SI.com - SI 50th - Press Room - SI Press release - Wednesday August 06, 2003 05:15 PM

SPORTS ILLUSTRATED FEATURES STATE OF MISSOURI NEXT IN SERIES OF 50 STATE-SPECIFIC WEEKLY SECTIONS

SI Senior Writer and Missouri Native John Garrity Writes How From Yogi to Dizzy to Satchel, Missourians Have Always Provided Pearls of Wisdom

New York, NY, August 5, 2003 — This week’s Sports Illustrated features sports in the state of Missouri, marking the fourth of 50 state-specific sections to be published in the magazine as part of SI’s yearlong 50^th anniversary celebration.

Profiling the Show-Me State Games in Columbia as an event unique to Missouri, the six-page section also includes an accompanying essay by Missouri native and SI senior writer John Garrity , and a wide range of facts, figures and photographs highlighting the most memorable moments and personalities that have shaped Missouri’s sports landscape. As with the MO section, SI features one of the 50 United States each week for 50 weeks and celebrates a sport or sporting event unique to that state.

The Missouri section is featured next in the 50 state-specific series to be published in conjunction with SI’s 50^th Anniversary. The magazine will hit newsstands on Wednesday, August 6, 2003 and copies in Missouri issue will feature a cover-flap identifying the special Missouri section.

Highlights from the special section include:

"To Play’s The Thing," in which SI writer Kelley King writes that at the Show-Me State Games in Columbia, some 28,000 athletes compete in 35 sports.

From Yogi to Dizzy to Satchel, Missourians have always provided pearls of wisdom, writes SI senior writer and Missouri native, John Garrity in "You Can Quote Us ."

The Poll : Missourians weigh in on sports in a Harris Interactive poll that found these results:

Favorite major league baseball team………………St. Louis Cardinals (48%)

Favorite NFL team……………………………….St. Louis Rams (43%)

Favorite announcer………………………………....Joe Buck (20%)

State’s biggest rivalry……………………………….Missouri-Kansas (25%)

More a fan of college or pro sports?………………..Pro (72%)

*Complete poll results and essay by John Garrity to follow.

Enemy of the State : Owner of the NFL Phoenix Cardinals, Bill Bidwill received 22% of this vote in the Harris Interactive poll beating Al Davis (14%) and Mike Keenan (5%) for Missouri’s biggest sports villain title. Missourian’s most hated team? The University of Kansas Jayhawks (21%).

Greatest Moment — Editor’s pick : On Sept. 8, 1998, with a 341-foot line drive that barely cleared the leftfield wall, Mark McGwire broke Roger Maris’s season mark of 61 home runs, and all of America stood and cheered.

SI’s 50^th Anniversary program, America’s Sports Illustrated: 50 Years, 50 States, 50 Sports , is a wide-ranging multimedia platform that is the most ambitious initiative in the history of the franchise. The grassroots effort, which was launched in July 2003 and continues through July 2004, is a yearlong celebration of sports in America. It will include editorial coverage in the magazine and online, a community sports outreach campaign with the YMCA and National Recreation and Park Association, as well as The Toyota Presents Sports Illustrated’s 50^th Anniversary Tour that will travel to unique sports events in cities and towns throughout the country. SI’s actual 50th anniversary date is August 16, 2004. Toyota is the presenting sponsor of the Tour; Starter and Best Buy are program sponsors.

Contacts: Rick McCabe (212) 522-1375, Sports Illustrated Julie Sprich (212) 522-9511, Edelman


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