In Germany, theBundesliga has come back with a bang in the weeks since their 
Winterbreak.  The league has been promotingitself as a haven for poor, 
struggling young British soccer stars, who arehaving difficulty starring at 
home.  Itis promoting itself as a good place to play, and without salary caps 
prevalentin some of the UK teams.   

Mentioned here andthere is Bayer standout Leon Bailey, who is actually 
Jamaican, but who may beplaying for England in the upcoming Russia World Cup.   
Thestandings do not reflect tough competition, with Bayern Munich out ahead by 
far,with 59 points.  Bayer Leverkusen, homeof Leon Bailey, is second, far 
behind at 38 points.   Actually,several teams are clumped together there in the 
standings, with RB Leipzig alsoat 38, and  Borussia Dortmund and Schalkeboth at 
37.  Just behind is EintrachtFrankfurt, with 36 points on the table.  
Sunday features twogames, with Augsburg taking on Stuttgart, and Borussia 
Dortmund vs Borussia Mönchengladbach.  this is a Borussen derby crucial for 
bothsides, with Dortmunt somewhat favored.  They may be poweredalong by their 
standout player, Mario Gotze, well known to this space, at leastsince the 2014 
World Cup.   Dortmund, who won 3-2 over Atalanta in aWednesday Europa League 
match, very much wants this win to cement a place inthe top three of the 
standings.   


Meanwhile, in Spain,Real Madrid star Gareth Bale has revealed that he doesn't 
really enjoysoccer...  watching soccer thatis...  Better a fantastic player 
than awatcher.  Perhaps the Italians could takea lesson...  Bale has said that 
he ismore a fan of "the golf" on television.   
In the United States,the Pro Bowling Association celebrates 60 years this 
weekend with Sunday’schampionship round of the Go Bowling! PBA 60th Anniversary 
Classic at WoodlandBowl in Indianapolis.   


Jakob Butturff ofTempe, Arizona, won seven of his final eight matches Friday 
night to lead thefield of five 20-something finalists into the finals.  He is a 
23 year old southpaw, who was nearthe lead all tournament, and is hopeful going 
into Sunday's finals.  He will be joined by the other qualifiers,narrowed from 
a wide field.  Thesequalifiers include four-time PBA Tour winner Marshall Kent 
of Yakima, Washington,who is 25, two-handed lefty Keven Williams of 
Springfield, Missouri, also  25, Indiana native Matt Sanders, 24, and JapanPBA 
star Shota Kawazoe, the oldest player in the field at 29. 
The chase for the finalberth in Sunday’s finals boiled down to the final game 
where Kawazoe struck outin the 10th frame to win the spot by a single pin over 
Bill O’Neill ofLanghorne, Pennsylvania. Kawazoe, a 15-time Japan PBA champion, 
has moved tothe United States to bowl full-time in PBA competition in pursuit 
of hislife-long dream, a PBA Tour title. .   In Korea, the WinterOlympics 
continue today...  

In the UnitedStates ratings are down 8 % this year over previous Winter 
Olympics.  The fault is not the athletes, as thecompetition and artistry has 
been tremendous across the board.  The drama and challenges faced by athletes 
iscertainly not diminished over previous years. This commentator would lay the 
blame at the inept and fecklessadministrators at NBC, who for several years 
have been mismanaging their network,and who have carried this neglect over to 
the Olympics.  
Too often they have chosen to reward pastheroes of the network.  Katie Couric 
didnot get off on the best foot when, on the opening day, she said 
thatNetherlanders were excellent skaters, because in Winter their canals 
freeze,and they commute to work by skating. Apparently they want to bring her 
back to the NBC network, but she is certainly no expert on the Olympics or 
apparently international affairs.   Thecommentators for ice skating, two of 
whom are retired skaters, seem to feelthat the show is all about them, and 
those annoying skaters are just needed tofill time.  The focus is not always 
oreven usually on the artistry  and skillof the skaters, but instead on the 
commentator's costumes.   

On tap for the Olympicstoday are Bobsledding, Hockey, speed skating and 
freestyle skiing.  Figure Skating and Snowboarding will alsomake an appearance 

--
Posted By Rex to SR at 2/18/2018 12:03:00 AM  

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