Sports Poets Society

https://cyclinglegends.co.uk/blogs/long-reads/freddy-maertens-the-fortune-he-lost-and-the-life-he-kept Chris Sidwells - Cycling Legends  June 11, 2026 He rode like a rocket, earned like a star, then lost almost everything but found a way to live without bitterness. Some champions are remembered for what they won, some for what they lost. Freddy Maertens belongs to both, but neither explains him. He was devastating; fast, brave, extravagant in effort and indecently prolific. By the end of 1977 Freddy had won a world road race title, 8 stages in one Tour de France, 13 stages and overall victory in one Vuelta a España, and more than 100 professional races in 2 seasons. He was only 25. Cycling loves numbers, and Freddy’s numbers shine like beacons down the years. Fifty-two wins in 1976, 53 in 1977, 3 Tour de France green jerseys, 2 world road titles; classics, grand tour stages and week-long and single day races. Freddy was one of the fastest sprinters ever, but not just a sprinter. He...

https://www.sport-e-cultura.com/2026/06/11/storia-apodittica-della-coppa-del-mondo/ Simone Basso SPORT E CULTURA - 11 giugno 2026 Ogni quattro anni, da novantasei, il “gioco più bello del mondo” fa la festa a una nazione. Essendo, l’evento, un po’ invadente e invasivo (nelle tasche del terzo pianeta del sistema solare), nel 2026 scorazzerà impunito in tre Paesi. Questo è un bignamino apocalittico e apodittico della Coppa del mondo di calcio. Il carrozzone pop che più assomiglia a un gigantesco funerale vichingo per famiglie. Lasciate ogni speranza voi che tifate: Caronte era un trequartista sublime. *** In principio furono i francesi. Se lo sport moderno lo inventano i britannici, la Francia codifica i moloch. Stabilisce le regole, l’iconografia, la cultura. In ordine cronologico e d’importanza storica: le Olimpiadi ( Pierre de Coubertin ), il Tour ( Henri Desgrange ), il Mondiale ( Jules Rimet ). L’avvocato Jean-Baptiste Séraphin Rimet , presidente FIFA quasi per inerzia, era un umani...