U.S. Team Wins Ryder Cup in Upset

“I poured my heart and soul into this for two years, and my players poured their hearts into it for this past week, and I couldn’t be prouder of them. The golf was spectacular on both sides, and our guys just came out on top.”

--Paul Azinger, USA team captain.

“I got chills up my spine the whole day today and I’m loving every minute of it. I wouldn’t trade this for $10 million. This has been an experience of a lifetime.”

--Anthony Kim, USA teammate and Ryder Cup rookie that provided a spark to the team.

For the first time since 1999, the USA team beat a heavily favored European team.

Excerpts from the New York Times, 9/22/2008.

Serena Williams Wins U.S. Open Championship

“Yeah, I have amazing will. I love to win.”

--Serena Williams, who won the U.S. Open for the third time last night in New York and captured her ninth career Grand Slam singles title.

Williams completed her surprising climb back to #1 Sunday night with a 6-4, 7-5 victory against Jelena Jankovic.

The 23-year-old Jankovic was appearing in her first Grand Slam final.

The hard-fought victory also gave Williams the #1 ranking in the world by beating the #2 player in the world. The #1 player, Ana Ivanovic, lost in the second round.

“I’m here to stay. Number 1 is not my goal. I know I’ll get that eventually if I continue to play the tournaments.”

--Serena Williams, who once held #1 for 57 straight weeks, but not since August 2003.

Injury, the murder of her half-sister and career interests in fashion and acting, upset her focus, hindered her career and sent her ranking below 125 in the last five years. After a surprising win at the Australian Open in 2007, it took her two years to get back completely.

“She’s working hard now, but it would have come quicker if she had worked harder before, but they [Serena and her sister, Venus] have their other activities. She thinks she’s supposed to win everything, that’s her will. She thinks everything’s hers.”

--Oracene Price, her mother.

“I’m playing a lot more, having more consistent results, and just putting in the effort. I think my results are finally showing,” says Williams.

Excerpts from the New York Times, 09/06/2008 and 09/08/2008.

Managing Emotions: The Key to Victory

“I managed my emotions a lot better. I stayed positive. At Wimbledon I got really negative and lost the only chance I had. This time, when she got in, I just relaxed. When I was up, I stayed relaxed.”

--Serena Williams, after beating sister, Venus, in the quarterfinals of the U.S. Open.

Serena posted a two-tie-breaker 7-6 (6), 7-6 (7) victory, in a classic match-up that had the feel and electricity of a Grand Slam final.

“I feel like I should have a trophy now. Unfortunately I don’t, and I got to go to the next round,” Serena said.

With a strong will and physical stamina, she rallied from 5-3 deficits in both sets, and overcame eight set points in the second. Serena will play Danara Safina in the semifinals.

Excerpts from the New York Times and AP, 9/4/08.

Ryan Hall: Marathon Runner Has a Vision

“One year in middle school, I got this vision that I wanted to run. I think it came from God. I was on my way to a basketball game—it was just this crazy idea that comes into your head, and the desire to act on it. The next weekend, my dad and I ran around the lake, fifteen miles. After that, I decided to start training.”

--Ryan Hall, American Olympian marathon runner.

In 2007, he ran the fastest debut-marathon time by an American, finishing seventh in London in 2 hours 8 minutes 24 seconds. He followed that in November by breaking the Olympic trials marathon record on a tough course in New York with a winning time of 2:09:02.

This year Hall was fifth at London in 2:06:17, making him the second-fastest American ever and giving him the seventh-best time in the world this year.

In August 2008, Hall placed 10th at the Olympics in Beijing with a time of 2:12:33.

Excerpts from the New Yorker, 8/11 & 8/18/2008.

Venus Williams on Mental Mindset: Relaxing the Need to Be Perfect

"I think I'm definitely at my best now.

"I think I understand the game more. Trying different kind of shots, too, lately. Trying to add some variety.

