Biography

Looking back on her childhood and adolescence Darya Domracheva confesses to never ever thinking of becoming a huge star in sports. Being born in the family of architects in Minsk and raised in Russia where her parents moved to because of their work Dasha was an ordinary child.

The town where their family lived was a small one called Nyagan with no prospects for ambitious people. Darya took up skiing at six and it has always been her greatest passion ever since. Being an energetic child, sport has rapidly become an unlimited source of inspiration for her.

Her eyes even sparkled when she saw skies. When the biathlon school opened in her town, she grabbed the chance and attended it. During that time Dasha realized that biathlon is something she had been passionate about all her life long.

However, when her parents moved back to Minsk, Darya studied Tourism Management at the Belorussian State Economic University because there was no faculty of Sport Management at the University.

A talented girl successfully completed a thesis on advertisement in the tourism industry. However, her love for sport won.

Career

From the early age of six Darya knew what she would want to do for the rest of her life. She started skiing in 1992 and made the switch to biathlon in 1999. Initially she represented Russia and then she accepted the offer from Belarus and became a competitor for Belarus in the end.

She has always tested her boundaries and put her strength and physical endurance to the limit.

A great number of years she has spent training hard under the strict supervision of Nikolay Zaharov and Adrian Tsybulsky who have undoubtedly contributed to her success.

Victories

• At the beginning of her career Darya took the third place in the pursuit and the fourth one in the individual events at the Junior World Championships in 2006.

• A young athlete managed to earn two silver medals in 2007 at the Junior World Championships in Italy.

• In 2008-2009 she won two third places and a second one. This period is also considered the time of her breakthrough.

• At the Winter Olympics in 2010 Dasha managed to get the bronze and two gold medals.

• Darya is now extremely famous for her winning three gold medals at the 2014 Winter Olympics in biathlon.

• After her victories she was rewarded the title “Hero of Belarus”, which is one of the greatest titles in Belarus. In addition, Darya was granted the title “Female Athlete of the Year” in 2010.

Social Engagement

Darya leads an active social life too. She is one of the candidates to become a member of the International Olympic Committee Athletes’ Commission. Moreover, she actively takes part in charity projects that help young talented people to make their dreams come true.

Being a sociable person, Darya filmed a short movie about her squad, teammates and other competitors from 2008 till 2010.

The film provides an insight into the life of athletes, their stressful routine, rare days of relaxation and helps to get to know them closely while showing their trainings, traveling together and competitions.

Perhaps the sport of baseball needs to follow the example of a luxury retail brand, who just announced that its name needed a facelift. According to the November 24 edition of The Wall Street Journal, the company will do business under its new name beginning this month.

While changing the very name of baseball would be much too drastic, there are some stale phrases which seem to reinforce the sport as outdated or inaccurate. Take for instance its anachronistic nickname as America’s pastime, of which the very first syllable equates to something that has long gone by.

Another term, which has grown alarmingly in usage the past few seasons, is the disabled list. The adjective in that phrase clearly comes from an entire different generation, given its association with the present society.

Disabled has for the past few decades applied to serious physical and mental problems that are rarely ever thoroughly overcome, unlike its purpose in terms of baseball. An injured player spent an average of just thirteen and half days on the D.L. last year, a clear indication that these guys are not what the average American would label as disabled. Why not, like all of the other major sports leagues, call it the injured reserve list?

Another phrase has been much less mentioned than the disabled list, but must also have been psychologically more painful for some players. It is the concept inaccurately referred to as the Mendoza Line, an imaginary designation for a batting average o .200.

The term for some reason has been inappropriately named for former player Mario Mendoza, whose batting average was actually fifteen points higher than .200. For the entire month of September fans had to listen to announcers debating whether Toronto All-Star outfielder Jose Bautista and Texas infielder Roughned Odor would finish above the Mendoza Line. (Bautista ended the season with a .203 batting average, Odor at .204).

Those averages are nearly identical to those of the two players that resulted in the original mark being called the Mason-Dixon Line, a catchier and more accurate phrase. Leo Dixon, who played from 1925-1929, had a career average of .206. Jim Mason fared even worse, finishing with a lifetime .203 mark after a career that lasted from 1971-1979. The duo batted a combined .204, or eleven points lower than Mario Mendoza.

