Earl Campbell Graces Cover of SI’s 13th Annual Where Are They Now? Issue

Reggie Jackson Remains the Straw That Stirs the Drink

Revisiting the Making of Bull Durham 24 Years Later

Catching up with: Greg Louganis, Shawn Kemp, Ben Helfgott, Johnny Newman, Ray LeBlanc And More

Sports Activism: Why Don’t More Athletes Take A Stand?

(NEW YORK – July 5, 2012) – Earl Campbell graces the cover of Sports Illustrated’s 13th annual Where Are They Now? issue, dated July 9 and on newsstands now. It is the fourth cover for the alltime great running back and his first since the September 3, 1979, issue. To download a hi-res JPEG of this week’s cover, click here.

STILL SWINGIN AWAY – PHIL TAYLOR (@SI_PhilTaylor): 

Reggie Jackson famously called himself “the straw that stirs the drink,” when he was in his prime hitting home runs for the Yankees and generating headlines for the tabloids in the ‘70s and early ‘80s. When it came to fame, Reggie threw the straw aside and drank it up in huge gulps. Never have a star and a stage seemed more meant for each other than Jackson and New York.  But Mr. October does not starve for the spotlight anymore, largely because he decided to reconnect with his spiritual side in his late 50s.

Jackson has found peace in his life after his playing career. “I say I didn’t need the attention, but in a way I struggled with the attention. I got mean, mean to the people around me, mean to some of the fans who would approach me. I wanted to create some space for myself, so I developed a shell to keep some peace. After being in the fishbowl of New York, that shell got thicker and thicker. I finally got to the place where I didn’t want to carry that shell around with me anymore.”

Few athletes have ever been as comfortable confronting sensitive topics as Jackson.  It’s when he is plunging into touchy issues that some of the Reggie of old emerges; the only difference is that the star no longer has as big a stage.

Jackson’s stance on the issue of undeserving members of the Hall of Fame: “I didn’t see Kirby Puckett as a Hall of Famer. I didn’t see Gary Carter as a Hall of Famer. I didn’t see Don Sutton as a Hall of Famer. I didn’t see Phil Niekro as a Hall of Famer. As much as I like Jim Rice, I’m not so sure he’s a Hall of Famer.”

On whether Bert Blyleven should have been elected into the Hall of Fame: “No. No, no, no, no. Blyleven wasn’t even the dominant pitcher of his era, it was Jack Morris.”

On being passed on the alltime home run list by players linked to performance-enhancing drugs: “I don’t think the fans really count them, and I agree. I believe that Hank Aaron is the home run king, not Barry Bonds, as great a player as Bonds was.”

 

On Alex Rodriguez: “Al’s a very good friend. But I think there are real questions about his numbers. As much as I like him, what he admitted about his usage does cloud some of his records.”

 

Jackson’s view on whether players linked to performance-enhancing drugs should be inducted into the Hall of Fame: “If any of those guys get in, no Hall of Famer will attend.”

On Andy Pettitte’s possible election to the Hall of Fame: “The question is going to be a guy like Andy

Pettitte, who admitted that he got involved for a while, but who is so universally respected in the game. I think he’ll get in, but there will be a lot of [members] who won’t go.” 

 

Would Jackson attend? “He’s an awfully good friend. I’ve known Andy since he was 20. I’ll leave it there.”

Hal Steinbrenner’s view on the slugger’s relationship with his father, George Steinbrenner: “Reggie is larger than life. That’s why he and my father got along so well. Those last several years my dad began to mellow, and I think Reggie did too. Their relationship became a little less about the emotion of any given moment and more about the long-term friendship.”

 

LIFE’S ROSES (AND SAUSAGES) – LEE JENKINS @SI_LeeJenkins

Earl Campbell was one of the most talented and most punishing running backs that college football and the NFL have ever seen. His style was to punish defensive players with the ball in his hands. When former defenders describe what it felt like to tackle him, they sound as if they are recalling a near-death experience. Former Oilers safety Bo Eason: “He hit me so hard that both my contacts flew out. The next day we were watching film with our defensive coordinator, Jerry Glanville, and he asked me why I was running the wrong direction the rest of the game. I told him, ‘Coach, I couldn’t see s—. Earl Campbell knocked my contacts out of my head.”

 

Campbell played only eight years in the NFL and it had an impact on his body that came to haunt him in his 40s.  Arthritis froze his knees, back and feet. He developed gout and diabetes. At 45 he was required to be in a wheelchair. Panic attacks, which had hounded him since retirement, grew more frequent. It was around this time that he began taking OxyContin, up to 10 pills a day, downing each with a Budweiser. It became so bad that during the 30^th-anniversary celebration of his winning the Heisman, Campbell struggled to remember names and dates. Said Heisman winner and former NFL running back Eddie George after that celebration: “I stay focused and prayerful that I won’t have to with the situation of Earl Campbell one day.”

 

In November 2009, Campbell’s two sons, Tyler, who was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis (MS) during his junior season of football at San Diego State, and Christian approached their father and told him he needed help. They drove him to a rehabilitation clinic in Austin. The program lasted 28 days, Campbell stayed 44.

Today Campbell is feeling better than he has in nearly two decades. He’s a special assistant to Texas athletic director DeLoss Dodds, spending a lot of time on campus rehabilitating his knee. His business, Earl Campbell Meat Products is doing very well. It specializes in sausages, as well as microwavable plates of pork, chicken and brisket. His son Tyler, who works with Earl, hasn’t suffered an MS episode in 18 months. Together they are ambassadors for the National MS society, organizing a variety of events to raise money for research. Campbell said, “Some people have a chemical imbalance, I had a chemical imbalance too, until I decided not to put chemicals in there.”

 

WORSHIPPING AT THE CHURCH OF BASEBALL

The motion picture Bull Durham gave viewers details into the color and craziness of the lives of minor league ball players itching to make it to The Show.  It has since gone on to become a classic, even earning the Greatest Sports Movie Ever in 2003, from Sports Illustrated. Twenty-four years later SI reassembled everyone’s favorite Carolina League roster for a look back at the making of Bull Durham.

Kevin Costner on pitching the film to studios:   “We took Bull Durham around to everybody. Ron [director Ron Shelton] said that he felt like we were a couple of hookers trying to sell ourselves on the street. I had a relationship with Orion, but they had another baseball movie, Eight Men Out.”

