This was absolutely necessary and I applaud the ATP for the move.

In my previous article, I wrote that tennis needs 3 months off per year, which I still believe is the best solution.  However, understanding the complications of moving the schedule and tournaments this is a step in the right direction.  Lets keep the momentum and shave another month off an insanely busy schedule.

Click here to check out the new ATP schedule for 2012 and 2013.

I find tennis very underwhelming this time of year.  In fact, I find it downright tiresome and old.  We need a breather, the players need a breather and the sport needs to stop prolonging these unending seasons.

I understand the international implications of tennis and the tournaments that span the globe.  This is the beauty of tennis, it is the only sport that crosses continents and oceans without changing leagues or organizations.

Let’s take a quick look.

Soccer has leagues all over the world with the predominate European Leagues.    The only semblance of world order is the World Cup.

Football has the NFL in the USA and the CFL in Canada.  It has been a miserable failure in Europe and is far from an international sport.  Just do not tell that to the NFL’s “World Champions”.

Boxing has so many belts, championships and weight classes that only a Las Vegas bookie would understand.

Hockey is a northern sport that relies on cold climates and ice.  It is played in leagues throughout Russia, Europe and North America.  The Olympics are the ultimate showcase for hockey.

Golf is the closest to international order with players crisscrossing the Atlantic to vie for number 1.  Golf is also host to a list of players that do not originate from one predominate geographical area.  Still, they have the PGA and the European Tour.

Tennis stands alone as the true international sport with both men and women battling for position in a worldwide  ranking system.  This distinguishing characteristic is burning it out.

I do not need to tell you how the players feel, this is well documented.  SHORTEN THE SEASON!!

This end of year Barclay tournament thing…round robin.  What a total waste of time.  From my North American perspective it feels all too much like the Pro Bowl in the NFL.  A showcase for the best players but a result that leaves a “who won again” attitude, if anyone cares to ask.

Tennis’ season begins with the Australian Open and ends with the US Open.  Like any sport, we all need a break.  I have no interest in watching indoor tennis in the winter time.  I can not find it on TV anyhow and I refuse to pay an extra $30 per month for the Tennis Channel and it’s nauseating repetitive programming.  Agassi ” Between The Lines”, yeah I get it for the 2000th time.

Here is my solution to the problem.

Rules:

• Players must have a 3 month break, preferably Oct-Dec
• Play can resume during October-November but is limited to 250 tournaments.  No top level player should have to worry about playing these months after a grueling 9 month schedule.
• The Asian schedule should be moved to February after the Aussie open.  Let’s keep things in geographical order.  The South American tournaments can overlap at the same time.
• The USA has 3 masters 1000 and one should be eliminated or downgraded.   A solution is to switch between tournaments on a yearly basis as Montreal and Toronto do.
• Paris indoor should not be a masters 1000 event.
• Monte Carlo and Madrid should alternate years.
• Move the year end event to the last week of September.  The US Open, Wimbledon and French Open are still fresh in the minds creating a more vibrant end of the season atmosphere.
• The end of year tournament should be based on Grand Slam results.  Make this event the Grand Finale.

This will improve the quality of play and add more excitement to the first real tournament of the year, the Australian Open.  Our great players will last an extra 2-3 years and the excitement of the game will increase.

No successful sport on this planet expects players to beat themselves up for 11 months, why should tennis?

http://www.thefiscaltimes.com/Issues/The-Economy/2010/05/02/The-Great-American-Downsizing.aspx

Until Next time.

Jeff

Tennis is missing the spunk that made it a topic of discussion in years past.  Now it is relegated to an afterthought in the American sports pantry.  Why?  It is boring to the average sports fan.

Tennis today, is all about the nice guy or gal.  The Williams sisters, especially Serena, get scorned from the tennis crowd because they ruffle feathers and speak their mind.  Please mind your manners, the country club sponsor is calling.  When did this happen?  As a culture over the past decade, we have been force fed a diet of politically correct thoughts.  With the largest companies in the world sponsoring the biggest events this attitude is becoming increasingly prevalent.  Only a handful of commentators have the guts to speak their mind, the rest go back to the same anecdotes and plurality.  Oh my…

I prefer Alice Cooper’s attitude, No more Mr. Nice Guy.  There is something exciting about Good v. Bad.  We love villains and heroes but nobody wants a collection of heroes.  Federer and Nadal are so good that they can get away with good v. good.  This is rare, especially in individual sports.  Whether you are a golf fan or not, watching Tiger Woods pair up against Phil Mickelson on the final day is entertaining and gives the sport an edge.  We love the bad blood, the idea that one opponent cannot stand being in the same room as their competitor.   We are raised by the scandalous images of Shakespearean drama and our culture thrives on it.

We need more Serena, McEnroe, Connors, Agassi, Safin, Becker and Nastase.  Even a little Jeff Tarango does not hurt.

Federer goes without saying.  Pure genius and creativity will always win out because as humans we rarely see excellence at that level.  Federer also has a personality and an incredible sense of awareness.  I would also place Nadal in this category.  His heart spills onto the court and this cannot be replicated or faked.

I know times have changed but these players are groomed and manicured from the time they are infants.  The game has been dulled down by the barrage of tennis academy’s that dot the tennis landscape.  Bolletieri is the biggest culprit with his former students mechanically swiping at the ball with feet glued to the baseline.

There is a reason Federer and Nadal are better than their peers.  They were not part of the academy system and their unique play is better for it.

We need to let these kids breath, let them express their emotion, angry or happy.  The entitlement these sponsors have with their players is nauseating.  One wrong move and you are dropped.

