The N. Period

It all happened so fast. Today in Beijing the Olympics quietly kicked off with the first round of women’s soccer matches. Sorely missing their star Abby Wambach, who suffered a broken leg last month, the US team gave up two goals in the first four minutes to Norway and struggled the entire time en route to losing the match. You know what else the US team seems to have lost? The badges from their jerseys.

Success! Mavs star Dirk Nowitzki will represent his nation and carry the German flag for the Opening Ceremonies of the 2008 Beijing Olympics. You know what else? he got a sweet new haircut to celebrate the whole affair.

Like movie trailer spoofs? What about seeing some of your favorite NBA athletes act like clowns? Well, Steve Nash and Baron Davis have satisfied both of these essential human needs.

Those of us in the good ole U.S. of A., especially in Dallas, have been lucky enough to see former MVP Dirk Nowitzki polish his exceptional hoops talent on our home turf. Now we all have a chance to show our gratitude for the big German. Looks like a guy named Tobias Gerhards has started a petition to get Dirk the job as the official flag bearer for Germany in this summer’s Olympics in Beijing.

When I first saw this picture, which dates from 1983, I figured that it must’ve been an Orioles game, with many of the fans in the stands wearing orange shirts. But upon closer inspection it became clear that the majority of the supporters in Fenway Park’s outfield were topless. Speaking with a co-worker who was going to ballgames in the early 1980s, this was apparently not such an out-of-the-ordinary sight.

The Brazilian superstar Ronaldinho, who won FIFA World Player of the Year in 2004 and 2005, will sign with the Italian giants AC Milan on Wednesday according to the club. The deal is believed to be worth €21 million (about $33.5 million). Milan is hopeful that Ronaldinho will pass his medical examination, especially after a 2007-08 that was plagued with injuries and a percieved lack of interest in his previous club Barcelona.

With the announcement last week that the SMU football team would be sporting “new” uniforms, I felt the need to bring up the Mustangs’ schizophrenic handling of the color blue. Now I’m not old enough to remember, but I can’t recall ever seeing the SMU athletic teams wearing anything but royal before the mid to late 1990s. But navy was the preferred hue of blue that the football team adopted in 2003. And there seems to be no explanation for this at all.

Some real drama at the Ballpark last night as Josh Hamilton lit up fellow All-Star Francisco Rodriguez as he opened his career walk-off account. To that point K-Rod had 35 saves and had only given up one homer all year (41 appearances). The Hambino clobbered an off speed pitch to right field to win over the first place Angels. Great next chapter to what is already a provoking story.

Steve Nash co-hosted a charity pick-up game in Chinatown with American soccer great Claudio Reyna. In a display that proved that he may indeed have more pull in the world of soccer than the entire MLS, Nash was able to secure the services of such prolific international stars as Thierry Henry, Robbie Fowler, Salomon Kalou, Steve McManaman and Rob Jones. Also there were such NBA standouts as Nash, Raja Bell, Jason Kidd, Leandro Barbosa and Baron Davis.

Brilliant on-field camera work courtesy of director Guy Ritchie. This is definitely one of the most unique soccer-related things I have ever seen filmed.