Jack LaLanne

I was thinking about Jack LaLanne, “The Godfather of Fitness,” before, during and after my 5-mile run this morning.  The running conditions were not ideal.  It was cold and overcast, and I was torn between burrowing my head in the Washington Post sports page, and getting out the door to pound some more pavement.  I listened to Jack, who wanted me to pound the pavement.

“Inactivity is the killer,” was the mantra of LaLanne, who died last week at age 96.  Jack had a sense of humor about the Grim Reaper’s eventual arrival, saying “I can’t die, it would ruin my image.”  For LaLanne, though, the sedentary lifestyle was a slow death.  He believed age was not a barrier, and you could exercise with gusto in your 50s, 60s, 70s, 80s and even 90s.  LaLanne continued with his two-hour workouts into his 90s, and he celebrated his 95th birthday with the release of a new book, Live Young Forever.

Like Will Munny says in the award-winning 1992 movie Unforgiven, “we all got it coming, kid.”  We can’t cheat death – but I think we can stave it off and improve our moods and mind-sets if we start moving and exercising a bit.  It’s right at the top of Jack LaLanne’s 10-point self-improvement plan.

David Barmasai

Kenya has produced more marathon champions than any country in the world, so it’s no surprise that a Kenyan recently won the biggest prize in marathoning.  David Barmasai earned $250,000 for finishing first at the Standard Chartered Dubai Marathon in the United Arab Emirates.

What would you do with one quarter of a million dollars?  In Kenya, that kind of money will go a long, long way.  According to the World Bank, the average yearly income of a Kenyan in 2009 was $1,570.  Speaking after his victory in Dubai, the 22-year-old Barmasai said, “I’m very happy to win all this money.  Many people after getting a lot of money go badly in their lifestyle, but I hope I will not be among them.  I’ll use it wisely.  I want to stay as I was in the days before.”

Barmasai is one of nine children from a farming family in Kenya’s Rift Valley, and he says one of the ways he can use his money wisely is to buy land for himself.

Before his lucrative triumph in the Middle East, Barmasai had competed in two marathons in Kenya – one in Eldoret, and the other in the capital, Nairobi – and won them both.

The young Kenyan says he thinks he can run faster than he did in Dubai, where he clocked two hours, seven minutes and 18 seconds.  Barmasai says he’s now looking ahead to running one of the big city marathons, like in Boston, Chicago, New York or London, where more prize money awaits.

Jamaican star Usain Bolt is looking forward to this year’s IAAF World Championships in Daegu, South Korea, where he once again figures to be the most electrifying competitor in international athletics.

The world record holder makes headlines not just for his astonishing speed, but also for his playful personality.  He loves the nickname of “Lightning Bolt.”  At the 2008 Olympics in Beijing, where Bolt won three gold medals, set new world records at 100 meters and 200 meters, and was a member of a world record-setting Jamaican 4 x 100-meter relay team, he told a packed news conference:  “I’m Lightning Bolt.  I’m not Flash Gordon or anybody.  My name is Lightning Bolt.”

I’m looking forward to seeing the Lightning Bolt do his special Lightning Bolt pose in South Korea, maybe as much as the children in this video.  Do the pose, Lightning Bolt!

Lionel Messi

Lionel Messi scored three goals in his first match for Barcelona since he won his second consecutive FIFA Player of the Year award 10 January, the top prize in international soccer.  While the 23-year-old Messi found the net for Barcelona, he didn’t score at all for Argentina at last year’s World Cup in South Africa.  Messi described Argentina’s World Cup performance as his “one big regret” from 2010.

I didn’t get to vote for the 2010 FIFA Player of the Year, but I certainly would have given consideration to Uruguay’s Diego Forlan, who scored five goals in South Africa and was given the Golden Ball as the outstanding player at the monthlong tournament.

The World Cup is the pinnacle for any soccer player, and if you can’t score goals on your sport’s biggest stage, why should you be named football’s best player during the year the tournament is held?  Let me know what you think in the comments section and tell me who you would have voted for.

Joseph “King Kong” Agbeko reclaimed his International Boxing Federation bantamweight title last month by beating the Colombian Yonnhy Perez in the northwest U.S. city of Tacoma, Washington.  It was sweet, end of year revenge for Agbeko, who had lost his IBF title belt to Perez in 2009.  Speaking after his victory in Tacoma, the 30-year-old Agbeko (28-2, 22 KOs) described his 12-round, unanimous decision triumph as “a Christmas bonus” for his fans in Ghana.

“King Kong” returned home to a hero’s welcome in Ghana, which has a proud pedigree in prizefighting.  The west African nation has produced several world boxing champions, including Ike “Bazooka” Quartey and Azumah “The Professor” Nelson.

Nelson, who was elected to the Boxing Hall of Fame in 2004, is regarded by many boxing experts as the greatest fighter Africa has ever produced.  In 2010, a documentary film was released on the Ghanaian warrior’s life.

Joseph “King Kong” Agbeko told VOA that he’s hoping to scale new heights in 2011, and make it the best year of his professional career.  He acknowledges the role and inspiration that Azumah Nelson and Ike Quartey have provided in helping him achieve success in the fight game.

Chicago Bulls basketball star Luol Deng is having one of the best seasons of his professional career.  Through 33 games, Deng has averaged about 18 points and six rebounds a game for the Bulls, who were leading the National Basketball Association’s Central Division 5 January 2011 with a record of 23-10.

The 25-year-old Deng is in his seventh NBA season.  He decided to turn pro after only one year at Duke University, which has one of the most successful men’s college basketball programs in the United States, led by Hall of Fame coach Mike Krzyzewski.  Coach Krzyzewski will also lead the world champion USA men’s basketball team at the 2012 London Olympics.

Like “Coach K,” Luol Deng is also looking forward to the London Games.  He’ll play for Olympic host Great Britain.  When Deng was eight-years-old, his father was granted political asylum in England, and Deng has chosen to represent that country in international competition.

However, Deng’s heart is also in Sudan, where he was born, and he says he’s eagerly awaiting the Southern Sudan independence referendum on 9 January.  Deng says he’ll be casting a symbolic vote for his late Sudanese countryman Manute Bol, who helped teach him basketball and who was also a member of the Dinka tribe.

The International Olympic Committee recently unveiled the official logo for the 2016 Summer Games in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.  Among those giving the logo a thumbs up is IOC president Jacques Rogge, who says, “I think it is very aesthetic.  It is very innovative and very creative.  I like it very much.  You can see all kinds of things in the logo, you can see Rio, you can see Copacabana beach, you can see the mountain, you can see the sea, you can see the sun …”

Sports fans will be seeing a lot of Brazil during the next five years.  The football-crazy country will also be hosting the 2014 World Cup, soccer’s premier international competition.  In terms of television viewing audience, the World Cup is the most popular sporting event on the globe, bigger than even the Olympics.  The International Football Federation, FIFA, described the 2010 World Cup in South Africa as the most watched television event in history, with more than 26 billion people tuning in to matches during the month-long tournament.

Brazilian Football Fan

The 2014 World Cup promises to be a big month-long party, and I’m sure those Brazilian fans will be singing, dancing and cheering on their beloved national team, the most successful World Cup squad in history, with a record five trophies to its credit.

And two years after the World Cup, Brazil will raise the curtain on the Olympics in Rio.  The 2014 World Cup and the 2016 Olympics – two big sports competitions and two big festive events, and Brazil is staging both samba parties.