 

Tim Robbins on his character, Nuke Laloosh:  “Nuke was a great character. I always loved the eccentric players—Bill Lee, Jimmy Piersall. . . . When the knuckleball pitcher with the crazy long hair and the attitude comes along, or Bobby Valentine dresses up as Groucho Marx in a fake mustache, those guys are delightful to watch.”

Susan Sarandon on being cast in the role of Annie:  “As a rule, most studio executives’ strong suit isn’t imagination. So when you’re trying to get a part, it helps for them to be able to envision you in the part. I definitely didn’t go in there in a T-shirt and jeans. I remember I had on an off-the-shoulder red-and-white-striped dress. It was very form-fitting. It was understood what I had to do.”

Tim Robbins and Susan Sarandon on their budding relationship:  “Actually, it happened after the movie. I mean, there was an attraction during the movie, and I could see something was changing from friendship to something else, but we both decided we would wait until we cleared up things in our lives,” said Sarandon. “And we have two great children as a result of that movie,” said Robbins.

Director Ron Shelton on dancing coach Paula Abdul:  “I’d never heard of her. But she came up to me and asked, ‘What part do you have for me?’ And I said, ‘What do you mean?’ She said, ‘The producer said that if I did the choreography for Tim you would have a speaking part for me.’ I said, ‘I’m sorry,’ and she marched off screaming.”

Tim Robbins on what has happened to the characters since then:  “Well, I’d like to think that Crash and Annie ended up having a pretty good marriage and that they’re still together. And Nuke? I always thought that Nuke maybe had a flash in the majors and then blew out his arm and is now signing autographs at trade shows. But maybe you shouldn’t print that. That’s the kind of idea that leads to sequels.”

 

FLYING WITH EASE – REBECCA SHORE

For more than a decade Greg Louganis was the closest thing to perfection the diving world has witnessed, winning five world and 47 national titles, and, most memorably, four Olympic gold medals and one silver across three Games (’76, ’84 and ’88), often by eye-popping­ margins. Later, his book, Breaking the Surface, would change his life forever.  Louganis revealed a history of abuse—emotional­ from his father, physical and sexual from a partner—and his own battles with depression and addiction to alcohol and painkillers. He also declared that he was gay and HIV positive. Following the release, Louganis received a lot of backlash and was hurt by the lack of contact from USA Diving. His coach and mentor, Ron O’Brien, told him it would take time for USA Diving to come around.

It wasn’t until 2011, when USA Diving invited him to become an athlete mentor, that Louganis started working with the organization again in an official capacity. And since early last year he has served as a vice president of the U.S. Olympians Association, a support network for former U.S. Olympic athletes. He has been especially busy in the months leading up to the London Games. In his capacity as a coach, Louganis has worked on breathing exercises with divers such as David Boudia and Nick ­McCrory. Today Louganis talks freely about the darker times. He says, “I could make that my story and say, woe is me, but that’s not who I am. I wrote [Breaking the Surface] to let go of it. It’s history.”

DEEPNESS IN SEATTLE – L. JON WERTHEIM (@Jon_Wertheim)

From draft pick who never played Division-I basketball, to superstar, to punchline, Shawn Kemp’s story arc is unlike any other in NBA history. But these days, 15 years after he was traded by the Sonics in a sour divorce, the man they once called the Reign Man has moved back to Seattle and embraced the city that first embraced him. Heb has put his personal and legal troubles behind him, owns a restaurant and even plays in a flag football league. He’s more of a local fixture than a celebrity, and he is as revered as ever to locals. Seattle is Kemp’s home, and, he says: “It’s like you can get lost here, but you can’t get lost,” he says. “It’s big enough that people respect your privacy but small enough that you get to know a lot of people. Really, it’s been fabulous.” (page 74).

THE STRENGTH TO CARRY ON – DAVID EPSTEIN (@SIDavidEpstein)  

Ben Helfgott may have been an Olympic weightlifter for Great Britain in 1956 and 1960, but that is not where his story begins or ends. In September of 1939, when he was 10, Helfgott’s Polish town of Piotrkow was blasted to rubble by German bombers. Throughout the next six years the Helfgotts hid out in ghettos but eventually became prisoners in concentration camps. In May of 1945, Helfgott walked out of Theresienstadt concentration camp as an 80-pound sack of bones. Almost his entire family had been killed in the camps.  He still talks about the war, saying: “If I forget, then I’m not worthy of being a survivor.” As a 15-year-old he was sent to live in a group home in England with the other 731 orphans from WWII to become part of a group known as The Boys. As The Boys grew into men, Helfgott discovered weightlifting and began training after work as a regional housewares sales manager. When his weightlifting career was over, he became captain of The Boys and chairman of their charity in 1963. Today he coordinates a large gathering of The Boys and their families each year, even though fewer than 250 of the original members are alive. “You’ve always got to live with hope that things will be better. One thing I’m certain of, people are capable of a lot,” Helfgott said.

WHY DON’T MORE ATHLETES TAKE A STAND? – GARY SMITH

There was a time when American athletes placed a major emphasis on making the public aware of their stance on important issues.  Jim Brown, Bill Walton, Arthur Ashe and Tommie Smith all took a stand on some of the world’s most sensitive issues but few athletes do that. In many instances this has to do with fear of upsetting fans or corporate sponsors. John Carlos, who, in an effort to bring attention to racism in the U.S., raised his black-gloved fist on the medal stand after winning a bronze in the 200 meters at the 1968 Summer Games and “brought all hell down upon his head,” said, “Athletes today? They don’t know history! They don’t want to come out of their box and risk people taking away their lollipops.”

 

This is what makes what Joseph Williams did at the University of Virginia so special. Williams, a walk-on on the Cavaliers football team, went on a hunger strike this past semester to bring awareness to a Living Wage campaign, which is fighting for the workers on the campus in Charlottesville, so that they may earn a decent salary. Many of the workers on campus grew especially close to Williams throughout his first few years in school, while still rehabbing his injured ankle, taking a full course load of classes and participating in volunteer work that is so special to him. Some teammates thought he was crazy, and his coaches didn’t approve of his decision to go on a hunger strike, but he recognized the importance of taking a stand, as well as the impact an athlete can have.

If a walk-on athlete can make this much of difference, it makes you wonder what a star could accomplish. Dr. Harry Edwards says of athletes, “They have to speak up. They’re the most visible expression of achievement and financial success in the country. Actors in Hollywood have always been very outspoken. Athletes have surpassed them as Number 1 entertainers; they should be at least outspoken. Those who set the table that today’s athletes are dining at, they exercised that responsibility. Now you have to get past an athlete’s corporate and personal advisers, and so he’s got to think what’s in the best interest of Buick and Nike and Starbucks and General Electric.”

