Axios Sports: Hail to the victors

Plus: Cliff diving's world tour | Monday, August 30, 2021

Open in app View in browser   Presented By Toyota   Axios Sports By Kendall Baker ·Aug 30, 2021 👋 Good morning! The NFL season kicks off in 10 days. 🎾 A new era: The U.S. Open, which begins today, is the first Grand Slam this century without at least one of Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal or Serena Williams. Today's word count: 1,953 words (7 minutes). Let's sports...     1 big thing: ⛳️ "Patty Ice" wins in a classic Photo: Rob Carr/Getty Images   Patrick Cantlay outlasted Bryson DeChambeau in a thrilling six-hole playoff on Sunday to win the BMW Championship outside Baltimore. Cantlay, 29, had the best statistical putting performance on Tour since the "Strokes Gained" category debuted in 2004. Fittingly, he ended the duel by sinking an 18-foot birdie putt. DeChambeau, 27, overpowered Caves Valley Golf Club with gargantuan drives, but couldn't close it out. He's the first golfer in history to shoot a 27-under 261 and not take home the trophy. Why it matters: Cantlay, who earned a new "Patty Ice" nickname, is now No. 1 in the FedEx Cup standings. That means he'll start next week's Tour Championship with a two-shot lead over Tony Finau with $15 million on the line. The epic victory, which was Cantlay's PGA Tour-leading third win of the season, also helped him secure the sixth and final automatic spot on the U.S. Ryder Cup team. The other five: Collin Morikawa, Dustin Johnson, DeChambeau, Brooks Koepka and Justin Thomas. Photo: Cliff Hawkins/Getty Images Between the lines: DeChambeau was heckled all weekend (and nearly came to blows with a patron) — the new norm amid his feud with Koepka. It felt playful at first; a harmless rivalry. But when trolls show up every weekend to needle a guy who clearly doesn't feel comfortable playing the heel, has it gone too far? "When does heckling cross a line and morph into bullying? And can you really bully a professional athlete ... ? It's a surreal ethical dilemma." "In an era when we are encouraging athletes to talk about their mental health, is it still OK to openly ridicule DeChambeau simply because he comes across as less likable? ... Even the athletes who annoy us deserve a little empathy." — Kevin Van Valkenburg, ESPN 🎥 Watch: Sunday highlights (YouTube)     2. 🥇 Paralympics: Week 1 recap Nick Mayhugh. Photo: Moto Yoshimura/Getty Images   The 2020 Paralympics are halfway complete, with 4,403 athletes — including a record 1,853 women — putting on a show last week in Tokyo, Axios' Jeff Tracy writes. Stories: 🥇 Medal count: China has by far the most medals (119), followed by Great Britain (65), the Russian Paralympic Committee (59), Ukraine (50 and the U.S. (48). Full medal table. 🇦🇫 Afghanistan arrives: After being trapped in their home country with airports closed, both Afghan Paralympians have miraculously made their way to Tokyo in time to compete. ⭐️ All-time legends: British cyclist Dame Sarah Storey and American swimmer Jessica Long are moving ever higher up the ranks of their nation's greatest Paralympians. 🎓 NCAA at the Games: 62 current and former NCAA athletes, representing 64 schools, are competing in Tokyo. Cal State Northridge leads the way with three. Highlights: 🇺🇸 Captain America: Sprinter Nick Mayhugh became the first T37 athlete (coordination impairments) to break 11 seconds in the 100 meters — and he did it twice in one day. 🩱 Teenage stars: 17-year-old visually-impaired American swimmers Anastasia Pagonis (400 free) and Gia Pergolini (100 back) both won gold and set world records in their first events. 💪🏼 Never give up: Team USA's Daniel Romanchuk (wheelchair 400), and Kendall Gretsch (women's wheelchair triathlon), and Japan's Tomoki Sato (wheelchair 400) completed epic comebacks to win gold. 🏓 See it to believe it: Egypt's Ibrahim Hamadtou didn't medal, but the 48-year-old table tennis player — who doesn't have arms — stole the show nonetheless. 📆 Coming up: 17 of the 23 disciplines still have medals up for grabs, with equestrian and powerlifting concluding today. The other 15 remaining events: Team sports: Men's and women's goalball, wheelchair basketball and sitting volleyball, plus men's blind five-a-side soccer. Individual: Archery, track and field, badminton, boccia, canoe sprint, road cycling, shooting, swimming, table tennis, taekwondo and wheelchair tennis.     