"I think the Wimbledon win helped me a lot to change my mentality, to realize not everything had to be perfect all the time.

"That's helped me -- if I don't have a perfect practice, I don't get really upset about the whole tournament. I think that helps me to relax."

--Venus Williams, five-time Wimbledon champion and Olympic gold medal womens' doubles winner in Beijing, discussing the importance of confidence and relaxation after her third round victory at the U.S. Open on Saturday, August 30, 2008.

Excerpt from Reuters.com 8/30/2008.

Torii Hunter: The Vision in His Head

"I got that picture in my head, but we got a long way to go, a long journey. When you get in the playoffs, everything is going to be different. … We could win 100-plus games, and it does not matter. When you get to the postseason, you got to change. You got to be totally different. Any mistake you make, you're going home."

--Torii Hunter, Los Angeles Angels outfielder.

Since winning the 2002 World Series, the Los Angeles Angels have been beaten by the Boston Red Sox in 2004 in a sweep in an AL Division Series; lost to Chicago, who won four of five in the AL Championship Series; and, endured another sweep in 2007 in the first round by the Red Sox.

"I'm not just out for money. The money is the money. I grew up with nothing. You give me what you give me, that's fine. But you can either have $120 million and suck, and lose, and not be in the postseason, not get that ring you worked so hard to try to get. Or you can go get enough [money] and win. Right here is enough for me.

"I definitely feel like this team is built to win the World Series. Not just getting to the playoffs. I think we're built to win it."

--Torii Hunter, who spent 15 years with the Minnesota Twins organization, discussing his feelings the season after signing a five-year, $90 million contract.

The Angels have the best road record in the major leagues and were the first team to reach 60 wins this year. The first team to 60 victories has advanced to the World Series in each of the past four seasons.

At least Torii is aligned with owner, Arte Moreno, who bought the team in 2003.

"I need a ring. I want a ring."

--Arte Moreno, Los Angeles Angels' owner, who came into the clubhouse and pulled up a chair next to Hunter, to express his desire.

Excerpts from ESPN.com 8/31/2008.

Trying to Improve by Overcoming Emotions

At the Australian Open in January of 2008, Janko Tipsarevic extended Roger Federer, then the No. 1 player in the world, to the brink of defeat before losing, 10-8, in the fifth and last set.

In the process, he was able to reveal weaknesses in Federer’s game that other players, included Novak Djokovic, who defeated Federer in Melbourne, and others have since gone on to further expose and fully exploit.

“I would like to think that that match helped some of the players see this guy is vulnerable. Even though I lost, it helped me realize I can beat anybody. My first problem is myself. I’m not blaming anybody else.

“I’d love for my progress to go a little bit faster. I’m in my prime. There are no excuses that I’m young or something like that.

"You will have good results when you see these top players are not as good as you think they are in your head.”

--Janko Tipsarevic, who after finishing 2007 ranked #52, rose to a career-high #33 in May of 2008.

Nonetheless, thus far, Tipsarevic has not yet mastered the skill of "mind over matter." He sustained an injury in the first round of the 2008 U.S. Open and had to retire.

Excerpts from the New York Times, 8/28/2008.

Leadership Comes to Georgia Tech Football

“He has brought a whole new atmosphere to this team.”

--Jahi Word-Daniels, senior cornerback at Georgia Tech, commenting on what new coach Paul Johnson has brought to the team.

“It’s not just his offense; he teaches toughness, he shows a sense of pride, a sense of determination. The best way to do that is get involved, and he’s involved with his team.”

-- Mike Sewak, co-offensive line coach, who has known Johnson for 23 years.

Johnson was hired by Georgia Tech after he was 45-29 in six seasons at the U.S. Naval Academy. Navy went 2-10 in Johnson’s first year, but then compiled records of 8-5, 10-2, 8-4, 9-4, and 8-4.