 

RAY LEBLANC – MATT GAGNE

The 1992 U.S Olympic hockey team made the medal round for the first time in 12 years, and Ray LeBlanc was a major part of its success. He was a minor leaguer turned Olympic goalie, averaging 2.20 goals against with a 94.6 save percentage during the Games. “He seemed destined to land a full-time NHL job,” wrote Matt Gagne.

But LeBlanc never got the successful NHL career many predicted. He played one 60-minute game for the Chicago Blackhawks, before returning back to the minor and international leagues. Although he was eligible for that summer’s expansion, he was not selected. LeBlanc now calls Largo, Fla., home. Instead of skating, he spends his days fishing, spending time with his family, volunteering with the homeless or working in receiving at Budweiser at Great Bay Distributors. “I really like driving a forklift,” he said.

ERIC MCCOO – MATT GAGNE

A decade after he left Penn State ranked ninth on the school’s alltime rushing list, Eric (Choo Choo) McCoo is still playing on Sundays. The 31-year-old was picked up two years ago by the Legion of Doom, a team that plays Sunday mornings in the lowest level of a three-tier flag football team in Bolingbrook, Ill. “My body doesn’t function like it used to, but I always find myself in the right position because of my background,” McCoo says. “Not many people know I played in the NFL.”

JOHNNY NEWMAN – STEPHANIE APSTEIN

Until recently, the man with the most losses in the history of professional basketball (664) didn’t even know that he holds that record. A second-round pick in 1986 out of Richmond, Newman played 16 years at guard and forward in the NBA. He laced up alongside such likely Hall of Famers as Patrick Ewing, Tim Hardaway, Ray Allen, Steve Nash and Dirk Nowitzki – but almost all near the start of their careers. “I had the opportunity to be around guys who became great players. Unfortunately my record took a hit because it was early and they all were still learning to play the game.”

Newman, 48, retired in 2002 and moved back to Richmond. He now dedicates his time to many ventures including the Johnny Newman Foundation, which he started in 1985 to mentor underprivileged kids.

CHRIS DUDLEY – STEPHANIE APSTEIN

When he was diagnosed at age 16 with type 1 diabetes, Chris Dudley refused to let his condition stop him from playing basketball. Told by doctors that he would never be able to play in college or professionally, Dudley walked onto the Yale basketball team and was drafted 75^th overall by Cleveland in 1987. He played for five teams in 16 seasons and retired in 2002. In 2005 he became a partner in Filigree Advisors, a Portland-based wealth-management company that specializes in helping current and former professional athletes manage their finances. In 2010, Dudley ran for governor of Oregon and lost in one of the closest gubernatorial races in state history. Today he manages the Chris Dudley Foundation, which aids diabetic children and runs a basketball camp annually for 75 diabetic teens. “It’s incredibly difficult for someone with diabetes but don’t let it stop you,” Dudley said.

ANTHONY YOUNG – DAN GREENE (@thedangreene)

Anthony Young holds a dubious record. From 1992-93 he lost 27 consecutive decisions, a number that has not come close to being topped in the last 19 years. But that streak and his career record (14-48) haven’t stopped Young from staying close to the game. The former pitcher, who lives in Houston coaches one of the top-ranked Little League in the country. Young says he took lessons from enduring his historic streak as well as the encouragement he received at the time from Hall of Famers, teammates and opponents. Now, he just wants to pass those lessons on to young kids. Of breaking the infamous record, Young says: “It was like the zoo had been lifted off my back and we had just won the World Series.” (page 110)

 

SORECARD: THIS CHANGES EVERYTHING – MICHAEL ROSENBERG (@Rosenberg_Mike)

It only took 142 years to implement a playoff system in college football, and it’s still not done yet. There remains to be contracts signed and money to be divided up. For decades college football’s power brokers have argued that a playoff would permanently damage the sport by ruining the best regular-season in sports. Now there is hope that a playoff will save the sport, or at least stabilize it, after an ugly era of conference-hopping and broken contracts. A playoff is not just desirable, it’s necessary.

POINT AFTER AH, YES, I REMEMBER IT WELL- PHIL TAYLOR (@SI_PhilTaylor):

The year is 2042, and SI writer Phil Taylor is reveling in the annual Where Are They Now? issue of Sports Illustrated. The magazine is projected in hologram form and takes readers back to look at sports in 2012 – those were the days! Taylor’s teenage grandson enters the room and wants to talk about what sports were like back then. He tells him to wait a moment, while he finishes reading a story about portly retirees Andrew Luck and Bryce Harper getting into shape as Weight Watchers spokesmen. Taylor then says, “In 2012 fans didn’t criticize everyone the way young folks do now. We even appreciated umpires and referees – back when they were human.”

 

FUTURE GAME CHANGERS – WHERE WILL THEY BE?

Call it Where Are They Now: The Prequel, in which SI travels 10 years into the future and looks back at how the stars of tomorrow got their start today. Dizzying, to be sure, but so is the potential of the eight teenagers-to-watch profiled in this week’s issue. Someday you will be able to say that you knew the following athletes back when.

·         Sarah Hendrickson (Park City, Utah) – Ski Jumping

·         Jeremy Martinez (Fountain Valley, Calif.) – Baseball

·         Arielle Gold (Steamboat Springs, Colo.)– Snowboarding

·         Travis Wittlake Jr. (Coos Bay, Ore.) – Wrestling

·         Jabrill Peppers (Midland Park, N.J.) – Football

·         Taylor Townsend (Stockbridge, Ga.) – Tennis

·         Jahlil Okafor (Chicago) – Basketball

·         Jane Campbell (Kennesaw, GA.) – Soccer

 

THIS WEEK’S FACES IN THE CROWD

·         Jordan Freer (Lotus, Calif./California Montessori Project) – Swimming

·         Austin Kafentzis (Sandy, Utah/Jordan High) – Track and Field, Football

·         Drew Jackson (Tyrone, Ga./Woodward Academy) – Lacrosse

·         Tristan Nunez (Boca Raton, Fla./#1 Education Place) – Motor Sports

·         Nicole Gibbs (Santa Monica, Calif./Stanford University) – Tennis

·         Timothy Olson (Ashland, Ore./39^th Western States Endurance Run) – Ultramarathon

