Tag: Sports (81-90 of 649)

Aug 3 2012 08:30 AM ET

Olympic Stud of the Day: Gabby Douglas

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Image Credit: Thomas Coex/Getty Images

Cue up Beyoncé’s ”Run the World (Girls),” sports fans! That is the official anthem of Gabby Douglas, women’s gymnastics all-around gold medalist. Not only is Gabby a personal fave for Abby West and me, she’s also today’s Olympic Stud of the Day.

Gabby was…

The girl who nearly quit.

The girl the experts doubted could handle the pressure.

The girl who, even tonight, came within millimeters of stepping outside the boundaries.

But she didn’t.

And that’s why she is…

The girl who took it all.

The first African-American to win the all-around gold. READ FULL STORY »

Aug 2 2012 07:03 PM ET

Olympics: Chat live with Jennifer Weiner tonight at 9 p.m. ET during the Women's Gymnastics All-Around Final

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Image Credit: Streeter Lecka/Getty Images

At the conclusion of the latest season of The Bachelorette, fans rejoiced when Emily Maynard picked Jef “One-F” Holm. But they wept over the fact that there would be no more live chats for bestselling author Jennifer Weiner to host on EW.com. Weep no more, because Jen is returning tonight to chat live with you during the Women’s Gymnastics All-Around Final starting at 9:00 p.m. ET.

Earlier today Jen tweeted, “What has fifty-six legs and 1.5 breasts? Why, the women’s Olympic gymnastic finals!” If you haven’t read her smash-hit novels Good in Bed and In Her Shoes or followed her snarktastic Bachelorette live chats, that gives you a pretty good sense of Jen’s “Oh no she didn’t!” sense of humor. She’s taking a break from the whirlwind tour in support of her latest book, The Next Best Thing, to add her commentary to the gymnastics finals. And she will do so until we know the gold medalist. In case you missed our live blog of the Opening Ceremony, this is another chance for you to get your citius, altius, fortius on with fellow pop culture/Olympics obsessives. And never fear. Unlike NBC, EW’s live chats are strictly a spoiler-free zone. See you at 9 p.m. ET!

Click Here to Access Jennifer Weiner’s Olympics Live Chat

Read more:
‘The Bachelorette’: Jennifer Weiner on its lessons for girls:
Olympics Opening Ceremony: We’re live blogging it!

Aug 2 2012 06:00 PM ET

Olympics: Hugh Jackman thinks he could be a contender

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Image Credit: Lisa Maree Williams/Getty Images

He’s too late to qualify for the London Games. But 43-year-old Hugh Jackman jokes that he hasn’t given up on winning a gold medal someday. “You know what I’d like to do? Badminton!,” he told EW at the short film festival Tropfest earlier this summer. “I mean, I’m not that talented a player, and — I don’t want to be disparaging — but the amount of people who are really talented who go into badminton is a small number. I’d say 90 percent go into tennis. So I figure my chance of actually making it in badminton is higher.”

See just how talented the world’s top players are when the medal matches begin. Friday is mixed doubles, Saturday is women’s singles and doubles, and Sunday is men’s singles and doubles.

Read more:
Olympics: Best/Worst Athletic Wear
EW’s Olympic Studs of the Day
EW’s Olympics coverage

Aug 2 2012 04:00 PM ET

Olympics: Why you should watch trampoline

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Image Credit: Jae C. Hong/AP

It’s trampoline time at the Olympics on Friday with live men’s qualifying on MSNBC and NBCOlympics.com at 9 a.m. ET, and the final following at 10:26 a.m. ET online and in primetime on NBC. (That’s U.S. champion Steven Gluckstein pictured. The women, including American competitor Savannah Vinsant, compete Aug. 4.) Commentator Tim Daggett, who says he stands the whole time because “I want to be able to duck,” shares three reasons why we should tune in.

1. Outrageous air. They go twentysomething feet in the air, about as high as your house. When you’re standing next to the trampoline, and you see these guys jumping, you first of all are like, Ohmygod, they must have a mental disorder. And I mean that in a good way. The air that they get is unreal. READ FULL STORY »

Aug 2 2012 12:53 PM ET

Phelps versus Lochte! Let's do it live!

