Lenn's Sports Tracks

Despite Sasha Cohen’s and Irina Slutskya’s less than perfect routines in the Olympic figure skating competition, their performances were still good enough to earn them a silver and a bronze medal respectively.

Cohen deserves a great deal of praise for the manner in which she pulled herself together after two unfortunate falls. Many performers would have simply fallen apart after a start like Cohen had. I could even envision people of lesser heart leaving the ice in tears and shame. But after Cohen’s second flop, she went for broke and was almost letter perfect. She deserved the accolades of the crowd, the flowers that cascaded down from the stands, and her medal.

As for Slutskaya, your heart has to go out to her. She was a silver medal winner in the 2002 Olympics and the favorite in the field. She fought courageously for the gold in what she knew coming in would be her last shot at fulfilling her dream. It is hard to say it, but at 27 years old, she did not have the stamina for a grueling four-minute performance. Like Cohen, however, she never let herself down or her many admirers. She continued to perform like a champion and, although disheartened and disappointed, left the ice to the cheers of a first-class audience.

Anti-Semitism is again on the rise in Europe and in many other places in the world. Ugly politics has infected soccer and tennis. Several countries have withdrawn from competitions rather than play against Israeli’s and Jews.

Even in England, Anti-Semitic slurs and chants are heard at soccer games. Disrespectful signs are displayed at German and Dutch soccer venues. But the fans of the Olympic Games in Torino were magnificent even in the full knowledge that Cohen and Slutskya are Jewish, and to a less obvious degree, so is Emily Hughes.

The applause was applied liberally to the performers regardless of their nationalities and religions. That is as it should be. We may cheer for a particular athlete because we have an affinity with them, but we always keep in mind that they are athletes and as such, they are performers who are giving us their best.

Dr. George Eisen, Executive Director and Associate Vice-President at Nazareth College of Rochester, New York compiled the following list of Jewish Winter Olympic medallists. Dr. Eisen is the author of many books, studies and articles, including the award-winning Children and Play in the Holocaust, Games Among the Shadows (University of Massachusetts Press, 1988), which has been translated into a multitude of languages; and Sport and Physical Education in Jewish History (Wingate Institute, Israel). Dr. Eisen compiled the Bibliography of Sport and Leisure in Jewish History and Culture, and was primary consultant to the National Holocaust Museum (Washington, D.C.) special exhibition, The Nazi Olympics/Berlin 1936.

The Winter Olympics began in 1932 in Lake Placid. It has never been a major venue for Jewish athletes. Occasionally, a Jewish athlete does participate and those, according to Dr. Eisen, who can be identified as Jewish, halachachly, are listed below.

Gold: Irving Jaffee, USA, speed skating, 5,000-meter and 10,000-meter. Bronze: Rudolf Ball, Germany, ice hockey; Lászlo Szollás, Hungary, figure skating, pairs.

Bronze: Rudi Ball, Germany, ice hockey; Felix Kasper, Austria, figure skating; Emilia Rotter, Hungary, figure skating, pairs; Lászlo Szollás, Hungary, figure skating, pairs.

About 30 years ago, "Monday Night Football" commentator Howard Cosell wrote a book called, "I Never Played the Game." Neither did University of Tennessee Head Basketball Coach Bruce Pearl. But despite his lack of front-line experience, Pearl has established himself as one of the finest and most honored coaches in the game, and only the second basketball coach at Tennessee to win 21 games in his first season on the bench.

Today, March 10, at 1 p.m., the Volunteers will play either South Carolina or Mississippi State in the quarterfinals of the Southeast Conference’s Basketball Championship in Nashville, TN. The 14^th-ranked Vols enter the game with a 21-6 regular season record, and regardless of the outcome of the tournament are sure to be selected to play in the NCAA basketball tournament beginning next week.

A native of Sharon MA, Pearl credits his Reform Jewish upbringing and his life-long love of the Boston Red Sox for the drive and determination that has pushed him to a career 338-90 won-loss record.

‘"Jewish guilt and fear of losing," said Pearl, Pearl told Jewish Sports.com sports editor M. Stephen Brown last year." I am a tireless worker for those two reasons. I was not the best player [in high school] and I am definitely not the best coach, so for better or worse, I put everything I’ve got into my job."

