DAVID BECKHAM- WET

Yeah, its Friday and I need to give a shout-out to David Beckham for pouring water on himself. Golden Balls is training with England, who are set to face Trinidad & Tobago in a friendly match June 2.

LAKERS BENCH SPURS

The Lakers came back from a 17-point deficit last night to beat the Spurs 100-92 and win the conference finals in five games. The Lakers celebrated the Western Conference championship before their adoring fans at Staples Center last night…among those adoring fans…

Dr. Dre, Tobey Maguire (L), Antonio Banderas, Cameron Diaz, Denzel Washington & P. Diddy (C), and B-Diddy (aka Baron Davis) and Adam Sandler (R). No doubt it was party-time in LA after the game…but didn’t see any sign of a weed-stealing posse sitting courtside to supply a certain bearded baller who is too-ego driven to address the lack of character his friends have.

TONY HAWKS JEEP

Tony Hawk has put his Jeep up on Ebay…from June 12-22 you can bid on a one of a kind 2007 Jeep Wrangler Unlimited Rubicon 4×4, which has been tricked out with all the latest and best features. The winning bidder will also receive 4 VIP Tickets to Tony’s tour and get to meet him…the best part, 100% of the proceeds will benefit The Tony Hawk Foundation, which seeks to improve society by supporting and empowering youth.

GREG HALSTEAD: REAL WORLD HOTTIE

I know he’s not an athlete, but he’s certainly got the looks to be considered a hottie…admittedly, I don’t watch the ‘Real World’, but was asked to interview Greg for Look to the Stars. I did my research and after reading some of viewer comments about him-I thought for sure I was going to be talking to an arrogant fool. But it was quite the contrary. Greg was one of the nicest guys I’ve spoken to. He was candid, intelligent, articulate and confident. And the most surprising thing about Greg? Greg asked to be involved with charity- he told his PR guy that he wanted to do something worthwhile with his ‘fame.’ This weekend, Greg is donating his time to raise awareness about the Damon and Stella Foundation. For more details and my full interview with Greg Halstead, please visit Look to the Stars.

PRO TEAM CHALLENGE

We’re getting closer and closer to one of the most highly anticipated charity events to hit the West Coast…the Pro Sports Team Challenge celebrity golf tournament will held June 7th and 8th at Eagle Falls Golf Club at Fantasy Springs Resort Casino in Palm Springs, California. Legendary all-stars from baseball, hockey, basketball, and football, led by tournement commish Charles Barkley, will compete for a total purse of more than $250,000 for their charities. The Pro Sports Team Challenge will also be broadcast nationwide on Fox Sports Net June 28th and 29th.

The winning team of sports legends over the two-day golf tournament will present their charity with $100,000. Prizes for second, third, and fourth place are $75,000, $50, and $25,000. Fans also get involved in supporting the charities through registering as a VIP ProCoachTM strategist for one of the teams online at www.teamchallenge.com. For each paid VIP ProCoachTM registration, $1.00 is added to the charity’s purse, so register online today. $250,000 purse will be paid to the charities for each team, as selected by the Team Captains. Those institutions are (respectively): Baseball Assistance Team for baseball, United Service Organizations, Inc. for basketball, Operation Kids for football, and Hockey Fights Cancer for hockey. The purse will increase for any particular charity by $1.00 for each fan that registers as a paid ProCoach for that team.

DeLinda Lombardo
delinda@athlebrities.com

SAINT MIKE MILLER

On Wednesday Memphis Grizzly Mike Miller and his wife Jenny donated $200,000 to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital at the Memphis Grizzlies House-signaling the largest donation ever given to St. Jude by an individual Grizzlies player. Fittingly, the hospital named its exercise room the Mason and Mavrick Miller Fitness Room, after Miller’s two sons. “I love what St. Jude does for the community,” Miller said in a statement. “Jennifer and I have always been very supportive for what they do with children. I really wanted to do something to help out the community here in Memphis.” Now that’s what I call a-mighty-mighty-good-Grizzly.

