Unsportsmanlike conduct shows the bad side of athletes

I was at Giants Stadium last Sunday watching the team's home opener against its division rival, the Washington Redskins, when I got the idea for this week's column.

It was a couple of minutes into the second quarter and the Redskins were backed up in the Giants' end zone. After the play on first-and-ten, a fight between players on both teams broke out in the end zone. Once the altercation settled, the official charged the Redskins with unnecessary roughness - a personal foul costing the team 15 yards.

This unsportsmanlike conduct penalty quickly reminded me of something even more ridiculous I had witnessed the previous night during the coverage of the U.S. Open. Serena Williams was playing during the women's semifinal match against Kim Clijsters when she lost her cool not once, but twice.

Williams, the No. 2 seed, first became frustrated when she lost the first set 6-4. She threw her racket to the ground twice. She screwed up the racket's frame, but the warning she received for racket abuse probably hurt more than damaging a racket.

The end of the second set was even more disturbing. Clijsters was up 6-5, with Williams serving at 15-30. The lineswoman called what I would say was a shady foot fault on Williams' second serve, making the game's score 15-40. I would also be a little agitated if I were Williams. The replay showed pretty clearly that Williams' foot did not cross the baseline during her serve. This might have been oversight on the part of the lineswoman, but the response that ensued was incomprehensible.

Williams began verbally abusing the lineswoman after she made the foot-fault call. Eventually, the chair umpire and tournament referee got involved and had to clear up the situation. The end result was a point penalty, and unluckily for Williams, the penalty fell on match point.

Williams went across the court to shake the hand of a confused Clijsters, indicating the match was complete.

After the Giants game and Serena Williams' verbal assault, I began to think about other instances of unsportsmanlike conduct recently making news headlines. Here are a few:

Armando Allen, a running back for Notre Dame, received a penalty for unsportsmanlike conduct when he motioned for Michigan's fans to quiet down after successfully completing a two-point conversion. Fernando Gonzalez threw his racket on the court during his quarterfinal match against Rafael Nadal. Matt Crafton was held in the pits for rough driving during the NASCAR Truck race last weekend after he twice rammed his truck into other cars so they could no longer race. And then there was Brandon Marshall, a wide receiver for the Denver Broncos, who recently returned from a suspension he received after acting defiantly in practice and consequently was deemed a distraction to the club.

These athletes are supposed to be role models, upstanding citizens, symbols of high athleticism and ambassadors for their respective organizations. So what are we supposed to think of athletes like Williams, who blew a fuse on the brink of defeat, or Allen, whose cocky attitude got him in trouble last weekend?

I will revert back to Williams' case because of the press it received last week. Williams has been a symbol of professional women's tennis since her first of 11 Grand Slam victories in singles at the U.S. Open, at the age of 17. She has won the U.S. Open three times and has accumulated the most prize money of any women's tennis player, surpassing even her sister, Venus. The positive reputation she has built since her first major victory in 1999 will now be tainted by her recent lapse in judgment.

It is hard to even feel bad for her. A professional athlete with as much experience as Williams should know better. I understand she is not used to losing during the semifinals of a Grand Slam she ordinarily dominates to unseeded players returning from a two-year maternity leave.

These are examples of what teachers describe to their kindergarten students as "sore losers." Williams reacted like a sore-losing kindergartener when she threw a temper tantrum during a vital part of the match. Her tantrum will also cost her $10,500 in fines and possibly a suspension. But, let's not forget, these actions had repercussions for her opponent as well.

The match ended abruptly and Clijsters could not even revel in her semifinal win. Instead, she was confused by the commotion on the court and seemed disappointed that she could not win on her own merit. Even in defeat, Williams stole the spotlight and the ensuing press coverage.

The headlines in some of the papers were: "So Did Serena Foot-Fault or Not?"; "Serena is fined $10,500 for tirade"; "In Bizarre Finish, Clijsters Wins"; and "Serena fined, faces possible suspension for tirade."

You get the point. The focus was not on Clijsters' impressive win, but rather on the foul behavior of her opponent. Hey Serena, Clijsters got you back by winning the U.S. Open Women's title and $1.6 million in prize money just one night after you placed a dark cloud over her semifinal win. I hope you and your sister enjoy the doubles title.

Contact staff writer Jessie Murray at jessica.murray@richmond.edu