The Sports Archives – 2011 FIFA Women’s World Cup Fun Facts and Memories

Posted on July 16, 2011 by thesportsarchives

The 2011 FIFA Women’s World Cup final game between the United States and Japan will be played on Sunday July 17 at Frankfurt, Germany.  After winning the last two tournaments, the Germany women’s team will be sitting this one out.

Here are interesting facts of the 2011 FIFA Women’s World Cup tournaments:

  • The United States is the only team to reach the semi-finals in all six World Cup tournaments.
  • In the quarter-finals versus Brazil, the United States’ Abby Wambach scored in the 122th minute which is the latest goal ever scored in the Women’s World Cup.
  • The Japanese Women’s team has never beaten the United States and is 0-22-3 against them in World Cup play.
  • The United States is ranked 1st overall by FIFA since March 18, 2011 and Japan is ranked 4th.
  • Germany’s captain Birgit Prinz did not play in their Group A, 4-2 victory over France and their quarter-final loss to Japan after struggling in her first two matches.  Prinz’s replacement, Inka Grings, scored 2 goals against France.
  • Brazil’s Marta tied Germany’s Birgit Prinz as the Women’s World Cup overall top goal scorer with 14 goals.  Prinz did not score in 2011.
  • The United States Abby Wambach has scored a goal in the last three matches which puts her in a tie with former US player Michelle Akers at 12 goals apiece.  She has a chance to move ahead in the final game versus Japan.
  • Five players from North Korea and the goalkeeper from Columbia all failed doping tests either prior to or during the 2011 Women’s World Cup tournament.
  • Brazil’s Daiane recorded an own goal at the 74 second mark of their quarter-final loss to the United States.
  • Sixteen-year old Caitlin Foord of the Australian Women’s team started in three of the Matilda’s four matches and was given the “Best Young Player” award for the tournament.  The Matilda’s were ousted by Sweden in the quarter-finals, 3-1.
Birgit Prinz

Germany and Birgit Prinz left wondering about their play in the 2011 FIFA Women's World Cup.

 

Posted: 07/16/2011

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The Sports Archives – Funny Sports Pictures – Series 5

Posted on July 9, 2011 by thesportsarchives

More funny pictures from The Sports Archives!

Sumo Wrestler

"I hate these new training programs!"

 

World Cup Crystal Ball

"Oh mighty World Cup... when... tell me when... will Italy win again?!"

 

Gerbil

"I found it! I found it! I found the Gerbil!"

Posted: 07/09/2011

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The Sports Archives – More FIFA Women’s World Cup Fun Facts and Memories

Posted on July 6, 2011 by thesportsarchives

The 2011 FIFA Women’s World Cup tournament in Germany is off to a brilliant start with the favorites living up to expectations.  Germany, Brazil, and the United States are all looking ahead while Equatorial Guinea has played well in its first ever World Cup.

Here are more interesting facts of past and present FIFA Women’s World Cup tournaments.

  • The first FIFA Women’s World Cup tournament held in 1991 had 80 minute matches consisting of two 40 minutes periods.  It was changed to the men’s time of 90 minutes in 1995.
  • The United States is the only team to reach the semi-finals in all five previous World Cup tournaments.
  • The FIFA’s Women’s World Cup trophy is made of marble, silver and gold and is valued at about 30,000 dollars.  (Source: ESPN)
  • To date, more games have been won by women coaches than by men in the Women’s World Cup.
  • To date, the fastest goal in Women’s World Cup history was scored by Sweden’s Lena Videkull just 30 seconds into the match against Japan in 1991.
  • In a 2011 match between Equatorial Guinea and Australia, a defender for Equatorial Guinea caught and held the ball for a few seconds before dropping it to the ground in the penalty area.  The referee did not see the incident and apologized later for missing it.
  • Three members of the 2011 French Women’s team posed nude for a German magazine to draw attention to the Women’s World Cup. Perhaps they were competing with some members of the German Women’s team who posed for Playboy.
  • 2011 US goalkeeper, Hope Solo, underwent extensive shoulder surgery in 2010 and months of painful rehabilitation to make the roster.  She is second all-time in US history for most caps, wins and shutouts for a goalkeeper.  She has lost only once in goal for the US in the past 6 years.
Hope Solo

Goaltender Hope Solo is hoping to lead the US in 2011.