OFFSIDE

They’ve got angels holding soccer balls and the voodoo doll used by an Italian soccer fan during the last FIFA World Cup in 2006…the exhibition is called “Offside” and is currently running at Geneva’s Ethnography Museum (MEG) in Conches, near Geneva, and aims looks at soccer through an anthropological lens by analyzing the social and symbolic dimensions of the premier global sport…adjacent to the exhibit is the Hooligans Display, where the anthropologists are studying the behavior of unruly fans who have no social dimension…but me thinks they should have a “living display” of hotties in post-victory hugs to effectively illustrate the symbolic dimension of John Terry and David Beckham holding each other tightly.

WE SHOULD ALL BE OUTRAGED

I know this isnt a politcal blog, but this has gotten my blood boiling. While commenting on Hillary’s RFK gaffe, Liz Trotta on Fox News Channel first referred to Barack Obama as “Osama” and then laughed that they should both be killed. It doesn’t matter who you support during this campaign, Liz Trotta openly joking about assassinating a Senator on national television is unacceptable and completely outrageous. (Although it’s typical of Fox News.) Her lame-ass-after-the-fact apology doesn’t carry an ounce of sincerity to it. Seriously, haven’t we had enough of this shit…watch the video and judge for yourselves but I, like many others are calling for everyone to contact Fox News to call for her assassination resignation although that will never happen. foxnewsonline@foxnews.com or 1-888-369-4762.

delinda@athlebrities.com

THE BEAUTIFUL TEAM

The flawless, super-fine, Italian National soccer team: From left, bottom row, Fabio Quagliarella, Antonio Di Natale, Andrea Pirlo, Fabio Cannavaro, Marco Amelia, Gianluigi Buffon, Morgan De Sanctis, Alessandro Del Piero, Gennaro Gattuso, Daniele De Rossi and Antonio Cassano. From left, center row, Mauro Camoranesi, Simone Perrotta, team’s staffers Giovanni Andreini, Renato Buso, Gigi Riva and coach Roberto Donadoni, assistants Mario Bortolazzi, and Ivano Bordon, Gianluca Zambrotta and Riccardo Montolivo. From left, top row, Alberto Aquilani, Marco Borriello, Massimo Ambrosini, Marco Materazzi, Luca Toni, Fabio Grosso, Christian Panucci, Andrea Barzagli and Giorgio Chiellini.

As the sexy beasts prepare for the upcoming Euro 2008 tournament set to kick off in Austria and Switzerland June 7, I’m again left wondering why my ass isn’t frolicking around the Coverciano center near Florence…Andrea Pirlo, Alessandro Del Piero, Massimo Ambrosini and Alberto Aquilani all modeled the team’s new jerseys prior to a training session…and I must admit, the sight of the team buses which will be used to shuttle the precious cargo around during the championships gives me the warm fuzzies.

Authorities are running security exercises at the Stade de Suisse stadium in Bern ahead of the Championships, and I cant understand why- It seems to me that they get pa-lenty of practice during the games, plus, I don’t think I’ve ever heard of or seen a severed leg at a match or some injured bozo who looks like someone puked on him.

GOAL’S FOR AFRICA

While one half of my hormones are in Italy, the other half are making their way to Germany for a charity match to raise money for kids in Africa and celebrate Nelson Mandela’s birthday. Led by AC Milan’s Kaka and Liverpool’s Steven Gerrard, a virtual who’s-who from the beautiful world of soccer have lined up to play the first in a series of events to create awareness for Goal4Africa. The concept is simple; users donate to the fund when their favorite team or player scores a goal. The first match in the series will be July 12 at Munich’s Allianz Arena in Germany, and the campaign continues through the 2010 World Cup in South Africa. Their goal is to raise $90 million, in honor of Mandela’s 90th birthday on July 18… which is attainable, since they’ve also got Italy’s Gennaro Gattuso and Goal4Africa’s first global ambassador, Clarence Seedorf named to the roster.

