Mike Pesca

Wrestlers Grapple To Save Sport From Olympic Chopping Block

Mike Pesca — Thu, 16 May 2013 08:24:00 +0000

Transcript

DAVID GREENE, HOST:

How often do you find Iran, Russia and the United States united behind a single message? Well, representatives from all three countries were in New York City yesterday rallying support for the sport of wrestling, which could be excluded from the upcoming Olympic Games. It was quite a show of sportsmanship and diplomacy. Of course, there was time for some conflict among the wrestlers.

Marathons Are Soft Targets

Mike Pesca — Wed, 17 Apr 2013 08:42:00 +0000

Transcript

DAVID GREENE, HOST:

Now, the twin bombings at the Boston Marathon struck at a very special type of sporting event. Marathons have been called the most democratic of sports, with the fewest physical barriers between athlete and spectator.

NPR's Mike Pesca examines whether the attack could permanently damage that accessibility.

MIKE PESCA, BYLINE: You can play Pebble Beach, but the greens fees are $495, cart not included. Pinehurst is cheaper. Bethpage Black has a longer wait. Those are the golf courses where they hold events called the U.S. Open.

Always In The Zone, Syracuse Is Hard To Beat

Mike Pesca — Sat, 06 Apr 2013 15:46:00 +0000

Any recreational league basketball team, any police athletic league squad and every group of 8-year-olds who wear the same uniform are, on the first or second day of practice, introduced to the 2-3 zone defense.

The coach will say, "On defense, you two short guys stay near the foul line, and you three bigger kids, you go down near the basket.

Deflections: The Unofficial Stat That Measures Success

Mike Pesca — Thu, 28 Mar 2013 07:44:00 +0000

The Louisville Cardinals are among the teams dominating at this year's men's Division 1 NCAA basketball tournament, which resumes Thursday night. The team credits harassing, active defense for its wins.

But there's something else at work, too: deflections. The team puts a lot of stock in them, though deflections aren't an officially tracked statistic.

The way Mario Batali thinks about black truffles, the penchant Quentin Tarantino has for quoting Hong Kong martial arts films in his own movies — that's the way University of Louisville coach Rick Pitino talks about deflections.

Super Bowl Cheat Sheet: Key Phrases To Keep You In The Game

Mike Pesca — Sun, 03 Feb 2013 10:28:00 +0000

Sure, you can go to a Super Bowl party and be That Guy. The one who gleefully lectures the crowd on the merits of running the inverted veer out of the pistol in order to freeze the weak-side backer.

Or you could be That Other Guy, who nervously stabs tuna rolls into a football made of wasabi, and hopes no one asks which Harbaugh is which.

How Do You Solve A Problem Like Colin Kaepernick?

Mike Pesca — Thu, 31 Jan 2013 08:17:00 +0000

There's always a question surrounding San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick. Years ago, people wondered whether the talented athlete would be good enough to start in college.

Then there was the question of what role he would play in the NFL. And after the 49ers took him, fans questioned whether he could throw enough to be more than a backup.

Now, the only question is: How do you stop Colin Kaepernick? The second-year quarterback out of Nevada is making just his 10th NFL start and is perhaps the most important player in the Super Bowl.

Hard Lessons At the Olympics, Like The Metric System

Mike Pesca — Sun, 12 Aug 2012 20:29:00 +0000

Olympic winners like gold medalist Claressa Shields have said the games were a learning experience, but what were they learning? Hard work? Sure. Sportsmanship? Maybe. The metric system? Certainly not.

U.S. judo competitor Kyle Vashkulat competes at 100 kg, which he knows means he weighs 220 lbs.

Boxing Maths and Aftermaths: Why Similar Scores Are A Mean System

Mike Pesca — Fri, 10 Aug 2012 15:16:00 +0000

Four years ago, Irish boxer Paddy Barnes lost to China's Zou Shiming by a score of 15-0 in Beijing. Today in London, Barnes fought his way back into their match to tie Zou at 15-15 — but he still lost.

The Olympic Art of Shushing: Who Decides When Fans Can Be Noisy?

Mike Pesca — Wed, 08 Aug 2012 16:04:00 +0000

There seems to be a vague logic that dictates which Olympic sports are conducted against a backdrop of noise, and which operate in a cone of silence.

For the most part, the more a sport depends on a fine motor skill, the quieter the spectators are meant to be. Shooters squeeze triggers before mostly hushed crowds. But in many shooting disciplines, the competitors line up in a group and can shoot at any point during their time allotment.

India's Olympic Effort Faulted

Mike Pesca — Tue, 07 Aug 2012 09:00:00 +0000

Transcript

STEVE INSKEEP, HOST:

Now, as we cover the Olympics, some of you have asked for spoiler alerts, but for this next report that is probably not necessary. NPR's Mike Pesca is taking us inside the world of India's men's field hockey team. We're not too worried about spoilers. Not just because most Americans don't care much about field hockey, but because the Indian squad has done a pretty good job itself of spoiling things.