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Sunday - 9/30/07

Weekend Summary

-Daisuke Matsuzaka pitched in commanding fashion on Friday to earn his 15th win leading the Red Sox over the Twins 5-2. He allowed just two runs on six hits in eight strong innings and the the Sox secured the American League East title. Dice-K was throwing 95 mph fastballs well into the eighth inning showing that he is not suffering from fatigue as many had predicted. He can be proud in topping 200 innings and 200 strikeouts as he is the first rookie to do so since Mark Langston and Dwight Gooden in 1984. The Red Sox will start their division series against the Angels on Wednesday. 

-World Champion hurdler Liu Xiang came in a disappointing 3rd at the Shanghai Golden Grand Prix on Friday. He was hampered by a slow start from which he could not fully recover finishing with a time of 13.21 seconds. Dayron Robles from Cuba was first with American Anwar Moore in second place. The loss was even worst for Liu as it was in front of his hometown fans. What good can he take away from this loss? Not much. Still losing should relieve some pressure as he will not be expected to automatically win so easily in Beijing. 

-For the second straight year Chien-Ming Wang will start the postseason for the Yankees as he faces formidable, fellow Cy Young candidate C.C. Sabathia of the Indians. The first game will be played in Cleveland on Thursday. Pettitte will start game 2 and Clemens in game 3.

Thursday - 9/27/07

Asian Delivery Man of the Year? Not Chinese Food Fool!

Takashi Saito of the Dodgers is one of 10 nominees for the DHL Delivery Man of the Year Award. The 37 year old closer from Miyagi, Japan is the second oldest guy in the group and has 39 saves. Taking over for Gagne, Saito converted 47 of his first 50 saves , the best percentage to start a career in MLB history. His strikeout-to-walk ratio is almost 7-to-1, topping all 2007 closers with at least 50 innings pitched. Come on, show the old guy some love and cast your vote here. Your vote also enters you in for a chance to win a trip for two to Game 4 of the '07 MLB World Series.

Asian Women Dominate World Weightlifting Championships

At 297 lbs, China's Mu Shuangshuang has probably never been referred to as a lotus blossom. As well she shouldn't be as this big mama broke a world record for total lifted in the women's 75kg category at the world weightlifting champions. She lifted 306 lbs to win gold in the snatch and 396 lbs in the clean and jerk. Man that is some heavy lifting. Still she only won silver in the aggregate category because South Korea's Jang Mi-Ran also lifted the combined 703 lbs for the two events and only weighed a dainty 253 lbs. Mu gets the world record though cause she lifted first. China's Chen Xiexia swept all three gold medals dominating the women's 48kg category with wins in the snatch and the clean and jerk.

Mu is great and has a name befitting her awesome power.

Wednesday - 9/26/07

Wang Gets 19th Win, Yankees Clinch Playoff Spot

Oh how sweet it is! My main man Chien-Ming Wang held the Rays to two runs over six innings leading the New York Yankees to a 12-4 victory and a berth into the playoffs. Wang improves to 19-7 with a 3.70 ERA and becomes the first Yankees pitcher to win 19 or more victories in consecutive seasons since Tommy John in 1980. He's also only the fourth Yankees pitcher to do so since World War II. Wang has won six of his past eight starts and the Yankees have won 10 of the past 12 games when Wang has started after a Yankees loss. Champagne flowed, Joe Torre cried and even George Steinbrenner was in the house. This was a tough year for the Yankees but Wang and A-Rod carried them through much of the bad patches. Kudos to New York for never giving up or losing belief and to Wang who would not let them fall. Wang should no longer be known just as the Pride of Taiwan but also the Pride of New York!

Wang is my Cy Young candidate.

Tuesday - 9/25/07

China and North Korea Both Out of Women's World Cup

China the host nation for Women's World Cup soccer was eliminated on Sunday by Norway who moves into the semi-finals. Despite putting up 21 shots to 8 against Norway, China's strikers could not covert a goal and it was an error by their right fullback defender that allowed Norway to score the only goal in the game. China has told it's players to wipe away their tears and maintain focus for the upcoming Olympics. I agree. There is no crying in baseball and their shouldn't be in soccer either! Besides, it was a good effort by the 11th ranked Chinese team against the world number four Norway.