“Players, artists, the whole world can contribute,” Seedorf said at the press conference. “There are other projects, but this is the biggest and has enormous potential. People sometimes say that football is just about money, but I have found incredible availability from players, coaches and clubs, real Madrid, Chelsea and Liverpool have all been very helpful and will endorse this project.” Seedorf (AC Milan) kicked off the official launch, which is endorsed by the Nelson Mandela Foundation, HSH Prince Albert II of Monaco’s Peace and Sport Foundation and many of our babes from the world of soccer. Seedorf is Goal4Africa´s first global ambassador and reminds us that in Africa, 40 million children do not go to primary school-particularly girls, disabled children, orphans and children living in the slums. Nelson Mandela has devoted his life to develop education on the African continent. “Nelson Mandela has been an incredible inspiration to me throughout my lifetime and his efforts continue to bring positive change,” says Seedorf. “Goal4Africa is a program that I believe in wholeheartedly and am sure will reach the world in the same way Live Aid has done.” Other hotties anticipated to participate in Goal4Africa’s spornfest in Germany include: Kaká, Frank Lampard, Paulo Maldini, Robin Van Persie, Gianluigi Buffon, Emmanuel Adebayor, Gennaro Gatusso, Steven Gerrard, Fabio Cannavaro, Samuel Eto’o, Didier Drogba, and Michael Essien.

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

KOBE JUMPS BLACK MAMBA’S
I am NOT a Jackass fan, but this is a phenomenal continuation of the Kobe’s public image repair campaign….

WHILE I WAS SLEEPING

Earlier this month, NBA hotties and soccer babes held my libido hostage and forced me to ignore the hotness prowling around at the AT&T Classic in Georgia. My kitten got down and dirty, finished in third place (wahoo!) and finally, Matt Sullivan from Getty Images snapped an are-you-kidding-me photo-from behind of Camilo Villegas. ‘Nough said.

THE NOAH’S APPLE TREE

Today, President of the French Tennis Federation Christian Bimes and Former French tennis champion Yannick Noah unveiled the ‘Allee of Yannick Noah’ (walking path) at the French Tennis Open, at Roland Garros, in Paris. Noah is celebrating his victory 25 years ago, which was the last singles victory for a Frenchman at Roland Garros…ironically, this comes a few days after his precious offspring, Joakim Noah gets busted for drinking in public and having a stash o’herbage in his pocket…“I don’t understand all that fuss for just drinking a beer on the street,” Yannick Noah said Tuesday at the French Open. “I talk to him every day on the phone, he’ll soon come over to France to see me.” After Daddy won the French Open in 1983, he created a bit of a scandal when he told a magazine writer he smoked weed. I guess the French ain’t so bad after all.

YAO MING’S AFTERSHOCK

Sunday, Yao Ming was at Lowe’s Motor Speedway shooting hoops with NASCAR drivers and learning how to change tires from Kyle Petty’s pit crew as part of a promotion with Coca-Cola.

But the big sensitive guy remains focused on the devastating after effects of the earthquake that hit China. “We have a long way to go to create a new place for the people who don’t have a place to stay right now,” Yao said. “Every day the number is going up. This morning it was over 62,000 people killed. We are very sad for the people we have lost in the earthquake.” Yao, who has already kicked in $290,000 and filmed several PSA’s for the Red Cross, led the crowd in a moment of silence for China’s victims before the Coca-Cola 600. “The best thing you can do for the government is to send money there and people there to help them,” Yao said as he sat in a motor home parked in the track’s infield. “But we also need to warm them. They’re hurt mentally by the earthquake. I heard some kids cannot sleep in the middle of the night because they’re scared. Any kind of help—it’s more than just the money. Number one right now is to save people’s lives. On May 12 people forgot about the Olympics. People forgot about the torch. Let’s focus the government and the people on saving as many lives as we can.”

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

NO RAIN ON HAMILTON’S PARADE

“I have to say a big thank-you to all of my team back home and over here,” said Lewis Hamilton after winning the Monaco Grand Prix. “And to all my fans - I know I have got a lot of fans here and also back home - I did it for all of you and especially my family who have been here supporting me all weekend and to my mum. Lots of love Mum.”

I’m not sure, but I suspect, that I’m one of the few who set the alarm clock in order to get up at an ungodly hour to watch the Formula One race. What drives me is the idea of watching Lewis Hamilton as continues to etch his name in the history books, and Peter Windsor working the pre-race crowd like no one else on the planet can. The rain added an extra notch of excitement and danger to the wet/dry Monaco Grand Prix, and Windsor asked managing director of Renault, Flavio Briatore, what he thought of the conditions…his response in broken English was priceless: “I believe everybody exciting because more danger we are more the people love it.”

