by tyler | Jun 22, 2023 | CNN, sport
Here is a look at the life of gay rights advocate and tennis great Martina Navratilova.
Birth date: October 18, 1956
Birth place: Prague, Czechoslovakia (now Czech Republic)
Birth name: Martina Subertova
Father: Miroslav Subert
Mother: Jana Navratilova
Marriage: Julia Lemigova (December 15, 2014-present)
Her parents divorced when she was young. She was raised by her stepfather, Mirek Navratil, and took his last name. He was her first tennis coach.
She plays tennis left-handed.
She has won 18 Grand Slam singles titles, 31 Grand Slam doubles titles and 10 Grand Slam mixed doubles titles.
She holds the record for most Open Era Wimbledon championship wins with nine, including six consecutive.
She was one of the first openly gay sports figures.
Sports Illustrated named her one of the “Top Forty Athletes of All-Time.”
1972 – Wins the Czech National Championship.
1975 – At the age of 18, Navratilova defects to the United States.
1978 – Wins her first singles title at Wimbledon defeating Chris Evert. The duo goes on to meet in 80 matches over the course of 16 years, and still maintain a close friendship.
1978, 1979, 1982, 1983, 1984, 1985, 1986 – Is named Player of the Year by the Women’s Tennis Association.
1981 – Becomes a naturalized citizen of the United States.
1983 – Wins her first US Open.
1985 – Releases her autobiography “Martina.”
1986 – Returns to Czechoslovakia for the first time to compete, for the United States, in a tennis match in Prague.
1991 – Ex-girlfriend Judy Nelson files a lawsuit in Texas after Navratilova refuses to honor what Nelson alleges is a “nonmarital cohabitation agreement” they both signed in 1986. They later settle out of court.
1992 – Breaks the tournament titles record with 158 titles, more than any other person.
1994 – Retires from playing singles having won 167 titles.
2000 – Is inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame.
2003 – Becomes the oldest player to compete in the Fed Cup.
2004 – Participates in the Summer Olympics in Athens as the oldest tennis player.
2006 – In her final Grand Slam, Navratilova competes at the US Open in the mixed-doubles championship match. After winning, she becomes the oldest player to win a Grand Slam title.
February 24, 2010 – Is diagnosed with a non-invasive breast cancer, ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS).
March 15, 2010 – Undergoes a lumpectomy.
May 12, 2010 – Begins radiation treatment at L’Institut Curie in Paris.
June 5, 2010 – Competes in the senior women’s doubles at the French Open and wins.
March 27, 2012 – Is eliminated as a contestant on “Dancing with the Stars.”
December 8, 2014 – Announces she will be joining the coaching team of Agnieszka Radwanska in 2015.
April 24, 2015 – Steps down as the part-time coach of Radwanska after underestimating the time necessary to “make this a proper and good situation for both Agnieszka and me.”
June 1, 2017 – Navratilova writes a public letter calling former Australian tennis player Margaret Court a “racist and a homophobe” after Court made a comment that tennis is “full of lesbians.”
February 17, 2019 – Pens an article in The Sunday Times that claims it is “insane” that “hundreds of athletes who have changed gender by declaration and limited hormone treatment have already achieved honors as women that were beyond their capabilities as men.” Her comments are immediately criticized and called “transphobic” by transgender athletes and LGBTQ activists on social media. Navratilova has rejected the accusations of transphobia.
February 19, 2019 – Athlete Ally removes Navratilova from its advisory board following her article in The Sunday Times. The nonprofit states, “As an organization dedicated to addressing root causes of homophobia and transphobia in and through sport, we will only affiliate with those committed to the same goal, and not those who further misinformation or discrimination in any way.”
March 3, 2019 – In a post on her website, Navratilova apologizes for the controversy caused by her February 17 article. She writes that she was, “not suggesting that transgender athletes in general are cheats.” She acknowledges that she does not have all the answers concerning physical advantages transgender athletes may have in some women’s sports. She calls for debate based on, “science, objectivity and the best interests of women’s sport as a whole.”
