My ESPN

Jim The Great

Written by Sabine Demosthenes

Yesterday seemed to be a typical Monday. Anticipating my day in academic life, I started by reading my emails and preparing my posts for the week.

I went to my office and for a Blue Monday, I was in a pretty good mood, especially for a girl that doesn’t like Mondays for some childish reason.

Then, I heard my Twitter alert and grabbed my cell phone to see what is going on. The moment I saw that Bret Hart tweet, I felt like I was in a silent movie. My mouth was moving, but no sound was coming out. I gasped and suddenly, tears were slowly hitting my desk.

Jim “The Anvil” Neidhart had passed away.

I stopped doing whatever I was doing for a good 5 minutes. My thoughts went to Ellie, Nattie, Muffy, Jenni and TJ. He was a heck of a father and family man. He would do anything for his girls. Then, I was thinking about Bret. His partner in crime and one of his closest friends was gone.

A family lost a husband, father, brother-in-law, uncle, brother and cousin. Friends have lost a loyal, funny, kind-hearted friend. Fans have lost an hero. It’s an inspiration to be who you are and to give your best in everything no matter what.

A month ago, we had filmed a little tribute to the Hart Foundation. It wasn’t a perfect video, but Donald and I were both so proud to recall our fondest memories of The Hitman and The Anvil. I remember saying that I was always mesmerized by Jim’s charisma. As a child, I called him my fun uncle Jim since I truly wanted to have a fun uncle like Jim.

I’m happy that Jade, her brothers, her sister and her cousins have the honor of having this one-of-a-kind gentle giant of an uncle like Jim.

In recent years, I realized that the most precious gift from someone who loved you, but is no longer with you, is the gift of sweet memories.

Photographs, videos, letters and foremost, the recollection of sweet stories and memories are truly the most valuable legacy they could have left us.

I dedicate this post to Ellie, Nattie, TJ, Stephanie, Jennifer, Jim’s grandkids, Bret and the entire Hart and Neidhart families. To Jim’s friends too and to all his fans.

To Jade Lambros-Hart, The Chronicle Family is sending big hugs.

With love,

The Chronicle Blog Family

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30 years ago… Wayne Gretzky was traded and all Canadians were mourning.

Written by Sabine Demosthenes and produced by Donald and Sabine Demosthenes

30 years ago, The Educated Fool was in shock and even his mom was in shock.

And guess what…

The Whole Canada was in shock.

How come?

Poor The Educated Fool and probably all of the Canadians all around the country.

We will always remember this date.

 

Wayne in LA

The date we got 99 problems like Jay Z sang.

Jay Z 99 problems

Hymn to LeBron James

Written by Sabine Demosthenes

After a little summer break, listening to this 70’s hit Summer Breeze, I’m ready to tackle the remainder of the summer!

I wasn’t really on a break, as Ross told Rachel on a Friends episode, since I have been working with The NorthSide team. We’ve been filming our kick-butt (I’m must be careful with my language!) YouTube talk show with the magnificent Educated Fool, Donnie D! Let’s say we’ve been having some serious fun.

Montreal was, again, the city to be in for summer. Osheaga, the Just for Laugh Festival, the International Jazz Festival, the African Nights Festival, the FrancoFolies and a lot of cool concerts were part of our summer “repertoire”.

Let’s get back to business shall we…

The last few weeks have been interesting. LeBron James is not only the crowned king of Los Angeles, but he is also the People’s King.

Why?

You may have heard or read that this fine gentleman created a very promising school. Some people were not very happy, or probably jealous (hint: 45), and lashed out with their stupidity on Twitter. LeBron James is clearly not intimidated by this kind of bullying. He is still focusing on the positivity surrounding him (a legion of people all around the world are admiring his good heart and his talent).

To King James, we promise to follow you.

Before I forget, a quick shoutout to Jalen Rose and Molly Qerim – the First Couple of ESPN!

They got married two weeks ago. When I learned this beautiful news, I did a little happy dance, like Carlton Banks on The Fresh Prince of Bel Air (The Tom Jones one) in our VR during our camping trip. Guys, if you are sports and pop culture fans, check out their shows and podcasts on ESPN! You won’t regret it at all.

I will end this editorial with one question mark:

I wonder if Kobe Bryant is asking himself why he didn’t think of being more of a philanthropist instead of focusing on who is the greatest basketball player of all-time?

I’m just saying…

http://www.lebronjames.com

Jalen and Jacoby Show on ESPN

Molly Qerim Instagram

King Vergne

Written by Sabine Demosthenes

A new champion conquers our need for speed this weekend.

Vergne The Champion

Jean-Eric Vergne won the Formula E Championship this weekend in Brooklyn with a fiercely attitude and determination. He was declared king of the Formula E Saturday and he won the Sunday’s race.

This is a true king. But he didn’t do all of this by himself.