Most people are already familiar with the geographical reference in the term, a demarcation unique to the United States of America. This fact, combined with the accuracy of the statistics, is just one more reason for broadcasters and other representatives to scrap the term Mendoza Line.

And while they are at it, they could bury one other annoying inaccuracy. When referring to the pitcher’s mound, call it by its original nickname of the Bump. Considering the paltry height of the thing, it is much closer to being a bump rather than a hill.

When you focus only on increasing your value per hour and the time you spend, your income increases in a linear fashion.

There is a limit to how much you can earn a month, since there is a limit to the number of productive hours you can work. You are literally just selling your time for money.

For example, even if you are a top lawyer who earns $300 per hour and you can only work a maximum of 180 hours a month, your maximum earnings would amount to only $54,000 a month or $648,000 a year. Now you may say to me, ‘Adam, that’s not bad at all!’ Sure, but why set a ceiling on your earning power?

However if the lawyer were to use the power of scalability by magnifying and multiplying his value (legal advice), then he could earn five to a hundred times more in that same twenty-four hour period.

Scalability is what separates the upper middle income earners and the rich from the truly super rich. Scalability explains why someone can make 100 times more money within twenty-four hours than anybody else.

Many people have the perception that you can only achieve scalability when you are singer, movie star, sports star or a famous celebrity. Absolutely not!

You can achieve massive magnification or multiplication in any profession, whether you are a chef, garbage collector, lawyer, doctor, teacher or software programmer.

When you fully utilize the power of (value x time x scalability), your wealth will grow exponentially. Let me give you examples of people who have created massive wealth as a result of understanding the power of this formula.

I am sure you have all heard of Colonel Harland Sanders. He is the portly Southern American ‘gentleman’ the life-size statue fronting all Kentucky Fried Chicken outlets to greet patrons.

Of course Colonel Sanders is a multi-millionaire many times over but do you know that before KFC, Colonel Sanders had found himself at 65 years of age totally broke with nothing but a social security check for $105.

But in less than ten years, at age 73, he had become a self-made multi-millionaire and a household name! How did he achieve this? By being one of the first people in the world to understand the power of multiplication!

Colonel Sander’s tremendous value came from his ability to innovate great tasting chicken that people love to eat. How? By developing his secret blend of eleven herbs and spices and insisting that all his chicken be pressure cooked for hours, something that most other chefs were not willing to do.

In fact, Sanders was so insistent on the superiority of his recipe that he refused to sacrifice taste by cooking his chicken quicker. Remember, when you do something out of passion, do more than expected and think of the value you give to others, money will come naturally.

However, initially Colonel Sanders, though he worked day and night selling his great tasting chicken from his restaurant in Corby, Kentucky, never became wealthy. Why? He had the power of (value x time), but he lacked the scalability factor.

It was in fact a twist of fate that got the Colonel thinking of how he could massively scale his value. One fateful day, the government built a highway that diverted all the hungry motorists away from his business. As a result, Sanders was forced to close the business down and that’s how he found himself broke at age 65.

Instead of giving up, he came up with the fantastic idea of approaching restaurant owners all over the country to offer them his secret recipe for their use. In return, he would get a percentage of the profits for every chicken they sold.

Within a few years, restaurants all over the country were selling thousands of chicken everyday, using his recipe!

Through his franchising concept, he received thousands of dollars in checks every month. He multiplied his value a millionth fold as a result and at age 73 he could sell his business for $2 million. Remember this was in 1963 and that was a huge sum of money (equivalent to over $10 million today).

You see, when you scale your value, your wealth and success will increase exponentially! Think of ways you can scale your value immediately!

Competitive team sports can help kids learn about teamwork and setting goals, and are beneficial to children’s self-esteem.

However, there is an unhealthy side of sports competition that puts pressure on kids and takes the fun out of the game. Unhealthy competition is centered on winning and being better than others at all costs.

You can promote healthy sports competition in kids by:

Being a role model. Are you the parent screaming from the sidelines or confronting referees? If you want to yell at a game, make sure it’s encouraging and sportsmanlike: “Good move,” or “Way to go!”

Focusing on the positives. When you’re on the way home after a game, discuss what your child did well, not what they did wrong or who won or lost.