While there is little doubt that that mentality has helped carry him into the annals along side other great collegiate coaches, it’s likely that the perils and his life long love of the Red Sox also had something to do with it.

"When you live through Bucky Dent’s homer and the ball rolling through Bill Buckner’s legs, you realize that good things don’t come easy," he once said. "Being a Red Sox fan does prepare you for a lot of things."

Pearl arrived at Tennessee last March after successful head coaching stints at Southern Indiana University and the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. Before becoming a head coach, he worked as an assistant to Dr. Tom Davis at Boston College, Stamford and Iowa.

When University of Tennessee Director of Athletics Mike Hamilton began the search for a new basketball coach, he cited the desire to hire an established coach who, over a period of time, had proven success in leading his teams to championships.

Hamilton found his man, naming Pearl as Tennessee's 17th basketball coach on March 28, 2005, in a mid-court ceremony at Thompson-Boling Arena. Now, less than a year later, the university has already given him a substantial raise and a two-year extension on his contract, which will keep him in Knoxville through 2012.

"Bruce Pearl possesses all the criteria for success in men's basketball at the University of Tennessee," Hamilton said. "He is a proven, nationally-recognized winner. His teams are disciplined, mentally tough and exciting to watch. He is a relentless recruiter, a passionate promoter of his program, an excellent floor coach and a staunch family man."

Besides his successful record of accomplishment, Pearl received a ringing endorsement from a Tennessee basketball legend who is considered one of the top front office talents in the NBA.

"He's a basketball junkie," former UT All-America and current president of basketball operations for the Washington Wizards Ernie Grunfeld said about Pearl. "He loves the game. He loves to talk about it. He lives it, breathes it and eats it, and those are the type of people you want running your program. And besides all that, he's a good guy."

Pearl's success has been described as magical. At Division II Southern Indiana, he led the Screaming Eagles to nine NCAA Division II Tournaments, including a Division II national championship in 1995 and a runner-up finish in 1994. He then moved to mid-major UW-Milwaukee, where he directed the Panthers to the Sweet 16 of the 2005 NCAA Tournament with wins over major conference powers Alabama and Boston College. It was the first and only time a former school mascot came back and beat his alma mater as a head coach.

During the Panthers' run to the Sweet 16, Pearl received national acclaim including being named a finalist for the Jim Phelan National Coach of the Year honor with fellow coaches Bruce Weber of Illinois, Roy Williams of North Carolina, Skip Prosser of Wake Forest, Al Skinner of Boston College and Tubby Smith of Kentucky.

Honors consistently were bestowed upon Pearl and his players. Three times in his four seasons at UWM he was named the Horizon League Coach of the Year. In 2004, Dylan Page was named the Horizon League Player of the Year while Ed McCants repeated the feat in 2005. Four players (Clay Tucker in 2002 and 2003, Page in 2003 and 2004, McCants 2005 and Joah Tucker in 2005) earned first team all-conference honors under Pearl's direction.

Pearl's 51-13 (.797) record in Horizon League games gives him the best winning percentage of any coach in that league’s history. He became the second-fastest coach to win 300 career games with a 73-56 win over Loyola Jan. 8, 2005. Only North Carolina's Roy Williams reached the milestone faster.

Other milestones under Pearl's guidance included the school's first win over a ranked team and first wins over teams from the SEC, Big Ten, Big East, Conference USA, WAC and Mountain West.

One of the most recognizable sports figures in the city, fans took notice of UWM's success under Pearl. In each of his four seasons in Milwaukee, the Panthers drew record-setting crowds for their home games.

Late in the 2000 season, Pearl earned his 200th career win, making him the fastest coach in NCAA history to reach the 200-victory mark at one school. Needing just 240 games, Pearl easily broke the record of 250 that had been held by North Carolina State's Everett Case.

In 2001, Pearl's final season at USI, the Screaming Eagles earned their sixth No. 1 national ranking over a seven-season period while posting a 26-4 record and winning the Great Lakes Valley Conference championship.

While at USI, Pearl's successes were not limited to the basketball court. Serving a dual role as head basketball coach and coordinator of athletic development, Pearl helped spur record growth in the school's booster organizations. Pearl's marketing efforts and success on the basketball court led to the sellout of every chairback seat for USI home games and helped raise more than $500,000 annually for the university.

