Yours truly, on top of Mendoza’s Cerro Lomas Blancas.

Out of the six months I’ve been at Matador, I think I must have spent at least three on top of mountains. From Catamarca to San Juan to Santa Cruz, I’ve spent so much of my time in Argentina at altitude that I’m starting to feel like a mountain goat.

Still, it was Matador Sports that made this year’s real first ascent. Seven months ago, Sports was Matador’s baby blog, a handful of posts backed up by a whole bunch of chutzpah from Matador’s editorial team.

Since then, it’s been straight up. Sports now has two dedicated interns, Lindi Horton and Amiee Maxwell, part-time help from Matador’s fantastically multitasking associate editors, Candice Walsh and JoAnna Haugen, and some of the best contributors that any editor could hope for. Together, we’ve covered groundbreaking expeditions, world records, and scandals. Best of all, we now have more readers than ever.

This isn’t the peak. In 2010, watch for new topics and ways of looking at them. At Matador, we know that sports is more than box scores: it’s exploration, inspiration, and constantly pushing the limits of what we can do.

It’s a hell of a lot of fun too.

Seven months of Matador Sports:

June: 20 Athletes Pushing the Most Insane Limits on Water, Land, or Air

July: Adrian Hayes: Arctic Adventurer

August: How to Deal With Altitude Sickness

September: American Football vs. Rugby: Which is Tougher?

October: Fight Like Water: Lessons From a Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Master

November: Let’s Dance: Sick Freeski, Straight From the Midwest

December: Tiger Woods and the Alleged Cheating Scandal

Community Connection

2010’s Person of the Year: you. Submit your work to Matador!

Photo by Alexandra Franklin

Who knew that a skateboarding park could bring so many people together? Skateistan, Afghanistan’s first co-educational skateboarding school, has created a way for the youth of Afghanistan to connect through new opportunities in personal empowerment and education, all through the sport of skateboarding.

The indoor park, decorated with logos of skating brands like Black Box Distribution and TSG which have sponsored the park’s development, invites boys and girls of all ages and from different backgrounds to participate in free skateboarding lessons. Separate rooms also serve as classrooms where kids can learn everything from basic literacy to advanced computing.

Photo by thelastminute

On the opening day of the park, 100 Afghani skaters, all of them Skateistan students, came to show off their skills. Professionals from the Netherlands, the US, and Syria came out to show their support.

One of the most progressive aspects of the skateboarding park is the participation of young girls. Despite Afghanistan being one of the poorest and most conservative countries in the world, the founders of Skateistan say that skateboarding is a novel enough sport to accept female athletes. Mahro, a 10-year-old girl, is just one star pupil who wants to be a professional skateboarder in the future.

Then there’s 11-year-old Fazila, whose parents are paid $1 a day by Skateistan so she can go to school and attend skateboarding lessons instead of selling gum on the street. The entire organization has been backed by $650,000 in donations, and the Afghan Olympic Committee donated the land, water, power, and security.

Next up: an outdoor area for the children to further hone their talents.

COMMUNITY CONNECTION

How do you think we can use sports to encourage social change among our youth? Share your thoughts.

Photo: iwona_kellie

Teton Ice Park is the brainchild of Christian Santelices, chief guide of Exum Mountain Guides and founder of Aerial Boundaries. Using a 3,000 gallon tanker, 250 feet of mining pipe, and an array of low-flow showerheads, Santelices turned a dry rock face near Targhee’s parking lot into a 100-foot-tall frozen waterfall.

In the month since he started farming ice, Santelices has had to deal with a whole host of plumbing problems, including split and frozen pipes.

“I’ve learned a lot about cold-weather plumbing,” said Santelices to Jackson Hole News and Guide. “I didn’t anticipate it would be as challenging as it’s been.”

As the only ice climbing park to be located in a ski resort, Teton Ice is a unique space for training. Aerial Boundaries offers elementary classes on the shallower lower pitches. Climbers don’t need previous experience or equipment, and anyone over the age of 12 can get in on the action.

The upper section of the park is a vertical wall, where more advanced students can practice lead climbing and dry tooling.

The public option

Santelices originally planned Teton Ice Park as a public space. When the park first opened on December 19, experienced climbers with their own equipment could get free access to the wall.

“[Opening day] had a real community feel, a really good vibe,” Santelices told Alpinist.com. “People were psyched to be there and felt a bit of ownership of the crag.”

Less than a week later, however, the Forest Service, which administers the land on which the park is located, shut down all unguided climbing over liability concerns.

The park has since reopened to the public, but with a catch: climbers can only tackle the wall under the supervision of a guide. Santelices says he’s still working with the park service to reestablish “the public option.”

Community Connection

What are your thoughts on Teton Ice Park’s plan to offer free access to unguided climbers? Sound off in the comments!

