Tim Layden
@bytimlayden.bsky.social
Writer-at-large NBCSports. Typing stories, narrating essays. 25 yrs at Sports Illustrated. Before that: Newsday, 518. 4x BASW. Husband, Dad, Eph. Former Tweeter.
Bill Belichick could have been fishing off Nantucket today but no
September 2, 2025 at 2:26 AM
Bill Belichick could have been fishing off Nantucket today but no
Monster paragraph from NYT editorial writer German Lopez. Simple, obvious, powerful, haunting. I could read it 1,000 times, and just might. Perfect. Bravo, man.
www.nytimes.com/2025/08/27/o...
www.nytimes.com/2025/08/27/o...
August 27, 2025 at 11:22 PM
Monster paragraph from NYT editorial writer German Lopez. Simple, obvious, powerful, haunting. I could read it 1,000 times, and just might. Perfect. Bravo, man.
www.nytimes.com/2025/08/27/o...
www.nytimes.com/2025/08/27/o...
Ron Turcotte was strong and dignified. He lived at the very top of his game and then was dealt a terrible blow. And he suffered. Two years he said this to me: “[Secretariat] pops up in my head sometimes. But then I really want to be going back to riding .... and that’s impossible.” Godspeed RT.
August 23, 2025 at 5:47 PM
Ron Turcotte was strong and dignified. He lived at the very top of his game and then was dealt a terrible blow. And he suffered. Two years he said this to me: “[Secretariat] pops up in my head sometimes. But then I really want to be going back to riding .... and that’s impossible.” Godspeed RT.
Godspeed DWL
D. Wayne Lukas retired this week at age 89, and entered hospice care. He was unlike anything racing had ever seen: Audacious, obsessive, unparalleled... determined to find and train fast horses at the expense of nearly everything else in life. One of a kind.
www.nbcsports.com/horse-racing...
www.nbcsports.com/horse-racing...
Legendary Trainer D. Wayne Lukas: Audacious, Obsessed, Unparalleled
In horse racing and beyond, there is no one like D. Wayne Lukas.
www.nbcsports.com
June 29, 2025 at 7:50 PM
Godspeed DWL
D. Wayne Lukas retired this week at age 89, and entered hospice care. He was unlike anything racing had ever seen: Audacious, obsessive, unparalleled... determined to find and train fast horses at the expense of nearly everything else in life. One of a kind.
www.nbcsports.com/horse-racing...
www.nbcsports.com/horse-racing...
Legendary Trainer D. Wayne Lukas: Audacious, Obsessed, Unparalleled
In horse racing and beyond, there is no one like D. Wayne Lukas.
www.nbcsports.com
June 25, 2025 at 2:07 PM
D. Wayne Lukas retired this week at age 89, and entered hospice care. He was unlike anything racing had ever seen: Audacious, obsessive, unparalleled... determined to find and train fast horses at the expense of nearly everything else in life. One of a kind.
www.nbcsports.com/horse-racing...
www.nbcsports.com/horse-racing...
Tomorrow (May 30) is the 50th anniversary of Steve Prefontaine's death. During the 2012 Olympic T&F Trials in Eugene, I went to the site of the crash that killed him and wrote this story. The larger themes are unchanged.
www.si.com/more-sports/...
www.si.com/more-sports/...
Memory of Prefontaine prevalent at trials as Rupp breaks 5,000 record
She was alone there for a few minutes, just looking at the outcropping of charcoal gray rock struck by Steve Prefontaine's sports car on the night of May 30,
www.si.com
May 29, 2025 at 8:22 PM
Tomorrow (May 30) is the 50th anniversary of Steve Prefontaine's death. During the 2012 Olympic T&F Trials in Eugene, I went to the site of the crash that killed him and wrote this story. The larger themes are unchanged.
www.si.com/more-sports/...
www.si.com/more-sports/...
Reposted by Tim Layden
Sovereignty won the Kentucky Derby and put its beleaguered sport in a time machine. Winning trainer Bill Mott back in the mud, like 2019, but "This one was better." Game story from a cold, sloppy Derby 151.
www.nbcsports.com/horse-racing...
www.nbcsports.com/horse-racing...
Sovereignty's Kentucky Derby win helps heal the past and soothe the present
Sovereignty's victory in the 151st Kentucky Derby offered its trainer and jockey a cleansing victory, and the sport, welcomed enjoyment.
www.nbcsports.com
May 4, 2025 at 4:08 AM
Sovereignty won the Kentucky Derby and put its beleaguered sport in a time machine. Winning trainer Bill Mott back in the mud, like 2019, but "This one was better." Game story from a cold, sloppy Derby 151.
www.nbcsports.com/horse-racing...
www.nbcsports.com/horse-racing...
