The real World Cup begins now

The World Cup is in full swing. USA lost to Belgium today and Switzerland lost to Argentina. The USA-Belgium game was a one-sided affair during regulation with Belgium dominating shots-on-goals. The US defense was lack-luster but the goalie (Tim Howard) was spectacular. After Belgium went up 2-0 in OT, most folks thought the game was over but the US put a great deal of pressure and got 1 back and then almost equalized. In the end though, much to the disappointment of the entire country (USA), the better side prevailed.

So now we are down to 8 teams. Brasil, Argentina, Germany and Netherlands should all sail through to the semis, but you never know about the other four. Columbia has arguably the best player in the tournament (James Rodriguez), Belgium has been very consistent, France is peaking at the right time and Costa Rica is decidedly the dark horse. While Brasil will probably beat Columbia, I am secretly rooting for some fireworks from number 10 (James Rodriguez). He is handsome, athletic and very exciting to watch. His post-goal celebratory dancing is also a treat (pictured here). Of course, there is nobody who can handle the ball like Messi of Argentina!

I am happy to see football (soccer) gaining popularity here in the US. We’ll see if it continues or the same old mundane US-centric sports (football, basketball, baseball) will continue to dominate. One thing I find disappointing is the commentators who always seem to make comparisons to “size of a football field” or “speed of a baseball pitcher” or “height of a basketball player” multiple times during a football (soccer) telecast.

Now if only cricket can gain some popularity here in the USA… 🙂

As for my workout, I ran for about 65 minutes for 8 miles on the Lifetime Fitness treadmill. I started and ended easy (first 5 and last 5 minutes) and still averaged 8:10 per mile. That’s my longest run in a couple of months, and at a decent clip.