To submit a candidate for Faces In The Crowd, go to SI.com/faces. Follow on Twitter @SI_Faces

INSIDE THE WEEK IN SPORTS

·         MLB (page 33): Regeneration –  The sudden rise of rookies Mike Trout and Bryce Harper characterize a season dominated by the new.  Tom Verducci

·         NASCAR (page 42): Man on the Move – Former cup champ Matt Kenseth hasn’t lost a step, so why is he walking away from his long-term team?  (@LarsAndersonSI)

·         Tennis (page 38): The Older the Better – Brian Baker’s run in the first round of Wimbledon was just one example of a big trend in men’s tennis: age is actually in a player’s favor. S.L. Price

-SI-

LeBron James Makes Good on His Promise to Deliver a Championship to South Beach

The Dream Team’s Legendary Scrimmage: Michael Jordan vs. Magic Johnson

Royce White’s Fear of Flying Makes Him the NBA Draft’s Mystery Pick

Giancarlo Stanton Leaves His Imprint on Outfield Walls and Scoreboards

Drug-Free Cyclists Prepare for the Tour De France and Olympics

 

(NEW YORK – June 28, 2012) – Twenty-nine teams should be very afraid, because LeBron James has breached the championship levee, just as Michael Jordan did in 1991. Jordan was 28, and he won five more titles in the next seven years, even with a break for baseball. James is 27, and for the first time, he will get to play, as Heat president Pat Riley acknowledged, “with freedom.” LeBron making good on his promise to bring an NBA Championship to South Beach is the cover story for the July 2, 2012 issue of Sports Illustrated, on newsstands now.

James punctuated one of the best regular seasons in the modern era with one of the best playoffs, leading the Heat with 30.3 points, 9.7 rebounds and 5.6 assists, while shooting 50% and guarding everyone from Carmelo Anthony and Rajon Rondo to Russell Westbrook and Kevin Durant.  In the series clinching Game 5 versus the Thunder he scored 26 points with 11 rebounds and 13 assists, eight of which led to three-pointers by five different teammates, accounting for 60 points in a 121–106 throttling of the Thunder.

“It’s time to make a new challenge. I’ve got to figure out what that is. I know I can get better. And I know I’m not satisfied with one of these. That’s the next challenge to do it again.” said LeBron James.| 37

Senior writer Lee Jenkins points out that the championship could not have been won without a change in philosophy from one of the team’s best players. LeBron couldn’t carry the Heat if Dwyane Wade was going to claim the load.

“He basically looked at me one day and told me, ‘I need you to lead this team now,’ ”James says. “And then he did it during games. He’d say, ‘I need you to lead us right here.’ ” By the time the playoffs began, roles were defined. James was the headliner. Wade, suffering from an injured left knee, was the sidekick. “It was hard for me to do it,” Wade admits, “but it was easy for me to do it for the team.”

 

To download a high res image of the cover

 

THE GREATEST GAME NOBODY EVER SAW – JACK MCCALLUM (@JackMcCallum)

The Dream Team, arguably the most dominant squad ever assembled in any sport, played 14 games 20 years ago, and their smallest margin of victory was 32 points.  The toughest competition faced by the best team in basketball history was at a closed scrimmage in Monaco between sides led by Michael Jordan and Magic Johnson.  The details of the game remained a secret to the world for nearly 20 years, until now.

Most of the 12 names on the roster remain familiar to fans decades later, and all are members of the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame.  The common matrices of statistical comparison are simply not relevant in the case of the Dream Team, whose members could be evaluated only when they played each other. The video of that scrimmage, therefore, is the holy grail of basketball.

“You have a tape? Of that game? Man, everybody asks me about that Game. It was the most fun I ever had on a basketball court,” said Michael Jordan.

 

 

THE MYSTERY PICK IS ROYCE WHITE – PABLO TORRE (@SIPabloTorre)

Iowa State’s Royce White was the only player in Division I to lead his team in points, rebounds, assists, steals and blocks. College coaches around the country praise his all-around game, but his spot in this Thursday’s NBA draft remains a mystery. He has been projected to be a lottery pick or end up in the second round. The main reason for this is that White has a generalized anxiety disorder and suffers from a severe fear of flying, which worries many NBA executives.

White was allowed to drive to a few games last season, but in sit-downs with White, NBA officials have warned him that the pros will be less accommodating. The Heat informed him that they won’t allow a player to drive from even Miami to Orlando. White said, “It’s understandable. But in my head, I’m going, you want me to drive. You’re paying me millions of dollars to perform … the point is, we’re not all alike.”

Royce’s talent is not lost on his contemporaries as none of the projected top 15 picks have agreed to work out against White for NBA teams. During the second round of the NCAA tournament against Kentucky, a game that was close into the second half, White had 23 points, nine rebounds, four assists and three steals. Projected No.1 pick Anthony Davis said after the game, “Royce was beating us by himself.”

NAME CHANGER, GAME CHANGER – ALBERT CHEN

Long before he became Giancarlo Stanton, the young Marlins slugger left an unmistakable imprint – on scouts, not to mention countless outfield walls and scoreboards. The outfielder was called up to the big leagues as a 20-year old along with the legend of having bludgeoned baseballs out of ballparks and into parking lots, golf courses and lakes. Before games opposing players and coaches linger to watch Stanton take batting practice. This past May, Stanton had historic month, hitting .343 with 12 home runs and 30 RBIs to become the youngest player since Joe DiMaggio to reach those totals in any month.

Stanton mashed 56 home runs after his first two seasons in the majors, only Ken Griffey Jr. and Alex Rodriguez had as many before age 22 in the last 45 years. His teammates call him by his nickname: Bigfoot.

“He does things no human should be able to do. The only guy I have ever heard players talk about like they talk about [Stanton] is Darryl Strawberry,” said teammate Randy Choate.

“People have said that homegrown power arms is the most important commodity in the game, but the middle-of-the-order, 30-home-run guy is becoming almost as valuable, given how few of them there are now,” said an American League G.M.

I SEE LONDON, I SEE FRANCE – AUSTIN MURPHY (@si_AustinMurphy)

Cycling has been plagued by doping scandals for years, but recent USADA regulations have made cheating much more difficult.  Today’s top cyclists are minutes slower than athletes in EPO’s heyday.  And with the 99thTour de France and 2012 London Olympics quickly approaching, spectators are bound to see a more authentic competition than in previous Games.

