A view form the chair

Hi everyone, sorry I have not written in a while, lots of projects in the works. I hope to have news on this front very soon. Just an update on the blog, as you can see I have added a Winter Olympics update bug, check it out for the latest news from Vancouver starting February 12th on the networks of NBC. I will have more on the Olympics as we get closer.

On to this week’s rant.

Monday January 11th baseballs superstar Mark McGwire finally admitted that he took steroid when he set the single season home run record back in 1998 (the record was eclipsed in 2001 by Barry Bonds). This was a well-orchestrated plan that started with a statement made to the AP (Associated Press) by McGwire at 3 P.M. That was followed by newspaper interviews and then McGwire did a live one-on-one interview on the MLB network with Bob Costas at 7 P.M. This was a full 60-minute interview with Costas, the best in the business. McGwire did admit to using steroids but said that they did not help him with his performance. THEIR CALLED PERFORMANCE ENHANCEING DRUGS FOR A RESON MARK! I believe that he came out now because his old team the St. Louis Cardinals hired him for the upcoming season, as the bating coach and he wanted to get it out before spring training. I truly believe with an admission like this he made more questions for himself, this story is not over. In his interview with Bob Costas, McGwire did shed light on the infamous 2005 congressional hearings where he coined the phase “I’M not here to talk about the past.” McGwire said that he was ready to talk but before the hearings he asked for immunity from prosecution if he talked about any other players he knew did steroids. He also did not want to bring his family and friends into this mess he caused for himself. He did not get the immunity from the congressman and so here we are almost 5 years later. I don’t know if I believe this story but I somewhat understand not wanting to bring your family into it if they had noting to do with it. I believe the truth will set you free and he should have told the truth back in 2005. But wait there’s more to this story, on Thursday January 21st, Curtis Wenzlaff a convicted drug dealer who says he used to supply steroids to McGwire told ESPN that McGwire's goal was to improve his performance on the field. This contradicts McGwire’s story that he took steroids for heath reasons. I guess we will never know the truth. If there’s more I will have it here.

The other major story that caught my attention this week was on January 8, 2010 there was an attack on the Togo National Football Team on their way to the African Nations Cup Tournament in Angola. The team was traveling from the Republic of the Congo to the Angolan Exclave of Cabinda, where they were to play their match’s. Cabinda is unique because it’s separated from the rest of Angola by a strip, some 60 kilometres (37 mi) wide, of the Democratic Republic of Congo. The Togo team flew home after the attack by request of the Prime Minister. There were reports that the team wanted to play but they we disqualified from the tournament before they could return.
My first question is why didn’t the American networks cover this story? I heard it from the BBC. If I was not interested in soccer and do not have a world view I would not have known that this happened. My questions are why did the organizing committee decide to play matches in a disputed area? There is still a guerrilla and political movement fighting for the independence of the Angolan province of Cabinda. Front for the Liberation of the Enclave of Cabinda (FLEC) who claimed responsibility for this attack had meant to attack Angolan security guards at the front of the convoy that passed through Cabinda and not the Togo team. In August 2006 a ceasefire was signed between the FLEC and Angola government, but the FLEC is still active. Why didn’t the Togo team fly into Cabinda as they we told? I think there is more blame to go around in this story. If there are any new delovpments in this story I will be on top of it.

On Tuesday news broke that UCONN’s men’s head basketball coach Jim Calhoun had taken a temporary medical leave of absence. In a statement from his primary care physician Peter Schulman, M.D of the UCONN Health Center he said that it is for some temporary medical issues. Rumors have been flying in the media that this leave of absence is stress related. Associate and now temporary head coach George Blaney squashed this rumor by saying before Wednesday’s game against St. John’s that Calhoun’s absence was not stress related. What is it? All any one is saying is that it is not related to previous medical conditions that he has dealt with, that include cancer three times. Get well coach looking forward to seeing you back on the sidelines soon.

The major story this week outside of sports has been the Earthquake in Haiti. My heart is aching for these people. They live in such poverty as it is and now this. Great job by all reporters on the scene, a sad story overall.

I hope to be back soon with more on the Winter Olympics and answer some viewer e-mail. If you have a question on an event you can e-mail me at jdlazaroff@yahoo.com.

Jamie Lazaroff

Jamie's view

Last week I went to Washington D.C for Special Olympics Capitol Hill Day and it was an awesome experience. We meet with all of the Connecticut Congressional delegation, or their staff. We had photo ops with Senator Lieberman, Congresswoman Rosa DeLauro, Congressmen John Larson, Congressmen Jim Himes, and Congressmen Joe Courtney. At one point in the day we saw former NFL great Herschel Walker, who was on the Hill lobbying for the Sporting Goods Manufacturers Association. Herschel was there with the request to make physical activity a priority for our nation by making it more accessible and more affordable to all. At the end of the day we had a reception in one of the committee rooms, the highlight of the evening was meeting and listening to Rhode Island Rep. Patrick Kennedy.
Of all the experiences I have had with Special Olympics this was the most fun. At first I was pretty nervous because I did not know what to expect, but everyone was so nice and it was just like having a conversation with any one. They all are really champions of rights for people with disabilities. It also helps that Connecticut hosted the 1995 World Special Olympics Games in New Haven and everyone had a connection, in someway to the Special Olympics.

Now back to the sports beat. The big news while I was away was that Al Michaels will be NBC’s daytime and weekend host of the Winter Olympics next year in Vancouver. I think this is a good fit, Al Michaels is one of the all time best play-by-play men in the business and deserves to host an Olympics. Al is synonymous with the Winter Olympics because he was the man behind the mic for the "Do you believe in miracles? Yes!" call of the U.S. hockey victory over the Soviet Union at 1980 Winter Games in Lake Placid, New York. I think it was time to replace Jim Lampley as daytime Olympic host as I believe that he “mailed it in” and did not show enthusiasm at last years Olympics in China. If Lampley doesn’t take a hockey role (it is rumored he turned it down) at the games this will end a string of working 14 straight Olympics. “Bob Costa and Al Michaels”, two Hall of Famers working the same Olympics, I can’t wait!

Here are my thoughts about Jim Calhoun ‘s Press Conference from a few weeks back. I think the “Reporter” ambushed Calhoun. The “Reporter” should have stopped after Calhoun told him to "shut up" after the question about his state salary (which is public knowledge) but the "Reporter" continued to ask about his deal with Comcast. This is a personal issue and has nothing to do with the University. I think Calhoun went a little over board, but if I were in his shoes I would do the same thing.
Talk to you next week at the start of the madness.

Good night and good luck.

I would like to hear from you, sent me a comment or shoot me an e-mail.

Jamie Lazaroff