Women’s Freestyle Wrestling’s First Poster: Canadian Olympian Ohenewa Akuffo

Now this is the Olympic spirit at its best! Competing this summer in Beijing in one of the newest Summer Olympic sports, Women’s Wrestling (introduced in Athens in 2004), Canada’s Ohenewa Akuffo isn’t sitting around waiting for the next government funding check to arrive to fund her training. The 29-year-old daughter of Ghanian immigrants, Akuffo has chosen to keep her Gold Medal dream alive by working with Home Depot’s Olympic Associates program; by freelancing as a motivational speaker and athletic model; and by producing her own swag! Included in her product line is this spectacular poster, published with great style and quality by Ohenewa herself! Significant for its status as our first-ever women’s wrestling poster, and the first-ever poster published and delivered to our headquarters by an individual athlete, this is one of our favorite posters of the year.

With all the (mostly-deserved) bad press surrounding the 2008 Beijing Summer Olympics, let’s not forget that this is what the movement is all about: individual amateur athletes with a dream, who scratch and save with determination and creativity to reach the top. Order her poster, and you’ll be supporting Ohenewa’s dream - and, as a top-ranked medal favorite, she may well be an international celebrity come September! Only $12.95 + S&H - order now!

Euro 2008 Tournament Poster: Sexy Babe & Football For Your Wall

 

Follow the Euro 2008 tournament this summer with style! This poster was not, as far as we can tell, officially endorsed by FIFA or the tournament itself; however, it is endorsed by all red-blooded football fans in the world! Published in the Netherlands by Dutch company Wizard & Genius, we’ve imported a limited number of these for North American sale. In-stock now; order yours today!

 

Spring means new EXCLUSIVE baseball posters - Carlos Zambrano, Aramis Ramirez, Nick Markakis, Ryan Braun, Michael Young

It’s spring.  The National Basketball Association regular season ended yesterday, the National Hockey League playoffs are underway and of course the Major League Baseball season is underway.  

The Sports Poster Warehouse has just received 5 new exclusive baseball posters. 

Celebrate the greatness of the Venezuelan sensation - the big Chicago ace - the BIG Z - Carlos Zambrano.   He is one of the few switch-hitting pitchers and has won a silver slugger award for his hitting.

This amazing poster celebrates the consistent cornerstone of the Cubs infield, Aramis Ramirez , looking great in action on a sunny afternoon at Wrigley Field, thrilling the crowd with another bomb onto Waveland Avenue.

The first ever poster release of the 2007 N.L. Rookie of the Year Ryan Braun is finally available.  Celebrate the Milwaukee Brewers superstar with an incredible action shot.  He also won the Sporting News NL Rookie of the Year, the Baseball America Rookie of the Year, the Baseball Prospectus NL Rookie of the Year and the Players Choice NL Most Outstanding Rookie Awards.  Over the prior decade, the only other NL hitter to win all 5 awards was Albert Pujols, in 2001.

Nick Markakis in only one full season has become the hitting leader of the Baltimore Orioles.  He led them in home runs (23), RBIs (112), batting average (.300), and hits (191) in the 2007 season.   He was born on the same day as Ryan Braun. 

Finally, the first-ever poster release of Michael Young.  Celebrate the greatness of one of baseball’s most underrated superstars - the All Star ironman shortstop of the Texas Rangers.  He had more than 200 hits for the 5th consecutive season joining Ichiro Suzuki and Wade Boggs as the only players to do so since 1940. 

 All of these rare posters are available only at the Sports Poster Warehouse and are a must for any fan, perfect for any wall. 

 

Brett Favre Posters, Part II: The Ironman Years (1998-2008)

I began the odyssey of Brett Favre’s career in posters last week with Brett Favre Posters, Part I: The Early Years (1993-1997). This post takes us from just past the penultimate year of Brett’s career (1997) to his retirement just over a decade later.

One final 1997 poster I left out of the last post is this truly goofy Nike release - “100% Prime” - which was the absolute worst seller of his career:

A tiny action shot of Brett, slapped on a piece of shrinkwrapped pigskin made to look like raw meat? It may be creative, but it was a complete dud on the market.

