Now that D.C. United have locked up the services of Dwayne De Rosario for at least a couple of more years, why not stir the pot with a good, old-fashioned, "My player can beat up your player" gauntlet-throwing?
From United President Kevin Payne, via Steven Goff.
“As far as I am concerned,” club president Kevin Payne said Tuesday, ”Dwayne is the most accomplished professional athlete in Washington, D.C. — actually by a pretty considerable margin."
Oh, boy. Here we go again.
Now, before we go any further, let's point out that Payne specified "most accomplished athlete." To us, that means championships and individual awards, so apologies to all members of the Redskins, Wizards, and Ryan Zimmerman. You're out.
The choice seems like a pretty clear-cut one. Do you take Alexander Ovechkin, who's won two Hart Trophies, two Richard Trophies, an Art Ross Trophy, three Ted Lindsay/Lester Pearson Awards (all as a Capital), as well as gold medals at both the World Championships and World Junior Championships with Russia?
Or do you throw your support behind De Rosario, who won the MLS MVP Award in 2011 with D.C. United, has won four MLS Cups with two different franchises and won a CONCACAF Gold Cup and U-20 championship with the Canadian national team?
Man, it's tight. On the one hand, Ovechkin's individual awards are more prestigious. On the other hand, it's much easier for Russia to win international ice hockey championships than it is for Canada to win soccer championships. And De Rosario being a part of four club championship-winning clubs is no small achievement, considering he's often on the field far longer than Ovechkin is on the ice.
You know what? We're going to agree with Payne and say De Rosario has a slight edge over Ovechkin right now. Of course, things could always change, and we'd welcome any more athletes who want to get involved (looking at you, Bryce ...)