The 5th ranked North Koreans lost on Saturday to the No. 2 German team 0-3. Their coach blamed it on the fact that the Germans were too physical and strong for them. While I feel for them as the underdogs, the fact that millions of their citizens have been starved in the past few decades surely will not help their athletics cause. It has been shown that superior nutrition and lack of illness during the primary growth stages is one of the main reasons people grow taller and stronger in 1st world countries regardless of genetic or ethnic makeup. Still one has to give it up for the German team as they haven't allowed a single goal in these World Cup games, recording their fourth straight shutout in their win against the Koreans. The US, Germany, Norway and Brazil will compete in the semis in the next two days. Go USA!

  Losing in the World Cup's gotta hurt!

Taiwan Snubs the IOC and China, Refuses Olympic Torch Relay

Sad, sad. The animosity between Taiwan and China is spilling out onto the Olympic arena as both sides have accused the other of playing politics with the event. Ten months into the squabbling between both sides regarding Taiwan's participation in the Olympic relay, the International Olympic Committee said enough is enough and laid the smack down on both sides by dropping the Taipei leg altogether. But the blame is squarely on the Taiwanese politicians as the Beijing Olympic committee had made it clear that Taipei was on their desired list of cities for the route. However Taiwan Olympic officials ran into interference from Taiwanese political leaders wanting to push their agenda and they stalled and refused every offer China and the IOC presented for their participation. Oh well, it's their loss as the Olympic torch will continue to move forward regardless, without missing a beat. 

Monday - 9/24/07

Yao Ming Gets Fined $27,500 by Houston Rockets

Yao showed his genuine commitment to disabled athletes as he decided take part in the opening ceremony of the 2007 Special Olympics in Shanghai despite being fined $27,500 by his team the Houston Rockets for missing two training sessions and a media day in early October. Yao is the image ambassador of the Shanghai Games and he was not about to let money affect the commitment he made to the 17,000 disabled athletes from over 170 countries coming to compete in this great event. Forget Mike, I wanna be like Yao!

Yao also led the Chinese national team to a 82-62 victory over the Australian Bullets today in the final of a three-game warm up series. Yao had 17 points and Yi Jianlian added 18 points in a game that wasn't all that pretty from either side. The reason is cause both teams exhibited poor form due to their busy schedules and short intervals between games. China ultimately won two out of three games in the encounter and looks to warm up against another Aussie squad next week. 

  The big fella has a BIG heart.

Asian Baseball Numbers Looking Strong Heading into October

Hideki Matsui reached the 100-RBI mark for the ninth time in his professional career, including four times in the Major Leagues. Ichiro Suzuki is hot on the tail of Magglio Ordonez fighting for the A.L. batting title. Ichiro's brilliance is never more evident than in this blog article that ponders "Is Ichiro Hall of Fame Bound?" Dice-K is sitting on 193 strikeouts for the season and will have one start left to try for 200. Not bad at all for a rookie who has had terrible luck this year with his bullpen run support. In the past 2 years, Chien-Ming Wang has had more wins than any other pitcher in baseball when you tally total wins from the 2006 & 2007 seasons. More wins than Johan Santana, Josh Beckett, Justin Verlander, and Roy Halladay. Now that is impressive!

 Asian baseball has never looked better.

Saturday - 9/22/07

Saturday Summary

-Chien-Ming Wang had a strong start last night in a losing effort against the Blue Jays holding them to two runs in seven innings of work. A late rally by the Yankees fizzled out as the Jays won 5-4. With only 1 start left in the season he will have to settle for a possible 18-19 win season to match his total for last year, but 20 wins is now out of the question.

-Daisuke Matsuzaka left the mound in the 7th with two on and two outs with possession of a 5-3 lead against the Rays. Javier Lopez gave up a homer to Pena giving the Rays the lead and costing Dice-K his 15th win. Red Sox came back in the 9th with three runs and won the game 8-6 securing their ticket to October.

-Peng Shuai was ousted by Hungarian Agnes Szavay today at the China Open tennis tournament 6-1, 6-2. Peng was hurt by her serve as she was broken five times in the 67-minute match. While she is still clearly a work in progress, she did show a lot of promise this week by defeating two former No.1 players in Amelie Mauresmo and Martina Hingis.

Thursday - 9/20/07

Sumo Traditions Loom Large in Japan

Sumo grand champion Asashoryu has been granted a pass to go back home to his native Mongolia after suffering emotion distress from being banned from two tournaments. The big baby was being punished because he was caught running around at a Mongolian soccer tournament despite begging off a previous sumo tour claiming he had back injuries. This wasn't his first offence either as his short temper and former breaches of protocol has sparked criticism before from the conservative world of sumo where tradition and ritual rule supreme. While some people believe that Asashoryu is being judged unfairly because he is not Japanese, others say it is his own fault. As accustomed in Japanese culture, all that he would have to do to be forgiven would be to publicly apologize and maybe shed a few tears. I would like to see that.