3. ⚾️ Hail to the victors: Michigan wins LLWS Courtesy: Little League   Michigan beat Ohio, 5-2, on Sunday to win the Little League World Series, delivering the Great Lakes State its first title since 1959. The team: Michigan was an offensive juggernaut, with three players racking up 7+ hits in Williamsport. That's as many as the other 15 teams had combined. The town: Taylor, a Detroit suburb with a population of 63,000, was founded in 1847 and named for future President Zachary Taylor. Taylor, Michigan. Screenshot: Google Maps The last word: The LLWS bubble limited interaction between players and parents, which gave kids more autonomy to just ... be kids. "In a sport often known for parents behaving badly and in a summer when grown-ups have turned school grounds in battlegrounds, how refreshing it feels simply to keep the focus on kids being silly, delightful and innocent." — Candace Buckner, WashPost     A message from Toyota Meet Toyota's team of Olympic and Paralympic athletes     Behind every Olympian and Paralympian, there's an entire support network that helps them shine. Every parent, partner, trainer and fan plays their part, and each Team Toyota athlete can tell you how that support pushed them to do the impossible. See their stories.     4. ⚡️ Lightning round Photo: Jose BretonNurPhoto via Getty Images   ⚽️ Messi debuts: Lionel Messi made his long-awaited PSG debut on Sunday in a 2-0 win over Reims that featured two goals from Kylian Mbappé, the subject of Real Madrid transfer rumors. 🏈 ESPN gets duped: ESPN broadcast a high school football game on Sunday between powerhouse IMG Academy (Fla.) and Bishop Sycamore (Ohio), an online charter school that reportedly lied its way onto national TV by stating it had D-I prospects. Final score: 58-0. 🏁 F1's bizarre race: It took Formula One nearly four hours to complete three laps at the rain-soaked Belgian Grand Prix, the shortest race in F1's 71-year history. Red Bull's Max Verstappen won the "race." 🏈 Week Zero: Illinois beat Nebraska, 30-22, to begin Saturday's five-game FBS slate. Next week: Another 13 matchups between Power 5 teams, headlined by No. 5 Georgia vs. No. 3 Clemson. 🥊 Jake Paul (4-0, 3 KO): Internet celebrity Jake Paul beat former UFC champion Tyron Woodley by split decision to improve to 4-0 as a boxer.   Share Axios and earn rewards If you like this newsletter, your friends may, too! Refer your friends and get free Axios swag when they sign up. Be a good friend and share   5. 📸 Exclusive: Behind the camera Getty Images photographers picked their favorite photos from the Paralympics so far and provided commentary on how they got the shot. Photo: Dean Mouhtaropoulos/Getty Images Caption: Hong Yang of Team China competes in the men's 200 meter individual medley. "There are many times as a sports photographer that you are in awe of the athletes you get to shoot. The Paralympic Games are a different level of appreciation and emotional investment. What I love about this image is Hong Yang's facial expression, along with the contrasting colors of the swim lanes and the splash of water trailing off his arm." — Dean Mouhtaropoulos Photo: Carmen Mandato/Getty Images Caption: Janjira Panyatib of Team Thailand competes in the women's long jump. "These athletes are phenomenal, and everything about the Paralympics is incredibly inspiring. This image was taken with one of the remote cameras we have set up all over the venue to provide angles us photographers can't get otherwise." — Carmen Mandato Photo: Adam Pretty/Getty Images Caption: Three swimmers compete during the men's 50 meter butterfly. "These swimmers remind me of torpedoes — the speed they can swim with no arms is absolutely amazing. I like the underwater angle, as you can really see their athleticism. It also makes for an elegant image with the reflections on the surface." — Adam Pretty     6. 🏈 Player rankings: Russell Wilson (No. 10) Photo: Steph Chambers/Getty Images   The NFL season is fast approaching. While we eagerly await its arrival, we're counting down the league's top 20 players. Player: Russell Wilson, QB (Seahawks) Age: 32 College: Wisconsin/NC State Contract: 4 years, $140M (FA in 2024) 2020 stats: 16 games; 4,212 passing yards, 40 TD, 13 INT; 513 rushing yards, 2 TD 2021 fantasy: No. 51 average draft position Week 1: Seahawks at Colts The big picture: Seattle finally "let Russ cook" last year, which resulted in a career-high 40 passing TD. By the numbers: Since debuting in 2012, Wilson and Drew Brees are the only QBs with 200+ TD, a 65% completion rate, a sub-2% interception rate and a passer rating over 100. Wild stat: Wilson has never missed a game, starting 144 out of a possible 144 regular-season contests. What they're saying: "He just can extend plays — I feel like he's the best in the league at doing it," says Washington defensive end Chase Young. "He's a magician." ICYMI: 20. Dalvin Cook; 19. Trent Williams; 18. Bobby Wagner; 17. Tyreek Hill; 16. Jaire Alexander; 15. Stefon Diggs; 14. Myles Garrett; 13. Jalen Ramsey; 12. George Kittle; 11. Josh Allen     7. 