Live at 5 p.m. Wednesday: Our favorite sports photos
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Can’t believe this fell so far in the first round, but my pick has got to be the Black Power salute at the 1968 Olympics. American Tommie Smith won the 200-meter dash in world-record time, his compatriot John Carlos taking the bronze, and they decided to use their spotlight on the podium to protest. A lot of what they wore was symbolic, but the most striking thing about the photo, shot by John Dominis for Life Magazine, are the black-gloved raised fists of Smith and Carlos during the national anthem.
The crowd booed them for that, the criticism continued for much longer. All because they tried to bring awareness to what life can be like for the Black community in America, from poverty to lack of opportunity to fear of violence.
Others have followed in their footsteps since, most notable Colin Kaepernick. That has proven how much courage it takes to stand up for what you believe, the risk involved. But seeing people at the top of their game, with a lot to lose, still stick to what’s important to them and try to share that message, I think that’s amazing. And it’s what makes photos like these powerful and timeless. -
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Great choice, Megan. In addition to Carlos and Smith, I've been fascinated by Peter Norman, the Australian who finished third. He's wearing a badge that says, "Olympic Project for Human Rights," an anti-racism group formed in the 1960s.I'm up. Gimme me a minute. Someone fill some time. :) -
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This Star Tribune photo of coach/general manager Cheryl Reeve delivers a not-so-subtle message: Number of titles won by the Lynx in the 21st Century (four). Number of titles won by all of the other pro sports teams in town combined (zero). Game over. End of discussion about the most successful team in town over the last dozen or so years. I suspect she likes this photo as much as I do.
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When John Shuster’s gold-medal winning curling team returned to Minnesota after taking gold during the 2018 Olympics, the team members didn’t realize how big a deal they’d become. This photo of Tyler George, by Bob King of the Duluth News Tribune, shows his surprise when team members got off their flight from South Korea and found hundreds of people waiting to cheer their arrival. You can make a good argument that his surprise was just about as great as our surprise that Team USA had won curling gold. (It also reminds me of the crowd-sourced headline that Brian Stensaas and I discussed on Twitter with people who were watching the match at 3 in the morning.)
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But anyway I didn’t, and instead I went for this portrait of Tyler Johnson, taken by Mark Vancleave of the Strib, for this story I wrote.
Mark and I went to college together, and I have fond memories of collaborating with him for feature photos, and this was like that. We spent a day in north Minneapolis with him, where he told me about his tattoos, including one of the Minneapolis skyline across his chest. He also told me of plans to get another tattoo on his forearm of the NFL logo, which most people would think of as for his NFL future, but to him would mean “Northside for Life.” I knew as soon as he told me that what the lede and kicker would be for this story. North Minneapolis is a place Tyler knows and loves but a place others misunderstand. It's so much a part of him, it’s written clearly on his skin, for everyone to see.
Anyway, Mark and I talked about the best way to get this shot, and we ended up setting up a portrait session at the Gophers’ preseason media day. We figured out how he would hold the football, M logo facing out, lighting just right to illuminate the script. I got to watch the whole thing come to life. As the reporter, I don’t always get to be so involved in the photo part. But for stories like this, it was really awesome to be a part of it and see it come to life. It fit the story so well and is so striking.
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My second-round pick was shot by Brian Peterson on Tuesday, April 22, 2003, in Denver, and it shows the Wild’s Andrew Brunette celebrating after scoring in overtime for a 3-2 victory over the Colorado Avalanche in Game 7 of the Western Conference quarterfinals. The Wild completed a rally from a 3-1 series deficit – a feat it would repeat in the second round against Vancouver – and marked final appearance of Hall of Fame goalie Patrick Roy’s career. This ran with a “Believe it!’’ headline on our sports cover and summed up that team’s underdog persona perfectly.
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Is it worth it to score the game-winning goal when someone is gonna shoot you with your mouth hanging open like that? (I think 101 out of 100 people would say yes.) In many ways, seeing that single moment is more powerful than watching the replay, IMO.
Rachel Blount is up ... with Brian Stensaas and Marcus Fuller to follow. -
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I'm going with a wacky yet famous photo for my second pick. This photo of the "Fighting Finish'' was taken during the stretch run of the 1933 Kentucky Derby by Wally Lowry of the Louisville Courier-Journal. Brokers Tip (right), ridden by Don Meade, and Head Play, ridden by Herb Fisher, literally battled it out. Fisher tried to run Meade into the rail, and Meade shoved him and grabbed at the saddle cloth. Fisher hit Meade with his whip. It was a photo finish, but there were no cameras; stewards declared Brokers Tip the winner. The fight continued in the jocks' room afterward.
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Mark Hall finished his junior season at Apple Valley with a 42-0 record. The exclamation point was a second-period pin in the 2015 Class 3A, 170-pound state championship match at Xcel Energy Center. Our Aaron Lavinsky was right there to get the shot, an absolute stunner. It made all of us in the office that night go, “He's SEVENTEEN?!?!?”
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Giving Apple Valley love after Mark Hall. My second pick is Tyus Jones' celebration in NCAA title game vs. Wisconsin in 2015. Jones is arguably the best high school basketball player the state of Minnesota has ever produced. Adding to his legend beyond the prep ranks was his national championship run with Duke.