It seems that the sport of Sumo is in trouble in Japan as few Japanese men show interest in the tough physical and mental challenges of the sport thus opening doors for wresters from Mongolia, to Russia and even South America. It's like they say the reason American boxing is in the dumpster is cause all the talent is going into the NBA or NFL. Okay, I believe that but where are all the fat sumo guys going cause they can't play baseball, and they sure as hell won't beat a 150 lb Kobayashi in competitive eating. I don't know but a whole bunch of depressed, unemployed ex-sumo wrestlers wandering around town will probably spell doom for all the local sushi buffet joints.

And in more sumo news, a 1,400 year tradition was almost breached today as a woman jumped onto the arena before being stopped and taken away by security. According to the sacred tradition of sumo, women are not allowed inside the ring and since this woman only got on the platform and did not step in the ring disaster was averted. The Sumo Association says the tradition is safe and has been maintained. I think they are kidding themselves. I bet many sumo wrestlers have probably been sneaking their girlfriends into the arenas late at night for years, making huge snow angels in the ring dirt while, uh wrestling. Kinda like the 10k mile club, but we can call it the 500+ lb Sumo club.

Michael Buffer Gets Ready to Rumble for the Third Time

Okay, this is not exactly an Asian athlete story but it does involve someone in the world of athletics and there's an Asian in the story so good enough. Professional boxing announcer Michael Buffer is getting married for the third time as he recently proposed to his girlfriend on the Jay Leno Show. You probably know of Buffer, he is the announcer who says "Let's get ready to Rumble" before major fighting and sporting events. Buffer who is 62 will wed his young sweetheart, 31 year old Christine Prado who is of Chinese-Haitian descent. They have been together 4 years and one has to wonder what strange announcements Christine must hear from the privacy of their bedroom? "Welcome to the Main Event. Ladies and gentleman, and children of all ages. In this corner in white undies or maybe diapers, we have Michael Buffer a 62 year old announcer who likes to rumble and in the other corner wearing a black teddy, we have Christine Prado a journeywoman looking for a father figure. Michael are you ready? Christine are you ready? Viagra are you ready? Let's get READY TO RUM-BLE!"

Buffer is ready for the Main Event.

Wednesday - 9/19/07

Hump Day Happenings

Hideki Matsui blasted his 25th home run of the year and second in three games to help the Yankees beat the Orioles 2-1 today. It is good to see Matsui playing well again as he has been in a bad slump recently due to his injured knees which may need to be operated on after this season. The Yankees are now within 1 1/2 games of the AL East lead held by the Red Sox and 5 1/2 games ahead in the wild card standings.

In tennis, China's Peng Shuai turned heads today by upsetting Martina Hingis in the second round of the China Open. The 21 year old beat the five time grand slam winner and former #1 player 7-5, 6-1 in front of her family and friends. After a tightly contested first set, Peng broke Hingis twice in the second set to wrap up the match in 79 minutes. The 49th ranked Peng is known for hitting with both hands on the forehand and backhand just like Monica Seles used to. She is also currently being coached by former American tennis great Michael Chang. Next up for Peng is another tall order in former number 1 Amelie Mauresmo.

Asian-American Vania King also won yesterday upsetting top-seeded Marion Bartoli 6-1, 7-5 in the Sunfeast Open at Calcutta. Currently ranked No.90, the 18 year old King faced only one break point winning 70% on both her first and second serves. Bartoli is ranked 12th in the world and is best known for her gutsy loss to Venus Williams in the finals of Wimbledon this year. The 18 year old King is only 5'2 and 125 lbs but she is a little dynamo. I sure hope to see more of both these ladies in the future.

Peng Shuai (l) & Vania King are moving up on the WTA.

Tuesday - 9/18/07

Pacquiao Camp Denies Existence of Secret Barrera Training Tape

With the hearts and pride of two nations on the line, the October 6 rematch between Manny Pacquiao and Marco Antonio Barrera takes on a much greater significance than most boxing contests. Pacquiao's victories over Mexican fighters Barrera and Erik Morales has made him public enemy # 1 in certain boxing circles and the negativity is starting to show. First unconfirmed sources have reported that Manny's coach Freddie Roach put a mole into Barrera's camp to video tape his workout sessions. Roach flatly denies this saying, "That's a total lie. I don't need a tape. We already know how to beat Barrera." Ouch. And now the rumor mill is reporting that Pac-man wants to back out of the fight. Pacquiao publicly denies this as well saying he has prepared hard for this fight. Hmm, I think that some people obviously want to throw Manny's concentration off his training in a pathetic effort they see as benefiting Barrera, who as a great champion surely would not condone such tactics. I'm hoping both fighters train hard and put on a great show for the fans but I'm pick Pac-man for the win.