Windsor attempted a conversation with Quentin Tarantino who was in the city for the first time…I got the impression that Tarantino had about 85 Red Bulls before arriving and was completely devoid of any conversations skills by the time Windsor got to him…and when Windsor walked by Nico Rosberg (who was wearing a massive sash on his head), coffee flew out my nose as he said: ”We see Nico Rosberg over there…interesting headband situation that Nico’s got going there, wont say too much more about that.” Once the race was underway, cars were skidding in the rain, and commentators were discussing the strategy of “wet tires” versus “dry tires” which only added to my level of amusement-especially when one of them commented on Hamilton’s tires: “Looks like he’s got some jolly-good grip on the track”…and did he ever. Hamilton grabbed the lead on lap 33 after Kubica and Massa pitted. “Even if I was to win here again, which I plan on doing, this is the best one. The first one. Just getting to Formula One and going to Monaco and winning the Grand Prix.” This is the second win of the year for the 23-year-old British babe, the sixth of his career, and makes him the first British driver in nearly 40 years to win the Monaco Grand Prix. The sexy beast now heads to Montreal (June 6-8), where, as a rookie, he scored his first F1 victory.

OH NO! AH…
Stop the friggen press because oh-god-no, another one of our ballers got caught with weed. Chicago Bull babe Joakim Noah was enjoying his off-season in Florida when he was spotted by the po-po at 1:50 a.m. holding a cup of amber liquid which they recognized as alcohol- because god only knows you never see people getting drunk on holiday weekends at the beach…anyway, Noah was arrested for his “open container,” and taken down to the station where during a search, the officers found marijuana in his pocket. (Why he didn’t ditch it before the search is beyond me)…hot-stuff was later released after signing a notice to appear before a judge.

And this is news why? Obviously, the long-arm of the NBA law doesn’t like to think of its ballers smoking a bit o’ weed, but let’s be as honest as Josh Howard here…we all know ballers like their weed. I cant think of the last time I was in a situation-whether it be a bar, private party or post-game celebration, that the smell of weed didn’t permeate the air surrounding a posse of ballers. Why are people so afraid to say it? Why does Noah get ripped on in the media for something as innocent as enjoying his off time in Florida. Seriously. Noah’s a good kid, he’s stayed outta trouble, hasn’t brandished a gun, killed anyone, caused a brawl at a strip club, beaten up an ex-girlfriend, or raped anyone. Really, where are our priorities in this country…oh, wait, I forgot, we’re dealing with NBA rules here, where players cant get dressed or pee without prior written approval of the league…next thing we’re going to see is a Mitchell-type investigation, perhaps a ‘Mary Jane Report’ which exposes all the NBA players who smoke a blunt, have a drink and then pass out without hurting anyone.

LIGHTENING STRIKES GONZALEZ’S

This poor guy…former Blue Jay’s pitcher Geremi Gonzalez was killed after getting struck by lightning in his native Venezuela on Sunday. He was 33…and another Gonzalez got himself into trouble- Tokyo’s Yomiuri Giants infielder Luis Gonzalez-also from Venezuela (R), was banned for one year by Japan’s professional baseball governing body for doping. The douche bag tested positive for clobenzorex, amphetamine and parahydroxyamfetamine, all banned in Japanese baseball…and this is where our priorities should remain-cleansing baseball of all its roid-raging predators instead of honing in on peaceful weed-smoking ballers.

HOOLIGANS JAIL

I love all things hooligan- Swiss soldier have erected a provisional prison in Basel, which will be used to keep arrested hooligans in custody during the 2008 Euro Soccer Championships. The ‘prison’ looks like its constructed outta chicken wire and balsa wood-ensuring that no hooligan will be able to kick open the door and escape or drop a lit cigarette and send the place up on flames.

Italian treats Luca Toni and Gianluca Zambrotta are gearing up for team Italy at the National Technical Center of Coverciano near my libido Florence…Italy has been drawn in Group C with France, the Netherlands and Romania for the first round which takes place from June 7-29 in Austria and Switzerland.

CANCER FOR COLLEGE

Do NOT miss this event if you love Will Ferrell, golf, and helping raise money for cancer survivors to go to college. Event info listed under Athletes Charity Events page.

