Fotoeins Fotografie

location bifurcation, place & home

Posts from the ‘Sports’ category

Melbourne Cricket Ground, MCG, The G, Australian Football League, AFL, footy, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, fotoeins.com

Fotoeins Friday: RTW10, thirty-five

10 years ago, I began an around-the-world (RTW) journey lasting 389 consecutive days, from 24 December 2011 to 15 January 2013 inclusive.

30 August 2012.

One of the greatest cathedrals in sport resides deep in the southern hemisphere.

Known throughout Australia and with much of the international sporting community, the Melbourne Cricket Ground is also known as the MCG, or more simply as “The G.” I’m on a guided tour of this massive sporting theatre whose capacity is 100-thousand people. Constructed in 1853, the G today is the largest stadium in the Southern Hemisphere and the 10th largest in the world.

I’m learning about the storied history of cricket at this venue. There’s no cricket in winter, and today there are four goal posts set up at each end of the oval field, as on-field preparations continue for tomorrow’s “footy” match between Hawthorn Hawks and West Coast Eagles in the 23rd and final round of the 2012 Australian Football League (AFL) Premiership season. At field-level, it’s easy to get lost within the expanse of the field and following the steady rise of the stands. A very fond wish is to come back inside the G and sit in the stands during the first week of summer, and witness live at least one day of the annual Boxing Day Test.

With the sudden passing of legendary Australia cricketer Shane Warne in March 2022, the Great Southern Stand at the MCG will be renamed the S.K. Warne Stand.

I made the image on 30 Aug 2012 with a Canon EOS450D (Rebel XSi) and these settings: 1/250-sec, f/8, ISO200, and 50mm focal length (80mm full-frame equivalent). This post appears on Fotoeins Fotografie at fotoeins DOT com as https://wp.me/p1BIdT-moy.

Hockey Hall of Fame, Cathedral of Hockey, Great Hall, Stanley Cup, Toronto, Canada, fotoeins.com

Fotoeins Friday: RTW10, fourteen

10 years ago, I began an around-the-world (RTW) journey lasting 389 consecutive days, from 24 December 2011 to 15 January 2013 inclusive.

9 April 2012.

Once, when a wae lad was I, I was a big fan of ice hockey. I used to think being a fan of hockey was synonymous with being Canadian; in time, I was quickly disabused of this naivety with many spotlights illuminating the long thread of racism. Generally, it’s very difficult to follow sports news in this country that avoids hockey news and updates. With unease in place, my return to a city where I lived for seven years included a return to the “Cathedral of Hockey”.

At the corner of Yonge and Front in downtown Toronto is a building formerly used by the Bank of Montreal. The building has found very good use as home to the Hockey Hall of Fame, which does a great job telling stories of small-town origins and what the sport means to people across the country. It’s also a good if slow start to see increasing exposure on black players, Asian players, and the origins and rise of women’s hockey. Under low lighting, a sudden hush floats upon guests inside the Great Hall. The space is filled with trophies and plaques dedicated to its best players. At one end of the space is what many consider the Holy Grail: professional ice hockey’s ultimate trophy, known as the Stanley Cup.

I made the image above on 9 Apr 2012 with a Canon EOS450D (Rebel XSi) and these settings: 1/60-sec, f/4.5, ISO400, 24mm focal length (38mm full-frame equivalent). My thanks to the E. family for making my return visit to Toronto possible. This post appears on Fotoeins Fotografie at fotoeins DOT com as https://wp.me/p1BIdT-lKz.

My Vancouver: summer cricket at Stanley Park

Above/featured: Grouse Mountain looms over a cricket match at Upper Brockton, with the bowler delivering from the mountain end to the pavilion end.

It’s not typical 21st-century sport in North America, but it is Canada’s first summer sport. Many of cricket’s practitioners in Vancouver’s picturesque Stanley Park have roots from India and Pakistan; among them the shouts of “shabash” are heard often during play.

In childhood, I was enamored with baseball. With its similar origins, I discovered cricket with time spent in Australia, New Zealand, the Bahamas, and South Africa. The natural connection is the former British Empire. I began with T20, the shortest format of the game; with curiosity and time, my hunger encompassed the 50-over one-day format (ODI). It’s my start with the short white-ball format that I’ve developed an appreciation for the long format of the game with red-ball Test cricket.

But is the cricket ground at Vancouver’s Stanley Park “the most beautiful cricket ground in the world”? (With Table Mountain as the backdrop, some might proclaim Newlands Cricket Ground in Cape Town, South Africa as the most beautiful/scenic.)

