Queen of Sports

Ilgauskas Stays Classy, Writes Thank You Note To Cleveland

Not taking a page out of the LeBron James handbook, Zydrunas Ilgauskas who like LeBron will also be taking his talents to Miami this fall and leaving Cleveland, took out an advertisement page in Cleveland’s Sunday Plain Dealer to thank the fans.

In the ad, Big Z said, “All of you have taught me the importance of family and friends; of pulling together to get things done; of loving your country.”

Before leaving for Miami, Cleveland was the only city that Ilgauskas had played in. He said that the decision to leave Cleveland for Miami was hard, but he wanted the best opportunity to win a championship before the end of his career.

At the end of the letter, “Z” wrote, “I hope you understand. I also hope you understand that Cleveland will always be home to me.”

Hey LeBron, maybe next time you should hire Big Z’s PR people?

Athlete Sighting: Mike Comrie

Hockey player Mike Comrie and his fiancee, actress Hilary Duff were spotted grabbing lunch at Mo’s restaurant in Toluca Lake, California on Sunday.

Rumor has it the wedding date is set for October and the couple will be getting married at the San Ysidro Ranch.

Queen Of Sports 101: NFL Training Camp

We are going to tackle NFL training camp for our Queen of Sports 101 this week!

NFL training camp is underway and it refers to the period of time before the season commences. During training camp, teams typically meet at an outside location, often a local university.

Training camp gives new coaches and players the opportunity to acclimate themselves new teammates, new systems and different weather conditions. Young players use this time as an opportunity to prove they can be stars and veterans show that they are still able to compete with the younger players.

The components of an NFL training camp include scrimmages which are pseudo-games where the teams tend to run a full games worth of plays. Sometimes they hold two practices in one day which is often referred to as two-a-days. Other parts of training camp include weight sessions, meetings with the coaches, drills and pre-season games. Training camp leads right into exhibition season starts. Exhibition season consists of several warm-up games that are played but are not counted for their season record.

One major concern for the NFL during training camp is dehydration. In 2001, Minnesota Vikings player Korey Stringer died from a combination of dehydration and heatstroke during training camp. This prompted the NFL to change their training camp policies which now require teams to have a doctor and medical staff on the field at all times during practices.

To get the latest updates on NFL training camp, click here.

Soccer Player Joe Cole Gets The iPad!

Liverpool soccer player Joe Cole was seen purchasing a new Apple iPad at the Liverpool City Centre.

He’s lookin’ sexy!

Photo: Splash News/Mercury Press

Soccer Boys Night Out!

Real Madrid soccer stars Cristiano Ronaldo, Kaka, Pepe and Marcelo Vieira had a guys night out this weekend. The studly group had dinner at Brazilian BBQ joint Fogo De Chao in Beverly Hills.

The Real Madrid teammates will be taking on the Los Angeles Galaxy on Sunday, August 7th at the Rose Bowl.

Date Night For Tony And Eva

San Antonio Spurs guard Tony Parker and his wife, actress Eva Longoria Parker were spotted having dinner at Katsuya in Hollywood this past weekend.

Photo: Splash News

Athlete Sighting: Serena And Venus Williams

Tennis stars Serena and Venus Williams was seen partying at My Studio nightclub in Hollywood over the weekend.

Dwyane Wade On MTV’s When I Was 17

Miami Heat star guard Dwyane Wade was on the latest episode of MTV’s hit show, When I Was 17 which aired on Saturday night.

Dwyane talked about his experiences in high school, how he was a shy kid when he wasn’t on the basketball court and credits his senior year growth spurt as a confidence booster.

“It was around the time when I started getting good at basketball, so my confidence was growing a bit at 17,” said Wade. “[On the court] they saw me angry, fierce and very competitive… I was viewed as two different people when I was 17.”

Other celebrities on the episode include Playboy reality TV star Holly Madison and musicians Joel and Benji Madden.

You can watch the full episode here.

Athlete Sighting: Landon Donovan

Galaxy soccer stud Landon Donovan was spotted having dinner at Boa Steak House in Santa Monica on Friday night.