Next up was 1998’s “Armageddon”, a somewhat sinister-looking poster from Costacos Brothers featuring Brett throwing downfield from a ring of hellfire. Another uninspired poster, which led to a couple of dry years for Brett fans:

As far as we can tell, the next Favre poster to come along was Starline Inc.’s 2001 release, ”Grid Iron Man” - also one of the best, and representative of this era of his career, when he became football’s all-time ironman QB, and rolled along through the years with varying levels of team success around him:

Also from Starline, this classic poster from SportsPosterWarehouse.com’s exclusive “Retro SI” collection (still available), featuring the legendary Favre touchdown celebration:

Also in 2003, Costacos Sports bought out competitor Starline (RIP) and regained their NFL Football license lost two years earlier. They released “True Grit” as part of their NFL line renewal. Also a classic, it seems to have been a bit of a copycat design of Starline’s “Grid Iron Man”:

Two years later, Costacos published “Big Game Action” (2005), which we thought would be the final poster of Brett’s career:

Favre returned for two more seasons, and when it appeared likely that 2007 would be his last, Costacos published “Legend” (still available) , which invokes memories of greatness, and the bittersweet moment of Brett taking off his helmet for the last time:

We were pushing Costacos Sports to produce a “career retrospective” poster before their licensing rights ran out, but it seems that dream is now dead - they simply don’t work that fast, and don’t have the creative thinkers on staff that they once did. For additional images of Favre, you can still purchase these 20″x24″ photo reprints from licensed sports photograph agency Photofile Inc. here in The Sports Poster Warehouse’s Brett Favre Collection:

If anyone knows of any posters we may have missed, let us know! Add a link, or any information, to the comments section of this post, or e-mail us at info@sportsposterwarehouse.com.

Great NHL Goalie Posters

Now that the regular National Hockey League season has ended, the real season begins.   This year’s playoffs feature a lot of great talent and of course great goaltenders.   The Sports Poster Warehouse has a brand new goalie poster NHL Stoppers 2008:

 

This poster features action shots of six top stoppers, Martin Brodeur, Miikka Kiprusoff, Ryan Miller, Roberto Luongo, Henrik Lundqvist and Cam Ward. 

There are a lot of great goalie posters available, but I find that most of my favorites are the netcam posters.  One of the more infamous netcam posters and one of my favorites at the Sports Poster Warehouse is Mike Richter “Netcam”. 

This poster is an absolutely amazing picture from a perspective only seen through the eyes of the Netcam. 

Another amazing Netcam poster, which is similar to the Mike Richter Netcam poster is Byron Dafoe “Netcam”. 

This is also one of the nicest hockey posters ever produced.   Straight from the eye of the Netcam at New York’s Madison Square Garden, this features the remarkable image of Byron Dafoe of the Boston Bruins attempting to make a brilliant glove save.

Yet another beautiful Netcam poster is Curtis Joseph “Netcam”.

This poster truly takes you as close to the action as you can get without being on the ice. 

Everytime I see this classic poster, Cam Neely “Line of Fire”, which is now sadly out of print, I wonder what it would be like to face a Cam Neely slapshot, something like staring down the barrel of a loaded hockey weapon. 

This spectacular poster features one of the greatest snipers of a generation, Cam Neely, from the perspective of a helpless goalie about to take one off the noggin.  One of the coolest posters you’ll ever see. 

Everytime I look at this poster, I am taken back to that great day at Ralph Wilson Stadium on New Year’s Day,  ”Outdoor Magic” - Sidney Crosby vs. Ryan Miller,

This poster features the thrilling conclusion of the dramatic game, the signature image of the day - the Pittsburgh Penguins’ sensational Sidney Crosby breaking in on toque-capped Sabres goaltender Ryan Miller on the final breakaway of the overtime shootout, just a second away from potting the winner and celebrating victory.

Enjoy the hockey playoffs. 

Kansas Jayhawks 2008 National Champions Commemorative Poster

The champions have just been crowned - and the poster will be ready to ship within the week! The Kansas Jayhawks rode a remarkable second-half comeback that included a clutch final-seconds three-pointer to send the game to overtime, and defeated the Memphis Tigers to become NCAA Men’s Basketball National Champions for the third time in the modern era, and fifth time overall. The official championship commemorative poster is at the press for printing on the overnight shift, and will be shipping from the publisher to us within the next 24 hours! After receiving the product in our warehouse and processing orders, we’ll be ready to ship to you the customer within the week.

If you place your order now, you’ll be among the first in the world to add the Kansas Jayhawks 2008 NCAA National Championship poster to your wall! It’s a beauty that includes the official Jayhawks championship logo, and the complete 64-team bracket that lets you trace Kansas’ progress from the opening round to the ultimate victory. Click here for more details, or click on the picture above.