Jones’ memorable pose of surprise donned the Sports Illustrated cover and was captured by SI photographer Greg Nelson. Jones will be joined by his younger brother, Tre, in the NBA soon. It’s a shame the younger Jones didn’t get a chance to lead the Blue Devils to a championship after the pandemic wiped out March Madness in 2020.
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[sighs deeply after seeing 2015 Tyus]
OK, anyway, both the 1991 Twins and 2003 Wild have been covered, but my second pick was always going to be one or the other. And I still have to go with the 1991 Twins, my favorite team of all time. Specifically, Kirby Puckett's expression rounding the bases after his Game 6-winning home run off Charlie Leibrandt. This was the photo we used for Puckett's obituary on A1 in 2006.
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This was shot by the Associated Press' Jim Mone, who as far as I can gather has been shooting for AP since the early 1970s. Or possibly even earlier, there are two photos from 1960 with the byline "Jim Mone" on them! But he is still shooting for AP today. Like, literally today ... he shot Best Buy in Richfield today.
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Whenever I read or hear voices complaining that nobody loses anymore because “everyone gets a participation ribbon,’’ I think of Jimmy Cates of Prior Lake. This was captured in 2004 by the Star Tribune’s Renee Jones Schneider after Jimmy took part in the first wrestling tournament of his then 8-year-old life. Total number of practices he had to prepare: Three. Total number of moms who thought he did remarkably well despite his finish in a field of four: One.Presuming Jimmy’s still around, I’d love to meet him and see how things have turned out.
Renee wrote later that she could see the boy ''waiting in line to get his official wrestling trophy photo taken, so I hid under a table to get a good composition. I knew I had just photographed a really funny situation. That so, I also felt really nervous his parents would ask me not to use the picture, but they were very cool about it. I almost felt bad publishing the picture, but I figured when he saw it in the paper he would probably feel like a star for a day. Winners almost always get attention in the local sports pages; it was fun to put the underdog in the limelight." -
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Paul, you swiped my pick! So I will go with a backup. Sticking to the agony of defeat and going with something a little more personal this time (I'm allowed, right?) ...Every Detroit Lions fan, myself included, knows the franchise has exactly one postseason victory during the Super Bowl era. One win, 12 losses. Perhaps the most crushing defeat for me came on New Year's Eve in 1983. I was 16 at the time. That the Lions were even in this game was a huge shock. Here are James Jones, Leonard Thompson, Mark Nichols and Gary Danielson after the 24-23 loss at Candlestick Park. Eddie Murray missed a 43-yard field goal try in the final seconds and the Lions lost 24-23. Coach Monte Clark was captured praying on the sidelines before the kick. This Detroit Free Press photo by Mary Schroeder shows precisely what happens when prayers are not answered.
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Oh, man. I'm thinking back to the Detroit Lions fans who took a corner table at the B-Dubs in Crystal every week during their 2008 winless season. That hurts.It's time for Naila-Jean Meyers to close out the draft.Then we'll be open for your honorable mentions. Thanks for playing and watching tonight.
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I'm going to get weird for the final pick. This is the pandemic talking. And since this is "favorite sports photos" and not best or most famous, I'm going for comfort.I'm a big tennis fan and covered the sport for years, and in tennis circles there are few things as comforting as a Juan Martin del Potro hug. I am sure it would be comforting to actually receive one, but I am saying it is also comforting just to see one.At 6-foot-6 Argentine, del Potro is usually the taller player and will envelope his opponent in a long-limbed embrace after matches. Hugs between del Potro and Novak Djokovic are known for their warmth and affection. Like this one, from the AP at the 2016 Rio Olympics, where del Potro upset Djokovic in the first round. (It's not the best photo of their hug, but it is the one we can use on our website.)Remember hugging?
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Naila-Jean sends us off with a reminder of what life used to be like before March 12, 2020.Thanks to everyone for participating. We're taking next Wednesday off because it's the start of the July 4th weekend (in our minds, anyway) and it's also supposed to be the first day of Twins training camp.We'll stay open for your honorable mentions.Go!
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Going to start the honorable mentions with my other pick: Jason Marshall leaping into Andrew Brunette after a goal in Game 5 of the Wild-Canucks series in 2003 in Vancouver. Taken by our colleague Richard Tsong-Taatarii, whose name I still have to check to make sure I've spelled it correctly.
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Excellent! I've just been waiting for my moment to pipe in. Missing tonight: Aaron Lavinsky's stunning shot of Badger great, Jonathan Taylor, celebrating in the presence of the silent Gopher faithful. The snow. The light. The redemption. *It's shot 3 in the gallery here:https://www.startribune.com/wisconsin-denies-gophers-bid-for-big-ten-championship-reclaims-axe-with-38-17-victory/565646522/
What a glorious moment. -
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My college roommate suggested this one to me on Twitter ... he was at this game and I still don't think he's over it. And neither are these die-hard fans.
So I nominate Brian Peterson's epic "Weeping Blondes" from the Vikings' NFC Championship Game loss to Atlanta in early 1999 (This is also Reusse-approved)
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photo that went viral last year of James Harden. 