Pacquiao in shape could mean either a long (or very short) night for Barrera.

Monday - 9/17/07

For Dice-K, Halloween Came Early This Year

When I saw pictures of Dice-K last year during all the media hoopla, I was struck by his boyish grin and baby face appearance. Here was one of the most feared pitchers in Japan and the dominant MVP who led his country to victory at the World Baseball Classic and yet he had a chubby cherub-like face and wore a furry hooded jacket. What's up with that?

Well his teammates might have thought something similar cause last night they made Daisuke Matsuzaka dress up as a Teletubby on their flight to Toronto. Many MLB teams use late season trips as a chance to have fun with the rookies dressing them in outrageous costumes on flights. It's a right of passage and no one was spared as teammates Hideki Okajami and Jacoby Ellsbury had to dress up as female pirates while others were forced to wear Minnie Mouse and Wizard of Oz costumes. But Dice had it the worse as he had to become a chubby Teletubby as he cleared customs at Toronto airport. Manager Terry Francona described the scene as hilarious saying, "Somebody wrote a check for $102 million, and he's going through dressed as a rodent." To make Dice more comfortable they made his translator also dress up as a Teletubby. It was all done in fun in the late of night and Dice was a good sport too enjoying the joke. No word on which Teletubby Dice was but if anyone has pictures or videos of this please email me the link cause I need a good laugh.

UPDATE: Real Dice Teletubby pic below. I like mine better though.

It could have been worse. They could have made him dress up as Pikachu!

Sunday - 9/16/07

Tough Weekend Losses for Dice-K and Chien-Ming Wang

Both Wang and Matsuzaka suffered difficult loses in the series between the Yankees and Red Sox this weekend. It started on Friday with a struggling Dice-K facing a surging Andy Pettitte at Fenway Park. The good news is that Dice pitched well allowing two runs and four hits in 5 2/3 innings and knocking out Andy Pettitte from the game after four innings. The Sox led by 7-2 after seven innings but were hurt by uncharacteristic bad pitching from Hideki Okajima and Jonathan Papelbon who combined to give up six runs in the seventh & eighth. However the Red Sox can breathe a sigh of relief because Matsuzaka showed that he was not fatigued but still has a lot left in the tank. By mixing in curves and changeups, Dice did not have to rely as much on on his fastball which  has been his biggest problem as of late. The same adjustment for fellow teammate Josh Beckett has made a huge difference as Beckett too struggled last year with the same reliance on heat to get himself out of a jam. Since utilizing more changeups and curveballs in tight spots, Beckett has dominated this year and hopefully Dice can learn from this example. Still the no-decision leaves Dice at 14-12.

Speaking of Josh Beckett, he and the Red Sox rocked the Yankees and Chien-Ming Wang on Saturday defeating New York 10-1. In a game that saw two MLB leading pitchers (both at 18 wins) and potential Cy Young Award contenders facing each other, Beckett came out on top three hitting the Yankees over seven innings while Wang gave up 5 runs in 5 2/3 innings. As a big Wang fan I am highly disappointed that he didn't perform better in this situation. While he was probably already on the bottom of the 3-4 man running for the Cy Young Award even before this loss and a win doesn't guarantee anything, Wang still would have proved a lot if he had gotten the win. Now Beckett at 19 wins will probably be the frontrunner for the award followed by CC Sabathia. Still I will be happy if Wang can end the year with 20 wins and leads the Yankees into a postseason berth.

Tiger finished off his season in style by blowing away the field to win the Tour Championship on Sunday. For his efforts, Woods received 1.26 million dollars for this tournament and an additional 10 million for winning the FedEx Cup. Wowee, that is a lot of money. Before the tournament Tiger had said it would be nice if the organizers put the 10 million in cash in one massive pile all up for display so all the players could see what they were playing for. Yeah right Tiger, way to tease those guys. Like dangling a steak before a hungry dog before snatching it away from them. Sometimes I actually root against guys like Tiger and Federer, they are just too damn good.  