Avoiding comparisons. Comparing your child to the star player on the team to improve their game will make them feel inferior. Also avoid telling your child they did better than someone else to boost their ego.

Listening to your child. Organized team sports aren’t for everyone. Let your child choose the activity they will get the most enjoyment out of.

Wolfgang Schädler, who has been the head coach for the US national luge team since 1986, and will be again at the 2010 Olympic Winter Games, sums up sports competition perfectly: “Victory isn’t defined by wins or losses. It is defined by effort. If you can truthfully say, ‘I did the best I could, I gave everything I had,’ then you’re a winner.”

Hockey fans know that, once the NHL All Star Game is here, the NHL season is halfway through. This year, the NHL All Star game occurs at Philips Arena in Atlanta, on January 26. NHL stars, old and new, will take to the ice, signaling the split of the season. Hockey greats from all across the League will strut their stuff, providing NHL fans with probably the most exciting event of the season, apart from the Stanley Cup Championships. Especially interesting about this year’s NHL All Star Game is the reunion of Manny Legace and Chris Osgood, who will be teammates once again after many years. Coaches John Paddock in the Eastern Conference and Mike Babcock for the Western Conference will battle it out this year in Atlanta.

Unfortunately, hockey does not have the brand popularity that MLB, MBA and the NFL have (especially outside the local markets). The lockout in 2005 put a major dampening on the reputation of the sport and it is slowly making its comeback to local stations. Hockey fans in today’s market rely on special broadcasting in order to follow their teams. Broadcasting like NHL Center Ice and Hockey Night in Canada are quickly becoming the main resource around the league. NHL.com is the leader for online stats and news while “Hockey Magazine” leads the way in print (if you can find it in your area).

NHL Center Ice is one of the best ways for the NHL fan to track the season from the All Star game through the finals. This package includes as many as 40 action packed games each week, in addition to certain games from the Stanley Cup Playoffs. As the players approach the playoffs, it becomes increasingly important not just to cheer for your team but to also cheer against those who are in your way. As many as 12 games each week will be broadcast in mind shattering HD which should add some fuel to the fire. NHL Center Ice also features dual feeds for many games. This means that you not only get the broadcast from the home team, but also the broadcast from the away team. This is especially cool for fans that don’t live in the area of their favorite NHL team, and otherwise wouldn’t have access to the hometown commentary and broadcasting features.

The NHL Network is also available in HD, provides 24 hour coverage, 7 days a week. This is a new broadcasting channel that is currently only available to subscribers of DIRECTV. The NHL Network features live games, highlight shows every day, the latest and fastest breaking news from the world of hockey, as well as exclusive programs you can only find on the NHL Network.

Every NHL fan that doesn’t already have NHL Center Ice after the All Star Game is going to be missing out on the best games of the season. As the playoff run heats up, so does the skill and passion of each team fighting for those final spots.

In just about every country in the western world, very few people class themselves as religious. At the same time, the people who are coming into this part of the world from Africa and the Middle East, for instance, are often religious.

Therefore, while religion is on its way out in this part of the world, this might not be the case as time goes by. Due to the low birth rates and the amount of children that these people often have, the western world could end up being extremely religious.

The Same Dynamic

But if with what may or might not happen in the future is put to one side, it wouldn’t be right to say that people in the western world no longer worship anyone or anything. If anything, this is something that still takes place.

What is different, however, is that someone in the sky has been replaced by people who are actually walking the earth. In some cases, this will relate to a sports star and, in others, it will relate to an actor/actress or a singer.

A Superior Being

When one looks up to someone like this, they can end up seeing them as someone who is above them. This is not to say that they will say something like this in their mind as it is more likely to be something that they will express through their behaviour

Each day of their life, they could spend a fair amount of time thinking about a celebrity and they could look through their social media page/s if there is one. This other person is then going to be a fellow human being, yet it will be as though they are from another planet.

Fantasizing

One could imagine what it would be like to know someone like this personally and how different their life would be if they did. Thus, while numerous people would like to be blessed by the pope, for instance, one would most likely like someone like this to bless them.

One will see this person as having things that no other person has, which is why they are so special. And if one doesn’t feel this way about one person, there may be a number of people who they look up to.

