the game with a 5-2 victory.

What is a Sport?

   All around the world, sports are played by many. It is a way to bring people from all backgrounds together. Whether opponents speak the same language or not, sports are about performances, not necessarily speaking to the opponent. But what actually defines a sport? This is a very controversial topic, debated by the worlds' top scholars and athletes. Does the player need to have physical endurance and the outcome have an obvious winner? A sport is unofficially defined as an activity that requires skill and physical activity or practice.

  There are many activities that may or may not count as a sport depending on the viewer. An example of this is cheer leading. Cheer leading is extremely competitive. Stunts must be spot on and timing must be perfect. To some, the extent of physical endurance is enough to qualify cheer leading as a sport, but to others there is no offense or defense which keeps it from the title of a sport. There are many other activities that have the same level of difficulty but also lack contact or physical endurance needed. But for now, the true definition of sport is untold.