 

“Performances are less predictable, more human and, – as a result, more exciting,” write Austin Murphy.

In this article, Austin Murphy evaluates the top Olympic and Tour riders. Despite injuries and training challenges, Brad Wiggins and Mark Cavendish, two Brits on a British-based squad called Team Sky should dominate the field at both major events.

 

“Ten days after the Tour, Wiggins will roll down the ramp at Hampton Court Palace, hard by the Thames, as one of the favorites in the Olympic 44-km time trial around London,” writes Murphy.

 

SCORECARD: RINGING MOMENT ON CENTRE COURT – S.L. PRICE

It can be argued that tennis at the Olympics holds little weight in the game. Majors aside, there are 10 other tournaments this year that count more in the rankings than the London Games. This time however, the normal math can’t apply, because the Olympics will be held at Wimbledon and Wimbledon is where tennis gods are made.  It’s no accident that Novak Djokovic of Serbia and Rafael Nadal of Spain will serve as their nations’ flag bearers in the opening ceremony—and that Roger Federer is an odds-on favorite to do likewise for Switzerland.

If the Olympics are indeed the showcase for the planet’s best athletes, it’s only right that the three who’ve pushed the men’s game to unprecedented heights will be out front.

 

 

 

POINT AFTER: LIGHT FROM THE DARKNESS – PHIL TAYLOR (@SI_PhilTaylor)

Last week, Jerry Sandusky was found guilty on 45 of 48 counts of sexual abuse, the two-week trial reminded us all of over again of the revolting nature of his crimes.  But from that darkness came some light.  A groundswell at the legislative level, university level and the grassroots level has emerged to fight back against pedophiles.  Victims have been emboldened to come forward.

Dan Rost, a sophomore from Franklin County, Pa., along with three other students founded the One Heart Campaign to raise money and awareness to help fight child abuse.  Rost said, “I had no clue how prevalent an issue this was until then. Then I did some research and realized this was not just a Sandusky issue, not just a Penn State issue, but a national issue. I decided I didn’t want to live in a culture in which this was such a widespread problem, so I decided to see what could be done about it.”

 

INSIDE THE WEEK IN SPORTS

·         NHL (page 31): Value Added – NHL free agency begins this Sunday and some big names could be changing teams.  But the player most likely to reap the richest rewards is a defenseman many hockey fans have never heard of.  (@MichaelFarber3)

·         MLB (page 30) East or Famine – With interleague play done for the year, the game’s balance of power tilts decidedly to the right side of the map. (@joe_sheenhan)

·         Soccer (page 32) The Case for Cristiano – Lionel Messi may be more beloved, but the Euros confirm the claim of his rival, Cristiano Ronaldo, to the title of 2012 world player of the year.  (@GrantWahl)

 

THIS WEEK’S FACES IN THE CROWD (page 22)

• Matt Nesmith (North Augusta, S.C./North Augusta High) – Golf
• Danielle Aragon (Billings, Mont./Billings High) –Track and Field
• Bakawsu Kinteh (Suwanee, Ga./Lambert High) – Soccer
• Gina Medina Van Arsdall (Glendale, Ariz./Phoenix College) – Softball
• Dayton Silva (Manhattan Beach, Calif./MiraCosta College) – Surfing
• Gabrielle Clark (Chicago, Ill./Emory University) – Tennis
• Dillon Pottish (East Quogue, N.Y./Emory University) – Tennis

To submit a candidate for Faces in the Crowd, go to SI.com/faces. Follow on Twitter @SI_Faces.

-SI-

Russell Westbrook Could Be the Leading Man in the NBA Finals

Andrew McCutchen Discovers That Being the Natural Is Not Enough

Manny Pacquaio’s Controversial Loss in Las Vegas Dealt Boxing a Crippling Blow

Sharapova’s and Nadal’s  French Open Victories were Achieved by Desire and Tenacity

The  Extraordinary Adventures of the 1956 Hungarian Olympic Team

 

(NEW YORK – June 6, 2012) – A new era in the NBA has arrived and it has taken two men to deliver it. LeBron James, 27, and Kevin Durant, 23, are the key players of this post-Kobe era, and each is seeking his first title at the other’s expense. The last Finals to launch a new generation with so much anticipation and promise was the showdown between the Lakers and the Celtics in 1984, when Magic Johnson’s Lakers lost to Larry Bird’s Celtics over seven memorable games. A look inside the much anticipated match-up of the two best players in the league during this year’s NBA Finals is the cover story for the June 18, 2012, issue of Sports Illustrated, on newsstands now.

Unlike Johnson (a point guard) and Bird (a small forward), who rarely guarded each other, James and Durant will match up for a majority of their minutes, making for must-watch TV. The two players forged a friendship this past off-season. Durant spent four days in Akron working out with James, where they consoled each other about their shared troubles with the veteran Mavs, who had KO’d the Thunder last spring before upsetting the Heat in the Finals.

LeBron James said, “We pushed each other each and every day. I envisioned us getting to this point.”

To download a high res image of the cover click here

LEADING MAN—CHRIS MANNIX (@ChrisMannixSI)

Oklahoma City point guard Russell Westbrook may not be the biggest name in the Finals, but how well he runs the Thunder’s offense will determine which team goes home with a championship. Consider Westbrook’s job description: Don’t just score, create, and do it while keeping the turnovers down, the shooting percentage up and, oh, yeah, making sure the NBA’s scoring champ, Kevin Durant, is getting enough shots. Not since Allen Iverson has an elite point guard been asked to play such a multifaceted role.

Westbrook’s relationship with Durant has been dissected at a Kardashian level. Critics have wondered whether two alpha males can coexist, bringing up examples of discord (a well-publicized blowup on the bench in Memphis last December) and statistics (Westbrook’s hoisting up nearly as many shots as Durant in a bumpy 2011 playoffs) as proof that they can’t. What’s rarely cited is how Westbrook and Durant were inseparable during All-Star weekend or how the two routinely text each other about anything, from basketball to video games, late at night. Nor is it often noted that the duo scored more points per game (51.6) than any other tandem this season, or that when the game is tight, Westbrook defers: With a minute to play and the score within three points, Durant has attempted 37 shots, Westbrook eight.

Says Westbrook:“People keep trying to break me and Kevin up. But we just keep getting closer.”