All in the Same Boat

It won’t be hard for someone like this to find other people who also see certain celebrities in the same way. If a celebrity is on social media, there will be plenty of comments from other people who are just as enamoured with them.

Still, while celebrity worship has replaced the old form of worship for a lot of people in the western world, these kinds of people rarely provide someone with a solid set of morals. In a lot of cases, these type of people promote the complete opposite; or they can merely parrot whatever ‘morals’ the establishment wants them to support, with can take place through endless virtue signalling.

Back To Reality

Nonetheless, just because one can perceive a celebrity as being more-than human, it doesn’t mean that there is any truth to this. Ultimately, the people who they look up to are inherently no different to them.

Sure, they might be more physically attractive, have more money and be better at something than they are, but these are all surface level things. Deep down, one will be made of the same stuff and have the same amount of value.

An Illusion

The reason that they see this person as being superior to them is likely to be due to what they project onto them. This person is then just another human being, but thanks to the unrealised parts of themselves that they have unconsciously placed into them, it is not possible for them to realise this.

For example, one can feel worthless and incapable, which can cause them to see someone like this as being extremely valuable and capable. If they were to no longer feel this way and were to embrace their own value and potential, they may no longer feel the need to place these people on a pedestal.

Emotional Growth

The reason one feels this way is likely to be the result of the inner wounds that they are carrying. Perhaps their early years were a time when they didn’t get the kind of care that they needed in order to develop in the right way.

Once these inner wounds are healed and they are able to emotionally grow up, it will be possible for them to see these people are their fellow human beings. Now, this doesn’t mean that one will no longer appreciate what they do; what it is likely to mean is that they will no longer see them as godlike figures.

An Overlooked Area

If the education system provided emotional guidance and showed people what needed to be done to develop emotionally, perhaps one would have grown out of their desire to worship celebrities. But as it is generally the mind that is educated or indoctrinated even, it means that this part of one’s being is typically ignored.

It is then going to be perfectly normal for one to be an emotionally undeveloped adult, who sees celebrities as possessing traits that they themselves don’t have. Greatness is then going to be something that is in other people but not in them.

Conclusion

It is highly unlikely that anyone on this planet is here to focus on how great other people are, while neglecting their own greatness. The sooner they spend less time focusing on celebrities and focus on their own strengths and do what they can to develop themselves, the sooner they will be able to live a life that is worth living as opposed to vicariously living through other people.

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Along with this, healing their own inner wounds will also allow them to become a more integrated human being. External support may be needed here to enable one to believe in themselves and to work through their inner wounds.

Track and field sports are events that bring to the fore the prowess of man. Through out history Kings and rulers have held contests to commemorate an event or simply for fun and recreation. This is the origin of the track and field sports that normally include races and feats of strength like the Javelin throw and the discus throw. The ancient civilizations in Greece and India all had track and field sports, but the Greek origin is well documented and there are records available from 776 BC. Records suggest that at that time the only event was a race

But recent research by archaeologists, suggest that the games in Greece could have probably been held much earlier perhaps from the 10thor 9thcentury BC. The Games of mans prowess were held at Olympia as is confirmed by a set of Bronze relics that have been discovered suggesting that prizes were awarded to the winners. As the ancient games were associated with Olympia, the modern Olympic Games derive their name from this source.

The most famous of the Track and Field games that is an enduring testimony to man’s endurance is the Marathon. This is the longest race of endurance. But this race as per records available is a more recent phenomenon as it did not form part of the ancient games. The Modern Marathon was first introduced in the 1896 Olympic Games at Athens, Greece. The race at this Olympics was conducted from Marathon, a place northeast of Athens to the Olympic Stadium at Athens. The measured distance was 42.195 kilometers (26 Miles and 385 yards). This race commemorates the dash by Pheidippides, an ancient courier who brought the news that the Persian Army of Xersis had landed at Marathon. He is reported to have run 149 miles to Sparta with this news and alerted the Spartans to the Persian threat.

The ancient games were held every 4 years and the modern games have followed suite. Once the games became a regular feature other games that test a mans strength and skill were added. Thus the Javelin throw, discuss and Shot put throw as well as wrestling events were incorporated in the ancient games.

