CNN news 12/17 (706 words)

Serena Williams vs. American Pharoah: The Sports Illustrated fallout

By Chris Murphy, CNN

Updated 1840 GMT (0240 HKT) December 16, 2015

cnn.com

(CNN)It was supposed to be a landmark moment in Serena Williams' stellar career: Being crowned Sports Illustrated's Sportsperson of the Year.

But the somewhat begrudging reaction to the 34-year-old's accolade bears witness to America's complicated attitude towards gender and racial equality, according to one horse racing expert.

Williams became the first black woman to win the prestigious award after trumping an unlikely rival to the prize -- thoroughbred racehorse American Pharoah.

Both have an impressive pedigree in 2015.

A 21-time grand slam winner, Williams lost just three of 53 matches, winning three major titles, while American Pharoah won the hallowed American Triple Crown series and the Breeders' Cup title.

But there is simmering resentment that despite attracting 47% of the vote in a SI's readers' poll on who should win, Ahmed Zayat's colt was overlooked for the award itself.

The readers' poll has no bearing on the actual award, but is mostly a way of encouraging reader participation in the process.

But respected British racing journalist and broadcaster Brough Scott is in no doubt the right recipient has been chosen, telling CNN: "I don't think there is any comparison between the two.

"The poll is fascinating -- if that is how Americans are reacting, that is something of a wider discussion about society. It is about their attitudes to race and female emancipation -- I don't see how you could view it any other way."

Out of nearly 600,000 votes in the Sports Illustrated online poll, Serena collected just over 5,000 votes (about 0.9%), while American Pharoah romped home with over 275,000.

"There has been an anti-Serena element because she didn't fit the stereotype of the old-fashioned, elegant white female tennis player," added Scott.

"She was big and muscular and black. Let's be candid about it, there's been plenty of that sort of unspoken prejudice against Serena, I'd have thought, over the years."

Williams said she was "beyond honored" to become only the third individual female winner in the award's 61-year history, saying it offered "hope to continue on and do better."

But while her delight was obvious, frustration from fans of the four-legged fraternity was equally evident.

No racehorse had completed a Triple Crown victory in 37 years and American Pharoah followed that up by winning the $5 million Breeders' Cup in the final race of his career.

One Twitter user wrote: "American Pharoah overwhelmingly won online poll and yet you pick someone else? What a joke."

Brian Zipse, editor of Horse Racing Nation, claimed SI had an "agenda" while the horse's jockey Victor Espinoza called it a "sham." Zayat was not immediately available for comment when contacted by CNN.

The magazine's editor Christian Stone explained part of its decision to honor Williams lay in "the grayer, less comfortable ether, where issues such as race and femininity collide with the games."

Williams' decision to end a 14-year exile at the Indian Wells tournament after claiming she suffered racist abuse in 2001 proved her "a conciliator seeking to raise the level of discourse about hard questions," said Stone.

SI's criteria also demands a winner that embodies "the spirit of sportsmanship and achievement," which might have proved a decisive setback for American Pharoah.

Broadcaster Scott agrees, arguing that part of the problem is that some in racing circles tend to anthropomorphize horses. At the end, he says, they're animals.

"I yield to no-one in my admiration and affection for them, but revel in them for what they are -- don't try to pretend they are humans," Scott said.

"I am a great believer that the kindest thing to do if a horse fractures a leg is to euthanize it as soon as possible. It has no imagination but as an animal it can feel pain. To try and put it through endless and often useless attempts to patch the leg up ... You've got to take its life.

"People say 'how can you do that?' but the fact is horses don't come here by stalk, they come here by man's arrangement. We bring them into this world and it's our responsibility to take them out.

"I'm not going to have them rot away if they are no longer able to function in the way they feel happy."