Saturday - 9/15/07

Yao and Nash Raise Almost 2.5 Million Dollars for the Kids

The charity game staring Yao Ming and the Chinese National team against Steve Nash and a group of NBA players was a rousing success. Yao scored 21 points to lead the Chinese team over the NBA team 101-92 on Friday as Yi Jianlian added an additional 20 points. Steve Nash and Carmelo Anthony both had 13 points a piece and switched sides to play for the Chinese team for the second half. Yes, it was one of those crazy events where anything goes but it was a lot of fun and for a terrific cause as all the money raised will be used to help impoverished children in China. It was Nash who sought out Yao in hopes of doing this charity event after a Suns-Rocket game this past season and since they were both represented by the same agency the deal came to fruition. There was an auction dinner on Thursday with a variety of items up for grabs and it was Yao Ming's autographed shoes that fetched the highest amount going for $480,000 dollars to a Chinese business man. A Michael Jordan signed jersey sold for only some $50,000.  The game was seen by over 12,000 attendees and over 200 million television viewers across China.

Wednesday - 9/13/07

Yi Jianlian vs Sun Yue - The Girlfriend Hotness Factor

It's a slow sports day so I'm gonna discuss something really important, like which Chinese NBA superstar has the hottest significant other. I will only focus on Yi Jianlian and Sun Yue because Yao is married already and I ain't going there cause their's is legit. So let's talk about the other two young studs.

Forget those ridiculous rumors that Yi Jianlian doesn't want to play in Milwaukee cause he wants access to beautiful Asian women. The guy is a superstar in China. Hello?!? China with 1.3 billion people must have not only the most beautiful Asian women in the world but probably ten times the amount of the nearest competitor. I don't think Yi is hurting for Asian women by no means. Besides Yi already has his hands full dating Li Yahong, a lovely lady that works on a game show program doing her best impression of a Chinese Price is Right Barker girl.

While Yi will certainly have an enjoyable time keeping warm in Milwaukee with this absolute babe by his side, Sun Yue is still the luckier guy. Sun will be living it up in Los Angeles and in style no doubt. The guy's girlfriend Gu Chen is one of the top models in China and if Sun performs well on the court, he and his glamorous girl will bring Asian Showtime to the Lakers next year.

Hmmm, top supermodel and life in LA, I gotta give the superior playa recognition nod to Sun Yue for now. These fine girls make me wish I was a baller, a little bit taller...

Tuesday - 9/11/07

Junior Seau Named New England Patriots Captain for First Time

Junior Seau was chosen to be one of seven captains for the New England Patriots this week by his teammates. The 38 year old Samoan football linebacker is well known for his 12 career Pro Bowl selections and 16 seasons with the San Diego Chargers and Miami Dolphins. His first season with New England last year was cut short by a broken arm but he still had the respect of his teammates to be named captain. Says Seau, "It's one of the greatest honors you can ever have as a player. I'm definitely humbled by it."  This will be Junior's 18th season and he has also been a captain with the Chargers but more than that Seau is a leader in his community. He has been a good role model for the community while giving back through his Junior Seau Foundation. He was even rewarded a Volunteer of the Year award by President Bush at a ceremony celebrating Asian Pacific American Heritage month back in 2005. Keep an eye out for Seau this season also doubling as a goal-line fullback doing what he does best- helping his team win.

Jr Seau - A deserving leader!

Monday - 9/10/07

Kobe Wraps Up 'Supernatural' Tour of Asia

Kobe Bryant went to Asia in search of videotapes, ghost houses and Asian women with long black hair. Ok, not that kind of supernatural. Kobe has been in Asia for the past week on a promotional tour for Nike titled Supernatural. He has stopped in Manila, Hong Kong, Taipei, Shanghai and finished in Beijing. This was Kobe's third trip to China but his first to Shanghai which he stayed for only one day checking out the city mostly from a car window while amazed by the sights of the "beautiful city." When asked about the state of Asian basketball he said, "It's getting there because of Yao Ming. He opened the door." Kobe also described Yi Jianlian as "very talented," adding: "He can be pretty special." That's some mighty high praise coming from 'ole Mr. Supernatural himself.

What is this silly poster?  So is Kobe a guard-ian angel or the arch-angel of death?

Some lucky fan went home with a great souvenir hand passed from Kobe himself.