"I feel like I had a great mentor in Dr. Tom Davis," Pearl said. "If you're any good at anything, chances are you had somebody pretty good who taught you how to do it. I had the pleasure of being by his side for 14 years. He was a brilliant defensive strategist. He taught me how to press and how to run, but, more than anything else, he taught me how to work with young people, how to be patient, how to be disciplined and how to get the most out of them, even more than they ever dreamed they could have."

bottom

March 9, 2006	Issue: 7.03	this is column number 12		e-mail me
Lenn Zonder looks at the modern Jewish sports scene!
Despite Sasha Cohen’s and Irina Slutskya’s less than perfect routines in the Olympic figure skating competition, their performances were still good enough to earn them a silver and a bronze medal respectively. Cohen deserves a great deal of praise for the manner in which she pulled herself together after two unfortunate falls. Many performers would have simply fallen apart after a start like Cohen had. I could even envision people of lesser heart leaving the ice in tears and shame. But after Cohen’s second flop, she went for broke and was almost letter perfect. She deserved the accolades of the crowd, the flowers that cascaded down from the stands, and her medal. As for Slutskaya, your heart has to go out to her. She was a silver medal winner in the 2002 Olympics and the favorite in the field. She fought courageously for the gold in what she knew coming in would be her last shot at fulfilling her dream. It is hard to say it, but at 27 years old, she did not have the stamina for a grueling four-minute performance. Like Cohen, however, she never let herself down or her many admirers. She continued to perform like a champion and, although disheartened and disappointed, left the ice to the cheers of a first-class audience. What was most pleasing to me was the ultimate sportsmanship of the fans. Anti-Semitism is again on the rise in Europe and in many other places in the world. Ugly politics has infected soccer and tennis. Several countries have withdrawn from competitions rather than play against Israeli’s and Jews. Even in England, Anti-Semitic slurs and chants are heard at soccer games. Disrespectful signs are displayed at German and Dutch soccer venues. But the fans of the Olympic Games in Torino were magnificent even in the full knowledge that Cohen and Slutskya are Jewish, and to a less obvious degree, so is Emily Hughes. The applause was applied liberally to the performers regardless of their nationalities and religions. That is as it should be. We may cheer for a particular athlete because we have an affinity with them, but we always keep in mind that they are athletes and as such, they are performers who are giving us their best. Bravo to the fans Jewish Winter Olympic medalists Dr. George Eisen, Executive Director and Associate Vice-President at Nazareth College of Rochester, New York compiled the following list of Jewish Winter Olympic medallists. Dr. Eisen is the author of many books, studies and articles, including the award-winning Children and Play in the Holocaust, Games Among the Shadows (University of Massachusetts Press, 1988), which has been translated into a multitude of languages; and Sport and Physical Education in Jewish History (Wingate Institute, Israel). Dr. Eisen compiled the Bibliography of Sport and Leisure in Jewish History and Culture, and was primary consultant to the National Holocaust Museum (Washington, D.C.) special exhibition, The Nazi Olympics/Berlin 1936. The Jewishness of those Russian hockey players marked by * are open to question. (c) 1996-2004 International Jewish Sports Hall of Fame. The Winter Olympics began in 1932 in Lake Placid. It has never been a major venue for Jewish athletes. Occasionally, a Jewish athlete does participate and those, according to Dr. Eisen, who can be identified as Jewish, halachachly, are listed below. 1932 Lake Placid, NY Gold: Irving Jaffee, USA, speed skating, 5,000-meter and 10,000-meter. Bronze: Rudolf Ball, Germany, ice hockey; Lászlo Szollás, Hungary, figure skating, pairs. 1936 Garmisch-Partenkirchen, Germany Bronze: Rudi Ball, Germany, ice hockey; Felix Kasper, Austria, figure skating; Emilia Rotter, Hungary, figure skating, pairs; Lászlo Szollás, Hungary, figure skating, pairs. 1956 Cort. d'Ampezzo, Italy Gold: Alfred Kuchevsky, USSR, ice hockey. Silver: Rafael Gratsch, USSR, speed skating, 500-meter. 1960 Squaw Valley, California Bronze: Rafael Gratsch, USSR, speed skating, 500-meter; Alfred Kuchevsky, USSR, ice hockey. Gold:Victor Zinger, USSR, ice hockey. Silver: Alain Calmat, France, figure skating; Alexandr Gorelik, USSR, figure skating , pairs. 