The Teechetah’s team is one of the best builder and team. Talking about the Teechetah’s family, Léo Thomas has been crowned Modis Formula E Engineer of the Year. Congratulations to Mr. Thomas and there is another proof of the team spirit at Teechetah.

I had the honor to talk to Jean-Eric in Montreal last year at the Formula E Championship in our beautiful town. He was a gentleman and so focus. I remember him saying how much he loves Montreal ( And Montreal love you). While I was listening to Jean-Eric, I had this feeling he will be the following year king of the Formula E.

For the few times, I was right (I had the same prediction for France winning the FIFA World Cup).

Jean-Eric Vergne, TECHEETAH, said: “Firstly I want to congratulate Audi for winning the teams’ championship. I want to congratulate my team for the job they’ve done this year because honestly, it’s really amazing. This weekend started out with a mistake in qualifying that got me disqualified. I came back through the field – attacking very hard and overtaking many cars. Today qualifying went pretty well in the wet. Then I had a strong, aggressive, start and then I was able to manage the race, which was very tough as we all know Audi is really, really quick in the race. No mistakes were allowed on my side and I think I’ve achieved that.”

The competition was fierce between Vergne and Bird. Contrary to the Di Grassi and Buemi rivalry, you could feel that Vergne and Bird respect each other.

Look, guys, the Formula E is way more fun to watch and more competitive than the F1. This year show us what is coming and let me tell you, the sky will be the limit for the Formula E.

Can the 2018-2019 season start right now?

Formula E New York City Race

 

The heat is on!

Written by Sabine Demosthenes

The heat is on…

The heat is on, on…

I’m trying to sing one of Glenn Frey’s classic songs. I was always singing this song when I was younger. My dear Mamma’s poor ears, singing was never my greatest attribute.

It’s so hot in Montreal and yes, we are complaining, like little babies. Let’s all remember our state of mind from November to April.

I was the first one to chant like a gospel singer that I cannot take this cold weather anymore. Even if I’m a very proud child born in the NorthSide, the North Pole.

I’m being a little bit too melodramatic. But damn, it’s so hot outside.

Even Raymonde’s plant (in memory of my father-in-law) in my living room is all saggy.

But the heat was worse Sunday night. While I was watching the highlights of the World Cup match between Haiti hmm I mean Brazil vs Mexico (what a game!), I went to check my Twitter account.

And boom! I thought I was passing out because of the heat (ok ok, I have AC at home but still), I saw a tweet that King Lebron is going to the City of Angels.

Holy macaroni!

For two days, I had to contain myself. But with the first official episode of The NorthSide, I will let our Educated Fool analyze this historic trade. I wonder if the Educated Fool will talk about Kobe Bryant not being the golden child of the Lakers anymore.

The heat is really on…

Tom vs Time or Time vs Tom?

Written by Sabine Demosthenes

I know, I know… 
Another article about the magnificent Tom Brady, written by another admirer. You may be right in a way, I have admired Tom Brady since he started, but I do not like/love/admire or any other adjective describing a lovey-dovey attitude toward his employer, The New England Patriots. I will, however, be respectful because my mother and father raised me to be a respectful human being.
That being said, I watched the “Tom vs Time” episode about spirituality and had in a surprising “Wow” moment. Me! Mrs. I don’t give a (sorry kid – very bad word that I won’t write in this very serious article *sigh*).
Why Am I so serious?
My point is that I knew he was great, but now I get why he is the greatest, even as a Patriot (ouch, that hurts).
Tom is a very grounded, in an Earthly kind of way. I think his eco-system, aka his family and the people surrounding him, made him a grounded human being. He is not impressed by the superficiality of being seen as a superstar quarterback. 
I have realized that to be this kind of athlete, you need to constantly have an adversary. Sometimes, your adversary is the opposing team or a rival quarterback. My question/remark is: Could Tom have been his own adversary all along, ever since he started playing football as a child? Time is his drug, his goal, and his final destination?
With everything that has happened in the past two years, a different Tom has emerged for some people. For me, it’s the same ol’ Tom. The man, who as a youngster was a fan of Joe Montana, is glowing and is finally free from trying to please to his boss. 
I won’t go too deep into my thoughts on the matter because our correspondent – The Educated Fool, Donnie Demos – will do a segment in our new web series (spoiler alert!), The NorthSide, about this fascinating man and the complex nature of human behavior in sports.
But from my point of view, I realized that I have more in common with Tom Brady than I thought. I totally get his mentality. 
The title of his documentary is Tom vs Time, but time for Tom seems to be the Ying to his Yang, the Jerry to his Tom (the cartoon Tom and Jerry), the RoadRunner to his Wile E. Coyote or the Apollo to his Rocky. 
Even if retirement may come sooner rather than later, Tom vs Time will always be there. 
Wile E. Coyote Business card
Tom always has a plan. What will the next step in his plan be?
Can Tom Brady leave the most dangerous game? ESPN