成為年度運動畫報運動員對小威廉絲來說應該是生涯中值得紀念的時刻。一位賽馬專家指出，34歲所得到的榮譽雖見證了美國面對複雜的性別及種族平等但引來嫉妒不滿的聲浪。

小威廉絲在打敗了強勁的競爭對手，也就是純種賽馬比賽美國選手老王時，成為首位贏得次榮譽獎項的女性黑人。

兩人在2015年都有不凡的成績。

小威廉絲贏下21次大滿貫單打冠軍，53次賽末點只丟掉3次，贏得三座冠軍，同時期美國老王也贏得三冠王系列及育馬者盃冠軍。

令人感到不滿的是，SI讀者評選對於誰會贏得獎項吸引了47%的讀者投票，卻忽略了Ahmed Zayat的小馬！

讀者評選雖沒有自己的獎項，不過卻是鼓勵讀者參與這些過程的最大推手。

但英國賽馬報及電台主播都明確表示得獎者選得對，並告訴CNN說：「我不認為這兩位有可比性。」「這評選很有趣，如果美國人會這樣反應，將造成社會廣大的討論，這是有關比賽態度跟女性的解放。我不懂你怎麼會用另外一種方式解讀它？」

而將近60萬讀者在線上運動畫報的評選中，小威廉絲只拿到0.9%的票數約5,000票，老王輕取275,000票。「這裡頭有一種反小威廉絲的因素存在，因為他不符合古典形象，那種優雅的，白皙的女性網球選手。」電台主播說。「他壯碩又黝黑，我直說好了，很多年來對小威廉絲存在很多沒有被說出來的偏見。」

小威廉絲在獲獎時說他超越了榮幸，可以在61年頒獎歷史以來成為第三個獲獎女性，他期望自己持續做得更好。

不過小威廉絲臉上表情越開心，四腳兄弟會的賽馬迷也就更失望。

美國老王成為37年來唯一完成三冠王系列賽的人，並接著又在他賽馬生涯最後一場比賽贏得值500萬美金的育馬者盃冠軍。

有人推特寫：「老王都在網路評選大贏了，你還選別人？太好笑了吧！」

賽馬聯盟編輯Zipse聲稱SI有個「議程」，不過騎師Espinoza說那都是假的。對此CNN在聯絡時，Zipse並未馬上評論。

雜誌編輯Stone解釋獎項決定部分是因為小威廉絲「較灰色，較不舒服，這些都來自於比賽跟女性議題中的衝突。」

小威廉絲2001年遭受種族主義辱罵後，決定結束長達14年無法參加印地安維爾斯巡迴賽，證明當初「調解委員故意在艱澀問題上提高協調難度。」Stone說。

SI的標準也要求獲勝的人可以代表運動家及其成就的精神指標，這可能是美國老王會落選的主因。

電台主播認為部分原因是賽馬圈內人想要將馬匹擬人化。但他們終究是馬。

「我認同他們愛戴他們，但別爽過頭了，別“指馬為人”。」主播說。

「我是很認同若馬骨折了馬上替他安樂死是最仁慈的選擇，他沒有想像力可是身為動物他仍感覺得到痛苦。用那些最沒用，沒有盡頭的念頭把他的腳修好，根本就是要他的命。」

「人類總是說：“你怎麼可以這樣子！”但馬來賽場上就是被做為男人的武器，而不是一株小草。既然他被我們帶進來，我們就有責任要將他們帶出去。」

「如果他們不會再像以前那麼快樂地奔跑了，我是不會任其衰敗苦撐的！」

fallout (n.) 後果

begrudge (v.) 嫉妒

accolade (n.) 榮譽

thoroughbred (adj.) 純種的

pedigree (n.) 家世

simmering (adj.) 慢慢沸騰的

resentment (n.) 氣憤

emancipation (n.) 解放

candid (adj.) 率直的

fraternity (n.) 友愛

ether (n.) 醚 

collide (v.) 衝突

exile (v.) 流放

embody (v.) 象徵

anthropomorphize (v.) 人格化

euthanize (v.) 對...實施安樂死

stalk (n.) 一株草