Posted: 07/06/2011

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The Sports Archives – Funny Sports Pictures – Series 4

Posted on July 2, 2011 by thesportsarchives

More funny pictures from The Sports Archives!

Sumo Wrestler Horse Racing

"I hate these new training programs"

Kraken

"Release the Kraken!"

Yao Ming

"hehe...stop...hehe...ok...ok...take it...take it!"

Posted: 07/02/2011

Posted in Basketball, Horse Racing, Olympics, Other | Tagged , , , , , | 1 Comment

The Sports Archives – Boxing: A Brief History

Posted on June 29, 2011 by thesportsarchives

Ever since the first angry man struck another with his fist, humans have been aware of the power of the punch. Being a perfectly designed bony, yet flat, surface, and driven by the momentum of a whole body, the fist has been the preferred method of doling out punishment since deep into pre-history. It is no wonder then that in every single culture throughout the world, the test of a man’s mettle would be his ability to fight off an enemy. Boxing has its roots somewhere in this deep past, when men (or women), even friends, would challenge each other to non-lethal combat as an exercise for true warfare. Paintings have been found on walls and pottery from Sumer (3rd mill. BC) and Egypt (2nd mill. BC) which depict people fist-fighting; some even include spectators.

Most of what we know about ancient boxing comes from the Greeks, however. Homer’s Iliad, dated to the 8th century BC, includes perhaps the oldest record of a boxing match ever found. The competition perhaps reached its full acceptance as a sport when it was included in the Greek Olympics of 688 BC. Competitors in these fights would train much as modern boxers do, using leather knuckle straps and punching bags. The Olympics, a festival dedicated to Zeus, was the first major sporting spectacle of the ancient world, beginning in 776 BC. In 393 AD, however, it was permanently canceled (in its ancient form at least) by the Roman emperor Theodosius I, who sought to remove all vestiges of pagan religion in the Christianized empire. From this time on, little is known about boxing as a formal sporting event. The records we do have come from Italy and ancient Russia where recreational fist-fighting was a fairly common type of game, but there is no substantial evidence that the fights included an audience.

Boxing re-emerged in the West as the practice of wearing swords waned in favor of an interest in “fencing with fists.” The renewed interest in martial arts stirred up a flurry of fist-fights in England (where the sport was often called “prizefighting”). One of these fights was the first to make the papers when it was detailed in the pages of the London Protestant Mercury in 1681. Apparently a Duke organized a fight between his butler and his butcher. Does it even need to be said who won? The butcher!

By 1719, England had a national champ, James Figg, who held the title for 11 years! As the chaotic sport grew, and several men died brutally in the ring, a champion fighter named Jack Broughton organized a new set of rules, such as: the 30-second rule, no hitting below the belt, and no hitting a man while he’s down. These rules were codified in the London Prize Ring Rules (1838), and then supplanted by the Marquess of Queensberry Rules (1867) which were the first to mention gloves at all! Boxing as we know it today emerged from these humble, but ancient, beginnings and still rests on the rules developed by the Marquess of Queensberry.

Author Bio: Ethan writes on behalf of BoxFit, a UK-based boxing gear supply, and home of Rival Boxing Equipment.

Posted: 06/29/2011

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The Sports Archives – FIFA Women’s World Cup Fun Facts and Memories

Posted on June 27, 2011 by thesportsarchives

The 2011 FIFA Women’s World Cup tournament is held in Germany and began on June 26, 2011 with host team and defending World Cup champion Germany winning it’s first game with a 2-1 score over Canada.

Here are some interesting facts of past FIFA Women’s World Cup tournaments.

