Sports

June 3, 2008 -- THE PRESIDENT: Please sit down. Welcome. It's an honor to welcome the 2008 NCAA Men's Basketball champs, the Kansas Jayhawks. So when Kansas fans come to the Rose Garden, they don't come to admire the flowers. They come to "wave the wheat." I just wish Big Jay and Baby Jay could have come with you. Barney was looking forward to meeting them.

George W. Bush smirks: White House photo

I want to congratulate this team. You brought new glory to one of our nation's most storied basketball programs, and you gave your fans all across America one more reason to chant: Rock Chalk, Jayhawk!    » read more »

May 29, 2008 - BOSTON - Massachusetts Attorney General Martha Coakley’s Office reached a settlement with New England Figure Skating Club, of Marlborough, relating to its financial practices. In the settlement reached late last week, the Club acknowledged that its record-keeping practices were inadequate and that it had failed to maintain accurate documentation of income and expenses.    » read more »

Coverage Begins May 29

May 27, 2008 -- ESPN’s coverage of the entire Women’s College World Series – up to 17 games on ESPN, ESPN2 and ESPN360.com beginning Thursday, May 29 – will feature ESPN’s John Kruk as a game analyst on 10 games, including the best-of-three Championship. Kruk, an analyst on ESPN’s Baseball Tonight studio show and select MLB games, will work with Beth Mowins and analyst Jessica Mendoza, a 2004 Olympic Gold Medalist and member of the U.S. team headed for the 2008 Olympics in Beijing.    » read more »

INDIANAPOLIS, FRIDAY, May 23, 2008 --- Brian Gordon, a respected member of the swimming and diving community, has been named the NCAA’s next secretary-rules editor. Gordon will officially replace long-time rules editor Sue Petersen Lubow when her term expires in September 2009.    » read more »

May 26, 2008 -- THE PRESIDENT: I just welcomed five of our nation's university coaches to the Oval Office to thank them for going overseas to boost the morale of our troops. It was very interesting listening to them -- Charlie Weis is going to say a few comments about what they saw and heard. But I wanted them to know how much I appreciate going to say to these young men and women "thanks for what you're doing."

George W. Bush meets NCAA coaches: White House photo by Chris Greenberg    » read more »

“These substances not only pose great health risks, but they threaten the fundamental integrity of sport and send the wrong message to our kids -- that cheating to get ahead is acceptable, no matter the cost.”

May 22, 2008 -- Washington, DC – Chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee Joseph R. Biden, Jr. (D-DE) held a hearing this morning entitled, “International Convention Against Doping in Sports.”

Chicago Olympics logo: Photo by M. Jeremy Goldman (CC)    » read more »

Premier International Action Sports Event Will Return To Sao Paulo

May 15, 2008 -- Based on the great success of the first edition of X Games Brazil, ESPN and event partner ReUnion Sports & Marketing have agreed to host the event for a second consecutive year in 2009. More than 43,000 people gathered at the Sambodromo do Anhembi, for the first ever ESPN X Games Brazil in Sao Paulo.

ESPN produced 15 hours of original programming and a total of nine hours of live programming aired on Brazil’s two ESPN television networks, ESPN and ESPN Brazil. Complete coverage of the event was also provided on ESPN Brazil’s news and information programs, and live streaming video was featured on EXPN.com.    » read more »

Nationwide Search Underway to Determine America’s Top Championship City

May 19, 2008 -- A panel of 33 journalists from ESPN and across the country will pare down the list of nominations for ESPN’s SportsCenter “TitleTown USA” – an interactive and multimedia effort to determine which city, town or municipality will be declared America’s top championship city by fans this summer. The panel features 12 SportsCenter anchors and 21 accomplished media professionals from top daily newspapers and television outlets.    » read more »

Two Weeks of Action Highlighted by Women’s Semifinals Live June 5 and 250+ Live Hours on ESPN360.com

May 19, 2008 -- Tennis’ second Grand Slam of the year – Roland Garros, the 2008 French Open presented by Aviva – will begin on ESPN2 – the Grand Slam Network – on Sunday, May 25, and the network will present more than 51 hours from Paris, culminating with the women’s semifinals live Thursday, June 5. ESPN networks have televised the French Open 1986 – 1993 and since 2002. In addition, ESPN360.com will have more than 250 live hours of coverage, also starting on Sunday, May 25.    » read more »

Debut of No. 1 Draft Pick Candace Parker with the Los Angeles Sparks and Theme Song and Music Video by R&B Sensation Alicia Keys

March 13, 2008 -- ESPN2 will combine with ABC to televise 22 regular-season WNBA games, starting with the defending champion, Phoenix Mercury and Diana Taurasi, when they host the Los Angeles Sparks and No. 1 Draft pick Candace Parker from NCAA champion Tennessee Saturday, May 17, at 3:30 p.m. ET on ABC. For the first time, ABC will use SkyCam for a WNBA telecast -- showcasing the speed and talent of the top female players in the world.    » read more »

INDIANAPOLIS, Monday, May 19, 2008 -- Ticket applications for the 2009 NCAA Men’s and Women’s Final Fours will be available online through May 31, 2008.

The 2009 Men’s Final Four will be held at Ford Field in Detroit. The all-session ticket prices are $170 for upper-level sideline, and $140 for upper-level behind the basket, and will admit the bearer to the national semifinals Saturday, April 4 and the national championship game Monday, April 6. The 2009 Women’s Final Four will be held at the Scottrade Center in St. Louis. The all-session ticket price of $162 will admit the bearer to the national semifinals Sunday, April 5 and the national championship game Tuesday, April 7.    » read more »

INDIANAPOLIS, Tuesday, May 13, 2008 -- A year ago, a new three-point line dominated discussions at the NCAA Men’s and Women’s Basketball Rules Committee meetings. This year, the committee’s meetings produced relatively few changes, which committee leaders view as a positive step for the game overall.

“Our game and our rules are in really great shape,” said Ronda Seagraves, chair of the women’s rules committee and associate athletic director at Southwestern University (Texas). “We entertained approximately 50 rules proposals, and in the end only approved minor changes to the rules book.”    » read more »

18 May 2008 -- China has today announced three days of mourning and that the Olympic Torch Relay will pause during this time. Commenting on this announcement, the IOC said:

"These are tragic and testing times for China and the Chinese people. The way the country has come together in solidarity, and the courage shown by those affected and those involved in the rescue efforts can only be admired. The IOC fully supports the decision to pause the Torch Relay while the country mourns. Our thoughts and prayers are with China."

Source: IOC

Floor Statement On New England Patriots Videotaping

Washington, D.C. -- May 14, 2008 -- I. WHAT WE KNOW:

(1) The Patriots engaged in extensive videotaping of opponents’ offensive and defensive signals starting on August 20, 2000 and extending to September 9, 2007, when they were publicly caught videotaping the Jets.

New England Patriots cheerleaders: Photo by Paul Keleher (CC)    » read more »

23 April 2008 -- The International Olympic Committee (IOC) Coordination Commission for the Sochi 2014 Olympic Winter Games concluded its first full visit (22-23 April 2008) to the Russian host city today.

The Commission, led by IOC member Jean-Claude Killy, took advantage of the visit to review first-hand the sites of the venues for the 2014 Games, and heard updates from the Sochi 2014 Organising Committee (Sochi 2014) on a number of key areas of Games preparations, such as the Organising Committee’s structure, transport, marketing, environment and construction.    » read more »