Column: 20 years after 9/11, sports reveals its limitations

By PAUL NEWBERRY
AP Sports Columnist

On that sunny morning two decades ago, in the hours and minutes and seconds before everything changed, sports was playing its usual role in the fabric of life. Then, for a fleeting moment after 9/11, it looked as though our favorite games might help us cope with the grieving and get on with the healing. Maybe even bring us together as one nation, indivisible. But that optimism quickly faded. Now, with the country in the grips of another tragedy, we’re much more realistic about the role sports can play. It’s a welcome respite from the misery. Nothing more.