Real Fans

Real Fans don't boo at their team or the opposing team. They never throw items in the arena and especially not onto the court or field. While true fans can create a raucous environment, chants and cheers should never be hateful or derogatory towards someones lifestyle or beliefs. Last week, the students at Gonzaga University decided to take a stand. They started a "Take the Hate out of Hoops" campaign. This was started in response to other students promising to show up to a game and making derogatory chants and showing up in attire to mock the opposing team. The "Take the Hate out of Hoops" campaign is a great movement that Gonzaga Students have started. I hope that it is something that will continue to spread throughout the country and Sportsmanship will begin to dominate hate.

Sports movie of the month

I am a little bit behind from when I planned to release this post. February is the month of the Winter Olympics and I chose the movie 'Miracle' to focus on this month. The movie is all about the 1980 US Hockey Team and their miracle run to the Gold Medal in Lake Placid, New York. The story line follows the life of their coach Herb Brooks. The movie begins with him being interviewed for the head coaching job, team tryouts, practices, exhibition games, and then the Olympics. What really makes the story so powerful is the political climate that surrounded the games. The United States and the Soviet Union were in the midst of the Cold War. Many people thought that nuclear war could start at any moment. Prior to the Olympics, Team USA host the USSR in an exhibition at Madison Square Garden. The Soviets dominated the Americans, a huge embarassment on our home ice just prior to the games. The great thing about this story is that any team can win any game on any given day. It is a great month to watch 'Miracle' if you haven't yet this year.