ATHLETES IN OFFICE?

Oh, Election Day. What a joy. In addition to the seven time Mr. Olympia, Arnold Schwarzenegger running for running again for Govna of California, there are quite a few other Athlebrities running for office. Pro Hall of Famer Lynn Swann (L), is looking to be the next Governor of Pennsylvania. In the Senate race, Michael Steele, Mike Tyson’s former brother in law, is on the ballot in Maryland, as is Bucks owner Herb Kohl in Wisconsin. Running for Congress from Arizona’s District 8 is PGA tour member Randy Graf, but more notably is a little nugget whom I’ve had the pleasure of meeting. Vying for a seat in Congress, out of District 1 in New York, is Italo Zanzi (R), who is MLB’s VP of Int’l Broadcast Sales & Latin America & U.S. Hispanic Marketing, and also is a U.S. Handball Team member. I don’t know anything about his political views, but I can tell you that after I met him, a new phrase was added to my vocabulary, the Zanzi tickle. You know what it is…it happens every time you lay eyes on a hottie.

ITALIAN BALL? PRICELESS

The Aspire sports academy in Qatar paid $2.4M for a FIFA World Cup final game ball autographed by the Italian team at a charity auction. The price is “a record for an item of soccer memorabilia.” I would have paid double that just to touch any of the winning Italian balls…

DONOVAN MCNABB CLOTHING LINE

Today, Donovan McNabb will host a fashion show at the RBK Concept Store in Philadelphia to highlight select pieces from his new Super Five clothing line. Super Five will be available at Macy’s locations in Philadelphia as well as RBK concept stores nationwide. “It’s an exciting deal for me,” McNabb said. “So many people try to simulate the things that we do and the way that we act, and this kind of gives them an opportunity to dress the way that I dress.” Huh? The collection claims to be the brand’s first signature men’s lifestyle apparel line created for an NFL player. Do men really wanna dress like a NFL Player- whatever that means? I must add a note here in reference to the above photo. While searching for yummy images of hot athletes, I discovered Brad Trent photography. Check out his site for some of the best portraits around.

NBA CLOTHING LINE

Also of interest, the NBA has partnered with Colony Sportswear “to create a menswear collection of jackets, ties and dress shirts” under the name 52nd & 5th. According to Sarah Talalay of the South Florida Sun-Sentinel, items include navy worsted wool or black leather jackets with the team’s logo embroidered into the jackets’ lining that retail for $348 and $648, respectively. Striped ties with the team logos sell for $39.50. Dress shirts “come in three styles and include French cuffs and silk knots in team colors or logos at the cuff or in the weave” and retail for $87.50-89.50. One word comes to mind: cheesy.

BEACH TENNIS SEASON IS COMING

Beach Tennis USA, which launched the hybrid sport of beach tennis in North America last year, today released its mouth-watering schedule for the 2007 National Tour. This will be the company’s third season promoting beach tennis, and my first season promoting it. Why? Because a few months ago, two beautiful assets, Alex Cancado and Chris Henderson, caught Athlebrites eye and gave me a Zanzi like never before. Hotties will kick-off the tour in March with two events in Florida before heading west for four events in Southern California. The tour ends in Long Beach, New York in August with the 2007 National Beach Tennis Championship. I suggest checking out this sporn-fest on sand. For more info and the full schedule, check out www.beachtennisusa.net.

TIGER WOODS AND THE HSBC CHAMPIONS TOURNEY

Oh to be in Shanghai right now. My Mandarin would come in handy as I walked around asking Nar you luguan? Our golf babes are busy promoting the Tour, with Tiger Woods participating in promotional events, playing table tennis and helping lucky little raptors with their putts. And call me crazy, but is that the same boy in all the photos with Tiger? If so, put that kid on my payroll! With five million dollars in prize money, the Shanghai tournament is the richest in Asia. Last year, Tiger finished runner-up to David Howell, but if he can spank him this time, it will be his 10th trophy for the year. Tigers first round is Thursday.

OUCH
As I indulged my pirate fantasy via the Raiders game last night, it wasn’t until the last two minutes of the game that things got hot. Raiders beast Tyler Brayton served Seahawk Jerramy Stevens a knee to the groin that even I felt. Brayton was appropriately flagged for unsportsmanlike conduct, then yanked and spanked from the game. The scuffle prompted several awesome comments from the game’s announcers. Kornheiser: “That knee is going to be shown on every sports talk show in America tomorrow 15 times, and people are going to clamor for a suspension.” ESPN’s Mike Tirico: “Not just from a football and a suspension standpoint, but from a manhood standpoint, that was lame.” ESPN’s Joe Theismann said the Raiders have “turned into a classless operation.” Oh yes, but they certainly don’t lack any entertainment value. Doing as Kornheiser predicted, I now share the delicious event with you.

As always, thanks for reading. Delinda
delinda@athlebrities.com