From all of us at Matador, have a happy holiday!

Photo: Klobetime

Before we ring in 2010, twenty bowl games will be played. Fourteen more kick off the first week of January. Thirty four games means 68 teams make it, over 50% of those eligible. The opportunity for mediocre Division 1A teams to score extra cash for their athletic fund Christmas stockings is enlisting the sport as a capitalistic extension of a holiday already focused on the bottom line.

This year, college football faithful can catch Marshall versus Ohio in the Little Caesar’s Pizza Bowl (yes, our country’s worst pizza chain sponsors a bowl). Pitt and North Carolina play in the Meineke Bowl, named in honor of the strip mall muffler shops. The Emerald Bowl (canned nuts) features Boston College and USC, and Virginia Tech and Tennessee play in the Chic-fil-A Bowl. On December 24th, Nevada and SMU kick off the Hawaii Bowl.

This is just a sampling of the holiday season’s gridiron offerings. If you want to watch you’d best have cable: ESPN has broadcasting rights to twenty-three games.

Photo: Adamr.Stone

Debate over the need for proper college football playoffs in Division 1A has been protracted, painful and way too logical. President Obama gets it: the flaws with the current Bowl Championship Series are endless. Boise State and Texas Christian University are both undefeated: no matter whether Texas or Alabama wins the BCS Championship game on January 7th, there will be one other perfect team with a claim to being the best.

My own alma mater, University of Idaho, made the cut for the first time in 11 years, so maybe I shouldn’t complain. Still, lower divisions conduct successful playoffs every year – the games are competitive and the questions about strength and talent are sorted out where they should be: on the playing field.

It all has to do with revenue, or the loss of it if a playoff replaces the current mish-mash of bowls. The money right now is unreal. Even Notre Dame, who have been a non-entity in college football for 15 years, get post-season revenue from the Santas of advertising and TV.

In 1979 there were about a dozen bowl games played. There were no overt corporate ties back then. New Year’s Day was a glorious marathon of college football: Cotton Bowl, Sugar Bowl, Orange Bowl and finally the granddaddy of them all, the Rose Bowl.

We went to sleep knowing that on January 2nd we could focus on life’s next important thing: the NFL playoffs.

Community Connection

Should top college football teams have a playoff? Tell us what you think in the comments.

Photo courtesy of fabiovenni

On September 30, 2009, the NBA instituted a policy stating that basketball players cannot use social media sites during games. Cell phones and other devices that can be used to update statuses across the internet have been banned from use 45 minutes before games begin, throughout the duration of the game (including halftime) and until all related responsibilities, like media interviews, have been completed after the game.

Photo courtesy ofthetechbuzz

Though each team has been left to decide on the penalties for breaking the rule, it applies to all coaches, players, and other team-related personnel. NBA rookie Brandon Jennings, who plays for the Milwaukee Bucks is the latest to be fined for tweeting on the court. His Twitter update was a positive one, but because the tweet fell within the NBA’s prohibited time period, he was fined a whopping $7,500. With a combined salary/endorsement cash flow of $1.2 million per year, this tweet will cost him about half of what he makes for a single game.

I suppose it makes sense for the NBA to put the brakes on social media status updates (there are probably better things to be doing pre-game and during the game), but it’s also a bit ironic: the NBA has nearly 1.7 million followers on Twitter. Some of basketball’s biggest names—Shaquelle O’Neil, Steve Nash and Lamar Odom among them—have huge followings on the site.

Instead of punishing players for jumping into the social media sphere, perhaps the NBA could harness this net-savvy fan base for something positive—a unique public relations campaign or a charity drive, for example.

Community Connection:

What are your feelings on the NBA social media ban? Do you think the NBA can anything to make social media work for the organization?

For more on Twitter’s place in the sports world, check out Tour de Twitter: Lance Armstrong Takes Microblogging to the Races.

Photo by natalielucier

The Olympic Flame has been around since the ancient Olympic Games held in Olympia, Greece. Back then, a flame would be ignited by the sun and kept burning until the games were over. The Flame did not appear in modern form until the 1928 Olympic Games in Amsterdam.

The Olympic Flame’s journey still begins in Greece, and is recognized as a symbol of peace for those nations participating in the Olympics. On the opening day of this year’s journey, the Flame was lit in Olympia, using just the sun’s light and a parabolic mirror, in accordance with ancient ritual. The Flame was then passed to Vassilis Dimitriadis, who launched the Vancouver 2010 Torch Relay.

Nowadays, things are a little more technologically advanced. Air intakes provide sufficient oxygen to the Flame so it remains burning, a dual burner system keeps the Flame from being extinguished, and blended fuels ensure brightness even in the most extreme Canadian weather conditions.

Photo by eponymous anon

I knew very little about the predetermined route of the Olympic Flame, but I did know that my province, Newfoundland was its first Canadian destination.