Sunday - 9/9/07

Weekend Happenings

Chien-Ming Wang tossed seven innings giving up three runs today to help the Yankees edge the Royals 6-3. He won his 18th game and is tied for the lead with Josh Beckett of the Red Sox yet he still doesn't get the credit or adulation he truly deserves. Yankees Joe Torre considers Wang one of the "big guys", someone who is a true ace. Still Joe acknowledges, "There is always somebody else that is going to get more attention than him." If not overlooked for other pitchers, Wang is still often overshadowed by his own teammates which was the case today. A-Rod hit his 52nd homer of the season and has homered in five consecutive games. The guy is a machine but he gets an inordinate amount of press. It is quite evident in this article which is titled 'A-Rod's 52nd helps Wang win 18th' which is ironically titled because the majority of the article talks about how much Wang is under appreciated and does not get recognition yet the author felt compelled to toss in A-Rod's name to sell the story. Still Wang's impressive showing this year has his name being tossed around for the AL Cy Young Award which is good to hear.

While Wang has been cruising, Daisuke Matsuzaka seems to be hitting a lot of potholes lately. Dice-K was pounded on Saturday as the Red Sox lost 11-5 to a slumping Orioles team. Holding on to a 4-1 lead, Matsuzaka was tagged for seven in the third inning. It was his shortest start in the majors as he was battered for six hits and eight runs while walking three and stiking out two over the 2 2/3 innings. While some think that Matsuzaka may be wearing down, his pitching coach thinks it has more to do with overthrowing. It seems that Dice-K has been relying too much on his fastball, throwing it at the first sign of trouble instead of working his off-speed pitches and getting good location. Well hopefully he works things out soon because this past game was just ugly. Dice will get his chance for redemption this Friday when he faces the Yankees.

At the US Open today, Yung-Jan Chan & Chai-Jung Chuang of Taiwan lost in the women's doubles final to Dinara Safina & Nathalie Dechy 6-4, 6-2. Japanese #1 Shingo Kunieda won the wheelchair men's title defeating Robin Ammerlaan 6-2, 6-2 in the finals. He and fellow Japanese teammate Satoshi Saida also won their semifinal match in wheelchair doubles. Roger Federer and Justin Henin both lived up to their No.1 billings to capture the Men's and Ladies' titles in straight sets. Roger is now sitting on his 12 major just two behind all time grand-slam winner Pete Sampras at 14.

Tiger Woods also shined today as he won the BMW Championships shooting a final-round eight under par 63, getting him to 22-under for the tournament. He finished with a 262, a record 72-hole total for the tournament. He has now won 60 PGA Tour events to join four other past greats in Sam Snead, Jack Nickalus, Ben Hogan, and Arnold Palmer among those who have won 60+ victories. He has currently won 13 majors just one ahead of friend Roger Federer and 5 behind his idol Jack Nicklaus. I think it goes without saying that both Tiger and Roger should smash these records and many others in the next few years.

David Tua continues his comeback campaign by scoring a second round technical knock out over journeyman Cerrone Fox. Tua has won seven consecutive victories and his record improves to 49-3-2, with 43 KO's. Now there is talk that a bout with IBF Heavyweight Wladmir Klitschko may be in the works for next year. I think that would be a difficult match cause Klitschko at 6'6 is too tall for Tua and could keep him at bay with the jab just like Lennox Lewis did in 2000. Still Tua with his power has a puncher's chance and Wladmir does have a suspect chin so it could be a interesting fight but I would rather see him fight a fellow powerhouse like Nigerian Sam Peter.

Saturday - 9/8/07

Chinese Gymnasts Dominate World Championships

China's male gymnasts wiped away the field on Thursday to win the gymnastics team gold with a convincing lead over second-place finisher Japan. Then on Friday, China's Yang Wei retained his all-around title even after falling from the horizontal bar. The reason he still won was due to his huge overall lead.  The gold for the all-around female gymnast went to American Shawn Johnson who incidentally has two Chinese coaches. The US women also took home the team gold with China in second and Romania in third. The US men finished just out of medal contention in fourth but their prospects also look good for next year. Gymnastics powerhouse Russia had a disappointing showing as their men's & ladies' teams finished in 7th and 8th place.

China currently has so much depth in their gymnastics squad that they may not even use members from this gold medal winning team for next year's Olympic games. They have plenty of high caliber gymnasts to choose from, but I think Yang Wei has surely secured a spot in Beijing after his brilliant performance at these championships.

Yang Wei claims gold in men's all-around.

Friday - 9/7/07

Three Asian Tennis Players Heading to US Open Finals

With the US Open tennis tournament wrapping up this weekend, I was surprised to find out there are 3 Asians competing in the finals. Like me you probably have never heard of them before so it will be my pleasure to introduce these stellar athletes.