1980 Lake Placid, NY Gold: Gennady Karponosov, USSR, ice-dancing, pairs 2002 Salt Lake City, Utah Gold: Sarah Hughes, USA, Figure Skating Silver: Ilya Averbukh, Russia, ice dancing, pairs Irina Slutskaya, Russia, Figure Skating 2006 Torino, Italy Silver: Sasha Cohen, USA, figure skating; Bronze: Irina Slutskaya, Russia, figure skating. College Basketball* About 30 years ago, "Monday Night Football" commentator Howard Cosell wrote a book called, "I Never Played the Game." Neither did University of Tennessee Head Basketball Coach Bruce Pearl. But despite his lack of front-line experience, Pearl has established himself as one of the finest and most honored coaches in the game, and only the second basketball coach at Tennessee to win 21 games in his first season on the bench. Today, March 10, at 1 p.m., the Volunteers will play either South Carolina or Mississippi State in the quarterfinals of the Southeast Conference’s Basketball Championship in Nashville, TN. The 14^th-ranked Vols enter the game with a 21-6 regular season record, and regardless of the outcome of the tournament are sure to be selected to play in the NCAA basketball tournament beginning next week. A native of Sharon MA, Pearl credits his Reform Jewish upbringing and his life-long love of the Boston Red Sox for the drive and determination that has pushed him to a career 338-90 won-loss record. ‘"Jewish guilt and fear of losing," said Pearl, Pearl told Jewish Sports.com sports editor M. Stephen Brown last year." I am a tireless worker for those two reasons. I was not the best player [in high school] and I am definitely not the best coach, so for better or worse, I put everything I’ve got into my job." While there is little doubt that that mentality has helped carry him into the annals along side other great collegiate coaches, it’s likely that the perils and his life long love of the Red Sox also had something to do with it. "When you live through Bucky Dent’s homer and the ball rolling through Bill Buckner’s legs, you realize that good things don’t come easy," he once said. "Being a Red Sox fan does prepare you for a lot of things." Pearl arrived at Tennessee last March after successful head coaching stints at Southern Indiana University and the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. Before becoming a head coach, he worked as an assistant to Dr. Tom Davis at Boston College, Stamford and Iowa. When University of Tennessee Director of Athletics Mike Hamilton began the search for a new basketball coach, he cited the desire to hire an established coach who, over a period of time, had proven success in leading his teams to championships. Hamilton found his man, naming Pearl as Tennessee's 17th basketball coach on March 28, 2005, in a mid-court ceremony at Thompson-Boling Arena. Now, less than a year later, the university has already given him a substantial raise and a two-year extension on his contract, which will keep him in Knoxville through 2012. "Bruce Pearl possesses all the criteria for success in men's basketball at the University of Tennessee," Hamilton said. "He is a proven, nationally-recognized winner. His teams are disciplined, mentally tough and exciting to watch. He is a relentless recruiter, a passionate promoter of his program, an excellent floor coach and a staunch family man." Besides his successful record of accomplishment, Pearl received a ringing endorsement from a Tennessee basketball legend who is considered one of the top front office talents in the NBA. "He's a basketball junkie," former UT All-America and current president of basketball operations for the Washington Wizards Ernie Grunfeld said about Pearl. "He loves the game. He loves to talk about it. He lives it, breathes it and eats it, and those are the type of people you want running your program. And besides all that, he's a good guy." Pearl's success has been described as magical. At Division II Southern Indiana, he led the Screaming Eagles to nine NCAA Division II Tournaments, including a Division II national championship in 1995 and a runner-up finish in 1994. He then moved to mid-major UW-Milwaukee, where he directed the Panthers to the Sweet 16 of the 2005 NCAA Tournament with wins over major conference powers Alabama and Boston College. It was the first and only time a former school mascot came back and beat his alma mater as a head coach. During the Panthers' run to the Sweet 16, Pearl received national acclaim including being named a finalist for the Jim Phelan National Coach of the Year honor with fellow coaches Bruce Weber of Illinois, Roy Williams of North Carolina, Skip Prosser of Wake Forest, Al Skinner of Boston College and Tubby Smith of Kentucky. Honors consistently were bestowed upon Pearl and his players. Three times in his four seasons at UWM