[Photo by PHILADELPHIA MARATHON]
ASSOCIATED PRESS: Two Ukrainians outran the Americans for a double victory at the Philadelphia Marathon on a chilly Sunday. Andriy Toptun won in 2 hours, 19 minutes, 58 seconds over the 26.2-mile course that bypassed Independence Hall, the Betsy Ross House and the Liberty Bell. Fred Kieser, of Cleveland, was second in 2:22.45. Vera Ovcharuk won in her marathon debut, clocking 2:44.03 in cold, windy conditions. Abby Dean, of Philadelphia, trailed in 2:48.52. MORE
ESPN: Those famously churlish Philly fans can’t hide behind the urban legends. The truth is out there: They simply booed Santa Claus. Frank Olivo — the erstwhile Santa in question — wasn’t drunk, nor was his red suit in tatters that December day in 1968 when he walked onto the field for the halftime show, only to be met by a chorus of jeers and a snowball fusillade from Eagles fans. But by all accounts, they had cause for an ugly mood. “The fans carried on like that because the Eagles were horrible,” Olivo said. The antics at halftime of the Eagles’ final regular-season game, beamed around the country on Howard Cosell’s national sports show, helped cement Philadelphia’s reputation for having rogue, rowdy sports fans. MORE
RELATED: Pulled at halftime after a second straight dreadful performance, a perfectly healthy Donovan McNabb
was asked the last time he left a game under similar circumstances. “Never,” he replied, shaking his head. “Never.” While Kevin Kolb ran the Philadelphia offense, McNabb watched stoically from the sideline as the Baltimore Ravens beat the Eagles 36-7 on Sunday, presenting first-year coach John Harbaugh with a lopsided victory over the team he served as an assistant for 10 years. McNabb was 8-for-18 for 59 yards with two interceptions and a fumble in the first half — a miserable 13.2 quarterback rating. One week earlier, he threw three interceptions and lost a fumble in an overtime tie with Cincinnati. Seven turnovers in seven quarters was evidently enough for Philadelphia coach Andy Reid, who benched McNabb and turned to Kolb, a second-round pick who had attempted nine throws in two seasons before Sunday. MORE