While very few university students can say that they are on their country’s national rowing team, even fewer can say that they have won a medal at the World Rowing Championships. However, Derek O’Farrell can lay claim to both. Over the summer, the U4 physiology student finished third in the Men’s Coxed Pair at the under-23 World Rowing Championship in Eton, UK, becoming the first McGill rower to ever reach the podium at a World Championship.
Sports
The latest in McGill and world sports.
Atlantic
Boston Celtics: The reigning champs lost a lot of their toughness when they let go of SF James Posey, but the Celtics are still the favourites to win the East. Their rookies, C Semih Erden and guards Bill Walker and J.R. Giddens, have seen little action this preseason and figure to play minor roles, if any, this year.
Central
* Detroit Pistons: The team that won it all in 2004 has kept their starting line-up virtually intact since, losing only C Ben Wallace in 2006. But after six straight trips to the Eastern Conference Finals, changes are afoot-new Head Coach Michael Curry replaces the polarizing Flip Saunders.
McGill one win away from QSSF indoor soccer championship
For Head Coach Marc Mounicot and the McGill women’s soccer team, there’s nothing surprising about being in two provincial finals in the same academic year. In early November, the team’s hopes of a berth at Nationals were shattered when the Martlets lost a 2-1 decision against the top-ranked Montreal Carabins in the conference championship game.
McGill gears up for Nationals
Fresh off of winning their second Queen’s Cup in three years, the McGill men’s hockey team is primed and ready to challenge for a National Championship. The OUA East champions received a number-two seed in the six-team tournament last week, and will butt heads against the Manitoba Bisons and the Saint Mary’s Huskies in pool play.
THIRD MAN IN: Lovin’ the Cubs
In years past, Chicago has been called the most segregated city in America, in reference to the city’s heavily black South Side and the mostly white neighbourhoods of the North Side. The city’s most persistent divide, however, has little to do with race. To a much greater extent than either New York or Los Angeles, Chicago is a city divided by baseball.
MARCH MADNESS: EAST
Preview: Top-seeded Kentucky and freshman sensation John Wall cast a long shadow over the East bracket, though they’ll need to play better than they did against Mississippi State in the SEC Tournament Final in order to advance. West Virginia, the No. 2 seed, has the most momentum after winning the Big East title in dramatic fashion over the weekend.
MARCH MADNESS: MIDWEST
Preview: The top-seeded Kansas Jayhawks find themselves in the toughest of the four regions and will have to rely on their experience and leadership if they want to make it to the Final Four for the second time in three years. Headlined by Big East finalist Georgetown and second-seeded Ohio State, the Midwest promises to provide some serious excitement in the early rounds.
MARCH MADNESS: WEST
Preview: The West is potentially the easiest region to predict in the entire tournament, but could just as well prove the most surprising. Kansas State and Syracuse seem locked on a collision course and will likely meet up in the Elite Eight, but the West also features a number of strong upset possibilities.
Mixed results: Martlets take silver, Redmen hoist Queen’s Cup
Four years ago, the McGill men’s hockey team travelled to the western shores of Lake Superior and came home empty-handed. On Saturday night, the Redmen reversed history, capturing the OUA Queen’s Cup with a 3-1 victory over the Lakehead Thunderwolves. The win marked McGill’s second Queen’s Cup in the last three years, and the team’s 15th since winning the inaugural competition in 1903.
