nPostednon December 19, 2014
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nTodaynis the day to celebrate the underdog.
nTodaynis the day to celebrate the underdog.
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n“Underdog”nmeans the team or athlete or contestant who is expected to lose ansport or game or competition.
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nWe also use the term in battle andnpolitical election situations.
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nActually, nowadays we sometimes also use thenterm to talk about rags-to-riches “Cinderella stories” of people who hit it big against great odds.
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nWe also use the term in battle andnpolitical election situations.
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nActually, nowadays we sometimes also use thenterm to talk about rags-to-riches “Cinderella stories” of people who hit it big against great odds.
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| J. K. Rowling’s rise to stardom from obscurity is a stretch for the term “underdog” – but the term is sometimes used for this sort of “Cinderella-story.” |
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nThe first recorded use of the term underdog, from the late 1800s, referred to a dog who was defeated in a dogfight. The dog who won, of course, was the “top dog” – and this term, too, has been generalized to the winning (human) teams, athletes and contestants.
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nNeedlessnto say, I hate the idea of pitting dogs against each other, havingnthem fight for sport and for gambling. However, the word underdognno long has such unsavory connotations.
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And everyone loves the storynof an underdog who wins. It’s David and Goliath, in chess Bobby Fischer vs.nBoris Spassky, and ordinary worker Erin Brockovich against a big chemical company.
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nWeneven love stories about underdogs who lose but do so with unexpectednvigor, guts, or style. In the first Rocky movie, Rocky doesn’t win the boxing match, but he shocks everyone by “going the distance” and wins the audience’s hearts as well as “the girl.”
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nNeedlessnto say, I hate the idea of pitting dogs against each other, havingnthem fight for sport and for gambling. However, the word underdognno long has such unsavory connotations.
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And everyone loves the storynof an underdog who wins. It’s David and Goliath, in chess Bobby Fischer vs.nBoris Spassky, and ordinary worker Erin Brockovich against a big chemical company. n
nWeneven love stories about underdogs who lose but do so with unexpectednvigor, guts, or style. In the first Rocky movie, Rocky doesn’t win the boxing match, but he shocks everyone by “going the distance” and wins the audience’s hearts as well as “the girl.”
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| Two sports stories about underdogs are Gabby Douglas’s surprising Olympic Gold Medal… |
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| …and the 1980 “Miracle on Ice,” when the U.S. hockey team beat Russia. |
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nSomenpeople writing about this holiday on, you know, on ye olde Internet,napparently think it’s “Sidekick Day,” a day to celebrate the guynor gal NEXT to the star, the hero, the headliner. But my two cents isnthat underdog has another meaning. If you want a “Sidekick Day,” choose another day and start one!
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nAlsonon this date:
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nKnocking Nights in Germany
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nInventornRudolph Hell’s birthday
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nSaintnNicholas Day in the Ukraine
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It’snstill time for LasnPosadas!
It’snstill time for LasnPosadas!n
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nAnniversarynof Samuel Clemens’s first patent
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nPlannahead:
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nChecknout my Pinterest pages on:
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- Historicaln anniversaries in December
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nAndnhere are my Pinterest boards for:
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nJanuaryn birthdays
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nHistoricaln anniversaries in January
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