THE WORLD IS A MESS....BUT ESCAPE THROUGH SPORTS ON TV

Having just experienced various Christmas Markets in our European River Cruise, I can identify with the scene today when a driver crashed his car into one in Magdeburg, Germany, killing at least two, leaving more than 50 injured, some critically.  There are supposedly up to 3,000 of these markets just in Germany.

This is December 20, 2024, the shortest day of the year for Honolulu, when the winter solstice will occur at 11:20PM.  Interestingly enough, the winter solstice for New York City will occur tomorrow, Saturday, December 21, at 4:20AM.  All this happens because the axis of our Earth is tilted 23.5 degrees.

Before the topic of the day, I continue the crisis of what began yesterday.  U.S. House Republicans finally voted on and passed Plan C to avoid a government shutdown.  The Trump clause (Plan B) to abolish the debt ceiling (he wants to spend money recklessly) was beaten back by....REPUBLICANS, 38 of them.  Speaker Mike Johnson seems to now mostly depend on Democrats to help him out.  Just wait till next year when Johnson will only have a 5-vote majority.  Today, this number is 8.  Monumental first recent loss for Trump...and his First Buddy, Elon Musk.

The last time we had an actual shutdown was in 2018, 35 days from December 22 into January 25, 2019.  Keep in mind that since 1976, this has happened 22 times.  Of all the unexpected benefits, tourism to Hawaii actually jumped.

The next few days into Christmas will feature a lot of sports in Hawaii.  We have the Diamond Head Classic, a big wave extravaganza called the Eddie, and more.  But beginning with the nation, the TV opportunities are abundant, from CBS Sports:

It's here! The first round of the first 12-team College Football  Playoff begins tonight with an in-state battle between  (10) Indiana and (7) Notre Dame (preview) and continues  with a triple-header tomorrow:

(11) SMU at (6) Penn State (preview) (12) Clemson at (5) Texas (preview) (9) Tennessee at (8) Ohio State ( preview) Schedule/how to watch Expert bracket prediction

The unified heavyweight title is  on the line tomorrow in  a rematch between current  title holder Oleksandr Usyk  (22-0, 14 KOs) and Tyson  Fury (34-1-1, 24 KOs). Usyk added Fury's WBC championship  to his own IBF, WBA and WBO titles with an instant-classic  split-decision victory  in May. This time, the WBC, WBO,  WBA and lineal titles will be on the line.  The short guy is Usyk, only 6'3".  Fury is 6'9" tall.

Sunday

🏈 Rams at Jets, 1 p.m. on CBS 🏈 Eagles at Commanders, 1 p.m. on Fox 🏈 Lions at Bears, 1 p.m. on Fox 🏈 Vikings at Seahawks, 4:05 p.m. on Fox 🏈 49ers at Dolphins, 4:25 p.m. on CBS 🏈 Buccaneers at Cowboys, 8:20 p.m. on NBC

In Hawaii, all signs at this moment indicate that the Eddie Will Go on Sunday.  Huh?  Has to do with the Eddie Aikau Invitational:

• First occurred in 1985, has since then only occurred 10 times, and won by 10 different surfers.
• Read about what this is all about from a previous posting.

• 
  Eddie was a lifeguard at Waimea Bay, where the event is held, the premiere surf event in the world.
• Why? 
• Requires a consistent 40-foot surf.  Will begin at around 8AM (1PM EST) this Sunday.
• Watch on Hawaii's KHII (MyNetworkTV, UHF 22, virtual 9) or Rogue TV.
• Here is a video of the most recent on 22January2023.
• 60-footer at Waimea Bay?

The best high school basketball tournament in the nation is now happening in Honolulu, called the Iolani Classic.  Features the #1 player in the nation, 6'9" AJ Dybantsa, who has committed to BYU.  His team, Utah Prep, crushed host team Iolani, 84-30.

Also on Sunday, from the University of Hawaii, the Hawaiian Airlines Diamond Head Basketball Classic.

Date	Time (HT)	Matchup/Event	Network
Sun, Dec. 22	10 a.m.	Oregon State vs. College of Charleston	ESPNU
	12 p.m.	Loyola Chicago vs. Oakland	ESPNU
	4 p.m.	Nebraska vs. Murray State	ESPN2
	6 p.m.	Charlotte vs. Hawai‘i	ESPN2

Then on Christmas Day.

Wed, Dec. 25	8:30 a.m. or 10:30 a.m.	Seventh Place Game	ESPNU
	8:30 a.m. or 10:30 a.m.	Fifth Place Game	ESPNU
	1:30 p.m.	Third Place Game	ESPN2
	3:30 p.m.	Championship Game	ESPN2

Not exactly the most exciting bowl game this year, but the Hawaii Bowl plays in Honolulu at 8PM EST on Christmas Eve, San Jose State vs University of South Florida.  This game was made for the University of Hawaii, but we keep losing players through the portal, and many more will be lost this year.  At some point soon, this bowl game will be abandoned, because the UH will continue to have mediocre teams.

I'll close by adding that professional golf begins its season in Hawaii at the end of this year.

• The 2025 FedExCup Regular Season begins in Hawaii with the “Opening Drive” at The Sentry (Dec. 30-Jan. 5) at the Plantation Course at
• 
   Kapalua in Maui and the Sony Open on Oahu (Jan. 6-12) at Waialae Country Club in Honolulu. With the start of the season, all players reset to zero FedExCup points as they begin their journey toward the FedExCup Playoffs. The Sentry, the season’s first Signature Event, includes PGA TOUR winners from the previous calendar year as well as the top 50 members from the 2024 FedExCup standings.

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