NASCAR Posters - Dale Earnhardt Jr & Tony Stewart Commemoratives

Dale Earnhardt Jr and Tony Stewart are two of NASCAR’s biggest and most popular stars.    The Sports Poster Warehouse has just got in two new commemorative posters of these stars.

The “#8 Forever” poster commemorates Dale Jr’s ten year run in the red Budweiser #8 car. 

This poster has it all, framing a spectacular shot of Dale spinning victory donuts under the lights at Richmond are no less than 18 classic images going back to his Busch Series debut years of 1998-99, including: Victory at the Daytona 500 (2004); crossing the finish line in Atlanta (2004); victory at Bristol (2004); posing with dad as a Winston Cup rookie (2000); super Pit stop; celebrating with crew after Busch series victory (1999); on the podium with dad (2000); victory at Texas (2000).  This is a rare collector’s item that you won’t find in stores. 

The “Ten Years” (1999-200  poster celebrates Tony Stewart’s decade of greatness in orange. 

This commemorative poster features no less than 19 photographic images from the history of Home Depot racing, from its debut in 1999 to its tenth season in 2008.  Surrounding a giant shot of the brand new 2008 #20 Toyota Camry, and the official “10 Years” logo, are legendary images that include: fresh-faced rookie; 2005 Nextel Cup celebration; photo finish; Texas victory; kissing the pavement; in the cockpit; taking the checkered flag.  This poster is a rare collector’s item that all Tony Stewart fans must have. 

Another great new commemorative poster is Daytona 500 “50 Years” (2008)  

The poster commemorates the 50th running of the Daytona 500 in February 2008. 

All these items are valuable collector’s items, don’t miss out.

From Hippie Hearthrobs to Relentless Runners: Motivational Posters and Me

By Islay Julen, Operations Manager, Sports Poster Warehouse

 

I never bought a poster - sports or otherwise - when the craze hit in the 60’s. Yes, unfortunately, I do remember that far back, when it seemed you could find a poster shop on every block, alongside a record store or head shop!

Nevertheless, the psychedelic, Day-Glo poster art of that era (some of it now worth thousands) did appeal to me. How could it not? The likenesses of Davy Jones, the Beatles and countless other heartthrobs of the moment were immortalized in life-size images that stared out from the walls of rec rooms and bedrooms in the homes of virtually all my friends. But because money was in short supply during my growing-up years, whatever I earned went for other objects of my affection – make-up, love beads, and the like.

Back then, as well, I didn’t exactly see myself becoming an employee of the world’s largest online retailer of sports posters early in the new millennium. This is not to say that I didn’t fall in love with the job, because I did. Part of the reason for that, I suppose, was the way the job and its link to sports dove-tailed so nicely with other changes then going on in my life.  I had surprised everyone, especially myself, by becoming an avid distance runner, after years of refusing to do anything that made for perspiration! In the process, I emerged as the cliché convert, proselytizing anyone who’d listen on the joys of running and physical fitness. 

The first poster I ever purchased was for my partner, Stephen.  That piece of wall art, titled Winter Running, features a sentiment that we whole-heartedly share – “The air may chill, the snow may fall, but the runner’s passion never cools.”  Winter running, you’ve gotta do it to love it!

My second poster was for my special “Running Room” (otherwise known as the den) at home. Long ago I became addicted to those shiny participation medals handed out at races and wanted to show them off to family and friends. So my partner and I mounted them (with other race paraphernalia) in shadow boxes on the four walls of our one-room running retreat.  To pull the display together, we needed a “statement piece.” So up on one wall went a poster called, Sharing the Passion, depicting a couple running together at sunset. 

Then, last year, I gave a poster to a young man whom I had the pleasure of spending some time with during the previous summer. He had run with his father, grandfather, and me in his first race ever – a 5K – and came in second in his age group. This, I thought, was clearly poster-worthy.  So back at work I found the perfect running poster, duly delivered it to him and enjoyed the smile it brought to his face.  Challenge Running was a great hit.  So for Christmas, Steve Prefontaine, one of America’s legendary short-distance runners, featured on one of our posters found it was into the Christmas packages  under their tree.  Not wanting his sister, an avid swimmer on her varsity team, to be left out, I picked out Destiny Lies Ahead.  She beamed (I thought) and it now graces her bedroom wall.

Now I’m in full poster giveaway mode. I found the perfect poster for the next run those three great guys (the young man, his father, and grandfather) will be running together.  The poster - “Winners”, featuring three people running together, away from the camera into the sunrise - will tickle me when they all sign it, and I have it mounted for preservation.