July 2020 – More than 300 female athletes, including Navratilova, sign a letter addressed to the Board of Governors of the National College Athletic Association opposing transgender inclusion in college sports.
December 16, 2021 – The fourth season of “Real Housewives of Miami” is scheduled to premiere on Peacock. Navratilova’s wife, Julia Lemigova, joins the cast as the series’ first LGBTQ housewife, and Navratilova reportedly will make appearances on the show.
January 2, 2023 – Navratilova has been diagnosed with throat and breast cancer, both stage one, her agent tells CNN in an email.
June 20, 2023 – Navratilova tweets that she is “all clear” after undergoing treatments for throat and breast cancer.
by tyler | Jun 19, 2023 | CNN, sport
Two people hunched over a black and white checkered board, deliberating what moves they will make, how their opponent might counter and how they might counter that counter, with barely a flicker of emotion passing over their faces.
At first glance, it’s a sport that doesn’t seem the most vibrant or colorful or particularly dynamic, which makes the art of capturing its drama and excitement more complex than most sports photography.
Maria Emelianova is a leading chess photographer, tasked with traveling the world to document the highs and lows of the sport.
With over 10 years of experience, Emelianova has become proficient at capturing the slightest flicker of emotion or tension etched in the faces of the sport’s stars.
But even after years of experience, she finds it hard to put into words what makes it such a difficult profession to capture.
“That’s always a very difficult question,” Emelianova told CNN Sport when asked how she would describe the art of chess photography.
“It’s opening the very outliers in sports to a more general public through the eye of the camera. So like people who know very little of chess and of the personalities can kind of get very close to the game and feel like they are right next to this chess game.
“But I think if I knew the answer to this completely, I would probably have solved (it).”
Growing up in Russia, Emelianova began playing when she was a six-year-old, facing off against her grandfather until she joined a club to practice against her peers.
She earned her woman FIDE master status – awarded to players with an classical rating of at least 2,100 and is the third-highest ranking exclusive to women – in 2010.
She went on to become a professional chess player before taking a break from competitive chess. She did, however, make a brief return at the British Online Championship in December, 2020.
Emelianova switched her allegiances to the English chess federation in February, 2020, citing the affinity built with the organization during years of competitions in the UK and friends she made on the team as reasons for the change. She is also a staunch critic of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Her Elo rating peaked at 2,144 in 2004. The Elo rating system measures the strength of a chess player relative to their opponents. For context, Carlsen holds the record for the highest Elo rating ever achieved by a human player when he reached 2,882 in 2014.
Emelianova remembers her mother having a passing interest in photography.
“My mother was doing some photography stuff when she was younger in university, but it was analog photography,” Emelianova explained. “But I was quite fascinated with analog photos.”
Analog photography is the process of using cameras loaded with film and processing the photos in a laboratory afterwards using chemicals.
Emelianova continued: “I would find slides which she had stored from her student trips, and I would really like to go through them because all this stuff, of course, there was no Pinterest or Flickr or anything at the time.”
Emelianova’s life changed ahead of the 39th Chess Olympiad in 2010, which was held in Khanty-Mansiysk, Russia.
She had been planning to go as a fan and to catch up with friends. At the time, she had been working as a journalist and translator for a magazine in Moscow, for which she occasionally was tasked with taking photos.
A few days before the Chess Olympiad, she was asked at a press conference if she wanted to take some photos at the tournament. Despite having limited experience and equipment, Emelianova accepted.
Emelianova said she had already booked a train ticket but was whisked to the event in a private plane. Then her friend allowed her to borrow his expensive camera equipment.
“At that time, at that moment, I was like: ‘Well, this cannot be a coincidence. There is something kind of like destiny to it, to have this happen,’” she said.