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Image Credit: dam Pretty/Getty Images

I’m staring at a blank window on NBC’s Olympic website that is counting down the seconds to this afternoon’s Duel in the Pool II: 1:40:10… 1:40:09… 1:40:08. Today, at 3:19 p.m. ET, Michael Phelps and Ryan Lochte will dive in to the pool for the 200 IM final, mano e mano for the last time. Their rivalry has become one of the Games’ biggest subplots, with Lochte humbling the once invincible golden boy in Saturday’s 400m IM final. (Lochte struck gold, while Phelps finished a distant fourth.) Lochte is the world-record holder at this shorter distance, but Phelps, the two-time defending Olympic champion in this event, edged him at the Olympic trials. In yesterday’s qualifier, Lochte defeated Phelps by almost a second… but was Phelps holding something back for today?

Both men have proved themselves mortal thus far in the Olympics, with Lochte coming up short in the anchor leg of the 4x100m freestyle final and Phelps being out-touched at the finish of the 200m butterfly. But a victory today could erase those disappointments and provide the clinching victory in their long-running battle against each other — as well as the iconic winning moment of the Games. So there’s absolutely no chance I’m waiting until NBC’s tape-delayed primetime soap opera tonight. I’ll be watching live on my computer, just as the ancient Greeks did.

Two quick questions for you, swim fans (no, not those swimfans): Will you be watching it live? And who do you think will win? Vote below: READ FULL STORY »

Aug 2 2012 11:35 AM ET

In case you missed it: NBC airs water polo nip slip

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Poor, poor NBC: You’re damned if you tape-delay and damned if you don’t. Kabletown‘s redheaded stepchild accidentally stirred up more Olympics coverage controversy yesterday when one of its underwater cameras caught American water polo player Kamie Craig yanking down a Spanish opponent’s swimsuit — and exposing the Spaniard’s right breast in the process. Gonna have you nekkid by the end of this match!

The body part in question was visible for only a split second. Even then, it was partially obscured by the Spanish player’s arm, making it the least exciting wardrobe malfunction since Lindsay Lohan last showed off her Parent Trap. That, of course, hasn’t stopped viewers and news outlets from heaping abuse on NBC. (Criticizing the Peacock may just be our new national pastime.) I’m going to give them a pass on this one, though. After all, the network can’t control the actions of athletes, unless they happen to be American Gladiators.

Click below to see the moment of nontroversy. Oh, and in case you’re interested: The game ended in a 9-9 tie. Suit-grabbing Craig scored four of Team USA’s goals.

READ FULL STORY »

Aug 2 2012 07:59 AM ET

Olympics recap, Day 5: Nathan Adrian's Famous

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Image Credit: Mark J. Terrill/AP

Hot dog! This adorable, humble, well-spoken sex god who can’t believe he just struck gold is Nathan Adrian, the first American in 24 years to win swimming’s version of the “fastest man in the world” race — the 100-meter Freestyle. HOW CUTE IS HE?

The 23-year-old out-touched another insanely hot intelligent person, Australian world champion James Magnussen, in his first-ever individual Olympic final. “I almost started crying in the water,” Adrian told damage-monger Andrea Kremer after the race. AND HE CRIES, TOO! We have found the world’s most perfect person. We did it! Congratulations, everybody.

Move over, Michael Phelps and Ryan Lochte. It is 100 percent Pure Adrian from now on. I mean, good luck in today’s IM final and all. But spoiler alert: Nathan Adrian wins. He’ll win all of the events in all of the sports that have yet to happen. I highly doubt any spectator, at least, would mind. READ FULL STORY »

Jul 31 2012 07:45 PM ET

Jay-Z exec producing videogame 'NBA 2K13,' but what does that mean?

