Send us your favorite sporting quotations.
"The path to globalization now apparently travels in both directions."
Josh Childress’s agent Lon Babby describes Childress’s move from the Atlanta Hawks to Olympiakos of Greece.
"After the Olympic Games, the fight for human rights must go on."
A controversial ad for Amnesty International shows this tagline on the bottom of a picture of a beaten prisoner chained to an archery target. The ad was produced by TBWA, who ironically also produced a series of pro-Chinese Adidas ads.
“It looked like a cow udder.”
Sportswriter Bert Sugar on a pair of Babe Ruth’s underwear that he bought.
"In Euro 2008, something like a third of the goals were scored by people who had not been born citizens of the country for which they were playing..."
Slate ruminates on soccer immigration.
“I’m sure you guys are going to eat this up a lot more than I am."
California Angel pitcher Jered Weaver speaks to the press after losing to the Dodgers who failed to produce a single hit.
"After the game is before the game."
German soccer legend Sepp Herberger was a poet of the game. Read more abut soccer sayings and sticker books in Austin’s ESPN column.
"Soccer is like chess, only without the dice."
German soccer player Lukas Podolski apparently summed up the game, “Fussball ist wie Schach, nur ohne Würfel.” Der Spiegel lists the best German soccer sayings.
“It’s like taking a fighter jet down to tree level, popping the canopy, turning upside down, then going down to road level and touching your helmet on the pavement.”
Mark Miller, a competitor at the Tourist Trophy motorcycle race in the Isle of Man, describes the experience of one of the last true road races.
"Schweinsteiger comes in like a rat off a drainpipe."
ESPN soccer analyst Tommy Smyth struggles to describe the swiftness and authority of Bastian Schweinsteiger’s goal in Germany’s 3-2 victory over Portugal in the Euro 2008 quarterfinals.
"As the Prime Minister I have to be balanced and collected but on Thursday night I wanted to kill."
Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk reacts violently to the referee’s decision in the Poland v Austia Euro 2008 match, which led to a lst minute goal for Austria. Poland was eliminated from the tournament. Read Austin Kelley’s piece at ESPN.
"We get to 3km to go. This is where the final hill starts. The other guys know I will beat them in the sprint, so it is up to them to attack me.... This is where I switch into rage mode."
Cyclist David Millar describes a disappointing sprint at the Giro D’Italia on his blog.
"I've had a couple of meetings with the Glazers.... They've got balls, I can tell you."
Manchester United Manager Sir Alex Ferguson said that Malcom Glazer, the American owner of the team, would fight against Real Madrid, the team trying to buy United superstar Cristiano Ronaldo.
“I’ve had a couple of meetings with the Glazers,” he said, “Their attitude is ‘to hell with them [Real]’. They would sit a player in the stand. There’s absolutely no doubt about it. They’d do it just to prove a point and not to give in to these people. They’ve got balls, I can tell you. I’ve been delighted with them in that respect.”
"I know you're going to say, Well betting's all about pitching and stuff like that -- I didn't care who was pitching for me or who was pitching for the opposition."
Pete Rose said he bet about $2,000 on every Reds’ game, no matter the circumstances, while he was manager. Does this make him seem even dumber?
"[Paolo] Bettini pulled off one of his typical defying-the-laws-of-physics moments...
…while making a right-hander that was much sharper than he expected and instead of hitting the curb and body slamming the wall as any mere mortal racing cyclist would he hopped onto the curb contorted his body and twisted his bike and nonchalantly slid off the pavement back into the peloton. INCREDIBLE.” Read cyclist David Millar’s excellent Giro d’Italia blog.
"Cricket, like every sport, is an activity and the dream of an activity, badged with random ideals, aspirations, and memories."
—James Wood, in his New Yorker review of Joseph O’Neill’s new novel Netherland.
“My mistake.”
Charles Barkley forgets to pay $400,000 gambling debt.
"Sorry, Pats"
The Boston Herald apologizes for story alleging the Patriots taped the Rams’ walkthrough at Super Bowl XXXVI. Check the comments 385 and counting.
"That’s a sign of a misspent youth."
Barack Obama comments on his pool-playing abilities. He redeemed himself in a West Virginia pool hall after a terrible day of bowling.
"I think it is very unfortunate that the NFL has already started its 'nothing new' spin before watching the tapes... Let's see where the evidence leads."
Senator Arlen Specter criticizes NFL commissioner Roger Goodell over the New England Patriots spy tapes.
"The seeded model looked like a playoff, and we don't think a playoff is in the best interest of college football."
If it walks like a duck… Big East commissioner Mike Tranghese rejects a seeded tournament to determine a national champion in college football. The BCS committee decided that the current system, despite widespread public opposition, has functioned sucessfully.
Read More In Our Archives