“So I took a lot of photos. I had no idea what I was doing, but I published them online, just on Instagram … And magazines were reaching out, asking for photos, and I sold enough to get my own camera.”
And from there, Emelianova has made it her aim to attend every major chess tournament as a photographer.
There’s more to chess photography than just setting up position and snapping. When she began, Emelianova explained, using cheaper equipment meant the shutter sound was louder when a photo was taken, possibly disturbing players.
“I was always trying to make sure that the moment in the game is either not as critical and I can take a photo where the player can hear me but won’t be too distracted, or I will do it when it’s a really important moment and very tense moment, but I would just try to time it with the move being made,” she said.
“So they are already making the move or I know that the position on the board is already simplified and, of course, playing chess myself helped to see those moments and see that this moment … the emotions are still there.”
Once she could afford better, quieter equipment, Emelianova got closer to the action.
With the access she gets at matches – she admits she’s had to battle organizers to trust her to not intrude on ongoing games – and her knowledge and relationship with players, she knows where and when to take her shots.
“The most important, I think, is that the players trust me to not overstep the boundary. And I also, myself, I sometimes have to even fight with myself like one part is a journalist and another is a chess player,” she said.
“And the journalist is like: ‘You need to come closer and get this moment’ and the player’s like: ‘No, no, you cannot do that.’ Sometimes, being a chess player also stops me from getting a better moment.”
When she approaches a game, Emelianova – who has been working as an in-house photographer at leading chess website, Chess.com, since 2018 – says she has a number of different cues she is looking for to get the best snaps.
She says that her experience as a former professional player allows her to identify from the flow of the game, or seeing the current setting, whether or not she needs to have her camera at the ready.
Outside of the game setting, Emelianova says she is constantly studying the players’ body language.
“Some of the players don’t really show anything. But I already know enough to even, like – to catch a really, really subtle head shake or sitting like too straight or pretending to be very relaxed,” she said.
“I think my favorite part is portraits, but portraits with emotions. They have to be in some moment, not just taken out of the context. But I think, mostly, it’s the reactions of the players, the emotions and the moments which define the decider of the tournament or the game or the match.”
Her personal knowledge of the players also helps her prepare. “Alongside with knowing the players as personalities and kind of knowing what to expect from each one of them depending on the situation, I can quite often be there before something even happens,” Emelianova said.
But even with all that prior knowledge and planning, luck plays a big part in her photography, she admits.
Despite knowing what she’s looking for, it doesn’t make the job any easier. She specifically remembers the skills she learned on a photojournalism course at Moscow State University, which helped her fine tune her craft.
She also says that her work now as a chess streamer has given her a great appreciation for chess photography, as it’s allowed her to approach and talk about her work in an open forum.
“The fact that it’s difficult to find something that stands out is a challenge enough to search for it and, when you find it, it’s like really redeeming and almost impossible to repeat,” Emelianova said, adding that her job “ignites a sparkle” in her.
“Of course, sometimes I also struggle to find something that makes me go: ‘Wow,’ after so many years. But I will still keep looking because, when I do find [it], especially when it’s a player who barely shows anything, they’re completely emotionless, that’s important.
“I think when you can make a story (is important). So like when somebody (who is) not from chess can look at the photos, not necessarily on text, but on the photos and read the story from there, that’s the most important thing.”
by tyler | Jun 16, 2023 | CNN, sport
Memphis Grizzlies star Ja Morant has been suspended for 25 games without pay by the NBA for “conduct detrimental to the league,” the NBA announced Friday.
In May, Morant was suspended from team activities after an Instagram Live video appearing to show him flashing a gun while in a vehicle with others circulated on social media, just two months after he was suspended over a similar video.
The NBA had suspended Morant for eight games without pay in March after he was seen in another Instagram Live video holding a gun at a nightclub in Glendale, Colorado, a suburb of Denver.
