Last weekend I went down to the Rose Bowl with the intention of taking photos of cyclists and joggers and Sunday strollers.
But what a surprise! The huge grassy lawn in front of the Rose Bowl had been turned into multiple lacrosse fields. There were teams of both boys and girls. What was noticeable was that the girls teams were not outfitted like a U.S. football team with helmets, while the boys teams were protected. Curious.
I remember lacrosse from my college days in Massachusetts. The sport, originated by the Iroquois native Americans and named by the French fur hunters, was played at a few elite colleges on the East Coast. From the appearance of the players and parents sitting and watching, there still is a bit of an elite element to the game–at least as it is played in Pasadena. I imagine that is due in part to the expense of the equipment.
When I returned home I did a little research and learned that the 2016 Brazilian Summer Olympics had ended up with two slots left for sports. There were several applicants, including lacrosse, roller sports, and baseball, among others. The IOC selected rugby and golf. From what I’ve read, lacrosse didn’t even make it to the short list. And, because my granddaughter is involved in roller sports which was also turned down, I know people who run roller sports have now focused on applying to be included in the X-Games.
It’s curious how the IOC makes the decisions of what to include and what to exclude. The Sochi Winter games looked a lot like the winter X-Games, to the point of the Olympics being redundant. Except, of course, that at the Winter Olympics Shaun White did not excel. The guy should NOT have cut his hair!!
Originally published in February 2014
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