Do some of my family and friends think I go too far?  Do they consider my running walls cheesy? Probably. My joy in finding a passion knows no bounds, and for this I am willing to put up with huge amounts of ribbing. Motivational posters are my new best friend, so be careful. If I know you, I’ll probably find a perfect one for you sooner or later, pop it into a tube and send it your way.

NCAA Men’s Final Four Posters - #1 seeds finally did it

After some great basketball over the last two weeks, it has all come down to the Final Four this weekend in San Antonio.  The NCAA tournament, as expected, has been full of upsets, great basketball and the emergence of new stars in college basketball.  For the first time in tournament history, all the number one seeds have reached the Final Four.  I am looking forward to this weekend for some great basketball.

Here’s a look at North Carolina, Kansas, Memphis and UCLA:

North Carolina Tar Heels:  The Tar Heels have been the tournament’s most dominant team, posting double-digit wins in all four tournament games they’ve played. The last three teams to do that won it all, and the Tar Heels are a favorite to make it four in a row.   With Tyler Hansbrough becoming the best player in college basketball they will be hard to beat. Ty Lawson is banged up but it has been said that he will play in the final four.

Kansas Jayhawks:  The Jayhawks are playing great basketball heading into the final four.  The Jayhawks have balance and are unselfish to a fault, but they were a last-second heave away from sitting out the tournament’s final weekend.  Can they knock their old coach out of the tournament?   The game against North Carolina has plenty of storylines especially for head coach Bill Self.  He replaced the highly touted Roy Williams and this will be the first trip to the final four since Roy left for Carolina Blue.  Kansas has been equally impressive in its wins in the tournament but it’s been the defense that has impressed not allowing more than 61 points in any game they have played.

Memphis Tigers:  For the entire tournament, Memphis has been regarded as something of an underdog.  An underdog on the verge of setting a new all-time NCAA record for wins in a season.  Is it time to start believing in the Tigers?   They simply have not gotten any respect all year.  They were #1 only to be called paper champs for the weak conference they play in.  They have been crushed by the media and so called experts for the lack of prowess at the free throw line.  Now they are finally in the Final Four and they did it in grand fashion stomping Texas in the prior game and now have to face UCLA.

UCLA Bruins:  The UCLA Bruins are college hoops royalty, owners of more Final Four appearances and championships than any other team.  In 2006 and 2007, they lost during the final weekend to the eventual champions.  Ironically the only player that was not there for the runs to the Final Four is their best player, freshman Kevin Love is a first timer to the final four but is ready for the dance and leads the team in points, rebounds, and blocks.  Will the addition of Kevin Love put the Bruins over the top? 

No matter what the results are this weekend, we can expect some great basketball. 

Enjoy it.  I know I will.

Yankee Stadium Posters - Last year of “The House that Ruth Built”

The 2008 baseball season marks the end of one of the most famous stadiums in the world, Yankee Stadium.  Since its opening more than eight decades ago, the stadium has been the home of one of the greatest teams in sports, the New York Yankees, with legendary players such as Babe Ruth, Lou Gehrig, Joe Dimaggio, Mickey Mantle and today’s stars of Alex Rodriquez and Derek Jeter.

Just as one would go to Carnegie Hall to see a symphony, baseball fans visit Yankee Stadium to see its artists perform.  From The Bambino and The Clipper to Mr. October and A-Rod, Yankee Stadium has been the place to catch a glimpse of greatness.

The new Yankee Stadium will open in 2009, replacing the third-oldest stadium in the Major Leagues. Yankee Stadium has held up for 84 years, surpassed only by Fenway Park, in Boston and Wrigley Field, in Chicago.

Since 1923, no baseball field has hosted more World Series games than the legendary Yankee Stadium, allowing each generation to see its share of Hall of Famers.

Yankee Stadium was the first three-tiered sports facility in the United States and one of the first baseball parks to be given the lasting title of stadium.  Baseball teams typically play in a park or a field.  Yankee Stadium was one of the first to be deliberately designed as a multi-purpose facility. The field was initially surrounded by a quarter-mile running track, which effectively also served as a warning track for outfielders, a feature now standard on all major league fields.  The left and right field bleacher sections were laid out at right angles to each other, and to the third base stands, to be properly positioned for both track-and-field events and football. The large electronic scoreboard in right-center field, featuring both teams’ lineups and scores of other baseball games, was the first of its kind.

As part of Yankee Stadium’s last trip around the block, it is scheduled to host the 2008 Major League Baseball All-Star Game. 

Enjoy opening night.  Enjoy the last year of this amazing ballpark.  Enjoy the baseball season.