“I’ve had time to reflect and I realize how much hurt I’ve caused,” Morant said Friday in a statement. “I want to apologize to the NBA, the Grizzlies, my teammates and the city of Memphis. To (NBA Commissioner) Adam Silver, (Grizzlies General Manager) Zach Kleiman and (team owner) Robert Pera – who gave me the opportunity to be a professional athlete and have supported me – I’m sorry for the harm I’ve done.
“To the kids who look up to me, I’m sorry for failing you as a role model. I promise I’m going to be better. To all of my sponsors, I’m going to be a better representation of our brands. And to all of my fans, I’m going to make it up to you, I promise.
“I’m spending the offseason and my suspension continuing to work on my own mental health and decision making. I’m also going to be training so that I’m ready to go when I can be back on the court. I know my teammates are going to hold it down and I’m so sorry I won’t be out there with you at the beginning of the season.
“I hope you’ll give me the chance to prove to you over time I’m a better man than what I’ve been showing you.”
Morant’s unpaid suspension runs through the first 25 games of the 2023-24 regular season, the league said. He will not be allowed to take part in any “public” team activities, including preseason games, until the suspension is lifted.
“Ja Morant’s decision to once again wield a firearm on social media is alarming and disconcerting given his similar conduct in March for which he was already suspended eight games,” Silver said in a statement. “The potential for other young people to emulate Ja’s conduct is particularly concerning. Under these circumstances, we believe a suspension of 25 games is appropriate and makes clear that engaging in reckless and irresponsible behavior with guns will not be tolerated.
“For Ja, basketball needs to take a back seat at this time. Prior to his return to play, he will be required to formulate and fulfill a program with the league that directly addresses the circumstances that led him to repeat this destructive behavior.”
The Grizzlies “respect the League’s decision to suspend Ja Morant following this latest episode,” the team said in a statement.
“Our standards as a league and team are clear, and we expect that all team personnel will adhere to them,” it added.
Earlier this month, Silver said what was important was not the amount of games Morant was suspended for but rather changing his life path.
“There is an acceptance that we need to find ways to engage with each other going forward so that he can change the trajectory that he’s now on, which is not a positive one,” Silver told the Dan Patrick Show.
Nike said it is standing by Morant.
“We are pleased that Ja is taking accountability and prioritizing his well-being. We will continue to support him on and off the court,” the company said.
by tyler | Jun 13, 2023 | CNN, sport
American track and field champion Tori Bowie died from complications of childbirth, according to an autopsy report released by the Orange County, Florida, medical examiner’s office.
The three-time Olympic medalist was found deceased in bed on May 2, according to the report. The 32-year-old was estimated to be eight months pregnant, and there was evidence she had been in labor.
Bowie’s manner of death was ruled natural, and the report stated that there had been “possible complications,” including “respiratory distress and eclampsia.”
Preeclampsia happens when a woman who previously had normal blood pressure suddenly develops “high blood pressure and protein in her urine or other problems after 20 weeks of pregnancy,” according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Some women with preeclampsia can develop seizures or coma – a condition called eclampsia – which is a medical emergency, the CDC says.
Hypertensive disorders in pregnancy appear to be on the rise in the US. Older women as well as Black, American Indian and Alaska Native women were at higher risk of hypertensive disorders, according to data published last year by the CDC.
As CNN previously reported, federal data showed that the nation’s overall maternal death rate rose significantly in 2021, with the rates among Black women more than twice as high as those of White women.
Bowie won three medals at the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio: gold in the 4x100m relay, silver in the 100 meters and bronze in the 200 meters. At the 2017 world championships, she won gold in both the 100 meters and the 4x100m.
A native of Sandhill, Mississippi, Bowie was a three-time All-American at the University of Southern Mississippi.
Bowie’s last official competition was in June 2022. Her last appearance on the world stage was in 2019 at the world championships in Doha, when she finished fourth in the long jump.
by tyler | Jun 8, 2023 | CNN, sport
A string of sports games and practices have been postponed as smoke from Canadian wildfires continues to choke the Midwest, Northeast and Southeast parts of the United States.
