Two slimes. One circle. Infinite addiction. Welcome to the world of Slimeball. [more inside]
posted by Rhaomi on Aug 8, 2008 - 16 comments

Tennis, anyone?
posted by chuckdarwin on Jun 24, 2008 - 15 comments

"The women's tennis team at Grand Canyon University in Arizona has an unusual player this year — a 60-year-old named Sheila Johnson. She played for three years at Arizona State in the '60s, but still had one year of eligibility left." NPR story. Newspaper Article. Sports Illustrated Article. Picture of the team and Stats. [more inside]
posted by wittgenstein on Apr 24, 2008 - 14 comments

Arthur Ashe's words and legacy. Arthur Ashe (1943-1993) was the first (and only) black man to win Wimbledon, the Australian Open and the US Open tennis tournaments and a very vocal civil rights activist and leader. Last week on WNYC's Brian Lehrer Show, Brian had on Jeanne Moutoussamy-Ashe[embedded audio player] and they were remembering a moment on Martin Luther King Day 1993, when Arthur called into the show from his hospital room (he died three weeks later). His views from Martin Luther King, Malcom X, Muhammad Ali and the 1966 and 1992 Los Angeles riots are at once eloquent and riveting.
posted by psmealey on Feb 19, 2008 - 7 comments

Did the Victorian police overreact in spraying capsicum spray into spectators at the Australian open tennis on Tuesday night? The officers say they were protecting themselves, it seems not all agree and legal action might ensue. Is the Australian Open (or any international sporting contest in Australia) still a family friendly environment?
posted by mattoxic on Jan 17, 2008 - 44 comments

Layer Tennis. Head-to-head graphic artist competition!
posted by GuyZero on Oct 24, 2007 - 19 comments

The 8 Most Needlessly-Detailed Wikipedia Entries
posted by brain_drain on Sep 28, 2007 - 68 comments

He fought battles on the Plain of Jars, hid his rebel faction in caves for nine years to escape U.S bombs and now has a huge museum in Vientiane. Laos' Kaysone Phomvihane is not the most well documented 20th century communist leader. And not everybody is happy about him of course. But if you want to judge him for yourself go to Laos and visit those caves or visit his humble residence and have a look at his tennis shoes.
posted by PHINC on Apr 19, 2007 - 10 comments

20 Years of Punishment
Agassi's incredible journey ended today with his loss at the U.S. Open. A class act throughout the years.
posted by ericb on Sep 3, 2006 - 27 comments

Federer as Religious Experience by David Foster Wallace.
posted by The Jesse Helms on Aug 20, 2006 - 93 comments

Agency.com — best known for their work on... well not much really — recently had the opportunity to bid on the interactive account for Subway Restaurants. Their idea was to create a pitch video (embedded youtube) showing them brainstorming for ideas for the pitch video. They posted it online hoping to make it go viral, but the only viral thing about it really was that it used the word viral in it as many times as possible and tried to show how hip, edgy and cool they are.

Coudal Partners — best known for sponsoring matches of Photoshop Tennis... although the archives of past matches are currently down... they spawned legions of copycats, — decided to post their own Unsolicited Response video (embedded quicktime) which in turn is much funnier than the original.

So what makes a lame attempt at viral video actually GO viral? With so much discussion on advertising forums saying it isn't, all the attention it has been getting is ensuring that it is.
posted by skrike on Aug 3, 2006 - 53 comments

Newsfilter: Members of Iraq's tennis team shot "for wearing shorts." Being an Iraqi athlete is no easier than before. Just ask members of the Iraqi Taekwondo squad. More.
posted by bardic on May 28, 2006 - 48 comments

Tennis, anyone...?
posted by forallmankind on Sep 28, 2005 - 45 comments

The Old Man vs. The Comeback Kid. On Wednesday evening at 7pm EST Andre Agassi will face James Blake in the US Open Quarterfinals. At 35, this will be Agassi's 20th appearance at the US Open. Although he's been persistently dodging plans for retirement this may possibly be the last time Agassi graces Arthur Ashe court. James Blake's story is different. At 25, he's spent the past year and a half recovering from a neck fracture, the death of his father and an illness in which he temporarily lost feeling in his face and suffered from blurry vision. He will also be the first black man to reach the quarterfinals in the US open in 23 years. Will this match-up be a passing of the torch to a younger generation of US men's tennis players or will experience prevail over youth? Regardless, this may be one of the most anticipated matches at the US Open since Agassi faced Pete Sampras in the 2002 final.
posted by quadog on Sep 6, 2005 - 26 comments

