SERENA WILLIAMS yesterday said during a session at Advertising Week in N.Y. that she was "pleased her Serena clothing line was accepted" into N.Y. Fashion Week. Her clothing line, which is "sold exclusively on her website, includes dresses and jumpsuits" (N.Y. POST, 9/25). Williams has been a Nike athlete for years, and when asked what was the biggest lesson she learned from working with the brand, she said, "Don't get in Nike's space because they do it well!" (CNBC.com, 9/24).
LEADING LADY: The Capitals named Gold Medal-winning U.S. women's hockey player HALEY SKARUPA as the team's Hockey Ambassador. Skarupa will "spearhead their youth hockey efforts." In her role, she will enhance the Capitals current "youth hockey programming, establish women's and girls programming within the organization and will drive growth across the current youth hockey offerings." The Capitals will "celebrate IIHF Girls Hockey Weekend" on Oct. 5 with two free Capitals Girls Hockey Clinics for girls ages 8-18 at MedStar Capitals IcePlex hosted by Skarupa (NBCSPORTSWASHINGTON.com, 9/23).
THE GOOD STUFF: The Jaguars and CB RASHEAN MATHIS yesterday unveiled a "surprise renovation" to Englewood High School's 59-year-old locker room building. The project cost over $100,000 in all and included $50,000 in funding from the Jaguars Foundation as well as an estimated $80,000 in "donated labor, materials and equipment from nearly 20 area businesses." Jaguars officials said that Mathis, who went to Englewood, "helped initiate the process through a grant from the NFL" (FLORIDA TIMES-UNION, 9/25)....Former MLBer PEDRO MARTINEZ and his wife, CAROLINA, will host their "fourth annual Pedro Martinez Foundation Gala" on Nov. 1 at the Mandarin Oriental in Boston. DAVID ORTIZ, Blue Jays 3B VLADIMIR GUERRERO JR. and Indians P COREY KLUBER are among those expected to attend (BOSTON HERALD, 9/25).
HOW IT ALL BEGAN: The WALL STREET JOURNAL profiled MLB Commissioner Emeritus BUD SELIG as part of its weekly "House Call" series. Selig said his mother "fell in love with baseball before I did." Selig: "She was a school teacher who listened to every game she could find on the radio." He added his childhood "took place sandwiched between games on the radio" and at ballparks. Selig also said his father took him to Chicago "a lot to see games when he went there on business" (WALL STREET JOURNAL, 9/24).
NAMES: The first trailer for a new movie starring ADAM SANDLER "features a surprise appearance" from former NBAer KEVIN GARNETT. In "UNCUT GEMS," Sandler plays a N.Y. jeweler named Howard Ratner, who is "obsessed with the NBA and with gambling, and with the help of a broker is introduced to Garnett, who plays himself." WFAN's MIKE FRANCESA also appears in the movie as Ratner's bookie (BOSTON GLOBE, 9/24)....The Houston 2026 World Cup Bid Committee appointed 18 local leaders to serve on its BOD, including Dynamo/Dash Majority Owner GABRIEL BRENER, Texans President JAMEY ROOTES and former MLS player BRIAN CHING (BIZJOURNALS.com, 9/24)....USWNT's MEGAN RAPINOE will "bring her message of inclusion and equal pay" to students at the Univ. of Miami on Oct. 10 as "part of the school's 'What Matters To U' series" (MIAMI HERALD, 9/25)....The Louisville Muhammad Ali Int'l Airport's new logo "went up" yesterday, more than three months after the airport "unveiled its new logo design." The new logo "features a silhouette of the airport's namesake with fists up against a bright orange and red butterfly" (Louisville COURIER-JOURNAL, 9/25).