Johnson has been successful for quite a long time. After winning two consecutive Division I-AA national championships at Georgia Southern in 1999 and 2000, Johnson was hired by Navy starting with the 2002 season. He inherited a program that was 1-20 in its previous two years.

In 2007, Navy beat Notre Dame for the first time in 43 seasons. Perhaps most importantly, Johnson was 11-1 against Army (6-0) and Air Force, the Naval Academy’s two biggest rivals.

“He is incredibly confident, the most confident coach I have been around, bordering on cocky.”

--Andrew Gardner, a senior left tackle.

Johnson has reason to be confident. To turn around the program, Johnson has brought a proven system to solve the team's mediocre performance problems.

“One of the things I saw here was a huge split; there were a lot of groups and niches on the team, it was dysfunctional. Certain guys probably didn’t talk to certain other guys. I talked to each player and asked why they were not more successful, and it was always somebody else’s fault.”

“There is no magic elixir. The thing we try to do is get good at what we do. We rep it. If their defense can get better at stopping it in one week of preparation than you can in running it for 19 weeks, they are going to beat you, anyway.

“The guys who have been successful for a long time, that’s what they do, stick to the system. You don’t change it every week. The guys that get in trouble sometimes run a little of this and little of that.”

--Paul Johnson.

On Thursday night, 8/28/2008, the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets opened the 2008 season with a 41-14 win over Jacksonville State. The new Georgia Tech triple-option offense, much criticized before the season, was very effective as Georgia Tech ran for 349 yards and six touchdowns and produced 484 total yards.

Michael Phelps, Leaving a Legacy

"My only real goal is to leave the sport bigger and better than I found it."

--Michael Phelps, in 2005, when asked by Dick Ebersol of NBC if he would be open to swimming events in the morning to enhance Olympic coverage on television in the United States.

Taken from the New York Times, 8/25/2008.

Chad Pennington, Miami Dolphins

"Winning is a habit. You have to practice the winning. You can't say, 'We'll pick it up in the regular season.' Good teams don't have a split where they turn it on and turn it off. They're on all the time. That's a habit we're trying to form."

--Chad Pennington, newly announced starting quarterback for the Miami Dolphins.

"Fro the day he got here, just the demeanor and the way guys are motivated, has changed a lot. He brought the leadership that we've been missing at the quarterback position. Believe me, he tells you if you can do something better."

--Derek Hagen, wide receiver, Miami Dolphins.

“From the very first snap in practice, you could feel his confidence. It helped all of us to believe in ourselves, to believe in what we can do as an offense and as a team.”

--Ricky Williams, running back, Miami Dolphins.

Pennington, formerly of the New York Jets, was obtained by the Dolphins after eight seasons (five playoff games) with the Jets.



Excerpts from the New York Times, 8/26/08 & 9/4/08.

Professional Tennis: Pressure to Stay on Top

"In tennis, they don't consider anyone ranked 10. If you're the 10th-best baseball player or pro football player, you're considered pretty special. If you're the 10th-best tennis player, you're nothing."

--Gardnar Mulloy, member of the International Tennis Hall of Fame, referring to the talk about Roger Federer and the chances of him "coming back."

Excerpts from the New York Times 8/25/08.

Team USA Brings Back the Gold in Men's Basketball

"It's about winning with dignity. It's showing humility, showing respect for the game and the people in the game internationally.

"The fact that we had this team for three years was the telling difference in this game. It was a great game. It was a pressure game from the get-go, and we never cracked. The fact that we were together for this period of time was the difference.”

--Jerry Colangelo, former owner of the Phoenix Suns, who was given responsibility for bring the USA team back to prior glory.

"We played with great character in one of the great games in international basketball history, I think."

--U.S. coach Mike Krzyzewski.

"What you saw today was a team bonding together, facing adversity and coming out with a huge win."

--Kobe Bryant, who scored 20 points in the final game.

Dwayne Wade led the team with 27 points.

"If it wasn't for the determination and willpower we had, we wouldn't be back on top of the world, which is where we are."