Maria Sharapova has supplanted Kournikova as the new hotness, at least when it comes to Japanese bedroom accessories. (mildly NSFW)
posted by furtive on Jun 26, 2005 - 24 comments

Par 5 site on the science of golf balls. Service on the newly sized tennis ball. Return on the flight of tennis balls: Part 1; Rally with Part 2. Back and forth again with Ball/Court Interaction 1 and 2, and the aerodynamics of tennis ball coverings puts it away for the point. (And apparently, the weight inside a bowling ball isn't spherical and so modeling the movement of bowling balls takes university papers and presentations.[PDF])
posted by OmieWise on Jun 15, 2005 - 7 comments

Happy 18th Birthday Maria Sharapova! A music video by ESPN's Bristol Bob and the Page 2 Crue, made in honor of Maria Sharapova's 18th birthday. Make sure you crank the volume knob up to 11, because now you, too, can sing along to the tune of The Knack's "My Sharona."
posted by MmmKlunk on Apr 20, 2005 - 25 comments

The New European Football Champion Will Be Greece Or Portugal: Sunday's Euro 2004 match is the first final ever between two national teams who've never made a final before, after dispatching the biggest, richest European powers like England, Germany, Spain, Italy and France. Meanwhile, Maria Sharapova, a 17-year old Russian from Siberia has won Wimbledon, defeating the mighty Serena Williams. Perhaps size and money, despite the multi-million contracts, still aren't everything in sport. Or does it depend on the sport? [More inside.]
posted by MiguelCardoso on Jul 3, 2004 - 53 comments

Sometimes a parent can go a little too far helping out a kid. In this case - way too far, when it comes to drugging the competition.
posted by Spezzatura on Aug 6, 2003 - 10 comments

Anyone for tardis tennis? Not much of an FPP, but its Friday and its Flash and its mildly irritating fun.
posted by biffa on Jul 4, 2003 - 8 comments

If you are a prominent sports organization suffering under budget cuts and dwindling crowds, not to mention if some of your main players are threatening to form a breakaway group, what could possibly be your next move? How about alienating your fans? That's exactly what the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP), the governing body of men's professional tennis, did. More inside . . .
posted by somethingotherthan on Mar 9, 2003 - 3 comments

From "Elle" to "Infinite Jest", the world acknowledges their greatness. They're about to meet in their fourth consecutive Grand Slam final. Are these sisters invincible?
posted by 111 on Jan 23, 2003 - 13 comments

Serial prankster Karl Powers finishes his trifecta of Pranks with a hit on centre court at Wimbledon. He first joined the Manchester United team for a photograph, then donned the cricket whites and marched out onto Headingley during an Ashes Test with Australia.
posted by Burgatron on Jun 30, 2002 - 12 comments

Lesbian Tennis anyone? Or perhaps a game of Nude Punch-Out is more up your alley. Ok fine, if neither of those turn you on, then you must be a Satanic Freak Brother. (yes some people actually went out of their way to create these games)
posted by kingmissile on Mar 28, 2002 - 7 comments

Anyone agree that the Wimbledon Men's final that just finished was just about the best sporting event ever on TV? If you're waiting to watch this later, don't click here.
posted by davehat on Jul 9, 2001 - 33 comments

Okay, so the tabloids take the eroticization of female tennis players to the extreme, including The Mirror, which has paid Barbara "Babsi" Schett 50,000 pounds to promote her as the next Anna Kournikova. Last fall we talked about women sports players being on beauty, not talent; while the beauty judging goes on, they forget to even mention player records. There's Babsi, Anna, Jelena Dokic, and the supposedly beautiful Krasnoroutskaya who says of Kournikova what everyone keeps saying about good-looking female players in general: "She makes the beauty of tennis. She started it. Now tennis is very popular. People come to watch her. That helps everybody."
posted by Mo Nickels on Jul 6, 2001 - 48 comments

Jennifer Capriati Beats Serena Williams to Keep Her Grand Slam Dreams Alive If ever there was a game that see-sawed back and forth, it was this one! Williams took the first set and Capriati looked weak. After being down 5 games to 3 (at love - 30!), Capriati miraculously leapt back and took the second set. The third set was even more tense, as Williams took a bathroom break mid-game! Want to see how it went? Here's the log of the match.
posted by wackybrit on Jul 3, 2001 - 35 comments

Step aside MacEnroe, tennis has finally found a new crybaby
posted by ookamaka on Nov 26, 2000 - 1 comment