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Bode Miller Article in Chicago Sun Times
Big-mouth Bode just a big asterisk
February 15, 2006 BY JAY MARIOTTI SUN-TIMES COLUMNIST TURIN, Italy -- Our worst fears are being confirmed about Bode Miller, I'm afraid. He has become the undisputed buffoon of the Winter Olympics and is giving Dick Cheney a serious run as America's reigning doofus. When I suggested he'd be the first skier ever to be stopped on the slopes for a Breathalyzer test, I never thought he'd drink a few beers the night before his major letdown in the downhill. But, oh, there's more. Tuesday evening, on the hills of Sestriere, Miller was in seemingly sweet position to hush his critics and win his first gold medal in the combined event. The race favorite, Austria's Benjamin Raich, had almost fallen during his afternoon downhill run and was far behind. The closest competitors didn't have Miller's talent and experience in the slalom portion, supposedly his specialty. All Bode had to do was stay upright, basically, and he would hand NBC exactly what it needed to spike ratings while giving Americans something to cheer other than slacker snowboarders with cartoonish nicknames. So what happened? The skier who says he doesn't care about winning got careless, that's what. Flying down the mountain with his usual fury, Miller straddled the 42nd gate late in his first slalom run. An asterisk was placed by his name on the scoreboard, and next thing you knew, the so-called iconoclast who says he has been "wasted'' while skiing was disqualified from the event. Considering he hadn't finished five of his seven World Cup slaloms this year, should anyone be surprised? Bode Miller, topic of magazine cover stories and more pre-Games buzz than any U.S. winter athlete in memory, has finished fifth in one race and no place in another with as few as two opportunities left in these Games. Iconoclast? Only if you emphasize the "con.'' After taking a country for a ride with his big mouth, Miller has done nothing in the Italian Alps to back up his bluster and is leaving a pathetic example of how an athlete can waste considerable talent if his mind is a mess and his focus isn't right. His only feat has been in lending a new catchphrase to the everyday lexicon: Bodeing it. To Bode is to screw up ... and not give a damn when you do. Oh, I lost? When's Miller time? "It's not the first time I've hooked a tip,'' a carefree Miller told the gathered media. "I've straddled probably more times than most people have finished the slalom. If it's clear, it's clear. I don't plan to get disappointed.'' Fine. Don't be bummed out at all. Go have a few more beers and let a more deserving and appreciative American, Ted Ligety, have the spotlight. After Miller was sent off to the pub by race officials, the 21-year-old from Park City, Utah -- previously best known for the Sundance Film Festival and Michael Jordan's bad pizza experience -- stormed from 86-hundredths of a second behind to win America's first gold in men's skiing since 1994. The last came courtesy of Tommy Moe, which makes Miller a hybrid of Larry and Curly. Unlike Miller, Ligety seems to have a joy about him and a respect for the Olympic ideal. He served as a slalom forerunner at the 2002 Games in his hometown and used to tape "MOM AND DAD'' at the spot on his helmet where most skiers wear sponsor logos. OK, Ligety has a wild streak himself, enjoying punk rock and blasting Billy Idol's "Rebel Yell'' before his races. But compared with Miller, the hypocrite who decries America's overemphasis on winning yet has taken millions in endorsement dollars, the kid is a Boy Scout. I'm sure I'm not the only one who finds powerful, refreshing meaning in this dramatic turn of events. "It's incredible,'' Ligety said. "Sometimes, you've just got to get in the starting gate and throw down whatever you've got.'' Will gold change his life? "I have no idea,'' he said. "But I'm pretty satisfied with my life so far, so I hope it doesn't change it too much.'' A self-absorbed self-promoter That's clear-headed stuff compared with Bode, who started the day with his reputation teetering as usual. America has a way of embracing quirky athletes when they win and would have made Miller a beer-drinking, nose-thumbing folk hero if he had ruled the Olympics. But when he didn't win a medal after admitting to having "a couple beers'' late Saturday night -- when he drank with his agent, cousin and, ahem, Nike rep at a Sestriere bar called The Cavern -- even his loyalists couldn't defend him. The U.S. men's ski coach, Phil McNichol, wasn't happy that Miller had overslept in his RV -- he refuses to stay in the Olympic village with