BEING THE NATURAL ISN’T ENOUGH – JOSEPH LEMIRE (@SI_JoeLemire)

Pittsburgh Pirates All-Star outfielder Andrew McCutchen was a naturally gifted high school ballplayer who was chosen 11th overall in a draft that has been hailed as one of the best in major league history.  McCutchen cruised through his first two years in the minors, dominating Rookie and Class A ball, but the moment he understood what it was to be a professional occurred when he faced adversity for the first time.  Struggling in Double A he recognized that for even the bluest of baseball’s blue chip prospects, his natural talent was not enough. After being presented with a list of flaws and recommended fixes, McCutchen looked his coach in the eye and said, “Let’s go do it.”

“Adversity is a great teacher,” says Pirates assistant G.M. Kyle Stark, who oversees player development. “Our philosophy here is that we’re trying to maximize what guys do naturally, so we want to see that before we change things.”

McCutchen is gunning to become part of an exclusive club: active players who have helped the Pirates finish .500. Pittsburgh is mired in a 19-year streak of losing seasons, but McCutchen sees reason to hope for the future of the organization. “Once that streak is beaten, you’re going to want something else,” McCutchen says. “Why not reach the playoffs and win the World Series? Why not do it all? Let’s open some eyes, man.”

 

WHAT WAS LOST IN LAS VEGAS—CHRIS MANNIX (@ChrisMannixSI)

After Manny Pacquiao lost his WBO welterweight title to Timothy Bradley, the boxing world was in turmoil. Last Saturday night, millions of boxing fans watched Pacquiao cruise to what appeared to be a comfortable 16th straight victory. Instead, the judges awarded a split-decision victory to Bradley, one of the worst calls in the history of boxing. Even boxing promoter Bob Arum said, “I’m ashamed for the sport.”

Lost in the controversy was an even bigger question: What’s next for Manny Pacquiao? The 33-year-old Filipino’s skills have diminished over time and fighting Floyd Mayweather Jr. no longer has the allure it once did. The money will always be there but what boxing lost last Saturday may haunt it forever.

THE PLOT THICKENS (AGAIN)—L. JON WERTHEIM (@Jon_Wertheim)

Maria Sharapova has regained the top ranking and Rafael Nadal finally took down his chief rival, setting the stage for Wimbledon and the Olympics. The 2012 French Open represented seven rounds of gladiatorial Hunger Games. Yes, the champions—Rafael Nadal and Maria Sharapova—succeeded because they were able to pound a ball over a net with the greatest force and accuracy. In the end, though, they survived because they were driven by superior motivation, desire and tenacity.

Nadal rebounded to defeat his rival Novak Djokovic, who had defeated him seven straight times.  The last time the two met, Nadal suffered a heart-wrenching six-hour marathon match at the Australian Open, a defeat that even his closest friends thought may deflate his spirit.  The following evening Nadal calmly told them, “I lost last night, but now I know I can beat him again.”

Reaching the final brought Sharapova the No. 1 WTA ranking, and winning gave her the career Grand Slam—singles trophies from each of the four majors—a feat that many other champions (Monica Seles, Venus Williams, Justine Henin, Martina Hingis) never achieved. An hour after the final Sharapova was still digesting her accomplishment. “No matter how many how punches I took, I’ve always gotten back up,” she said.

 

REVOLUTION GAMES – ALEXANDER_WOLFF (@Alexander_Wolff)

Charred automobiles and rotting corpses lined the streets as members of the 1956 Hungarian Olympic team made their way to the Summer Olympics in Melbourne, Australia. The team had more than just performance pressures on their shoulders as they traveled to the Olympics. Their home and their families were under attack as the Soviets invaded their homeland.

“The Olympics, the whole thing has lost its importance, its beauty, because of what’s happening back at home,” said a water polo player named Istvan Hevesi.

The Hungarian athletes’ greatest feat was beating the Soviets 4-0 in the water polo semifinals.  Despite the team’s overall success, many of the athletes’ experiences were less than ideal.  “All you’re thinking about is a decision you’ll be making that will affect the rest of your life,” said Hungarian diver Frank Siak.

That decision was whether to defect or return to a country under Soviet occupation. Those who decided to defect did so with the help of a young, struggling sports magazine, Sports Illustrated.

 

SCORECARD: DIFFERENT STROKES – LYNN SHERR 

Every fourth summer, the pageantry and drama of the Olympics set our hearts soaring and ignites our imagination. “Wow! Look at those swimmers,” we say to ourselves, buoyed by their splashy, churning performances and bobbing, smiling postrace pool play. “Did you see Michael Phelps dolphin-kick his way to the finish? It just looked so . . . easy!” Careful. The next sentence is the tricky one. It so often goes like this: “I could do that.” Actually, you couldn’t.

Guest contributor Lynn Sherr writes, “Elite swimmers are different from the tips of their oversized hands to their flippersized feet, all of which scoop up oceans of water. They even walk differently.” 

 

POINT AFTER: CASEY MARTIN’S VICTORY LAP– PHIL TAYLOR (@SI_PhilTaylor)

The U.S. Open will feature a familiar name this weekend, Casey Martin.   The golfer who earneda spot in the Open by winning a sectional qualifier last week is the same Casey Martin who was competitive enough to earn five top 50 tournament finishes in 2000 despite needing a golf cart to play. He waged a four-year legal fight to keep playing even though many fellow golfers opposed his right to ride. (The Supreme Court ruled 7–2 in his favor on Jan. 17, 2001.) But he’s also a different Casey Martin—no longer a member of the Tour, he’s now the Oregon golf coach, and at 40 far more intense about his Ducks’ performances than his own.

Casey Martin says, “The thing is, I don’t really play golf. At least, I don’t play rounds of golf very often. I’ll go out and beat some balls with my guys at practice, maybe get out there half an hour early and hit some shots, but I’ve probably only played 12, 15 rounds in the past year.”