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Image Credit: Jesse D. Garrabrant/Getty Images

There are already too many hyphenates affixed to Jay-Z’s already hyphenated name to reasonably list here, but that isn’t stopping the music superstar and NBA franchise co-owner from adding one more: Videogame executive producer. Over the course of this year, Jay-Z has been working with 2K Sports on the latest annual iteration of their bestselling NBA series, NBA 2K13, and when the game hits shelves on Oct. 2 (for PS3, Xbox 360, Wii, PC, and PSP), “Executive Produced by JAY Z” will appear prominently on the packaging.

But what does that ultimately mean? Is this simply a vanity project? “Jay is so obsessed with authenticity,” says Jason Argent, VP of marketing at 2K Sports. “He really didn’t want to just put his name on a product. Neither did we. We wanted a true collaboration with him.” While Jay-Z’s involvement with the gameplay itself was indirect, Argent says he directly oversaw “everything off the court in the game.” That included the graphical flow of the game, as well as its intro and outro videos. “It’s much more music [and] cultural oriented,” he says. “There are visuals of musicians and him interwoven with game play. It’s really basketball within an entertainment and music package.”  READ FULL STORY »

Jul 31 2012 03:00 PM ET

What is your damage, London Olympics? (Vol. 1)

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Welcome to ‘What Is Your Damage,’ Annie Barrett’s summer shop of all the melodrama and self-absorption she misses from springtime reality TV. Every Tuesday and Friday, she’ll rant about a current offense to her humanity, then assess readers’ damages via video replies. Don’t be shy about admitting what annoys or intrigues you. We’re all in this pop cult together!

What’s your damage, Olympics? Stop making me feel fat! Great, column over. From the back, to the middle and around again…

I already complained about Ryan Lochte’s diamond-encrusted grill (and prognosticated its eventual takeover of the nation) during the trials, so what else is there? Oh, EVERYTHING.

Most prominent in my mind right now: What is your damage, Andrea Kremer? NBC’s poolside interviewer has been relentless in her bizarre quest to curate this creepy atmosphere in which the U.S. swimmers feel worse than they do already. She gets an easy perfect ’10′ on the Damages scale.

Last night after Michael Phelps won his semifinal heat for the Men’s 200M Fly, she immediately dug into the DARK SIDE of whatever might be flying through his head. “I want to check in on the state of Michael. Walk the Phelps fans back in the U.S. off the ledge here…. Which Michael will we get to see? The one who didn’t make the podium in the 400 IM or the one who had the phenomenal split in the relay?”

WHAT?! No one is on any ledge here, silly. “Which Michael shows up?” she demanded, to which Phelps awkwardly teased, “We’ll see in 24 hours,” because what else could he possibly say?

“Oh, come on. WHICH ONE?” She inched closer, flames thrashing through her pupils. Like he knows! As if he’s keeping the secret to himself (and the other version of himself) instead of offering it to her as exclusive scoop? And if he doesn’t eventually break down and promise a gold medal, she won’t have gotten the real story here? Gross.

Kremer was also brutal to the guys after they lost to France in the free relay, and won’t give up on that storyline either. Last night she asked Lochte “Where’s your confidence level?” after “obviously some disappointments in the relay.” It’s like she WANTS him to be thrown off to generate and then doggie paddle endlessly in a whirlpool of more drama. Lady this isn’t reality TV! It’s the Olympics. Show some class.

Stop criminalizing silver medalists, Andrea Kremer! The hate stops here.

READ FULL STORY »

Jul 31 2012 08:45 AM ET

Olympic Stud of the Day: Missy Franklin

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Image Credit: Clive Rose/Getty Images

We always strive for diversity when it comes to crowning the Olympic Stud of the Day here at PopWatch Central, but for the third day in a row, a U.S. swimmer is far and away the most deserving champion. I am speaking, of course, of 17-year-old Missy Franklin, the Colorado native who swam to qualify for the women’s 200m freestyle race and then not 15 minutes later won gold in the women’s 100m backstroke in spectacular fashion.

This bears repeating: This sunny high school student — who has turned down lucrative endorsement deals so she can remain eligible to compete with her school’s swim team — swam four lengths of the pool, fast enough (though just barely) to qualify for the finals in the 200m free. READ FULL STORY »

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