--LeBron James.

"We stayed at the soccer matches to see the U.S. women get their gold medals - just to see what that was going to be like.

"We had our flag and we were holding our flag and waving it around, just to support them, just to see their families, how they interacted with them - with the emotion that comes along with that.

"Months and months and months of preparation - it was good for us to see that and draw inspiration from that."

--Kobe Bryant.

"We are very, very proud of the way our players have conducted themselves, how engaging they've been during the entire Olympics ...They scored a 10 on a scale of 1 to 10," said Colangelo.

“It wasn’t so much individual stuff and individual talent. It was more teamwork, probably well-directed by their coaching staff.

“I’ve seen the guys hungry and want to get back to the top. That’s what they’ve done. They were able to get to the top again and show that they should be in first place, but they had to work for it.”

--Pau Gasol, Spain's top player and current NBA player, who scored 21 points in the final in a losing cause.

Watch the gold medal game highlights on NBCOlympics.com, or click on: http://www.nbcolympics.com/video/player.html?assetid=0824_hd_bkm_hl_l1348r2&channelcode=sportbk

USA Basketball Team: Playing for Gold Against Spain on Sunday

"We expect the same type of heart of a champion that we played against tonight in Argentina.”

--Coach K, USA men's head basketball coach, discussing the mental mindset of the opponents in the Olympics' medal rounds.

"Anybody who has aspirations to be a champion, you understand that there's a sense of pride that comes along with beating a champion."

--Kobe Bryant, discussing motivations as Team USA prepares for a battle with defending world champion, Spain.

"This is why I'm here, to keep everyone's composure. Those other were dress rehearsals; these are the ones that count."

--Jason Kidd, 35, starting point guard, who took control of the game with Argentina with his leadership and experience.

Kidd lead a 12-4 rally at the start of the third quarter by discussing individual roles with the team at halftime and settling down the tempo of the game.

"It's a great honor to be a part of this team. At 35, this is my last go-around. To say that I can play for a gold medal and play with this group of guys, it's unbelievable," says Kidd.

Excerpts from the New York Times 8/23/08.

Team USA: Back on Track with a New Game Plan

Since the disappointment of winning the bronze medal in Athens in 2004, the USA Basketball program has revamped how they select the team and how they approach the international game.

"They've found the way to play the FIBA game, and they're playing way better. They have players that are superstars, but they have a commitment, they want to win and they prepare, and they know what they're doing."

--Luis Scola, team member of Argentina Olympic basketball team and current NBA player.

Team USA is playing in the semifinals against Argentina today for a spot in the gold medal game in Sunday.

Excerpts from ESPN.com 8/21/2008.

Michael Phelps, Peak Performance Case Study

"I executed the plan, nearly to perfection."

--Michael Phelps.

There will be many people that will look everywhere for the secret of Michael Phelps' success as a swimmer. One need not look far. His mother, revealed the secrets to Robin Roberts on Good Morning America on ABC television, August 20th, 2008.

Research suggests that consistent peak performance consists of seven competencies: a passionate vision, the ability to fast-forward, the proper mindset, the development of a game plan, deliberate practice, perfect execution, and continuous performance review.

Debbie Phelps reveals the key peak performance competencies as practiced by Michael Phelps during the preparation for his stunning performance in Beijing.

Success Requires Having a Game Plan, Discipline, Patience, and Execution

"It was just remarkable execution of what Michael hoped to do and had a passion for."

--Debbie Phelps, Michael's mother.

"It took a regimen, a routine, a schedule. It took time and patience," said Debbie Phelps, who gave her son the support and guidance he needed to succeed.

"I'm not the agent. I'm not the coach. I'm the mom."

"Michael had a plan of action. He had a game plan. He knew exactly what he wanted to do," she said.

