As They Say, Winning Is the Name of the Game

Finding the right name for a child is often problematic, but the key can be avoiding anything that will cause playground bullies to pounce. Then there’s the problem of living up to a name.

There once was a Davis Cup tennis player from Zimbabwe with the first name Genius. Wonder how he did in his classes at Southern Methodist.

Now the newborn daughter of the deputy chairman of the top Chinese soccer team, Dalian Shide, has her work cut out for her.

Reuters reported that the proud father named his baby girl “Shuangguan.” The meaning? Double champion.

Let’s hope she has a good left foot.

Trivia time: When was the first time a Rose Bowl game ended in a tie?

Vacation Interrupted: Tennis star David Nalbandian was hanging out at home in Cordoba, Argentina, packing his gear to go fishing in the southern part of the country the next morning.

His vacation plans were put on hold when players kept dropping out of the Tennis Masters Cup. So he went to Shanghai, and promptly won the whole thing, beating Roger Federer in the final.

Naturally, Nalbandian also takes an assertive posture when it comes to fishing. “You have to find the fishes,” he told reporters after one of his matches in Shanghai. “That’s more interesting. It’s not just sitting and waiting.”

Theta BCS: The Orlando Sentinel’s Alan Schmadtke set about deconstructing a handful of BCS myths: “Myth 4: BCS partners are backslapping frat brothers.

“Try back-stabbing. The only reason some of these guys like to convene in the same room is so they can keep an eye on one another -- and be assured the other guys aren’t off cutting deals. There are seven seasons of BCS history and enough subplots for a Sunday-night drama.”

On the rise: It’s not like in the days when he was No. 1 in the world, but after tying for seventh place in a tournament in Japan last weekend, David Duval went from No. 729 to No. 481 in the world golf rankings.

... One if by sea: They apparently are using all sorts of modes of transport for the Olympic torch’s journey through Italy for the Turin Games.

Everything from gondolas (in Venice, of course), horses, and a Ferrari, and yes, even humans (including a ski jumper), will be part of the 10-day relay.

Andrea Pininfarina, chief executive of the Turin-based engineer of Ferraris and Fiats, told the AP: “Its technical specifications are like those of a small car.”

Trivia answer: 1922. The score was California 0, Washington & Jefferson 0. Two years later, the game ended in another tie: Washington 14, Navy 14.

And finally: Rams interim Coach Joe Vitt refuses to resort to happy, confidence-building talk, telling the St. Louis Post-Dispatch: “What I’m not going to do is take an air hose and stick it in their ears -- sss ... sss ... sss -- and start pumping them up. I’m not going to do that. If they’re not excited to play the game, then just let it snow. Just let it snow. We’ll bring the next guy on.”