Updated:
Aug. 9, 2000
TOP
OF THE WEEK VENUS WILLIAMS
Venus Williams is starting to turn it on. After missing the first few months of the year with injuries, and threatening to quit tennis, Williams is on fire of late, winning her last three tournaments including Wimbledon and running her win-streak to 15 matches. Her latest was a finals victory over Monica Seles in the Acura, 6-0, 6-7, 6-3.
BOTTOM OF THE WEEK
A BIZARRE BASEBALL TRADE
The Yankees picked up slugger Jose Canseco off waivers from the Tampa Bay Devil Rays in a move that was bizarre on both ends.
First, Tampa Bay could have made a trade for Canseco prior to the Aug. 1 deadline and received something in return, though the Rays claim that dumping injury-prone Canseco's contract will save them $2 million.
And the last thing the Yankees need is another designated hitter who can't field. ``I'm stunned,'' manager Joe Torre said when told of the trade. Canseco himself was puzzled and said he didn't know what his role would be with New York. The word is that New York GM Brian Cashman made the move to keep Canseco from another A.L. contender.
For the Yanks the deal means they pay Canseco $1 million for 56 days work. Where can we sign up?
HIGHLIGHTS OF THE WEEK
I'M A GAY ICON:
THEY LOVE ME
English soccer star David Beckham has movie star looks and is married to pop star Posh Spice. But he plays for English League dynasty Manchester United and faces the wrath of opposing fans everywhere he goes.
The fans will get some more ammunition against Beckham following comments made by Posh Spice in an interview on a gay radio station, as reported by Ken Lawrence of Soccernet.
According to Posh:
--Beckham is ``an animal in bed.''
--Beckham revels in the attention he gets from gay men and ``walked around the kitchen going `I'm a gay icon, they love me.' ''
As Lawrence writes: It's not the first time Mrs Beckham has put her stilettos in it. Last season she revealed that her husband likes to put on her underwear.
We need to start paying more attention to English soccer.
A new fitness magazine has accused rival fitness monthlies of catering to "the gay voyeur," the New York Post's ``Page Six'' column says.
Robert Kennedy, publisher of the upcoming American Health & Fitness, wrote in a letter to potential advertisers: "You've probably noticed that many so-called men's fitness magazines are directly geared to the gay voyeur, rather than concentration on giving scientific fitness training-nutrition advice,'' Page Six said.
"Whereas we do not want to ostracize the significant gay market, American Health & Fitness will not be choosing subjects and models principally for their ‘gay appeal.' ''
Kennedy told the newspaper that nearly every men's fitness magazine is targeted to gays to boost newsstand sales.
"You see traces of it in all these magazines," Kennedy said. "They go for the look in a man's eye. If a guy looks like he can be seduced, he goes on the cover. That's what sells a lot of these magazines. They put these debauched, wet-lipped men on the cover. That's something I will not do."
Scott Seomin, a spokesman for Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation wrote back to Kennedy, the newspaper said:
``Your implied message is that all gay men fit a stereotype as sexual voyeurs and advertisers should avoid appealing to our community. We believe this sets up gay men for discrimination and tells the advertising community that we are somehow second-class, below a demographically targeted heterosexual community."
Seomin also takes issue with Kennedy's claim that mainstream muscle and fitness titles pander to gay men, the Post said. "In a lot of these magazines, like Men's Health or Men's Fitness, the articles are about how to work out with your wife," he said. "It's not about how to deal with a spat with your workout buddy, or anything."
The editor of Men's Fitness told the Post: "Men's Fitness is targeted to enriching to the life of any man who is interested in fitness and health. To Men's Fitness, it doesn't matter whether they're black or white, rich or poor, or gay or straight."
COLLEGE FOOTBALL
Every year the Associated Press finds it critical to put out a pre-season poll. That is, before a ball has been snapped, before a wide receiver has caught a pass, members of the press tell us, among other things, who the 22nd best team in the country is.
This year, we do get some insight into the voters, though. It seems that they prefer Southern boys and Midwest
farm boys, as the top six (in order) are Nebraska, Florida State, Alabama, Wisconsin,
Miami, and Michigan. Of course, as always happens with these absurd preseason polls, half of these top six will have lost within the first month and be out of contention for the title.
WNBA
What? How did this happen? The Houston Comets are NOT the #1 seed in the Western Conference this year. The Comets, who have won every WNBA Championship since its inception, will be playing
catch-up to the Los Angeles Sparks these playoffs. This can only help the league which has seemingly suffered the last two seasons from lack of competition as the "same old team" won it every year.
NBA
First Eddie Jones and Anthony Mason - now Brian Grant. It seems everybody just wants to head to South Beach.
The Charlotte Hornets traded the former two players to the Miami Heat last week in a nine player deal, the second largest in league history. Now, Brian Grant has turned down mega-offers from the Cleveland Cavaliers and Portland Trailblazers, and has expressed no interest in the Los Angeles Lakers, because he wants to head to Miami.