he was named the Horizon League Coach of the Year. In 2004, Dylan Page was named the Horizon League Player of the Year while Ed McCants repeated the feat in 2005. Four players (Clay Tucker in 2002 and 2003, Page in 2003 and 2004, McCants 2005 and Joah Tucker in 2005) earned first team all-conference honors under Pearl's direction. Pearl's 51-13 (.797) record in Horizon League games gives him the best winning percentage of any coach in that league’s history. He became the second-fastest coach to win 300 career games with a 73-56 win over Loyola Jan. 8, 2005. Only North Carolina's Roy Williams reached the milestone faster. Other milestones under Pearl's guidance included the school's first win over a ranked team and first wins over teams from the SEC, Big Ten, Big East, Conference USA, WAC and Mountain West. One of the most recognizable sports figures in the city, fans took notice of UWM's success under Pearl. In each of his four seasons in Milwaukee, the Panthers drew record-setting crowds for their home games. Late in the 2000 season, Pearl earned his 200th career win, making him the fastest coach in NCAA history to reach the 200-victory mark at one school. Needing just 240 games, Pearl easily broke the record of 250 that had been held by North Carolina State's Everett Case. In 2001, Pearl's final season at USI, the Screaming Eagles earned their sixth No. 1 national ranking over a seven-season period while posting a 26-4 record and winning the Great Lakes Valley Conference championship. While at USI, Pearl's successes were not limited to the basketball court. Serving a dual role as head basketball coach and coordinator of athletic development, Pearl helped spur record growth in the school's booster organizations. Pearl's marketing efforts and success on the basketball court led to the sellout of every chairback seat for USI home games and helped raise more than $500,000 annually for the university. "I feel like I had a great mentor in Dr. Tom Davis," Pearl said. "If you're any good at anything, chances are you had somebody pretty good who taught you how to do it. I had the pleasure of being by his side for 14 years. He was a brilliant defensive strategist. He taught me how to press and how to run, but, more than anything else, he taught me how to work with young people, how to be patient, how to be disciplined and how to get the most out of them, even more than they ever dreamed they could have." In 13 seasons as a head coach Bruce Pearl has... Led his teams to 12 20-win seasons Averaged more than 24 wins per season Made 11 NCAA Tournament appearances Won 18 NCAA Tournament games Captured 8 regular season or post-season league titles Won 5 league coach of the year awards Coached 5 league players of the year Won 79.1 percent of his games, the third-best percentage currently in Division I Won 200 games at one school faster than any other coach in NCAA history Won 300 games faster than all but one coach Reached post-season play in 12 of 13 seasons as a head coach Women’s Basketball The University of Pennsylvania women’s’ basketball team finished its season with a 5-22 record this year, but don’t shed too many boo-hoo’s for Jennifer Fleischer, the teams 6-foot, 3-inch, senior center. The New Hartford, NY post player finished her career with the Quakers in the top five in career scoring and third in career rebounding. Her best game of the season was against Columbia when she scored 25 points and hauled down 21 rebounds. Her best memory was as a sophomore, when the Red and Blue played the University of Connecticut in the Eastern Regionals of NCAA Tournament at Harbor Yard Arena in Bridgeport. The teams played before 9,000 spectators, although Fleischer succinctly recalled about 300 were cheering for Pennsylvania. By comparison, the Quakers played before a little more than 12,000 people in 27 games this season. While Fleischer still has to contend with a full schedule of classes to earn her sheepskin in bioengineering this May, the days of 8 p.m. basketball practices one day and 6 a.m. the next, are over, leaving her with just her normal class schedule including 6-hour science labs per week. With less than three months remaining in the school year, Fleischer has the option of choosing a job, going on to graduate school, or she may even have the opportunity to play professional basketball in Europe, or, like her father (a urologist) did after he graduated from Duke, Israel.
Go to First	Previous		Next	Current

Please visit our publication's homepage at http://www.pass.to/tgmegillah/hub.asp If you would like to subscribe (it's free) to the Gantseh Megillah click here This project is financed by the generous contributions of our subcribers top

In 13 seasons as a head coach Bruce Pearl has...