Sportswashing refers to the general practice of using premier sporting events or clubs to deflect from controversies. The scenario involves a country, organization, or wealthy individual hosting a premier sporting event or purchasing a sporting club to improve their reputation. Sportswashing should be a consistently relevant topic, especially for sports fans. In 2022 there was a rise of two clear...
I know what you’re thinking, figure skating in Obiter? I am a hardcore Raptors fan, but when the Olympics comes around, one of my favourite sports to watch other than hockey and short track speed skating is figure skating. For these Olympics, we will take you into each of the four-figure skating disciplines (men’s, women’s, pair’s, and ice dance) and make our predictions on who will achieve...
As the NFL continues to co-opt the symbols of the Black Lives Matter Movement, Black head coaches are pushed to the margins. Like most public-facing institutions in the summer of 2020, the National Football League faced a considerable amount of public scrutiny. In order to placate rising external demand for some sort of expression of Black solidarity on the part of the league, the NFL’s...
Toronto FC’s recent signing of Italian superstar Lorenzo Insigne is a stunning coup Soccer fans, Italians, and a combination of the two waited with bated breath as the England and Italy national soccer teams were performing penalty kicks on 11 July 2021, during the UEFA Euro 2020 Final. I can guarantee every soccer fan and Italian knew where they were while watching the final penalty kick save...
Late on January 5, Novak Djokovic landed in Melbourne after a long flight. He had travelled to the city in order to participate in the Australian Open, one of the most prestigious tennis tournaments in the world, and one that he was widely favoured to win. Instead, Djokovic soon found himself detained at the airport by the Australian Border Force, in the midst of a soap-operatic legal battle, as...
The National Hockey League (NHL) is not participating in the 2022 Winter Olympics being held in Beijing. This decision was made in consideration of COVID-19 concerns and the highly contagious Omicron variant which has already led to the cancellation of the IIHF’s World Junior Hockey Championship and U-18 Women’s World Hockey Championship tournaments. This news came as a shock to the hockey fans...
On 14 December 2021, Stephen Curry made his 2,974th career three-pointer to surpass Ray Allen for the most in NBA history. His team, the Golden State Warriors, sit atop the Western Conference and with a returning Klay Thompson it appears they are looking to re-establish their earlier dominance. Meanwhile, just a few hours south of San Francisco, Lebron James is feeling the pressure. Having just...
Usually, at this time of year, I would be able to rank the teams that have made the playoffs, but with the introduction of an extra week, us football fans must wait an extra week to see who gets into the big dance. However, I can still list five of the biggest storylines heading into the playoffs. #1: GOAT-ing, injuries, and Antonio Brown The defending champions, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, have...
With the Omicron variant sweeping through the country, the Raptors may not have an audience to cheer them on right now, but we are always there to support our favorite (by default) Canadian basketball team. Now that the Raptors are nearly halfway through their first NBA season back at home during the COVID era, here’s a look at how the Raptors are faring this season. Overview & the bench The...
Could Chelsea’s response to the Belgian striker’s interview signify the end of player power at the club? In the midst of a run of matches in which he missed out on playing time owing both to being stricken with COVID and not having fully recovered enough to play the full ninety when he became available, Romelu Lukaku gave an interview to Sky Italia. For any other player in the Chelsea side, this...
I was wrong. In my predictions piece, I had ranked the Atlanta Braves last, effectively congratulating the NL East division winner for getting into October by default. They beat the Milwaukee Brewers, a team better than them, convincingly. They beat the mighty Los Angeles Dodgers, the favourite to win the Commissioner’s Trophy. A quick note on the Dodgers, they had a payroll of $267 million—$64...
This Chicago Blackhawks scandal escalated to its peak late last month after Kyle Beach revealed himself as “John Doe One,” one of two sexual assault victims of former Blackhawks video coach Brad Aldrich. The sexual assault is said to have occurred in May 2010, a mere month before the Blackhawks would capture their first Stanley Cup since 1961. This would start the dynasty that saw the winning of...
If you have only started watching basketball in the past five years, you may have noticed an intriguing set of moves developing throughout the league. Perennial MVP candidate James Harden of the Brooklyn Nets, previously of the Houston Rockets, used to set up at the three point line, drive, hook the defender’s arm into his, and immediately push his arms upwards into a shooting motion, effectively...
