АНУ-ын спортын ертөнцийг донсолгосон эмгэнэлт үйл явдлын улмаас Майкл Жорданы NBA-д эргэн ирэх тухай мэдээ ач холбогдлоо алдаж, төлөвлөж байсан томоохон арга хэмжээнүүд цуцлагджээ.
2001 оны есдүгээр сарын 11-ний өглөөний байдлаар Майкл Жордан гурван жил үргэлжилсэн зодог тайлалтдаа цэг тавьж, Вашингтон Уизардс багт нэгдэхээр бэлтгэж байв. Тухайн үед тэрээр эргэн ирэх магадлалаа 10-аас 8 хэмээн үнэлж, эцсийн шийдвэрээ тун удахгүй зарлахаа мэдэгдсэн байсан юм. Жорданы эргэн ирэлт спортын ертөнцийн хамгийн чухал сэдэв болоод байсан тул Вашингтон Уизардс баг ганцхан шөнийн дотор 750,000 ам.долларын улирлын тасалбар борлуулж, ESPN болон бусад томоохон хэвлэлүүд энэ үйл явдлыг онцолж байлаа.
Гэвч 8:46 цагт Америкийн агаарын тээврийн 11 дүгээр нислэг Дэлхийн худалдааны төвийн хойд цамхагт мөргөснөөр бүх зүйл орвонгоороо эргэв. Дараа дараагийн халдлагуудын улмаас 3,000 орчим хүн амь үрэгдэж, АНУ болон дэлхий дахинд томоохон өөрчлөлт гарсан тул сагсан бөмбөгийн ертөнц даруй үйл ажиллагаагаа зогсоов. NBA-гийн Нью-Йорк дахь төв оффис болон Вашингтон Уизардс багийн оффисууд хаагдаж, Жорданы эргэн ирэлтийн тухай яриа утгаа алдсан юм.
Жордан үндэсний гашуудлын энэ үед өөрийн эргэн ирэлтийг олон нийтийн анхаарлын төвд оруулах нь зохимжгүй гэж үзэн, төлөвлөж байсан томоохон хэвлэлийн бага хурлаа цуцалжээ. Тэрээр есдүгээр сарын 25-нд Вашингтон Уизардстай хоёр жилийн гэрээ байгуулснаа албан ёсны мэдэгдлээр дамжуулан даруухан байдлаар зарласан юм. Жордан хохирогчдын ар гэрийнхэнд хүндэтгэл үзүүлж, бэлтгэлийн цугларалт эхлэхээс өмнө ярилцлага өгөхөөс татгалзсан бөгөөд 2001-02 оны улирлын цалингаа 9/11-ний халдлагад өртөгсдөд туслах үйлсэд хандивлажээ.
Дэлгэрэнгүй эх сурвалжийг харах
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On the morning of September 11, 2001, one story towered over the American sports world: Michael Jordan was preparing to return to the NBA.
The night before, Jordan had moved closer than ever to confirming that he would end his three-year retirement and play for the Washington Wizards. He told reporters that his comeback chances had risen to an “8” on a scale of 10 and said he expected to make a final decision soon. Around the league, anticipation was already exploding.
ESPN and other major outlets had begun treating Jordan’s return as the defining sports story of the moment. The Wizards were suddenly selling tickets at a frantic pace, and plans were being made for national television coverage and an eventual announcement. Between the reports on Monday night and the closure of the Wizards’ offices the following morning, the team sold roughly $750,000 in season tickets.
Michael Wilbon later recalled just how completely Jordan had captured the news cycle. He had gone to bed expecting to spend the next day reporting on the comeback and had even received a message about CNN preparing a program devoted to Jordan’s return.
Then, at 8:46 a.m. Eastern Time, American Airlines Flight 11 struck the North Tower of the World Trade Center.
In an instant, the importance of a basketball comeback disappeared.
A second plane struck the South Tower at 9:03 a.m. American Airlines Flight 77 hit the Pentagon at 9:37 a.m., and United Airlines Flight 93 crashed in Pennsylvania at 10:03 a.m. The terrorist attacks ultimately killed nearly 3,000 people and transformed the United States and the world.
Sports stopped almost immediately. The NBA shut its New York offices, the Wizards closed their offices in Washington, and Jordan’s impending return ceased to have any meaningful place in the day’s conversation. The contrast was stark: a story that only hours earlier had seemed enormous suddenly felt completely insignificant.
In the immediate aftermath, Jordan also decided that a grand announcement would no longer be appropriate. His return had been expected to become one of the biggest sports events of the year, complete with the type of major news conference normally associated with a Michael Jordan comeback. After the attacks, however, those plans were abandoned. Jordan did not want his basketball return competing for attention during a period of national mourning, and the Wizards canceled plans for a large-scale media event.
When Jordan finally made his comeback official on September 25, he did so through a statement rather than a celebratory press conference. He announced that he would return to play for the Washington Wizards on a two-year contract, but deliberately kept the occasion subdued. Jordan also said he would not conduct interviews before training camp out of respect for the victims of the September 11 attacks and their families. The six-time NBA champion also donated his entire 2001-02 NBA salary to support 9/11 relief efforts.
The post Michael Jordan’s Comeback Dominated The Morning Of September 11, 2001 – Until Everything Changed appeared first on OpenCourt Basketball.
