Every girl know Louis Vuitton. But did you know LV has a new line of skateboards?

This week the luxury goods company is celebrating the launch of the pop-punk Stephen Sprouse collection in their Soho flagship store.

For the occassion, LV is also creating two limited edition pieces, which will only be available at the SoHo location: a Stephen Sprouse graffiti skateboard replete with a hard case monogram skateboard trunk, and a Stephen Sprouse “Roses” T-shirt. They to sell three graffiti skateboards with trunks for $8,250 each, and 70 T-shirts @ $250.

We’ve seen skateboarding hook up with high fashion before. How about when Comme des Garcons came out with some limited edition decks? 

Are these unions absolutely fabulous or a ridiculous marketing ploy? Whether or not you lust after nice things, this seems like the wrong company jumping on the wrong bandwagon at the wrong time. Thoughts?

January 9, 2009 - Heading into Mount Snow, Vermont — the second stop of the Winter Dew Tour after Breckenridge — it’s the East Coast riders and skiers who have a hometown advantage. The sometimes adverse conditions — slush with ice — may tax athletes more accustomed to the smoother ideal associated with mountains farther west. And once again, girls are invited to the party.

Vermonter Kelly Clark, a West Dover-native who grew up riding Mount Snow, should be able to work the pipe to her benefit as she antes up against Ohio-native Gretchen Bleiler, who leads her by four points in the tour-standings. Local Hannah Teter, trailing in fourth place behind Elena Hight by just four points, is also well poised to deliver.  

But while the New Englanders might think of Mount Snow as something like a homecoming game, they certainly weren’t expecting the legion of Wild Card entries to come and offer up a hard time.

Late-entry athletes include veteran riders Janna Meyen, Tara Dakides, and Alexis Waite anteing up in the Slopestyle competition.

In the Women’s Snowboard Superpipe, look out for competition fiend Jamie Anderson, young ripper Madeline Schaffrick, and Vail Ski and Snowboard Academy attendee Faye Gulini.

Snowboard Slopestyle Women’s Prelim Results

1st – Jamie Anderson – 76.50

2nd – Chanelle Sladics – 76.00

3rd – Megan Ginter – 74.00

4th – Jenny Jones – 66.67

5th – Marie-France Roy – 56.00

6th – Bev Vuilleumier – 54.83

7th – Christina Curry – 50.67

8th – Kimberly Fasani – 43.17

9th – Kjersti Østgaard Buaas – 39.17

10th – Hana Beaman – 34.17

January 8, 2009 - World No. 5 Ana Ivanovic lost in straight sets to Amelie Mauresmo in the quarterfinals of the Brisbane International tournament yesterday.

Ivanovic was expected to sweep past the Frenchwoman but it was Mauresmo who shone in the 67-minute quarterfinal. Mauresmo’s heavy off-season training under new coach Hugo Lecoq seems to have paid off. Ivanovic, on the other hand, is starting the year off coachless.

The French Open champion did show fight against Mauresmo with three straight winners in the fifth game of the second set to break back, but Ivanovic handed the match back in the very next game with a double fault.

Mauresmo will play countrywoman Marion Bartoli in the semifinals. The other semifinal will be played between Sara Errani and Victoria Azarenka.

Meanwhile, Venus Williams showed no signs of rustiness after a four-week break, demolishing No. 1 Jelena Jankovic 6-2, 6-2 Thursday at an exhibition tournament in Hong Kong.

Next up for Ivanovic and Jankovic - the Australian Open on the 19th.

Nastia Liukin, who dazzled American audiences with her near-flawless routines to capture the all-around gymnastics gold medal in the Beijing Olympics, headlines the Progressive Presents Skating and Gymnastics Spectacular, which will be broadcast nationally on NBC on Jan. 18, 2009, from 4 p.m. - 6 p.m. EST (check local listings). The show was recorded Dec. 23, 2008, in The Rushmore Plaza Civic Center in Rapid City, S.D.

Liukin, still glittering from her golden night in Beijing, performs in this event, along with newly crowned silver medalist and 2007 world champion Shawn Johnson and American national team gymnasts Alicia Sacramone and  Samantha Peszek.

Actress and singer/songwriter Raven Symone (That’s So Raven, Cheetah Girls) provides musical entertainment for the special show.

The cast of figure skaters is equally decorated and includes 2008 junior world silver medalist Caroline Zhang, four-time Canadian champion Joannie Rochette, world junior champion and U.S. silver medalist Rachael Flatt, and Olympic silver medalist Tanith Belbin.

This grand opening event is hosted by 1968 Olympic gold medalist Peggy Fleming, two-time Olympic gold medalist Bart Conner and nine-time Olympic medalist Nadia Comaneci.

What else is on tap for the tube?

According to Variety, ABC just announced it has ordered a celebrity-themed revival of Superstars, an all-around sports competition that featured famous athletes competing in different sporting events to determine the best athlete in the world.

Superstars originally premiered as part of ABC’s Wide World of Sports and has aired in several forms since 1973.

ABC’s revival of the series will pair eight celebrities with a professional athlete before the teams compete against each other in various sporting events including swimming, biking, running, kayaking and other head-to-head athletic challenges.

Each week a team will be eliminated until one team is ultimately crowned the winner.

Let’s hope some female athletes are cast in the new show, which is scheduled to air this summer.  Stay tuned for updates.

Last year was a year of firsts for Candace Parker.

In 2008 Parker was selected the No. 1 pick in the WNBA Draft by the Los Angeles Sparks, she was the first woman in the WNBA to win both Rookie of the Year and Most Valuable Player, she captured her first Olympic Gold Medal at the Summer Games in Beijing and last November she eloped.