other athletes -- and missed the 9:30 a.m. pre-race inspection that serves as a concentration session for most skiers. If you wish to argue a few beers had no bearing on Miller's performance, understand that fifth place is fifth place and that Miller looked tired at the end of his downhill run. He isn't in the best of shape, in part because he doesn't take care of his body but also because he has been too busy promoting himself in the very media he claims to loathe. Yep, a man who thinks winning is overblown has burned out on overexposure. Ain't that America, for you and me? As if proving a point, Miller tried to win brownie points last week when he said he doesn't lavishly spend his millions. "You don't see me up here with bling diamonds on and a fur coat wrapped around me,'' he said. "My most expensive car is probably less than your most expensive car.'' What's his point? He still took the money, didn't he? Hate to break it to Bode, but the Olympics are not another frat-house retreat. It is a privilege to compete in the Games, which provide sportsmanship lessons for children and create quadrennial benchmarks for where the world stands in sport and life. It would have been nice if he'd showed some emotion after the disqualification, maybe demanded a protest or something. Nope. "I wasn't so much conservative as just bad,'' Miller said. U.S. ski officials weren't very interested in protesting, either. "It's a clear straddle,'' McNichol said. Could be they're just relieved. In the end, Bode Miller isn't a revolutionary as much as a ding-a-ling with a platform and two skis that didn't properly maneuver through a gate. Maybe he'll win a medal this week, but I just hope he goes away and leaves us all alone. The Olympics are too good for him. "Ever skied drunk?'' someone asked Ligety. "No, I have not skied when I was drunk,'' he said, sounding like a real American hero and not a hazy, contrived phony. Jay Mariotti is a regular on ''Around the Horn'' at 4 p.m. on ESPN. Send e-mail to inbox@ suntimes.com with name, hometown and daytime phone number (letters run Sunday). |
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Marty wrote:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jay_Mariotti Another big mouth ass-wipe that knows nothing about ski racing. I just can not understand how these guys get to where they are in life. Thanks for nothing Jay! Stick to NASCAR. The Jay Mariotti would stuff up an article on The Tiddely Winks. -- Before Heading to the Hills Head to The Wisconsin Skier: http://www.wi-ski.com/ |
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The Wisconsin Skier wrote:
wrote: Big-mouth Bode just a big asterisk February 15, 2006 BY JAY MARIOTTI SUN-TIMES COLUMNIST TURIN, Italy -- Our worst fears are being confirmed about Bode Miller, I'm afraid. He has become the undisputed buffoon of the Winter Olympics Marioti is an effin moron he is even worse than Rick Reilly. I can not recall a The Sporting News column from him I had a shred of intelligence ^^^ (-I +that) -- Before Heading to the Hills Head to The Wisconsin Skier: http://www.wi-ski.com/ |
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Hey Mariotti, this one's for you dumbass:
http://www.eurosport.com/alpineskiin...to834756.shtml -- Marty |
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AND, I bet if anybody had said that Roberto Heras was a doper just a
year ago, you'd have called them insane. I have lost all faith in pro cycling (and cyclists) being clean after that, and Tyler, and Millar, and last but not least, Museeuw. The best cheats yet to be caught! -- Marty |
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Marty wrote: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jay_Mariotti Another big mouth ass-wipe that knows nothing about ski racing. I just can not understand how these guys get to where they are in life. Thanks for nothing Jay! Stick to NASCAR. -- Marty Typical of the sporting media. I'm an SF Giants fan and they do the same thing to Barry because he won't kiss their ass. I like men who can think on their own and are not afraid of ruffling some feathers. Well, AFAIC, I love Bode and they can eat sh*t!!! Martha |
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The Wisconsin Skier wrote:
The Jay Mariotti would stuff up an article on The Tiddely Winks. You do know they have Tiddely Wink tournaments in the UK? |
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Horse****.
You mean everything I've written, or just the "Bode's history is already legendary as a ski racer" part? Whatever the case, it may very well be as it's all just my opinion anyway. -- Marty |
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