📆 Aug. 30, 1979: A battle of bad boys John McEnroe during the 1979 U.S. Open. Photo: Walter Iooss Jr./Sports Illustrated via Getty Images   42 years ago today, John McEnroe and Ilie Năstase played what is widely considered the craziest match in U.S. Open history. Why it matters: The second-round clash signified a passing of the torch from the sport's original bad boy to arguably its most famous. McEnroe, the 20-year-old American, was a rising star while Năstase, the 33-year-old Romanian, was well past his prime, which had included two major titles and the ATP's first ever No. 1 ranking in 1973. "I was 33 already and not playing much anymore. He was 20. I had to pull out all the tricks," Năstase, nicknamed the "Clown Prince" of tennis, told NYT in 2019. Ilie Năstase lying on the court. Photo: Bettmann Archives/Getty Images The match: In the fourth set, with McEnroe up two sets to one, Năstase seized the moment to throw his biggest tantrum yet, lying down on the court when he felt McEnroe took too long to serve. "I mean, this was the circus of all circuses," McEnroe said years later. "Năstase was going to do absolutely everything he could to get under my skin and just make it not a tennis match." When the umpire awarded McEnroe the game for Năstase's behavior, fans began throwing things on the court. After 15 minutes of chaos, the umpire called the match, causing a riot. The tournament director quickly stepped in and reinstated the match to restore order. McEnroe won easily — and 10 days later, captured his first of seven Grand Slam titles. The aftermath ... After the match, with the on-court drama behind them, Năstase invited McEnroe out to a late dinner and drinks. He accepted. 🎥 Watch: Highlights of the ruckus (YouTube)     8. 💦 The Ocho: Cliff diving's world tour Photo: Romina Amato/Red Bull via Getty Images The Red Bull Cliff Diving World Series completed its third stop over the weekend in the ancient city of Mostar, Bosnia and Herzegovina. Details: Divers jumped off the famous Stari Most ("Old Bridge"), which has hundreds of years of diving history and is on UNESCO's list of World Heritage Sites. Men's winner: Eight-time World Series champion Gary Hunt, who we interviewed in 2019. Women's winner: Four-time World Series champion Rhiannan Iffland, who has now won 10 straight events. Photo: Romina Amato/Red Bull via Getty Images How it works: Divers jump from platforms roughly 90 feet high. So find the nearest building, climb up to the eighth floor and look out the window: that's what it feels like to be a cliff diver. Five take-off positions: Front, Back, Reverse, Inward and Handstand. From there, divers perform a wide variety of twists, flips and tucks before landing in the water with the smallest possible splash. Five judges score each dive based on (1) take off, (2) position in the air and (3) entry into the water using a scale of 0 to 10 in half-point increments. Photo: Romina Amato/Red Bull via Getty Images By the numbers: Divers are in the air for about three seconds and hit the water at speeds in excess of 60 mph. That's an impact of 5 Gs, which is right around the limit of force that a human body can withstand. "Cliff diving is the one sport where you can really see man versus their fears; man versus gravity. It's people who have learned to control their bodies and are willing to challenge themselves up to the most dangerous point, which we've found to be 27 meters (~90 feet)." — Hunt 📆 What's next: After previous stops in Saint-Raphaël, France and Oslo, Norway, the action continues next month in Downpatrick Head, Ireland.     9. ⚽️ Soccer trivia Cristiano Ronaldo after winning the 2008 Champions League Final. Photo: Alex Livesey/Getty Images   Cristiano Ronaldo is back at Manchester United, where he won the 2008 Ballon d'Or (best player in the world). Question: Who is the only other Premier League player to win the Ballon d'Or this century? Hint: He won in 2001. Answer at the bottom.     10. 🎥 Top plays: Weekend edition Source: Giphy 🏈 Catch of the year ⚾️ Nolan "Gold Glove" Arenado ⚽️ Rodriguez breaking ankles 🏈 Dolphins Hail Mary! 🏈 Walk-off kick return ⚽️ The Scorpion King ⛳️ Vijay's albatross ⚾️ Neo, is that you?! 🏈 Look ma, one hand ⚾️ Joc Pederson! Watch all 10.     A message from Toyota How Toyota is creating a new legacy for Paralympians     Toyota is partnering with the United States Olympic & Paralympic Committee to further support Team USA's Paralympic athletes. The company is making history with the creation of up to $5 million in stipend and sponsorship opportunities for eligible U.S. Paralympic athletes. Join Toyota.   Talk tomorrow, Kendall "Leave Bryson alone!" Baker Trivia answer: Michael Owen (Liverpool) 🙏 Thanks for reading. Don't forget to follow us on Twitter: @thekendallbaker and @jeffreytracy. Like this email style and format? Learn more about Axios HQ. It'll help you deliver employee communications more effectively.   Axios thanks our partners for supporting our newsletters. If you're interested in advertising, learn more here. Sponsorship has no influence on editorial content. Axios, 3100 Clarendon B‌lvd, Suite 1300, Arlington VA 22201   You received this email because you signed up for newsletters from Axios. 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