Entering a new year, Parker confirmed she has a special first to look forward to. This spring, she and husband Shelden Williams of the Sacramento Kings are expecting their first child.

And the timing works out perfectly. Parker says she will continue to work out in preparation to participate in the 2009 WNBA season which kicks off for the Sparks on June 6th. Guess she won’t be playing in Russia as expected but she’s young and assuming there are no complications there’s no reason she can’t return to play quickly.

In a letter to fans, Sparks owners Carla Christofferson and Kathy Goodman write they “are delighted to be adding a new Sparks fan.” Boy or girl, this kid should be dunking in no time (as well as perusing sponsorship offers).

The former face of the Sparks, Lisa Leslie, announced on the same day that Goodman and her Christofferson bought the team that she would miss the entire 2007 season due to pregnancy so we’re guessing the news wasn’t a total shock to the owners.

Still, the health of the Sparks and the WNBA rests somewhat precariously on Parker’s shoulders so there must be added pressure. No male athlete has to account to the league or fans regarding child birth decisions - it’s unfortunate the same can’t be said about female athletes.

Congrats CP - Enjoy the moment!

France’s Pauline Ado, 17 has sensationally made ASP history as the first non-Australian female to claim the undisputed ASP Junior World Title, defeating opponent Bethany Hamilton (HAW), 18, in a hard-fought Final at the Billabong ASP World Junior Championships at North Narabeen.

Hamilton, who suffered the loss of her left arm during a Tiger Shark attack in 2003, put in an inspirational performance, beating Australian favourite Laura Enever and Hawaiian Leila Hurst to make the final.

Ado now joins the prestigious ranks of past ASP World Junior Champions Jessi Miley-Dyer (AUS), 22, Nicola Atherton (AUS), 22, and Sally Fitzgibbons (AUS), 18 – all three past champions qualifying for the prestigious ASP Women’s World Tour within one season of claiming the Billabong ASP World Junior Championships.

In addition to being crowned ASP World Junior Champion, Ado will also receive a guaranteed seed into the second-to-last seeded round of all ASP WQS events in 2009, giving the young natural-footer a great advantage as she vies for a position on the elite ASP Women’s World Tour in 2010.

BILLABONG ASP WORLD JUNIORS (WOMEN) FINAL:

1 – Pauline Ado (FRA) 13.43

2 – Bethany Hamilton (HAW) 12.47

BILLABONG ASP WORLD JUNIORS (WOMEN) SEMIFINAL RESULTS:

SF 1: Pauline Ado (FRA) 12.17 def. Courtney Conlogue (USA) 10.00

SF 2: Bethany Hamilton (HAW) 11.50 def. Leila Hurst (HAW) 10.07

BILLABONG ASP WORLD JUNIORS (WOMEN) QUARTERFINAL RESULTS:

QF 1: Pauline Ado (FRA) 16.33 def. Arini Mason (NZL) 11.87

QF 2: Courtney Conlogue (USA) 18.23 def. Paige Hareb (NZL) 10.33

QF 3: Leila Hurst (HAW) 11.17 def. Diana Cristina (BRA) 9.23

QF 4: Bethany Hamilton (HAW) 14.83 def. Laura Enever (AUS) 12.77

The third annual Tribeca/ESPN Sports Film Festival (April 22 - May 3) is celebrating the spirit of competition by calling all film and sports fans to participate in a filmmaking challenge.

Fans — whether filmmakers, jocks or spectators — have the opportunity to recreate a 30-second scene from one of two classic Disney sports films: “Remember The Titans” and “Cool Runnings.”

The winning entry will become the official trailer of this year’s sports film festival plus the grand prize winner will also receive a trip for two to New York City to attend the film festival among other prizes. Entries can be submitted now through March 7, 2009.

Tribeca/ESPN is not just looking for reenactments so here’s where you girls can get creative.  Contestants are challenged to find their own personal take on these classic sports movie moments.

Need ideas?

• Have your friends and family play the roles of the tough football players.

• Get kids to play the surly, yet inspirational coach.

• Have one person play all the roles.

• Swap genders in the roles.

• Set the scene in a different place and time.

To download script pages to both films and to submit videos, visit ESPN.com

http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/page2/story?page=tribeca/trailer/contest

Have you seen the new commercial for Gatorade called “What’s G?”

The spot features Serena Williams, Misty May Treanor & Kerri Walsh, Candace Parker,  the legendary Muhammad Ali, and a bevy of other celebrity-athletes. It’s pretty cool though you’d never know they were selling a sports drink.

This latest comes shortly after Gatorade scored with the amazing ball girl video, easily the best viral marketing campaign of 2008.

In other beverage news, Gatorade is expanding into action sports  and has announced the addition of 17-year-old snowboarder Ellery Hollingsworth to their elite team roster.

What do you think of the latest spot?

It’s that time of year again. Time to set some 2009 goals. Check out these steps for making 2009 your best sports year yet. 

1. Brainstorm your athletic career. Is there an award, record, or personal best you want to achieve? Is there a championship, game, or tournament your team wants to win?  

2. Decide on a goal, then write it down. Be specific. For example, if you’re a runner and you want to run faster, write: “This year, I’ll run a sub seven minute mile”. 

3. Break the goal into small achievable steps. For example, if you’re a softball player and you want to average .350 or better during your high school season, write down all the things you can do to achieve this goal - attend a hitting camp, work with your coach, learn some drills, begin a workout routine, go to the batting cages, etc.

4.  List your steps using a calendar and stick to it. But, don’t be hard on yourself. Everyone deals with setbacks from time to time. Strategize how you’re going to deal with bumps along the way. And most importantly, stay positive. 

5. Get to work and good luck! 

This just might be your best sporty year ever.