Social media in sports

Palm Coast Observer
Opinion

The days of reading scores in the newspaper the next morning are evolving. We can thank the Internet — specifically social media — for that. Don’t get me wrong, I still encourage you to pick up the Palm Coast Observer each week for a handful of reasons, especially to check out the Sports section.

But times are changing. Social media has essentially taken over.

Twitter is the only social media outlet where I can truly relate to professional athletes. As a sports journalist, it baffles me. A player can break a news story, update an injury, or announce retirement all in 140 characters, or less, on Twitter.

Being a sports fan, there’s such an awesome feeling when you actually communicate with professional athletes.

Last week, I was so excited when I got an email telling me Mardy Gilyard is following me. An NFL player following me on Twitter? Now I’m big time!

That said, I recently launched a Twitter account for Palm Coast sports.

The handle is @PCOsports.

I hope you’ll follow me on there. Tons of information — much of it exclusive to the web — will be posted there. Quick hits about games, interesting stats from players, news about games and tournaments. Also, as we get more followers, I’d like to implement giveaways and games.

I want to be your source for Flagler County sports news. I’ll also post things about state, regional and national sports issues, too. You really didn’t think I could refrain from that, did you?

See you in the Twittersphere!

A shout out to the runners
I also wanted to give a shout out to all who participated in last weekend’s 5K and half marathon!

My publisher, John Walsh, his wife, Nancy, and daughters, Lauren and Maureen, were happy with their results.

Also, coworkers Mallorie Bruce and Kaitlin Murray had a successful 5K despite battling injuries. (I also owed Kait 75 cents for not waking up and running the race. I paid her in full ... in pennies.)

My dad ran the half marathon, and he beat his previous personal best by a few minutes.

And to all who ran: Way to go! If it was your first race, keep training. Hard work pays off!

Have a sports story on your mind? Feature idea? Have questions that need answers? I want to hear from you. Email me at andrew@ palmcoastobserver.com.