Taiwanese doubles partners Chan Yung-Jan & Chuang Chia-Jung will attempt to win their homeland's first Grand Slam tennis title at the US Open on Sunday. They advanced by beating their semi-final opponents in straight sets on Thursday and will meet Russia's Dinara Safina (Marat Safin's kid sister) and France's Natalie Dechy in the final. The Taiwanese duo were ranked 5th in this tournament and have had a breakout year also reaching the finals of the Australia Open which they lost. Still they have been on a great ride and if they win on Sunday they will make history so best of luck to them. Incidentally Chuang caught a Yankees game last week and got to meet pitcher Chien-Ming Wang who is a huge local hero for Taiwanese. If Chan & Chuang can win this Sunday, they too will see first hand what it's like to be a big fish in a small pond.

Chan & Chuang on verge of history.

Who is the #1 ranked male tennis player in the world? Roger Federer, yes of course but what about Shingo Kunieda? The Japanese native is the top ranked wheelchair tennis player and he defeated American Jon Rydberg 6-0, 7-5 today to advance to the final. For those who don't know, wheelchair tennis is played exactly like regular tennis except the ball may bounce twice and the second bounce may also occur outside of the field. This holds true for the service as well. I have seen a couple of such matches and it's something to behold how impressive these guys are. I have the utmost respect for them. Both these guys have conquered great adversity too as Rydberg was paralyzed in an accident as a child and Kuneida is a cancer survivor. Kunieda will face Robin Ammerlaan of the Netherlands, a two time winner of the US Open singles title.

Kunieda will face a 2-time champion in the final.

Thursday - 9/6/07

Yao and Yi Update

Taiwan did a complete 180 and granted Yao Ming a special professional visa to visit the island nation. Yao will arrive in Taiwan tomorrow and will play a friendly exhibition game, teach basketball, and raise money for local charities. He plans to see local attractions including the world's tallest skyscraper Taipei 101 which I'm sure will be a great camera opportunity for anyone who is there at the time. Try getting a picture of Yao Ming with a skycraper all in one shot, not easy.

Yao has been quite busy of late as he recently helped Team China win another match against the Melbourne Tigers and then went out and publicly defended his Chinese team coach Lithuanian born Jonas Kazlauskas from criticism for recent poor performances. Despite the obvious, Yao's loyalty is his weakness as he firmly supports his coach to lead them into the 2008 Olympics. His charity does not end there as the big man will host a charity match with 2 time MVP and NBA great Steve Nash for the benefit of poor children in China. The game will be contested between the Chinese national team and a group of NBA superstars including Carmelo Anthony, Greg Oden, Bonzi Wells, Derek Fisher, Baron Davis, Chuck Hayes, and Leandro Barbosa. They hope to raise 1 million dollars for children with AIDS, Special Olympics, and the Chinese Youth Development Foundation. This is a great idea and these guys are all heart for actually reaching out to children half a world away. No lip service here about helping the children, they walk the walk!

Yao & Nash promo poster. Yao comforts a young girl with AIDS.

Yao's teammate and new Milwaukee Buck Yi Jianlian also played in the recent matches against the Melbourne Tigers dropping 20 points in each of the two games. Yi's holding out on the Bucks may have been excellent strategy as he has been all but guaranteed playing time of 20-25 minutes a game by owner Herb Kohl as incentive to sign with Milwaukee. Of course it will be a trial by fire for Yi to get adjusted to the physical game in the NBA but it should bode well for the future if he is a dedicated and last learner like Yao Ming. 

Hold on tight Yi, the road ahead is about to get very bumpy.

Tuesday - 9/4/07

Liu Xiang Video - 110m Hurdles World Championships Gold Medal

Liu's impressive World Championships win from last week.

Wang Wins 17th - Tied for MLB Lead with Josh Beckett

The NY Yankees need every win they can get and they got it from their ace Chien-Ming Wang. A day after Roger Clemens got roughed up in a 7-1 loss to the Mariners, Wang got one back for the team with an impressive pitching display allowing only one run in 7 1/3 innings. The Yankees' bats did the rest as NY crushed Seattle 12-3 pushing their American League Wild Card edge back to two games. Wang only needed 86 pitches to cruise into the eighth, allowing just five hits and one homer. He left the mound to a standing ovation and is now tied with Boston's Josh Beckett with 17 wins to lead all pitchers in the majors. Everybody Wang-Chung tonight!

Monday - 9/3/07

Labor Day WrapUp

Good news or bad? Well for this Labor Day there is a little bit of both so let's start with the bad.