Following some news sources, I learned the Olympic Flame was being exchanged between torchbearers in a dory, a traditional Newfoundland fishing boat, at the mouth of Petty Harbour. I assumed the celebrations were over.

However, when I left the office at the of the day, I emerged onto Water Street in downtown St. John’s to find people lined up along both sides of the road. I found myself standing among the masses, completely unaware of what was going on.

When the torch and its procession of Olympic hysteria finally turned around the corner, the crowd erupted. People sang, clapped their hands, and shouted. A man ran by, shoving two Olympic flags into my hands. Kids ran beside the Flame, reaching out to become a part of history. I started grinning, waving my flags lamely, completely caught up in the moment and united with my peers.

The Greeks must be proud to realize their ancient history is still creating international unity. As IOC president Jacques Rogge said in his speech at the lighting of the Flame, this tradition is here to stay.

“The longest national Olympic Torch Relay in history will create a spirit of global community and world citizenship. It will inspire new hopes, new dreams, particularly among the younger generation, to take part in the Games. It will invite Canadians and visitors from around the world to gather and celebrate the Games with glowing hearts.”

COMMUNITY CONNECTION:

Are you attending the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver? Tell us about what you’re most looking forward to.

Photos courtesy of Rupert Taylor-Price

Taking the train in India is an experience in and of itself, and much of it can be attributed to the chaotic nature of train travel in the country. The Mumbai Suburban Railway is ridiculously crowded, with an estimated 5,000 people packed into nine cars with a total carrying capacity of only 1,700.

This means there are 14 to 16 passengers standing in every square meter of floor space. There are even advice guides created specifically for travelers to help them navigate the system.

As one might imagine, many of the hundreds of people hanging off of the sides and crouched on the roofs of the cars never bought tickets. India’s Northern Railways is attempting to control the problem with the help of a few well-trained athletes. Thirty-six boxers and wrestlers have been hired to monitor the cars, looking for passengers without tickets. Those found in violation will have to pay the fare and a fine to continue to ride.

A spokesperson for Northern Railways denied that the boxers and wrestlers were hired for intimidation purposes, saying that “the boxers and wrestlers are railway employees and are expected to function like any other ticker-checkers. There is absolutely no intimidation involved.” Still, I I would definitely think twice before hopping on board sans ticket.

Community Connection:

Is Northern Railways’ plan a good idea or an invitation to disaster? Let us know what you think in the comments section.

Sponsored by Level 1 Productions, Superunknown is an freeski video competition that’s fast becoming one of the toughest on the scene. The contest is aimed toward amateurs, and videos can be no longer than 2 minutes and 30 seconds. Level 1 is hoping that this year’s entries will top last year’s in both quantity and quality.

Last year’s winner, Niklas Ericsson, beat a pool of over 100 entries from around the world to take the prize. In this week’s video, Ericsson comes back with a taster of what’s coming in this year’s contest.

If you’re planning on entering Superunknown VII, you’d better get moving: entry closes on January 31.

From all of us at Matador, have an extreme weekend!

While Andrew Kent won’t be able to run on his newly mended leg for about a year, orthopedic surgeon Anan Shetty told Sky News that after 18 months, Kent’s bones “will have healed completely.”

“I’m sure he’ll be able to go back and rock climb again,” said Shetty.

Saved from amputation

For a while, Kent’s prognosis wasn’t quite so peachy. In April, Kent was climbing with his son in northeast England’s Lake District when a falling boulder crushed his right leg, breaking it in five places.

The injury was so severe that doctors at the Carlisle hospital where Kent was treated were unable to successfully rejoin the bones. When the leg became infected, it appeared that amputation was fast becoming Kent’s only option.

“Receiving that news is pretty devastating,” Kent told the Daily Mail. “You think: ‘I don’t want to lose this foot. That would be horrendous’.”

A revolutionary treatment

Kent was later transferred to Spire Alexandra Hospital in Chatham. There, Dr. Shetty successfully fixed the wound, performing a procedure co-developed with South Korean surgeon Seok Jung Kim.

Surgeons filled cracks in the bone using a paste made from collagen gel and stem cells extracted from Kent’s own bone marrow. They then placed the leg in a metal cage designed to hold the bone fragments in place while they knitted.

Six months later, the cage has come off. Kent and his doctors say that they’ve already seen signs of recovery.

“I’m very pleased,” said Kent. “I can wiggle my toes and they are looking good.”

Besides fixing Kent’s shattered leg, Shetty and Kim’s technique is also being used to repair a much more common injury, the blown knee. The procedure, which costs significantly less than other knee surgeries, has been performed on ten patients so far, with an 80% success rate.

Community Connection

Are stem cell procedures like this the future of sports medicine? Sound off in the comments.

For more videos, check out Matador TV.