Sovereignty won the Kentucky Derby and put its beleaguered sport in a time machine. Winning trainer Bill Mott back in the mud, like 2019, but "This one was better." Game story from a cold, sloppy Derby 151.
www.nbcsports.com/horse-racing...
www.nbcsports.com/horse-racing...
Sovereignty's Kentucky Derby win helps heal the past and soothe the present
Sovereignty's victory in the 151st Kentucky Derby offered its trainer and jockey a cleansing victory, and the sport, welcomed enjoyment.
www.nbcsports.com
May 4, 2025 at 4:08 AM
Sovereignty won the Kentucky Derby and put its beleaguered sport in a time machine. Winning trainer Bill Mott back in the mud, like 2019, but "This one was better." Game story from a cold, sloppy Derby 151.
www.nbcsports.com/horse-racing...
www.nbcsports.com/horse-racing...
Derby Day repost on this one.
Journalism is not only the Kentucky Derby favorite, he is a modern symbol of resilience, chased from his home by wildfires, only to return, undeterred and unbothered. The name ain't bad, either. My story from Southern California.
www.nbcsports.com/horse-racing...
www.nbcsports.com/horse-racing...
Four months after wildfires, Kentucky Derby favorite Journalism embodies symbol of resilience
Journalism is the favorite in the 151st Kentucky Derby. Four months ago, he and his trainer were displaced by the destructive wildfires in southern California.
www.nbcsports.com
May 3, 2025 at 6:11 PM
Derby Day repost on this one.
Reposted by Tim Layden
Journalism is not only the Kentucky Derby favorite, he is a modern symbol of resilience, chased from his home by wildfires, only to return, undeterred and unbothered. The name ain't bad, either. My story from Southern California.
www.nbcsports.com/horse-racing...
www.nbcsports.com/horse-racing...
Four months after wildfires, Kentucky Derby favorite Journalism embodies symbol of resilience
Journalism is the favorite in the 151st Kentucky Derby. Four months ago, he and his trainer were displaced by the destructive wildfires in southern California.
www.nbcsports.com
May 1, 2025 at 3:08 PM
Journalism is not only the Kentucky Derby favorite, he is a modern symbol of resilience, chased from his home by wildfires, only to return, undeterred and unbothered. The name ain't bad, either. My story from Southern California.
www.nbcsports.com/horse-racing...
www.nbcsports.com/horse-racing...
Reposted by Tim Layden
The best horse racing writing of his generation.
Journalism is not only the Kentucky Derby favorite, he is a modern symbol of resilience, chased from his home by wildfires, only to return, undeterred and unbothered. The name ain't bad, either. My story from Southern California.
www.nbcsports.com/horse-racing...
www.nbcsports.com/horse-racing...
Four months after wildfires, Kentucky Derby favorite Journalism embodies symbol of resilience
Journalism is the favorite in the 151st Kentucky Derby. Four months ago, he and his trainer were displaced by the destructive wildfires in southern California.
www.nbcsports.com
May 1, 2025 at 3:30 PM
The best horse racing writing of his generation.
Journalism is not only the Kentucky Derby favorite, he is a modern symbol of resilience, chased from his home by wildfires, only to return, undeterred and unbothered. The name ain't bad, either. My story from Southern California.
www.nbcsports.com/horse-racing...
www.nbcsports.com/horse-racing...
Four months after wildfires, Kentucky Derby favorite Journalism embodies symbol of resilience
Journalism is the favorite in the 151st Kentucky Derby. Four months ago, he and his trainer were displaced by the destructive wildfires in southern California.
www.nbcsports.com
May 1, 2025 at 3:08 PM
Journalism is not only the Kentucky Derby favorite, he is a modern symbol of resilience, chased from his home by wildfires, only to return, undeterred and unbothered. The name ain't bad, either. My story from Southern California.
www.nbcsports.com/horse-racing...
www.nbcsports.com/horse-racing...
Figure skater Max Naumov lost his parents/coaches in the Jan. plane crash. Now he holds onto the memory of their last minutes together, and remembers his father’s favorite motto: “We Must Fight.”
www.nbcsports.com/olympics/new...
www.nbcsports.com/olympics/new...
"We Must Fight." Figure Skater Max Naumov Hears his Father's Words and Carries On
Max Naumov reflects on his final moments with his parents, and their legacy, two months after their plane crashed over Washington, D.C.
www.nbcsports.com
March 26, 2025 at 2:39 PM
Figure skater Max Naumov lost his parents/coaches in the Jan. plane crash. Now he holds onto the memory of their last minutes together, and remembers his father’s favorite motto: “We Must Fight.”
www.nbcsports.com/olympics/new...
www.nbcsports.com/olympics/new...