  • The first FIFA Women’s World Cup tournament held in 1991 was named the Women’s World Championship and was established 61 years later after the first FIFA men’s world cup in 1930.
  • At present, Norway is the only team other than the United States and Germany to win the Women’s World Cup.
  • Brazil, Germany, Japan, Nigeria, Norway and the United States will have participated in all six Women’s World Cup tournaments to date.
  • At present, Germany is the only team to win consecutive Women’s World Cup tournaments.
  • The 1999 Women’s World Cup final was held at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, California where an attendance of 90,185 set a world record for a women’s sporting event.
  • The 2003 Women’s World Cup venue was moved from China to the United Stated due to the SARS epidemic in China.  China still automatically qualified in 2003 and also went on to host the 2007 tournament which was won by Germany.
  • At present, the leading Women’s World Cup goal scorer is Birgit Prinz of Germany with 14 goals.  Second is Michelle Akers of the United States with 12.
  • The 2015 Women’s World Cup will be hosted by Canada and will feature 8 more participating teams for a total 24 and 20 more games played for a total 52.
Birgit Prinz

Birgit Prinz is current Women's World Cup goal scoring leader.

Posted: 06/27/2011

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The Sports Archives – Funny Sports Pictures – Series 3

Posted on June 22, 2011 by thesportsarchives

More funny pictures from The Sports Archives!

Sumo Wrestler Ski Jumping

I hate these new training programs!

Uh Oh... umm.... stick around for more championship fencing after these messages!

Uh Oh... umm.... stick around for more championship fencing after these messages!

Breaking News...it seems the Moon land rover was just stolen by some alien life force!

Breaking News...it seems the Moon land rover was just stolen by some alien life force!

OR

Junior...you can stop mowing the lawn now

Junior...you can stop mowing the lawn now!

Posted: 06/22/2011

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The Sports Archives – 2011 FIFA Women’s World Cup

Posted on June 18, 2011 by thesportsarchives

The 2011 FIFA Women’s World Cup tournament commences on June 26, 2011 in Germany.  The tournament has been held only 5 times previously with the United States Women’s team winning the first ever in 1991, followed by Norway and then the United States again in 1999.  The German Women’s team has won the last two world cup championships and the only team to date to win consecutively.  They will try to three-peat playing in their own country.

The 15 other teams hoping to dethrone Germany are Japan, the United States, Brazil, Australia, North Korea, Canada, Mexico, Nigeria, Equatorial Guinea, New Zealand, Colombia, England, France, Sweden and Norway.  This is the first Women’s World Cup tournament for the countries of Columbia and Equatorial Guinea.  The US had to defeat Italy in a playoff series to qualify in this year’s tournament.

Some of the players to watch for in this year’s tournament are Abby Wambach and Heather O’Reilly from the United States; Birgit Prinz and Kerstini Stegemann from Germany; Marta from Brazil; Kelly Smith from England; Sandrine Soubeyrand from France; Therese “Terre” Sjögran from Sweden; and Solveig Gulbrandsen from Norway.

This year’s tournament should prove exciting and competitive with the US grouped with Sweden; Brazil with Norway; and Germany and France battling it out in Group A.

2011 FIFA Women's World Cup

2011 FIFA Women's World Cup

Posted: 06/18/2011

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The Sports Archives – The Championships, Wimbledon – 5 World Records

Posted on June 15, 2011 by thesportsarchives

Special Thanks to Author:  Jonathan Piggins

The Championships, Wimbledon returns to the All England Lawn Tennis Club this June to see the greatest tennis stars in the world battle it out for the most coveted title in tennis. In preparation for the event, and to remind us all of the amazing ability and commitment of the players that feature at Wimbledon, we have compiled a list of the greatest World Records currently set at Wimbledon – enjoy!