I know many tennis fans do not care if the average fan “gets” their sport or watches but lets be real, without a bigger fan base in America, tennis will continue to be a sport with spotty TV coverage and 7 hour tape delays.

Until the sponsors realize they are suffocating the sport with image requirements and we as tennis fans scrutinize every move, the sport will continue to lose market share and popularity, at least here in North America.

What an amazing time we had in Vancouver during an unforgettable Winter Olympics.  Olympic fever increased  with each passing day and climaxed with the USA vs. Canada gold medal hockey game, better than any script Hollywood could produce.  When Canada scored in overtime, the streets of Vancouver filled with a euphoria never seen in this city, or country for that matter.  We ended the evening playing street hockey until 1AM under the glow of streetlights and restaurant signs.

What we can take from this Olympics is an enormous sense of pride and accomplishment.  The first few days were a little unsteady but as the games progressed this Olympics will be considered with the best of the best.  The international media came in with bated breath and smelling blood, they left licking their wounds, finding their voice unheralded.  Overall, this Olympics united a country and spread a sense of openness and love to the world.  Dubbed, “The Friendly Games”, it felt as though everyone was part of the community.

We are fortunate to have attended these games but now it is back to our true business…Tennis.  We will be kicking off our Spring Collection in mid-March with lots of exciting news in the near future.  Keep checking in…Indian Wells is next week, tennis and spring are back.

We leave you with our final video of the Olympic Experience.

Jeff

I wanted to post a short video to recap our amazing time during the Olympics.  We will be leaving downtown Vancouver tommorow for a few days but will be returning on Feb. 28th for the Gold Medal Hockey game and the Closing Ceremonies.

An incredible game by Team USA to upset Canada in the hockey preliminaries, lots more to come.

I will send a detailed post about the Olympics and our adventures after the Closing Ceremonies.  Take care until then.

Jeff

The Olympic Spirit is alive and well in Vancouver.

Patriotic and friendly is the common currency at this Winter Games.  I have not witnessed such patriotism in my life.  Unbelievable!   Every single person, child or sasquatch has a Canadian jersey or flag.

The Barenaked Ladies were one performer we were able to catch at BC Place Stadium.  They rocked the house as athletes from the USA, Canada, France and Korea were awarded Olympic medals.  The opening of the medal ceremonies began with the Olympic Anthem…I did not know one existed.

Please enjoy a video of the last few days.

Tomorrow is the USA v. Canada hockey game and next week is Loverboy…Watch Out!!

Jeff

We were in the Olympic spirit yesterday and Vancouver was buzzing with anticipation of the Olympic Opening Ceremonies.  Suddenly, word was spreading about a fatal accident in Whistler during a Luge practice session.  Georgian athlete Nodar Kumaritashvili was cruising down the ice at 140 KM/HR and flipped off the ice track.  Sadly, he died within hours and could not be saved.

I thought the Opening Ceremonies did a classy job of honoring the fallen athlete.

We spent most of our day at the Irish House and following the Torch to its destination, BC Place Stadium.  The city was buzzing all day as Black paneled cars whisked dignitaries and Heads of State to the Opening Ceremonies.  We watched from the comfort of our condo in Yaletown.   Hallelujah by KD Lang was my favorite moment of the ceremony.  Covering the great Canadian Songwriter Leonard Cohen, It was beautifully sang and her voice drifted to incredible peaks and valleys, a flawless performance to start the games.

I have posted a short video of the days happenings and events.

We will be back at it today, heading down to Robson Street.  Tonight, Wilco is on the agenda at Yaletown live, an incredible band from Chicago.  Time to get out of here.

Jeff

Well, we made it to Vancouver.  When we arrived at the airport we decided to board the brand new Canada line train.  While we were waiting, Tami noticed a suspicious character pacing back and forth with something stuffed under his jacket.   The next thing we know, we board the train and this mysterious figure pulls a plastic item from under his jacket and manically starts ripping it open.    He is sitting down looking panicked and shifty, everyone is oblivious.  The passenger beside him is reading a newspaper and sipping a coffee.  Suddenly, Tami has a look of terror in her eyes as she tells me we need to get off this train.  I am standing behind this disgruntled person and I notice he is uncomfortable and constantly glancing to his side.  I calmly walk right beside him to find out his intentions.  As far as I can tell he is frantically trying to open a pair of large headphones.  No big deal.

Within 2 minutes, the doors of the train open and we are at the next station.  Tami is getting off the train with our son Andre.  I follow and watch the train disappear down the track.  I ask why she just bolted from the train.  Tami watched as this guy unscrewed the earpiece of the headphone, put it in his bag and began to fiddle with some yellow and white wires.  Not exactly a comfortable feeling, especially after the Christmas bomber and the news that followed.

I begin looking for an official at the station, there is no one in the vicinity.  Meanwhile, the loudspeaker at the station keeps repeating ” Please report any suspicious activity to the nearest official”.  The next train is arriving in about 5min and we are staring at each other in disbelief.  What was that all about?  Was this frantic stranger a terrorist?  Are we over-reacting?  Why was everyone completely ignoring this person?  I do not have the answer but you can only follow your gut.  Maybe we always assume nothing will happen until it does.  Hindsight is worthless if you do not take action.

As far as we know, nothing came of the incident and we made it safely to our condo on the next train.  It is a moment we will never forget and we will not take our safety for granted.

On to the Olympics.  We watched the torch pass through Yaletown tonight and I posted a video of the celebration.

We will be posting numerous blogs from the Olympics with information and videos to let everyone feel a little closer to the experience.

Tomorrow is Opening ceremonies.

Jeff

MyntStyle is making its debut at the Vancouver Olympics.

Check back regularly for MyntStyle news from the Winter Olympics.