Source: Breitbart | VIEW ORIGINAL POST ==>
ESPN host Molly Qerim suggested there is hypocrisy in how fighting is commonly accepted as a part of hockey yet looked down upon and heavily punished in other sports.
She made the comments on Wednesday’s edition of First Take as the panel discussed the highly anticipated rematch of the U.S. and Canada in Thursday’s 4 Nations Face-Off in Boston. Team USA’s first game against the Canadians on Saturday night saw three fights in the first nine seconds.
“It’s just interesting to me that certain sports, you’re allowed to fight,” Qerim said. “And other sports, it could never happen. Optics! … Just a little hypocrisy.”
It’s unclear what Qerim meant by “Optics!” Fighting is allowed in hockey. If both participants drop the gloves, the referees will not try to break it up. Other sports police each other in different ways. In the NFL, the players are so heavily armored that no serious fighting can occur, and the referees are quick to break it up.
Basketball players have no protection, but contact in the sport is rarely severe enough to lead to fisticuffs unless there’s some underlying personal issue between the players.
Baseball similarly offers no protection. However, there’s even less physical contact between players in baseball than in basketball, other than the odd play at the plate. Another reason why baseball fights are rare is because no one wants to get hit with a fastball.
Qerim should, and probably will, elaborate on what she means by these comments. However, most U.S. sports commentators know little to nothing about hockey and its history, and that’s probably the best explanation for what she said.