Around 75 million people are under air quality alerts as wildfire smoke shrouds major US cities, with Major League Baseball (MLB), the Women’s National Basketball Association (WNBA) and the National Women’s Soccer League (NWSL) forced to postpone games due to concerns over dangerous air quality.
The MLB postponed two games – one between the Detroit Tigers and the host Philadelphia Phillies at Citizens Bank Park and the other between the Chicago White Sox and the New York Yankees at Yankee Stadium – on Wednesday due to medical and weather expert warnings about “clearing hazardous air quality conditions in both cities,” the league said in a statement.
Meanwhile, the WNBA was forced to postpone Wednesday’s game between the New York Liberty and the Minnesota Lynx due to smoke impacting the Liberty’s home arena, with the league noting that information regarding the rescheduling of the game would be provided at a later date.
The New York Racing Association (NYRA) canceled Thursday’s training at Belmont Park due to “poor air quality conditions” affecting New York state, while in New Jersey, the NWSL postponed Wednesday night’s Challenge Cup game in Harrison and rescheduled it for August 9.
“The safety of our players, officials and fans is our top priority. Following consultation with the NWSL Medical and Operations staff, it was determined that the match could not be safely conducted based on the projected air quality index,” the NWSL said in a statement.
Smoke from Canada’s fires has periodically affected the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic for more than a week, raising concerns over the harms of persistent poor air quality.
More than nine million acres have been charred by wildfires in Canada so far this year – about 15 times the normal burned area for this point in the year – and more than 10,500 people have been evacuated from communities across Alberta.
According to the MLB, the Phillies-Tigers game will take place at 6:05 p.m. (ET) on Thursday, while the Yankees and the White Sox will now play a doubleheader beginning at 4:05 p.m. (ET) on Thursday.
The Belmont Stakes is scheduled for Saturday at Belmont Park in Elmont, New York, and the NYRA said a decision on Thursday’s live racing program will be made in the morning following a “review of the air quality conditions and forecast.”
by tyler | Jun 7, 2023 | CNN, sport
In a scene eerily similar to that of a post-apocalyptic movie, the New York Yankees hosted the Chicago White Sox as the Yankee Stadium was engulfed in smoke from Canadian wildfires.
New York City topped the list of the world’s worst air pollution for parts of Tuesday as harmful smoke wafted south from more than a hundred wildfires burning in Quebec.
Smoke from Canada’s fires has periodically affected the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic for more than a week, raising concerns over the harms of persistent poor air quality.
New York City’s air quality index was above 200 at one point Tuesday night – a level that is “very unhealthy,” according to IQair. The city had the worst quality of air of any major metropolitan area Tuesday at 10 p.m. ET, according to IQair.
Later Tuesday night, New York City had the second-worst levels of air pollution in the world after New Delhi, India, IQair reported. Other cities on the list were Doha, Qatar; Baghdad, Iraq; and Lahore, Pakistan.
But the show must go on and the Yankees looked to take the opening game in their home series against the White Sox.
However, playing without captain Aaron Judge, who is set to be placed on the injured list, the Yankees had no hits through six innings and, despite nearly mounting a comeback in the ninth, lost the game 3-2.
Seby Zavala crushed two home runs into the smoky crowd to give the team on the road the initiative. The catcher homered to right field in the third inning and then hit a deep home run to the opposite side on his next at-bat in the fifth.
Liam Hendriks then managed to get his first save since returning from a battle with cancer.
Hendriks made an emotional return after undergoing treatment for non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma in the White Sox’s 6-4 loss to the Los Angeles Angels last week.
“Yeah, it almost helps me when the stadium gets that loud,” said Hendriks post-game after being hit for a home run by Josh Donaldson. “I tend to get a little bit better after that. That helped me lock in a little bit more than I had initially.”
The Yankees and the White Sox play again Wednesday with New York looking to level the series.