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

MAN-U RUINED MY DAY

The first time two English clubs competed in the Champions League final…and Manchester United had to beat my Chelsea. Congrats to Man-U for taking home the trophy from a match riddled with rain, riots, yellow cards (8), the ejection of my Didier Drogba, a broken nose for United’s Paul Scholes, and the 42nd goal of the season for Cristiano Ronaldo. “I feel very proud for lads,” Ronaldo said. “This is everything for me. It’s a magnificent season for me.”

Maybe it was their shoes? Drogba and Ronaldo both wore Nike’s Mercurial SL boots-which claim to be the “most lightweight and innovative football boot ever produced.” Drogba, pre-eviction- on his kicks: “The new Mercurial SL defines the next level of football boots - it is like nothing I have ever seen before and I’m very excited to be one of the first players to wear this boot in the Champions League Final.” His United rival Ronaldo added: “Speed and acceleration are essential to my game; one second can be the difference between winning or losing the Champions League Final. This Mercurial SL boot is designed to provide the next level of speed.”

SPIKE THIS

Spike Lee is ready to shoot a feature-length documentary about Michael Jordan. The NBA will kick in the cash needed to finance the movie, while Lee’s 40 Acres & a Mule Film works will produce it. The documentary will include extensive unseen footage shot by NBA cameras during the final two years in Jordan’s career, the ‘01-02 and ‘02-03 seasons…and Kobe continues his trend of good PR this week during an interview with Ron Artest. Artests interview with Kobe will air on FSN’s BDSSP, Friday, May 23 at 11:00 pm. Artest and Bryant discuss hoops, fatherhood, Bryant’s MVP Award, his Nike commercial and whether he really did jump over the speeding Aston Martin…the interview was conducted earlier this week at the Laker’s practice facility…if you wanna read a fantastic interview with Ron Artest-and get to know who he really is-check out Michael Tillery’s interview with Ron Artest on the Starting Five- and you’ll undertsand why I will never speak ill-will of Ron-Ron again.

And David Beckham eating caramel apples with his son Brooklyn, courtside at the Lakers, will never get old.

MICKELSON ON ENTOURAGE

There have been some pretty great appearances on HBO’s Entourage, Kanye West’s two-minute cameo still remains the best, but perhaps the next great bit might come from Phil Mickelson? Big Phil spent two days this week taping an episode of the show, set to air in September, in which Mickelson is featured in a golf scene. Mickelson said of the show, “It’s edgy; the language is a little rough. But I just love watching that show.”

COOKING WITH THE PROS?

Rumor has it that Cowboys TE Jason Witten has agreed to ask his teammates and former Cowboys playa’s to appear on a new reality show entitled “Cooking with the All Pros.” Allegedly, the show will pair fans with players, and pit them against each other in cooking competitions. It is set to begin filming in late June. Five half-hour episodes will air in August on Dallas-based WFAA-ABC. The competition is expected to begin with nine contestants. The only upside I can see from the show is the fact that Witten’s charity, the S.C.O.R.E. Foundation, also stands to benefit as preliminary plans call for the public to be invited to bid on tax-deductible contributions toward the charity…and the top bidders will be on the show.

I’m taking the next few days off to enjoy the long weekend, the Monaco Grand prix and some much needed sunshine.

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

BECKHAM’S BIG CLIMB

David Beckham has agreed to climb Mount Kilimanjaro after Bono asked him to tackle the grueling six-day climb to raise money for UNICAF. A ‘source’ allegedly close to Beckham told The Sun: “The 19,340 ft peak is a bit outside of David’s normal comfort zone but he is absolutely set on making the climb. No date has been fixed yet because David is very busy with his LA Galaxy commitments but he is absolutely set on doing it.” Rumor also has it that British soccer beast, West Ham goalkeeper Robert Green, may also be doing the climb…with that said, Im always a bit skeptical about stories like this- not sure if it started as a rumor or if its actually true, in any case, it would be one hell of a stunt if Beck’s actually hung up his soccer cleats for climbing gear and tackled Africa’s highest peak.