  • Oldest Grand Slam tournamentFans know it as the most prestigious tennis tournament world but did you know it is also the oldest? The All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club (the home of the Wimbledon tennis tournament) had its first lawn tennis championship in the spring of 1877 – the “Gentlemen’s Singles”. This was a year or two after “lawn tennis” (a form of tennis that the modern game is based on) was first created by Walter Clopton Wingfield. A new set of codes were drawn up specifically for the event with many of the rules remaining in today’s tennis.
  • Longest Tennis Match2010 saw a bevy of World Records being made at Wimbledon and many of them were the result of one match.When John Isner (USA) and Nicolas Mahut (FR) met on 22 June 2010 as part of the first round of the Wimbledon Championship it was unlikely that either would have foreseen the epic match that lay ahead. It lasted a whopping 11 hours 5 mins of play over three days. It had broken the record for the longest ever tennis match by the 2nd day and on both 22nd and 23rd June play was suspended due to darkness. The match currently holds a whole host of other world records including:

    The most aces served by an individual player
    John Isner currently holds the honour of serving 113 aces – the highest number in any Grand Slam tennis match.

    Longest Match by Time and games
    The match took 11 hours 5 minutes of playing time requiring 183 games to finish.

    Longest set by time and games
    The 5th set took 8 hours and 11 minutes – 138 games were played.

    Longest Play and most number of games in a Single Day
    The first 118 games of the 5th set played on the 23rd June 2010 lasted 7 hours 6 minutes.

  • Lowest Ranked Player to win a Grand SlamIn 2001 Croatian Goran Ivanisevic won his first Wimbledon Grand Slam title in an impressive match with Australian Pat Rafter. What is more impressive is that Ivanisevic was ranked 125th at the time and entered the tournament as a wild card. This makes Ivanisevic the lowest ranked player to win a Grand Slam title and Wimbledon’s first (and only) wildcard champion. He was previously a Wimbledon runner-up 3 times (1992, 1994 and 1998). He also holds the current record for the most aces in a tennis tournament with 212 aces made at his 2001 Wimbledon appearance.
  • Longest grand slam tennis match (doubles)Not content with the longest ever tennis match, Wimbledon also holds the record for the longest ever grand slam doubles tennis match thanks to Daniel Nestor (Canada), Mark Knowles (Bahamas), Simon Aspelin (Sweden) and Todd Perry (Australia). On 4-5 July 2006 the Wimbledon quarterfinal match lasted 6 hours and 9 minutes seeing Knowles and Nestor beat Aspelin and Perry 5-7, 6-3, 6-7, 6-3, 23-21.
  • Longest Grand Slam Final Set by Games2009 saw Roger Federer and Andy Roddick battle it out in what was to be the longest tennis match in a Wimbledon final by number of games. Despite Federer taking the lead by the fourth set, Roddick managed to break Federer’s serve by the fourth game leading to Roddick winning the fourth set forcing the match into a fifth. What transpired was the longest 5th set in a grand slam final with Federer finally breaking Roddick’s serve to win the game 5-7, 7-6, 7-6, 3-6, 16-14.

Wimbledon 2011 is shaping up to be an extremely exciting tournament with hopefully the chance of a few more World Records being made at this year’s championships. Whilst tickets are currently allocated through the Public Ballot, Wimbledon hospitality tickets are still an option for fans looking to get into this year’s tournament.

Jonathan is a huge sports fan and loves writing about cricket, tennis and football. He is currently writing on behalf of Keith Prowse – the UK’s number one sports hospitality provider. Keith Prowse has more official appointments than any other hospitality provider, including official Wimbledon 2011 Hospitality.

Posted: 06/15/2011

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The Sports Archives – Funny Sports Pictures – Series 2

Posted on June 9, 2011 by thesportsarchives

More funny pictures from The Sports Archives!

Soccer Dentist

"I'm a dentist in the off-season...which tooth is it?"

 

Dog Water Skiing

"It's OK...before I became an instructor...I had to hold on too."

 

Where's Waldo

Where's Waldo?

 

Posted: 06/09/2011

Posted in Olympics, Other, Soccer | Tagged , , , , , , | 2 Comments