Sports

Posthumous Pardon For Heavyweight Boxer Jack Johnson A Bipartisan Effort

6:20pm March 05, 2013

Democratic Senators Harry Reid and Mo Cowan have joined Republicans John McCain and Representative Peter King to call for the pardon of former heavyweight boxing champ Jack Johnson. He was the first black fighter to win that title, in 1908. Another win in 1910 sparked race riots nationwide, and his relationships with white women only added to the controversy. He was convicted of taking women across state lines for "immoral purpose." Audie Cornish has more.

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No Obvious Favorites As NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament Starts

6:20pm March 05, 2013

Go on, pick a favorite in this year's NCAA tournament. We dare you. There's more than a dozen legitimate contenders to pick from. And then there's all those potential Cinderella teams. Mike Pesca talks to Audie Cornish about the upcoming NCAA Men's College Basketball tournament, which is as wide open as it has even been.

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Sports

Is a Championship Win in the Pocket for the Carolina Hurricanes?

12:47pm March 05, 2013

In the shortened national hockey league season, the Carolina Hurricanes have shown they may well contend for a playoff berth for the first time since 2009.

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Dear College Presidents: Break The NCAA's Vise Grip On Athletes

7:37am February 27, 2013

by Frank Deford

Student-athletes are really sucker-athletes under the organization's structure, says sports commentator Frank Deford. Will no college president speak the words that will break the organization's spell?

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The Media Frenzy Surrounding Oscar Pistorius

2:52pm February 25, 2013

South African Olympian Oscar Pistorius is accused of murdering his girlfriend, Reeva Steenkamp, in their Pretoria home. The trial has set off a media frenzy and the coverage varies widely around the globe and in sports publications.

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Sports

Week In Sports: The NFL Begins Hunt For New Talent

11:55am February 23, 2013

Scouting began this week, and in the spirit of evaluation, Weekend Edition guest host Don Gonyea takes an abbreviated Wunderlic test. Plus, NPR sports correspondent Tom Goldman chats with the infamous Pete Rose about being erased from this year's set of baseball cards.

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Fans Pitch Bids For Former Red Sox Pitcher's Bloodstained Sock

10:26am February 22, 2013

by Bradley Campbell

Baseball fans and collectors are bidding on baseball history: a bloodstained sock worn by Curt Schilling in the 2004 World Series. The sock had been on loan to the National Baseball Hall of Fame, but Schilling was forced to put it up for auction after his video game company went bankrupt.

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Sports

Sunday's Daytona 500 Kicks Off NASCAR Season

6:02am February 22, 2013

For the first time, the race will start with a woman at the front of the pack. Danica Patrick's claim of the pole position is a shot in the arm for NASCAR after a few down years. Linda Wertheimer talks to Jeff Gluck, motorsports reporter for USA Today, about Patrick's milestone, and how the rest of the field is shaping up.

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Brad Keselowski, driver of the #2 Miller Lite Ford, gets out of his car after qualifying for the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Daytona on Feb. 17.

NASCAR Champ Finds Fans With Beer, Tweets And Bangin' Fenders

6:11pm February 20, 2013

by Michael Tomsic

The brash, young champion Brad Keselowski will begin defending his racing title this month. Candid and funny, he has a knack for connecting with both blue-collar fans and savvy, young Twitter users. And some of the sport's executives say he's the key to NASCAR's future.

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Oscar Pistorius, seen here at the London 2012 Paralympic Games, made history as the first double leg amputee to race in the Summer Olympics. He now faces charges that he murdered his girlfriend.

Reminders Flood In: Athletes Are People, Not Heroes

4:08pm February 20, 2013

by Frank Deford

We often put athletes on a pedestal. But after the latest accusations of bad behavior — accusations that include a murder charge against Oscar Pistorius — it may be time to lower that pedestal several notches, says Frank Deford.

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