Welcome back to our preview of the NBA (National Basketball Association) season! We now turn to the West Coast and see which one of these powerhouse teams has the best chances to lift the Larry O’Brien Trophy come June 2022. Los Angeles Lakers The year 2020 seems like a long time ago, and yet also as if it was just yesterday. During this time, the Lakers championship team has completely...
Criticisms on doping in sport shouldn’t stop at its most public figures, but extend to the system that allow for it. If you dope in a professional sport and lie about it, that says something about you. You were looking for a competitive edge and you were dishonest. If everyone dopes in a professional sport and lies about it, that says something about the sport. Lance Armstrong, past darling of...
The swift turn against the Raptor’s All-Star reflects society’s worst ills – Toronto can do better As Osgoode’s resident faithful Pascal Siakam fan, I have been recruited to write an article anticipating his return to the NBA after suffering a season-ending injury in May 2021. While I am eagerly waiting for his return, I cannot help but think of the terms on which he left last season. ...
After another shortened season and a summer filled with TMZ-level basketball drama, the NBA basketball season is back with a full 82 game schedule for its 75th season which began on Tuesday October 19. Let’s get reacquainted with some of the Eastern Conference teams that are expected to contend for the Larry O’Brien Trophy come April 2022. Brooklyn Nets On paper, this is the most volatile team in...
Hockey is back and for Leafs fans, it’s the start of an 82-game regular season, which means close to nothing without that second-round appearance in the Stanley Cup Playoffs. With a far from exciting off-season and the departure of some key pieces to the lineup, it is hard to gauge whether the Leafs are better equipped to face their playoff demons. The answer to whether this team is better than...
And other storylines of note as the NHL resumes With the NHL now a week into its new season, I figured it would be a good time to circle back to the league and discuss the interesting storylines I expect to see out of this season. Oh and don’t worry, my fearless (read: unfounded) predictions will be here as well. Much like the past nearly two years of our lives, COVID-19 will still be a major...
The Lewisham Ballack is finally threatening to return back to his best for Chelsea after years of injury kept him from fulfilling his ridiculous potential Football is a cruel sport that moves on quickly from past glory days, just ask Arsenal. After having threatened to move on from Ruben Loftus-Cheek, the player opted for a decidedly non-North London response and rose from the ashes. In 2019...
Amazon’s new series, All or Nothing: Toronto Maple Leafs features an in-depth behind the scenes look at the Leafs throughout their last season When I first heard the Leafs were going to be featured in an Amazon documentary, I was ecstatic. As a fan of similarly styled programs with the Dallas Cowboys, I was eagerly anticipating seeing some behind the scenes footage that the regular hockey viewer...
If you’ve been paying attention to the major headlines coming out of the National Hockey League (NHL), you have seen the name Jack Eichel a lot recently. Eichel has been the subject of much debate over the last six months, and in that time has been called everything from stubborn to whiny to selfish. To string together exactly how we got here, to an ongoing violation of personal and medical...
The MLB playoffs are well underway. Why did this article come out after the Wild Card games? Wild Card games are not playoff baseball. So without further ado, here is my ranking: The Contenders 1. The Los Angeles Dodgers The defending World Series champions are looking to repeat. The Dodgers boasted one of the best starting rotations in baseball. However, star off-season acquisition Trevor Bauer...
During the 2015 Major League Baseball (MLB) Trade Deadline, the Toronto Blue-Jays made a blockbuster move when they acquired ace pitcher David Price. The Jays would go on to reach the American League (AL) Championship Series, where they ultimately fell to the Kansas City Royals. The Royals would go on to win the World Series that year but Jays fans still relished in the success their team had...
The Philadelphia 76ers appeared to be a team that had it all sorted out on paper: 2 NBA All Stars in Joel Embiid and Ben Simmons, playoff success for the past 5 years, the top seed during the 2020-2021 NBA Playoffs, and a city cheering them on every step of the way. The NBA championship seemed to be within the 76ers’ grasp as many believed that the 76ers would quickly dispatch of the Atlanta...