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NHL Black Hockey History Tour, black hockey, black hockey history, Jimi Hendrix Park, Northwest African American Museum, Seattle, Washington, USA, fotoeins.com

Black hockey history, NHL mobile museum in Seattle (2018)

When a city receives an expansion team, that immediately drives anticipation for a new pro sports presence and interest for an expected intraregional rivalry. It’s a perfect time for the professional sports league to come into town and speak to the city’s audience.

The new NHL Seattle Kraken ice hockey team will begin play in the 2021-2022 season, and regional bragging rights will begin immediately with an immediate regional rivalry with the Vancouver Canucks, not unlike the decades-old soccer rivalry between the Seattle Sounders and the Vancouver Whitecaps (which I first witnessed in the 1970s in the old original NASL).

But the following questions remain timely: For whom is ice hockey? What is the relationship between the sport and people of colour? What is the history of black people in professional hockey? I hope the following sheds a little bit of light on black hockey history.

NHL Black Hockey History Mobile Museum

In early 2020, a travelling museum exhibition highlighted how black Canadians, black Americans, and their respective communities have made important contributions to the winter sport of ice hockey at both amateur and professional levels.⁣ Presented in conjunction with the American Legacy Network, the NHL Black Hockey History mobile museum made its way throughout North America, stopping in 14 cities: Washington, DC; Detroit, MI; St. Louis, MO; Pittsburgh, PA; Ottawa, ON; Toronto, ON; Newark, NJ; Nashville, TN; Anaheim, CA; Los Angeles, CA; San Jose, CA; Portland, OR; Seattle, WA; and Tempe, AZ.

In a continuation of activities associated with Black History Month, Kim Davis, NHL executive vice president, wrote about what Black History Month meant to her, and what players of colour past and present have meant to the game of hockey (28 Feb 2020).

The mobile museum dropped anchor for its 4-day visit in Seattle in early March, with the first stop at Jimi Hendrix Park next to the city’s Northwest African American Museum.

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My Albuquerque: world’s largest hot air balloon festival (2018)

What colourful and interesting sights of light and balloons you might see, whether it’s your first or the umpteenth time at the Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta. Every year beginning the first weekend in October, hundreds of thousands of visitors descend upon central New Mexico to see several hundred hot-air balloons ascend into the skies over the Duke City.

To kick off our time in the American Southwest, we drove into Albuquerque for our first time in the city and to attend our first Balloon Fiesta. We purchased in advance tickets to day 1’s morning session with park-and-ride, day 2’s evening session with park-and-ride, and day 3’s morning session without park-and-ride.

For opening day, clear skies and crisp conditions waited for us as we struggled mightily out of bed, but headed out into the dark of the early morning with great anticipation. Even with massive crowds and some traffic chaos, the long wait was worth the sight of seeing the balloons as oval dots on the horizon and as shapely giants up close.

I have to mention the breakfast chile relleno burritos which everybody recommended we seek and try on the festival grounds. How about a version consisting of a New Mexico green chile stuffed with cheese and batter fried, enveloped in a scrambled egg and cheese mixture, all wrapped in a soft corn tortilla and lightly grilled to provide a little bit of outside crunch and crisp? That’s a big resounding yes to breakfast burritos and big balloons.

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Fellhorn, Oberstdorf Kleinwalsertal Bergbahnen, Allgaeuer Alps, Allgaeu, Oberstdorf, Swabia, Bavaria, Bayern, Germany, fotoeins.com

Fotoeins Friday: winter play at Fellhorn (Bayern 100)

Upon arrival in town, the signs in and around Oberstdorf will tell you you’re in a special place regardless of the season. If it’s green in summer, there are countless hikes down in the valleys and up on the peaks. If it’s white in winter, skiiers and `boarders are everywhere with their fiberglass “sticks and boards”. Among the Allgäu Alps is Fellhorn which hugs the German-Austrian border at an elevation of 2038 metres (6686 feet). If you’re lucky to find yourself plowing or “flying” through fresh powder, remind yourself you’re playing oh so freely in between two independent nations.

RVA regional bus 9762 (or line 7) provides service between Oberstdorf and the Fellhorn cable car (Fellhornbahn) lower or valley station.

November 2018 is the 100th anniversary for the declaration of Bavaria as “free state” (Freistaat). I made the picture above on 8 March 2017 with the Canon 6D, 24-105 glass, and the following settings: 1/1000-sec, f/22, ISO1000, and 58mm focal length. This post appears on Fotoeins Fotografie at fotoeins.com as https://wp.me/p1BIdT-cb6.

Nebelhorn, Oberstdorf Kleinwalsertal Bergbahnen, Allgaeuer Alps, Allgaeu, Oberstdorf, Swabia, Schwaben, Bavaria, Bayern, Germany, fotoeins.com

Fotoeins Friday: over the edge at Nebelhorn (Bayern 100)

I don’t ski nor do I (snow)board; I have my ankles and knees to thank for that. However, any perspective whether it’s personal or geometrical deserves recognition.