HAMILTON ENJOYING BEING SINGLE

Lewis Hamilton went to the Indiana Jones premiere in Cannes last weekend with Vivian Burkhardt, a Miss World runner-up. (Kinda rude to walk ahead of her like that?) Hamilton’s latest arm-charm jetted over from her home in the Caribbean to join him in the South of France where they were Oh-God-No ‘pictured coming out of the Carlton Hotel together’…yes, just walking outta a hotel is enough to spark international chatter. A spokesman for McLaren said: “Lewis brought a group of friends to Cannes for the film festival after being invited to the premiere by George Lucas. He and Vivian know each other from Grenada where Lewis often visits for family reasons.” It remains a mystery if Miss Burkhardt will stick around to distract Lewis from this weekends Monaco Grand Prix…a publicist said: “I don’t know if she will be staying with him. He normally likes to concentrate before big races.”

BARNES YARD

Students at Washington Elementary School (Northern Cal) are gonna have a great day today…they’ve gotten two refurbished NBA regulation basketball courts courtesy of the Golden State Warriors, Toyota and the Good Tidings Foundation. The refurbished courts will be broken in by Golden State hot-hot-hottie Matt Barnes, who will tip-off a 15-minute game for students in the school district’s LEAPS after school program…Its just too bad there isn’t more good guys like Barnes out there. I’ve met him, and he’s about as down to earth as they get. He’s sweet, young and impressionable, so to see him stay outta trouble instead of hanging out with bearded teammates other ballers who are busy getting high on weed that their posse members stole for them makes me smile.

KIA’P THIS
NBA partner KIA gave away four season-ending awards and topped each of ‘em off with a car. Kia Motors will donate an all-new 2009 Kia Borrego seven-passenger mid-size SUV on behalf of each NBA Performance Award winner to the charity of the winner’s choice. The following is a list of named babes and the charities that will benefit.

Sixth Man Award winner, Manu Ginobili’s Kia is going to the Roy Maas Youth Alternatives; Defensive Player of the Year, Kevin Garnett’s is going to the Boston Center for Youth and Families; Most Improved Player, Hedo Turkoglu has named Parramore Kidz Zone to get his, and MVP Kobe Bryant, gave his to the East Los Angeles Boys and Girls Club.

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

CADDIE FOR CAMILO VILLEGAS

Most of you are probably hip to the Eagles for St Jude program where hotties from the world of golf, including our favorite J Lindeberg clad kitten, Camilo Villegas, make donations for each Eagle they sink during play. In support of the campaign, Eagles for St. Jude is also running a charity auction, where you can bid on golf memorabilia, autographed items, and other cool stuff…like, being a caddie for Villegas for a day (current bid $500) or his golf bag (current bid only ($100)…all revenue generated by the auctions benefits St. Jude…

BABES IN MOSCOW

Unless you’re a die-hard Chelsea or Man-U fan, chances are you’re not one of the three people here in the States wishing they were in Moscow right now. Fans are converging in Moscow for the UEFA Champions League final match between Chelsea and Manchester United on May 21. Security has been vamped up, and fans from both teams were regulated to arrive separate airports in Moscow. Close to 40,000 lucky peeps are expected in the Russian capital for the match, which I pray Chelsea wins or we’ll never hear the end of it from Man-U’s oh-so-sweet fans.

EARTH RACE

Just learned about this Earth Race that’s going on, and I gotta say I love it. The goal of Earthrace is to set a new world record for a powerboat to circumnavigate the globe, running 100% renewable biodiesel fuel, and with a net zero carbon footprint. The amazing boat started in Sagunto, Spain and is also undertaking a two year promotional tour, visiting 100 cities around the globe. And yes, they just made a stop in San Diego where a friend of mine was lucky enough to board the vessel, which snuck in and out of our harbor in less than six-hours. Aside from running on biodielsel, its unique shape allows it to go through the waves, instead of over them. “The inside looks like a submarine,” said my friend, “But I wasn’t allowed to take any photos of the interior.” The Earthrace is a 78ft tri-hull wavepiercer that has been designed and built specifically to get the record for a powerboat to circumnavigate the globe. She is an advanced endurance vessel, capable of submarining up to 23-feet underwater as she powers across oceans…check her out, follow her journey, and support the cause by visiting Earthrace.net.

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