Categotry Archives: Sports

Eddie Guerrero was beloved for playing a heel. A charismatic star on the World Wrestling Entertainment circuit, his “Lie, Cheat and Steal” anti-hero image found favor with millions of wrestling fans.
Eduardo Gory Guerrero Llanes was born into a wrestling family. All three of his older brothers (Chavo Guerrero, Hector Guerrero and Mando Guerrero) were professional wrestlers, as was his father, Gory Guerrero. The El Paso, Texas native attended the University of New Mexico and New Mexico Highlands University before moving to Mexico in 1987 to wrestle under the stage name Mascara Magica.
Guerrero wrestled with his brothers for a few years, then went solo in Japan as the Black Tiger II. He eventually returned to Mexico, where he and Art Barr formed the tag team La Pareja del Terror (The Pair of Terror). After Barr’s death from substance abuse in 1994, Guerrero competed in the Extreme Championship Wrestling and the World Championship Wrestling circuits.
In 2000, Guerrero debuted on “Monday Night RAW” with former WCW wrestlers Chris Benoit, Dean Malenko and Perry Saturn as The Radicalz. The team won four titles and became popular with fans following a brutal face off with the New Age Outlaws. Guerrero parted ways with The Radicalz a few months later when he wooed female wrestler Chyna away from Benoit. Guerrero and Chyna broke up in 2001 after he was “caught” showering with two other female wrestlers.
Guerrero returned to the ring in 2002 and won the Intercontinental Championship, the WWE Tag Team Championship and the United States Championship. In 2004, the 5-foot-8 and 220-pound wrestler defeated Brock Lesnar for the WWE World Heavyweight Title and became the WWE’s second Hispanic champion.
On Nov. 13, Guerrero was scheduled to film “Monday Night RAW” and “Friday Night Smackdown!” in Minneapolis. When he didn’t respond to his ordered wake-up call, hotel security and Guerrero’s nephew and fellow WWE wrestler, Chavo Guerrero, forced their way into his room and found him on the floor. Attempts to revive the 38-year-old wrestler were unsuccessful. Authorities later attributed his death to acute heart failure.
Guerrero’s life, including his addictions to drugs and alcohol and an arrest for drunk driving, was chronicled in the 2004 documentary, “Cheating Death, Stealing Life: The Eddie Guerrero Story.”
• Complete Coverage From World Wrestling Entertainment

Jason J. Collier, a professional basketball player who spent the last two years playing power forward and center for the Atlanta Hawks, died on Oct. 15 of a sudden heart rhythm disturbance caused by an abnormally enlarged heart, an autopsy showed. He was 28.
At Central Catholic High School in Springfield, Ohio, Collier was named “Mister Basketball Ohio.” He played college-level basketball at Indiana before transferring to the Georgia Institute of Technology. His father, Jeff Collier, played at Georgia Tech from 1972 to 1976, and Jason initially wore No. 52 in his honor.
In 2000, the 7-foot, 260-pound center was drafted by the Milwaukee Bucks in the first round. He was traded to the Houston Rockets, where he played backup for three years, then signed as a free agent with the Minnesota Timberwolves in 2003.
Collier joined the Atlanta Hawks in 2004, and started 44 games — averaging 5.7 points and 2.6 rebounds in 13.5 minutes. He scored a career-high 22 points against Washington last season and pulled down 11 rebounds against Toronto. Although he was not projected to start this season, Collier passed his preseason physical and was considered a top backup. In two preseason games, he averaged 3.5 points and 3 rebounds.
Early Saturday, Collier experienced breathing problems and collapsed. His wife Katie called 9-1-1 and performed CPR until the ambulance arrived, but he died on the way to the hospital. He is also survived by his two-year-old daughter, Ella.
The Hawks plan to wear black shoulder patches on their uniforms in remembrance of Collier. His uniform will also remain inside his locker through the season.
• Complete Coverage From the Atlanta Hawks

Carolyn Bell, a star safety, wide receiver and fullback for the Connecticut Crush, died in a car accident on Sept. 30. She was 40.
Born in London and raised in Hartford, Conn., Bell played basketball on the University of New Haven’s Division II national championship team in 1987. After graduation, she taught special education phys ed at Grace Webb School at the Institute of Living in Hartford.
An all-around athlete who played tennis, softball and was an avid swimmer, Bell joined the Connecticut Crush, a member of the National Women’s Football Association (NWFA), in 2001. She was named the most valuable player (defensive) in 2003 and 2004, and served as the team’s captain for three years. Bell also received the Crush 2002 Gridiron Award and was named an NWFA Defensive All-Star in 2004.
Bell had just parked her motorcycle near her home when a car driven by Eugenio River, of Hartford, struck and killed her. River, 24, was later charged with driving under the influence.
The Crush canceled a day of preseason training upon learning of No. 33’s death.
• Watch a Tribute From Front Row Photography

Charles Williams, the first black umpire to work behind home plate in a World Series game, died on Sept. 10 of complications from diabetes. He was 61.

The Denver native attended Long Beach City College in California, where he was an All-American football player. He was working the night shift at a factory in the 1960s when he began attending umpire school.

Williams worked as a minor-league umpire until 1982 when he joined the majors. He ump’d the 1985 and 1995 All-Star games, the 1989 National League championship series between the San Francisco Giants and Chicago Cubs, and the 1997 National League championship series between the Florida Marlins and the Atlanta Braves.

Williams was the home-plate umpire for Game Four of the 1993 World Series, which pitted the Philadelphia Phillies against the Toronto Blue Jays. That marathon match-up set several records, including the longest game (four hours, 14 minutes), the most runs by both teams (29) and the most runs scored by a losing team (14). Toronto beat Philly 15-14, and eventually took the series in game six.

A consummate professional, Williams often brought home videotapes of the games he worked, just to make sure his calls were accurate. Despite this dedication, baseball fans and players were not always happy with the calls he made. Some shouted racial epithets or spit at him. He even received death threats in 1986 for throwing Padres’ first baseman Steve Garvey out of a game, but Williams refused to be swayed from his calls.

“People come to see their favorite players, to watch the game and to see the manager tell the umpire off. And it’s part of my job to listen to him. When the crowd boos, I know I am probably doing something right,” Williams once said.

Ray “Bob” Oldham, a former NFL cornerback who won a Super Bowl ring with the Pittsburgh Steelers, died on July 23. Cause of death was not released. He was 54.

Although he was short and rail thin, Oldham played on his high school football team for four years and earned a scholarship to Middle Tennessee State University. There he set the regional record for longest interception by making a 100-yard return in a game against Chattanooga. That 1970 record still stands. Two years later, Oldham was named a runner-up to Jim Youngblood for Ohio Valley Conference defensive player of the year.

An eighth round draft pick, Oldham played for the Baltimore Colts from 1973 to 1977. He spent the 1978 season with Pittsburgh as a member of the “Steel Curtain Defense,” and won a Super Bowl ring when the Steelers beat the Dallas Cowboys 35-31.

Oldham was traded to the New York Giants for one season, then finished his 10-year professional football career playing three seasons with the Detroit Lions. The 6-foot, 193-pound defensive back started 62 games and made 14 interceptions in the NFL, including two returned for touchdowns.

Since his retirement, Oldham has run a stock brokerage firm and an upscale dry cleaning/laundry franchise, and worked as a motivational speaker. He was inducted into the Middle Tennessee State University Blue Raider Hall of Fame in 1983 and into the Pittsburg Hall of Fame in 2004. Oldham was training for a 40-mile bicycle marathon when he died.

• Watch Oldham (#23) Make an Interception, Touchdown