When I was a kid I really only dreamed of achieving professional status in two sports: cycling and soccer. I was a teenager with moderate talent, but nothing noteworthy. I was certainly not going to be a pro athlete. But, for all the sports I participated in, from surfing to BMX to basketball, it was soccer and cycling that had me in their grip.

I played goalkeeper on the field, and on the bike, well I just rode. I didn’t know if was a sprinter or climber or time-trialist yet (um, yeah, still not clear on that, except at 6’3”, 175 lbs, I am no pure climber). All I knew was there was a style in those sports that everything else I did lacked. Except, frankly, bodysurfing, but that’s a whole other blog post.

Those were the sports I watched, when I could (this was before the interwebs and super-cable), and the players and riders that captivated my imagination. And they still are. So much so that today, when I saw this photo of Inter Milan coach Jose Mourhino in the New York Times, I couldn’t help but smile. Nowhere else but European soccer could a coach look this good. Better than his players, even.

Can you imagine any US coach (basketball, baseball, football, whatever) rocking an Armani scarf on the sideline? No fucking way. That, right there, is who I wanted telling me what to do.

March 12th, 2009 | By: Rubottom | In: Rad people, Stylie | No Comments | #