 

INSIDE THE WEEK IN SPORTS

• MLB (page 30): Adapt or Die– Six weeks ago, the Angels were headed to oblivion. Angels manager Mike Scioscia, one of the most successful in the league, has turned things around.  (@SI_BenReiter)
• Horse Racing (page 36): Rags to Riches – In Belmont without I’ll Have Another, Union Rags delivered a victory that saved the day for racing. (@SITimLayden)
• Olympics (page 32): Running For No. 1 – Jamaican sprinter Yohan Blake’s strong performance at the Adidas Grand Prix sets up an intriguing battle with his famous countryman Usain Bolt at the Olympics in London.   (@SIDavidEpstein)

On the Tablet: Truth and Rumors

THIS WEEK’S FACES IN THE CROWD (page 24)

• Bill Stanley (South Park, Pa./South Park High) – Track and Field
• Kimmons Wilson (Winter Park, Fla./Winter Park Crew) – Rowing
• Chris Brown (North Chelmsford, Mass./Brandeis University) – Track and Field
• Shantana Kanhoye (Queens, N.Y./John Adams High)- Flag Football
• K.C. Wilson (Winter Springs, Fla./The Masters Academy) – Waterskiing
• Alli Cash (Overland Park, Kans./Shawnee Mission West) –Track and Field

To submit a candidate for Faces in the Crowd, go to SI.com/faces. Follow on Twitter @SI_Faces.

-SI-

Josh Hamilton Talks About Relapses, Religion, Family and Baseball

Manny Pacquiao Has Given up Gambling, Drinking and Infidelity, How Will That Affect His Boxing?

In This Year’s Stanley Cup Finals, No Player Has Shown as Brightly as Kings Goaltender Jonathan Quick

The U.S. is in Position to Sweep the Decathlon for Just the Second Time in Olympic History

U.S. Soccer Coach Jurgen Klinsmann Is Transforming the Game in America

(NEW YORK – June 6, 2012) – Texas Rangers centerfielder Josh Hamilton is on pace to have one of the greatest seasons in major league history, but one night earlier this year could have altered everything. Hamilton’s battle with drug and alcohol addiction had wasted five years of his career and an alcohol relapse in a Dallas bar in late January gained national attention. His family, teammates, the Rangers organization and most important Hamilton have moved on from this worrisome moment, but the difficult journey Hamilton faces every day is the cover story for the June 11, 2012, issue of Sports Illustrated, on newsstands now. This is the second time Hamilton as appeared on the cover, the first was on June 2, 2008.

Rangers manager Ron Washington knows the cost of bad choices, as he tested positive for cocaine during the 2009 season. He and Hamilton talk frequently about temptation, the game, people and what it means to be a man. Washington says, “Sometimes he can’t sleep at night. This is when the demons start to come out of him, and he needs someone to talk to. Sometimes it takes 20 minutes up in here, and sometimes we take a half an hour. Then he leaves, and I’m cleansed and he’s cleansed.”

Senior writer S.L. Price spoke with Hamilton’s wife, Katie, about the battles and the two relapses Josh has had over the last four years. Katie, who like Josh is a born-again Christian, credits their faith for saving Josh’s life, their marriage, his body and talent for the moment when he could return to baseball. After all she has been through with Josh, it would be easy to write off what happened in January, but Katie says, “People that don’t know me probably think I have some kind of co-dependence issue, like I get my value in helping him.  Absolutely not. I fully expect him to be the man and husband that God has called him to be. I should never have to assist him in this.”

As Hamilton continues to put up what could be historic numbers, through Sunday, he was hitting .354 and leading the majors in homers (21), RBIs (57), OPS (1.138), total bases (142) and slugging percentage (.728), for him, it will be his faith and hard work that keeps him going every day (page 36).

To download a high res image of the cover click here

On the Tablet: Podcast with S.L. Price and Richard Deitsch and a video of Hamilton’s four-HR from earlier this season.

THE FIGHTER FINDS PEACE – CHRIS MANNIX (@ChrisMannixSI)

Manny Pacquiao was on top of the world. And as the face of his sport, a world champion and a congressman in his home country, the Philippines, he had every reason to be. But in life, Pacquiao was on a path to destruction. Gambling, drinking and infidelity almost derailed the boxer’s life. His gambling turned so bad that even though Pacquiao was earning $25 to $30 million per bout, he was still forced to go to his promoter, Bob Arum, for cash to pay his debts. Arum has to wired hundreds of thousands of dollars to casinos five or six times. Arum said, “[Manny] had one of the worst gambling habits of any athlete I’ve ever known. He was addicted to it.”

After his wife Jinkee told him she wanted a divorce, he knew it was time to change and nine months ago when he found God, he finally was able to turn his life around (page 58).

Now, with a bout against the undefeated Timothy Bradley scheduled for Saturday, Pacquiao, and those around him, say he’s in a better place—that he is at peace. Trainer Freddie Roach says Pacquiao’s killer instinct is still there, saying, “His boxing is as consistent as it has ever been. He’s not the same fighter he was five years ago, but he is still better than everyone else.”

On the Tablet: Video previewing this weekend’s scheduled fight.

JONATHAN AND THE AMERICANS – MICHAEL FARBER (@MichaelFarber3)

When the Stanley Cup is won, commissioner Gary Bettman will hand the trophy to New Jersey’s Zach Parise (Minneapolis) or L.A.’s Dustin Brown (Ithaca, N.Y.). For the first time both finalists have U.S. natives as captains. In addition, this marks the first time that both general managers – the Kings’ Dean Lombardi (Ludlow, Mass.) and the Devils’ Lou Lamoriello (Providence) – are U.S. born.  In Game 2 both teams dressed six American players in their 20- man lineup, ratios that far exceed the overall NHL percentage of American players (24.2%).

In a coast-to-coast series brimming with U.S. born stars, no one has shone as brightly as the Kings’ soft-spoken goaltender, Jonathan Quick. Hailing from Connecticut, Quick may prove to be a once-in-a-generation goalie. On the ice his low stance obscures the bottom of the net while his skill and reflexes safeguard the upper portion of the net (page 46).

L.A. defenseman Willie Mitchell said, “This is my second year here, and he’s one of the best goaltenders I’ve ever seen. He’s also one of the best teammates ever because he’s such a selfless guy.”

On the Tablet: All-time, All-American team.

 

FASTER, HIGHER, STRONGER – TIM LAYDEN (@SITimLayden)

The winner of the Olympic decathlon receives the unofficial title of World’s Greatest Athlete. In London the U.S. has three men who could all vie for the gold.  Ashton Eaton, 24, may be a little young but has been deemed the greatest decathlon runner ever. Bryan Clay is 32 and while he may be too old, he won the gold at Beijing and is the second-best thrower in event history. The last is Trey Hardee who at 28 is in the prime of his career and is the most consistent across all 10 events (page 62).

The U.S. has an opportunity to sweep the decathlon for just the second time in Olympic history. The other was in 1936. Said Chris Huffins, Olympic bronze medalist in the decathlon, “We have three very talented guys in stable training situations, and the European-combined-event factories—the Czech Republic, Germany, the former Soviet countries—do not have that one guy. This is our time.”