In ancient India, Khustie or Indian wrestling, Hand and Arm wrestling and events of Archery were conducted at regular intervals, though there was no regularity like the Greek events. The track and field events have now expanded and the Olympics have become a world event, but we must thank our ancestors who thought of these feat of strength and prowess that regale us today.

Who are these guys? Never before in my forty years of voting for the starters in the All-Star game have I asked that question, especially for first base in the American League. We have always had a vast array of candidates from which to select, stars such as Boog Powell or Norm Cash and Eddie Murray or Mark McGuire.

Even as recently as ten years ago, the A.L. ballot posted numerous stars at first base. Most Valuable Players like Miguel Cabrera of Detroit and Justin Morneau of the Twins were listed with the likes of Paul Konerko of the White Sox and Mark Teixiera of the Yankees as options to start in the 2008 Midsummer Classic.

First basemen used to almost universally serve as the most feared hitters, usually at clean up or somewhere in the heart of the batting order. Now they have lower collective batting averages than any other infield position, and their home run totals are next to worst.

This decline is exemplified by the 2018 All Star ballot, which lists half the candidates with sub .230 batting averages. Even more surprising, given the tradition of power associated with first base, nearly a third of them have not yet reached double figures in home runs.

Granted, three former MVPs are listed there, but that trio of guys are well past the primes. Cabrera still represents the Tigers, but he is out for the season. Minnesota’s Joe Mauer is hitting thirty points under his career average, and Albert Pujols of the Angels is exactly at the league average in home runs and hitting percentage.

Since none of those three are deserving, fans have justifiably placed their votes elsewhere. It has not been easy, however, since there are no stand out players currently manning first base in the A.L.

Jose Abreu of the Chicago White Sox is the leading vote getter, even though he is having a sub par season. Aiding his cause is the fact that he is a former Rookie of the Year, and he has been around for five years in a large market city.

Most of the other options are relatively unknown, including the player who ranks first among his peers in WAR. Matt Olson leads all first basemen in that category, but because he plays in Oakland and is relatively young he trails in the voting.

The most successful teams have won for the most part in spite of, rather than because of, their first basemen. Houston’s Yuiri Gurriel is hitting .300, but his numbers pale next to other stars of the Astros like Jose Altuve and Carlos Correa.

Greg Bird of the Yankees is arguably the seventh best hitter in a New York lineup featuring Giancarlo Stanton, Aaron Judge, Gary Sanchez, and Didi Gregorius. Mitch Moreland is having a good season, but his numbers still cannot match those of Red Sox teammates like Mookie Betts, Andrew Benintendi, J.D. Martinez and Xander Bogarts.

A look at the Senior Circuit provides more hope for the fate of first basemen, the home of stars like Joey Votto, Anthony Rizzo, Freddie Freeman and Paul Goldschmdit. My ballot would be much easier to fill out if, for some unfathomable reason, one of those guys would be traded to an American League team before All Star voting ends.

Draft Well and Know Your League’s Settings

Come to your fantasy hockey draft prepared from the first round to the very last. Know your league settings and how many roster positions you have to fill and prepare your own rankings. Keep in mind that automatically generated rankings on sites like Yahoo and ESPN are not tailored towards your particular league settings.

Believe in the Big Name Players

Don’t overreact to last year’s stars or this year’s up and comers. Put most, if not all of your stock in players with a solid track record. Don’t underrate guys like Martin St. Louis to gamble on an up and coming youngster like Nail Yakupov or Ryan Nugent-Hopkins. Both will be great, but don’t do it – you’ll screw at least one of these gambles up. That being said, if you are in a keeper league then age and potential are bigger factors in your fantasy hockey draft.

This logic of not overreacting also applies when making trades in your league. Buy low on stars and sell high on players who are just playing well at the time. Don’t stray too far from this rule unless you absolutely need to gamble on a hot player to win a matchup or league.

This “believe in the big players” advice might sound like mere common sense, but you would be surprised how easily a GM of a struggling team with either drop a struggling borderline-star or trade a big name away for too little. Don’t expect a hot streak to continue unless the player is proven or they are playing with proven players. This includes up and coming stars, who tend to be inconsistent.

