赤の六月 The Glimmer of A Dream

June 13, 2005, it was the very day that Eddie Kunz, the former reliever for Oregon State, would never forget. On that day, during the xixth inning the 19-year-old freshman threw the biggest pitch in the history of Oregon State’s baseball program. It was one of his trademark heavy sinkers and hurtled toward Southern California’s hottest hitter, Jeff Clemenhe did swing but miss, the bases loaded, one out, and the score tied in the crucial game of the N.C.A.A. Super Regional.
The fantastic pitch paved the way for his bright future beacase he have became one of the two primary internal candidates to replace Billy Wagner as the closer in Mets. Pitchers rarely, if ever, move right from the minors to the closer role, so it is just a brand new start for Kunz and the journey begins. He has to grasp this oppotunity in order to become a real great closer. During the journey, he has been encountering various challenges,when luck, will not be good enough.
After signing with the Mets last July, he joined Class A Brooklyn, pitching in 12 games. All that pitching made him stress-out, and he returned home to Portland exhausted. Soon, he resumed training with the Oregon State team, losing 15 pounds and since then has been in what he called the best shape of his life. From that moment on,Kunz realizes that  opportunities aren’t there forever Some other hot-shot pitcher is going to be drafted next year, he’s going to have to keep getting bette and to keep up. He was told to learn from others and never be content, on the way to growing stronger  he has to throw100 percent and work hard. There is no easy way to success.
“You don’t see a sinker like that very often. “As Kunz unfurls his changeup, he wins a deserved praise.
Kunz once said “When I step on the mound, there isn’t a thing in the world that scares me.There’s no one better. No one’s going to touch me.” I am looking forwards to more and more extraordinary pitches thrown by Kunz.

Access: http://www.nytimes.com/2008/02/22/sports/baseball/22mets.html?_r=1&ex=1361336400&en=68f75708296bbaa6&ei=5088&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss&oref=slogin

 When everyone here are talking about 2008 Beijing Olympic Games, let’s turn our eyes to London, the host city of 2012 Olympic Games. “One World, One Dream” is our slogan, what about London? In 2012, London promises to provide the world an inspirational Game that captures the imagination of young people and leaves a lasting legacy. To our surprise, one of the Olympic legacy will be the courses for horses, which will make some of you confused. However, when you penetrate deeper into the history and culture of Britain you will understand their plan thoroughly.

Great Britain has a proud tradition of hosting major equestrian sporting events and there is no doubt that London should attach more importance to these sports events. Trace back to the medieval time, the heart of life at that time was the horse, to say that the true sport of British nobles is not golf but equestrian is not an exaggeration. Being considered as a snobbish or aristocratic sport, the average British family can not afford money to get access to the game. So herein lies the concerns.

Launching “Hoof — Ride London” is the plan that aims at creating more facilities so that everyone can benefit from the London Olympics regardless of where they live. And there are many people enjoying equestrian activities in the capital, it is necessary to make it more accessible and affordable and encourage people to take it up.

For my part, I do support the idea and will be delighted to see the plans put forward by the British Equestrian Federation (BEF) for an Olympic equestrian legacy are fulfilled. When it comes to Beijing Olympics, we always talk about what China can show to the world. In my opinion, we should think more about what we should create for our own people and our own culture and what the Olympic legacy we can leave for our youth. Take London for example, people are keen to establish a school programme for children in London, giving support to schools to enable them to offer riding as an option. Let more and more ordinary people benefit from Olympics and encourage more and more youth who are interested in sport to fulfill their dreams, and that is the important message delivered in this article.

Access: http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/sport/london_2012/article3065648.ece

The Dog Before Doglegs: Golfers Turning to Yoga

This article delivers us an important message that sometimes different sports are closely associated with each other. Just with a spark of inspiration, we can promote sports in a creative way. Kohler Golf Academy is a good example. It applies yoga programme to the golfers and shifts the traditional methodologies of teaching golf. When golf meets yoga, things became totally different in the positive aspect.

We have always been discussing about how to search for an competitive edge, the advanced technique? the Drugs? The answer is no, here comes yoga which concerns about body, mind & soul and will help the players or athletes through personal practicing. The growing number of golfers seeking to improve their games by turning to yoga programmes denotes the current trend in fitness field. You may wonder how yoga help the golfers? Firstly, yoga can help the golfers loosen up to execute freer, easier swings and it will give them the freedom to go forward easily because of his flexibility. Secondly, golfers who practice yoga can overcome their physical problems and recover soon. In addition to this, yoga credits the practice with improving golfers’ concentration. According to the article, there are many real examples of how golfers benefit from yoga. For instance, Eduardo Romero, who has 96 career professional victories, including the Argentine PGA Championship eight times and the European Masters during his 27-year career, said he would not have had nearly as much success without practicing a form of Indian yoga.

For my part, I have been longing to practice yoga since I’ve got to know this fitness method. The article quoted Wagner, the coordinator of the golf school Kohler’s words “draw people into the benefits of yoga through the guise of wanting to improve their golf game”. I do support his idea, why people advocates yoga is not only for the sake of competitive edge but also for the sake of health. Yoga is a system of movements and meditation that emphasizes physical control as a way to achieve a state of spiritual knowledge. In the hustle and bustle society, we all live in a fast-paced lifestyle. Taking time out to do some relaxing exercises and meditations is not a bad thing. I believe that one day yoga will be the mainstream fitness method in our lives as people are becoming more and more interested in not only taking care of themselves mentally, but mentally and spiritually as well.

Access: http://www.nytimes.com/2007/09/16/sports/othersports/16yoga.html