Eaton, who many feel is the favorite because of his superior running ability, is trying to stay grounded. He said, “It’s important to not make the gold medal bigger than it is. But nobody ever says that about things that aren’t big.”

On the Tablet: Video’s of each decathlete.

 

NOW IS THE TIME IN SOCCER WHEN WE DANCE – GRANT WAHL (@GrantWahl)

World Cup qualifying has begun and U.S. soccer coach Jurgen Klinsmann hopes to transform the way the game is played in America. By using the latest medical technology and pushing his players out of their comfort zone, Klinsmann is shaping a new era of leadership in American soccer, both at the professional and youth level. As he looks to change the American soccer philosophy, he organizes team yoga sessions, pattern recoginition drills and consistent blood tests (page 52).

Klinsmann has his players participate in VO2 max screenings, which measure the body’s ability to transport oxygen during exercise to gauge overall fitness. Some players believe this is a good and interesting way to approach their training but some are a bit skeptical about the aspects of the blood tests, amount of blood drawn and the value of doing your own scouting report.

With a history of mixed results, Klinsmann is looking to other coaches like Duke’s Mike Krzyzewski for inspiration and is trying to develop his players as complete people. Klinsmann said, “If you have a choice of seeing the Panama Canal or playing Xbox for two hours, we make that choice of the Panama Canal for you.”

 

SCORECARD: BACK TO HIS FUTURE – MELISSA SEGURA (@MelissaSeguraSI) 

Brian Banks, a former blue-chip middle linebacker at Long Beach (Calif.) Poly High, has lost a lot in his life.  In 2002, Banks was accused of raping former classmate Wanetta Gibson in a school stairwell. Banks lost his football scholarship to USC, spent five years of his life in prison and another five years wearing an electronic monitoring device strapped to his ankle.  Last year, Gibson admitted that she had lied, and with the help of the California Innocence Project, Banks cleared his name. Now the 26-year-old hopes to revive his football dream and make an NFL team.  Banks’ first tryout with NFL teams will be on Thursday, when he travels to Seattle to work out for Seahawks coach Pete Carroll, the man who recruited Banks to USC a decade ago (page 13).

Banks said, “The main thing for me is to reinvent myself as a person. I want to be known for who I really am and not what this system has labeled me as being. That starts with football.”

 

POINT AFTER: NOT-SO-HARD KNOCKOFFS– PHIL TAYLOR (@SI_PhilTaylor)

HBO’s Hard Knocks has finally found a team for next season, the Miami Dolphins. But why should HBO stop there? There’s plenty of room for expansion in the Hard Knocks franchise all you need to do is look at the formula for other TV shows. Why not do a Hard Knocks Criminal Intent, focusing on the Roger Clemens trial? Or a Hard Rockers, following Ryan Seacrest, Randy Jackson and the gang as they judge the London Olympic Games? Says SI’s Phil Taylor, “A Hard Knocks appearance can either draw attention to a team that needs it or rehabilitate the image of one that’s getting the wrong pub. In fact HBO, ought to be considering building out the franchise, like Law & Order and CSI.” (page 72).

 

INSIDE THE WEEK IN SPORTS

·         Golf (page 24): Open Questions – Sports Illustrated surveyed more than 50 Tour pros on everything from which major is the most fair to who beat Hogan in 1955. Survey questions include:

o    Besides yourself, who would you like see win the U.S. Open – Phil Mickelson 22%

o    Based on course setup, which major is the most difficult? – U.S. Open 87%

o    What is your favorite U.S. Open course? – Pebble Beach 26%

o    Your least favorite U.S. Open course? – Oakmont 15%

·         MLB (page 32): Good As New – In the 8,020th game in Mets history, Johan Santana did what Tom Seaver, Dwight Gooden and every other hurler in the franchise’s history couldn’t: He threw a no-hitter. In just his 11th start after shoulder surgery cost him the entire 2011 season, Santana threw a career-high 134 pitches against the St. Louis Cardinals, striking out eight, walking five and creating a million memories for Mets fans. (@SI_BenReiter)

·         NBA (page 28): These Kids Are Alright – No one in Oklahoma City’s core four is older than 23, hard to believe given the team is in its second straight Western Conference finals. The Thunder have showed that they have grown up since last year’s playoffs with their play this series. (@SI_LeeJenkins)

·         NHL (page 33): Best Ever? – Nicklas Lidstrom combined extraordinary ability with superb durability. At 42 years old, he retired, capping off the greatest career of any defenseman. (@Rosenberg_Mike)

·         Tennis (page 30): The Old World Order – Week 1 of the French Open, with so many European players playing through, proved that the center of the sport has moved to the Continent. The top eight seeds of the men’s draw were from Europe and 24 of the top 27 women’s seeds. (@Jon_Wertheim)    

 

On the Tablet: Truth and Rumors

 

THIS WEEK’S FACES IN THE CROWD (page20)

·         Summer Green (Milford, Mich./Brighton High) – Soccer

·         Dom Kone (Bucksport, Maine/Colby College) – Track and Field

·         Marie Kelleher (Glen Allen, Va./Virginia Senior Games) – Swimming

·         Shawn Beam (Burleson, Texas/U.S. Bowling Congress) – Bowling

·         Kate Baldoni (Newport Beach, Calif./Stanford) – Water Polo

·         Christian Metzler (Woodbridge, Va./Pope John Paul the Great) – Track and Field, Soccer

To submit a candidate for Faces in the Crowd, go to SI.com/faces. Follow on Twitter @SI_Faces.

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About Sports Illustrated

Sports Illustrated is a multimedia sports brand that takes the consumer into the heart and soul of sports.  The Sports Illustrated franchise is anchored by the weekly magazine—the most respected voice in sports journalism, reaching a weekly audience of nearly 22 million adults—and www.SI.com, the magazine’s 24/7 sports news website that delivers more than 300 original stories to its users each week.  The franchise also includes Sports Illustrated Kids (www.sikids.com), a monthly magazine targeted to kids age 8 and up; GOLF Magazine and www.Golf.com; www.FanNation.com, a social networking and sports-news aggregation platform; SI Presents, the magazine’s specialty publishing division; as well as SI Books, SI Pictures, SI Productions, SI Digital and SI Events.  Founded in 1954, Sports Illustrated is a division of Time Inc., the world’s leading magazine publishing company and a subsidiary of Time Warner.