Catch Trends Before Others See Them

While the last section was all about believing in your star players through thick and thin, this section is about picking up on hot players to add to the bottom of your roster. Most GMs won’t notice a player doing well without a big name attached to them. They also tend to overlook players whose overall numbers are diminished by injuries, by playing for a team out of the spotlight like the Panthers or Blue Jackets, or simply by not showing up enough on the goals column – the most salient statistic of all.

Master the Art of the Fantasy Hockey Trade

Identify the team needs of your opponents and exploit them. Nothing annoys me more than when I get offered yet another a mediocre centerman (when I already have three!) for my elite winger or goalie. Nobody wants to add more at one position than they need unless they are clearly winning the deal. Instead, figure out what other teams have too many of, and try to steal one of them away in return for one of your decent players at a position that they desperately need.

This is the time of year when Austin’s residents head down to Auditorium Shores for a full, Texan Cowboy Breakfast with all the fixings, the prelude to the Star of Texas Rodeo. Every spring, during the first weekend of March, many Austinites head to the shores of Lady Bird Lake to get a belly full of biscuits and gravy, bacon and sausage, eggs, and various other kinds of grub, including grits and hash browns, and with a full stomach, make plans to attend the rodeo.

This weekend, this extremely exciting event will begin at the fairgrounds: the 72nd Annual Star of Texas Fair and Rodeo, which culminates in a livestock auction at the end of March, after weeks of competition, cook-offs and other rodeo-related events, such as the Rodeo Rumble Run and the Chuck Wagon cook-off.

Many well-known performers are scheduled to perform at the rodeo this year, including ropers and riders, country music performers, and even rock and roll bands. This year’s featured acts include country great Randy Travis, musician Jesse McCartney, and comedian Carlos Mencia, as well as Creedence Clearwater Revisited, which is a group comprised of a few original members of Creedence Clearwater Revival plus a few new members, who perform CCR’s greatest hits, among other nationally famous acts.

The Fair and Rodeo also features various competitive events, such as a junior livestock show, a Western arts show, horse races, and the Miss Rodeo Austin pageant and scholarship contest, to name a few. There is also a carnival with all of the usual rides and arcade games, including a ferris wheel, merry-go-round, roller coaster, and unusual rides such as the Crazy Mouse. Prizes can be won at numerous booths and games, and every imaginable type of food and drink is offered as well. Participants can buy single tickets, or wrist bands and daily passes, for as little or as much entertainment as possible for a moderate price.

There are also many commercial exhibits, and with over 300,000 spectators expected to attend the rodeo, these exhibits are a perfect way for vendors and representatives of these commercial ventures to create brand loyalty and a following among local residents.

Rodeo Austin is one of the largest indoor rodeos in the country, and cowboys and cowgirls compete for awards. The Xtreme Bull Riding and Pro Rodeo and Pro Rodeo finals are also very popular, and are held at the middle and the end of the month of March, with many events held at the Travis County Expo Center and Fairgrounds east of Austin on Decker Lane, adjacent to Lake Walter E. Long.

The rodeo was founded in 1938, with the goal of advancing education as well as preserving the Western Heritage of the folks of this area, and in 2008, Dodge was named the official truck of the Austin Rodeo. Also in 2008, the youth auction was moved to the new Long Center for the Performing Arts, a beautiful new city coliseum located on the south of Lady Bird Lake. Also, in 2008, new attendance records were set for the cowboy breakfast, which drew a crowd of 7,000 participants.

In 2007, the Cowboy Classic golf tournament, held at the same time as the rodeo, broke auction sales records with over $300,000 in proceeds going to scholarship funds associated with the rodeo and golf tournament. The event was also broadcast on the internet for the first time, drawing huge numbers of viewers.

There are numerous opportunities for volunteers to give their time and energy to benefit the success of the rodeo as well, and over 2,500 people volunteered their time for the rodeo last year, with many already signed up this year too. So whether you attend as a participant, a spectator, or a volunteer, or all three, be sure to sample the western-themed event and peripheral activities, and enjoy all of the many events, games, sports, dances, music, refreshments, and entertainment.

So this year, take your friends and family to the Star of Texas Rodeo and enjoy the activities of the Old West in modern surroundings, and sample the cuisine and pastimes of the settlers of Travis County and central Texas. You will be glad you did!