South Korean tennis player Lee Hyung-taik lost to Russian Nikolay Davydenko today in the fourth round of the the US Open 6-1, 6-3, 6-4. Despite the straight set beating, Lee was satisfied with his performance and looks to continue improving his game for the future. Congratulations to Lee on his great run, and I do hope he can improve his game soon because at his age time is not on his side.

Lefty Phil Mickelson is back as he won the Deutsche Bank in impressive fashion today. He blew away Tiger Woods with a flawless front nine and held him off down the stretch going head-to-head in the final round against Tiger and winning the tournament. Tiger could only blame himself as he couldn't make a putt on the front nine and couldn't deliver clutch putts while trying to catch up on the final holes. He finished with a 67 tied for second with two others.

Daisuke Matsuzaka nearly gives up a nine-run lead as the Red Sox survive a scare to beat the Toronto Blue Jays 13-10. Unlike past games, Boston bats were on fire as they jumped quickly to 10-1 early on. Dice-k was pitching well too giving up just a single run heading into the sixth. Then things fell apart as he retired just one of the seven hitters he faced. Matsuzaka still improves to (14-11) but this poor showing could potentially cost him the Rookie of the Year honors.

Now the good news...

Ichiro Suzuki joins exclusive company today as he becomes just the third player in history to reach 200-hit plateau for the seventh consecutive season. And hitting a homerun off Roger Clemens was just icing on the cake as the Mariners defeated the Yankees today 7-1 moving them to within one game of NY in the AL Wild Card race. This record is shared by two other players, Hall of Famers Willie Keeler (1894-1901) and Wade Boggs (1983-89). Still Ichiro is the only one to have accomplished this feat in his first seven Major League seasons. He also has 1,555 hits in 1,092 games, the most by any player in his first seven seasons.

Yao Ming returned to action today sinking in 12 points with 6 rebounds in 20 minutes of play to lead China to a 69-56 victory over Australia's Melbourne Tigers. Yi Jianlian was the scoring leader with 20 points, 10 rebounds. The was Yao's first game after his honeymoon and a shoulder injury and his rust showed. Still Yao helped China end the five-match losing streak from last month's European tour.

Sonya "Black Widow" Thomas wins a buffalo wing eating contest by downing 173 wings in 12 minutes. That is over 5 lbs of chicken wings! The 40 year old South Korean adoptee is a favorite in eating contests because at 105 lbs she is dwarfed by all her male competitors. Sonya is currently ranked number five by the International Federation of Competitive Eating.

Sunday - 9/2/07

Hyung-Taik Lee Beats Andy Murray at US Open

South Korean tennis star Hyung-Taik Lee defeated 19th ranked Andy Murray at the US Open today in four sets. The 31 year old father of two beat the 20 year old British phenom 6-3, 6-3, 2-6, 7-5 in the third-round match. The funny thing is that the last time Lee made it this far into the round of 16 was 7 years ago when he was considered a rising new Asian tennis sensation at 24 yrs of age. He was ranked 182 in the world and he faced the great Pete Sampras and lost in straight sets. Since then he has gotten married and had 2 kids but surprisingly his tennis career has only gotten better. Currently ranked 43 in the world, Lee has finally learned to relax and enjoy the nuances of the game and is happy with his game. Says Lee, "I got married, had kids. So now, everybody thinks I am getting old. But I am getting better & better. Now they are surprised and they like me. If I can try to keep going like this, just enjoy, just play."

JUST DO IT? I hear that and wish Lee the best of luck as he has a very difficult challenge ahead in No.4 ranked Nikolay Davydenko. But luckily for him, there will probably be a large contingent of Korean-Americans there rooting for him win or lose just as they did in his victory over Murray.

Can Lee make a Grandfatherly run at the Open like legends Sampras & Agassi?

China Achieves Best Results Ever at World Athletics Championships

China can look forward to next year's Beijing Olympics with confidence as they have achieved their best results in the World Athletics Championships since 1993. Backed by the stellar performance of Liu Xiang, who became the first Chinese man to win gold at the world championships, China went on to capture another silver and bronze medal today in Osaka, Japan. Zhou Chunxiu was the London marathon winner and had her chances, but ultimately she settled for silver in the women's marathon. Zhang Wenxiu won bronze in the women's hammer throw and at age 21 she should only get better. China sent a record 56 athletes, 23 men and 31 women to these championships with 3 men and 9 women making it into the top 8 in various events. Track & Field has historically been a tough cookie for Chinese athletes to bite but with added sugar on top, Beijing 2008 might be a coming out party for them.   

  Liu Xiang kisses gold again.

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