I like @washingtonpost.com . I have good friends who work there and do excellent, impassioned journalism. I don't know if I should keep subscribing or reading. And that is a bummer and a measure of Things Going On.
February 27, 2025 at 12:52 AM
I like @washingtonpost.com . I have good friends who work there and do excellent, impassioned journalism. I don't know if I should keep subscribing or reading. And that is a bummer and a measure of Things Going On.
SNL 50 is the best of us
February 17, 2025 at 3:18 AM
SNL 50 is the best of us
Some words about -- and from -- Lindsey Vonn and skiing at age 40 on a partial knee replacement.
www.nbcsports.com/olympics/new...
www.nbcsports.com/olympics/new...
Lindsey Vonn, in uncharted territory on rebuilt knee, racing against time for one last Olympics
"I'm a girl from Minnesota who loves to ski. I realize people might not believe that. Maybe their perception will change after this. I'm not sure. But it really is that simple."
www.nbcsports.com
February 12, 2025 at 5:00 PM
Some words about -- and from -- Lindsey Vonn and skiing at age 40 on a partial knee replacement.
www.nbcsports.com/olympics/new...
www.nbcsports.com/olympics/new...
If Eli Manning gets in, his first thank-you call should be to David Tyree.
February 6, 2025 at 7:59 PM
If Eli Manning gets in, his first thank-you call should be to David Tyree.
Back to the college football beat: The sport has always been top heavy, and creating December/January Madness is a big ask. But it also thrives on outrage, so the current meltdown is on brand. All is well. Column for @NBCSports.
December 23, 2024 at 9:40 PM
Back to the college football beat: The sport has always been top heavy, and creating December/January Madness is a big ask. But it also thrives on outrage, so the current meltdown is on brand. All is well. Column for @NBCSports.
40yo Lindsey Vonn 14th in a World Cup Super-G in St. Moritz. .38 from Top 10, .85 from podium, 4th and 5th in 2 sections, starting w/bib 31 (bad snow). *With a partial knee replacement.* Even if this is her ceiling, it would be right in the hunt for Team USA in Cortina. Pretty amazing.
December 21, 2024 at 3:42 PM
40yo Lindsey Vonn 14th in a World Cup Super-G in St. Moritz. .38 from Top 10, .85 from podium, 4th and 5th in 2 sections, starting w/bib 31 (bad snow). *With a partial knee replacement.* Even if this is her ceiling, it would be right in the hunt for Team USA in Cortina. Pretty amazing.
Very appreciated. If it's good enough for Nack, good enough for Murray, good enough for Red Smith and Damon Runyon; and good enough for my friends Privman, Hovdey, Rees, Hammond, Jerardi, and Fast Eddie Schuyler... it's plenty good enough for me.
www.racingmuseum.org/about/news/t...
www.racingmuseum.org/about/news/t...
Tim Layden, Ed Schuyler, Jr., and Edwin Pope selected to National Museum of Racing’s Joe Hirsch Media Roll of Honor | National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame
https://www.racingmuseum.org/about/news/tim-layden-ed-schuyler-jr-and-edwin-pope-selected-national-museum-racing’s-joe-hirsch
December 18, 2024 at 9:34 PM
Very appreciated. If it's good enough for Nack, good enough for Murray, good enough for Red Smith and Damon Runyon; and good enough for my friends Privman, Hovdey, Rees, Hammond, Jerardi, and Fast Eddie Schuyler... it's plenty good enough for me.
www.racingmuseum.org/about/news/t...
www.racingmuseum.org/about/news/t...
In a gambling system it is not the gamblers who are enriched. We know this, right?
December 17, 2024 at 3:26 PM
In a gambling system it is not the gamblers who are enriched. We know this, right?
So Belichick signs a big contract, hires a GM to write checks, evaluates free agents, and reverts to boring press conference persona. This is different from an NFL job how?
December 12, 2024 at 3:40 PM
So Belichick signs a big contract, hires a GM to write checks, evaluates free agents, and reverts to boring press conference persona. This is different from an NFL job how?
Annapolis
Forget about cities you’ve visited and loved. I want to know what your favorite US city you’ve never been to is. What city exists for you only as a perfect dream unsullied by experience
December 11, 2024 at 4:50 AM
Annapolis
Thinking: 1985, 3 Big East teams in the Final Four. With Looie's passing this weekend, all three coaches gone. Milepost for a lot of fans (and journalists).
December 3, 2024 at 12:12 AM
Thinking: 1985, 3 Big East teams in the Final Four. With Looie's passing this weekend, all three coaches gone. Milepost for a lot of fans (and journalists).