At Höfatsblick (1932 metres / 6339 feet) under the Nebelhorn summit, there’s a restaurant and many are lying out on deck chairs getting their sun on. These two skiers seem to linger at the edge of a downhill slope with the Allgäu Alps looming in the distance beyond. Timing is everything, and I press the shutter button as one remains still while the other proceeds downhill.

November 2018 is the 100th anniversary for the declaration of Bavaria as “free state” (Freistaat). I made the picture above on 5 March 2017 with the Canon 6D, 24-105 glass, and the following settings: 1/500-sec, f/20, ISO500 and 65mm focal length. This post appears on Fotoeins Fotografie at fotoeins.com as https://wp.me/p1BIdT-czV.

Nebelhorn, winter, skiing, Allgaeu, Allgaeuer Alps, Alps, Oberstdorf, Swabia, Schwaben, Bavaria, Bayern, Germany, Deutschland, fotoeins.com

Fotoeins Friday: winter activity on Nebelhorn (Bayern 100)

Above the Bavarian mountain town of Oberstdorf among the Allgäu Alps is Nebelhorn mountain. Skiing, snowboarding, hang gliding are available on the mountain summit (2224 metres / 7297 feet), as well as additional snow runs near the cable car’s two intermediary stations.

The view shown faces southwest with the “flat slanted ridge” structure called Hoher Ifen in the background at centre. Oberstdorf is prominent as the southern most town in Germany, is host to a large ski jump and European championship-grade skating facilities, and is also home to various German athletes who have participated at recent Winter Olympic Games.

November 2018 is the 100th anniversary for the declaration of Bavaria as “free state” (Freistaat). I made the picture above on 5 March 2017 with the Canon 6D, 24-105 glass, and the following settings: 1/640-sec, f/22, ISO500, and 24-mm focal length. This post appears on Fotoeins Fotografie at fotoeins.com as https://wp.me/p1BIdT-aMk.

Alpspitze, Alpspitzbahn, Alpspitz-Gebiet, Osterfelderkopf, skiing, snowboarding, Garmisch-Classic, Garmisch-Partenkirchen, Grainau, Bavaria, Bayern, Germany, fotoeins.com

Fotoeins Friday: Skiing at Alpspitze (Bayern 100)

It’s full swing into (northern) autumn, which for many means that winter and winter sports aren’t far off! (Me, I’m still mourning over the loss of summer.)

From the valley station in Grainau in Upper Bavaria, the Alpspitzbahn cable-car takes visitors on a steep ascent past the rocky outcrop of the neighbouring Waxenstein peaks to the Bergstation (mountain station) on Osterfelderkopf at an elevation of 2050 metres (6726 feet). The Alpspitz-Gebiet (Alpspitz area) is dominated by the distinctive pyramidal-shaped Alpspitze summit (2628 metres, 8622 feet) which is visible upper-left. In winter, skiers and snowboarders come up to experience the powder conditions as part of the “Garmisch-Classic” skiing area; admission prices vary for non-skiers like me.

November 2018 is the 100th anniversary for the declaration of Bavaria as “free state” (Freistaat). I made the photo above on 26 February 2017 with the Canon 6D, 24-105 glass, and the following settings: 1/500-sec, f/16, ISO1000, and 24mm focal length. This post appears on Fotoeins Fotografie at fotoeins.com as http://wp.me/p1BIdT-9tz.

Hanns-Braun-Brücke, Olympiapark, Olympiaturm, Muenchen, Munich, Bavaria, Bayern, Germany, fotoeins.com

Munich: Memorials to the 1972 Olympics Massacre

Above/featured: Munich’s Olympic Park: Olympic Tower and the tent roof structure.

In my hockey-mad nation of birth, September 1972 is defined by the epic hockey Summit Series between Canada and the Soviet Union; the games and individual stories are stuff of legends. But high on my mind since childhood have been the tragic events that same month in Munich: the worst terrorist act in modern Olympics history.

The 20th Summer Olympics were under way in Munich, Germany, and “Die heiteren Spiele” (The serene Games) as they were called were the first summer games held in post-war Germany since the 1936 Berlin Olympics. Both Munich and Germany wanted to show a different peaceful and prosperous side to the world with the generation born after the Second World War.

However, the 1972 Games will also carry the stain of the “Munich Massacre” on 5-6 September. By crisis’ end, the 17 dead included eleven members of the Israeli Olympic team, one German police officer, and five Palestinian kidnappers. Many questions remained about pre-Game preparations and warnings about a possible attack, security measures, crisis management, and the failed attempt to liberate the hostages. Complete details of events remain murky even after 40 years. The disaster would damage the reputations of city, state, and country as well as international relations for years to come.

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