To view the accompanying article and the entire interview with Debbie Phelps on Good Morning America, go to: http://www.abcnews.go.com/GMA/story?id=5616633&page=1

Team USA Leader: LeBron James

“I knew it had to come from someone. It doesn’t matter how good individuals are, if you don’t have a leader, it’s not going to be right. I took that responsibility from Day 1, saying I’m going to be the vocal leader and I’m going to be the leader of this team.”

“For me, I’m a complete team player. I’m probably the ultimate team player. I’ll sacrifice whatever for the success of the team.”

--LeBron James, USA basketball player, discussing the leadership role he has taken at the 2008 Beijing Olympics.

Usain Bolt: "Lightning" Strikes Twice

“What Bolt has done, he’s made history. He added spirit to the sport. He danced for us in the introduction. He danced for us at the end. He put on a show. To me, I feel like, him and athletics is like Michael Phelps and swimming. He raised the bar for us in athletics.”

--Shawn Crawford, USA silver medal winner in the 200 meters.

Usain Bolt, already the Olympic champion and world record-holder in the 100 meters, ran the 200 meters in 19.30 seconds, breaking the world record by two-hundredths of a second. Bolt broke the world record of 19.32 seconds, set by the American Michael Johnson at the 1996 Atlanta Games. Bolt is the first to win gold in both the 100- and 200-meter events since Carl Lewis in 1984.

“I didn’t think I’d see under .30 in my lifetime. He’s a freak of nature."

--Renaldo Nehemiah, former Olympic gold medalist in the 100 hurdles.

“It was the most impressive athletic performance I have ever seen in my life.”

--Michael Johnson.

Excerpts from the New York Times 8/20/2008.

Rewind: Shawn Johnson Wins Gold on the Balance Beam

“She showed a lot of mental toughness to get through some very difficult days here. She showed the maturity, fighting day after day after day. I am so proud of her because I believe she really deserves this gold.”

--Liang Qiao, Shawn Johnson’s long-time coach.

"I finished off the Olympic Games with, to me, the most perfect ending ever. To finally get the gold medal ... on my very last routine meant the world to me. To finally have a gold and be an Olympic gold medalist, it's what everyone dreams of. It's so exciting. It's the best feeling ever."

--Shawn Johnson.

U.S.A. Mens' Basketball Team Defeats Australia Easily in Olympic quarterfinals

"I think people should understand that they changed the system and that this system is right. You need to keep guys together, make a commitment. It doesn't guarantee success. It guarantees you a chance."

--Mike D'Antoni, new New York Knicks head coach and assistant USA assistant coach to head coach Mike Krzyzewski, referring to the changes made by the USA Basketball management to attempt to return the gold to the United States.

Yelena Isinbaeva, Russian Gold Medal Winner in the Women's Pole Vault

"I love to be alone at the top. It's so cool and I will try to keep my position as long as possible."

--Yelena Isinbaeva, world record holder in the women’s pole vault and 2008 gold medal winner in Beijing.

She added that she still believed in what she said after she won the world title in Osaka last year that no one could beat her but herself.

The winning height is 25cm higher than her closest competitor. She has completely dominated women’s pole vaulting for the last four years and has rarely been tested by rivals.

The 26-year-old has been the world record holder since July 2004 and has now raised the bar on 24 occasions.

"I like to prove it, not just say it. I like to prove who is the best and who is the strongest.

"I don't know how high I can go. My coach says I can go 5.20m or higher and I trust him," says Isinbaeva.

To see her win the gold and set a new world record, click NBCOlympics.com, or go to: http://www.nbcolympics.com/video/player.html?assetid=0818_hd_atw_hl_l0896&channelcode=sportat

Bonus: On the same video, watch the coach of Jennifer Stuczynski, the U.S. silver medalist in the women's pole vault, inappropriately give her a tongue lashing after she won the silver.

Also, Watch Yelena Isinbaeva in a beautiful tribute video at: http://www.nbcolympics.com/video/player.html?assetid=0819_sd_mul_au_ce549&channelcode=sportat