Feb. 18--Northwestern women's lacrosse. 2005. Before visiting the White House, NU's Kate Darmody carefully planned her outfit. She bought a sundress from Ann Taylor. She put on a strand of white pearls. And then she slipped on flip-flops to meet the president, as did about half of her teammates from the national championship team. She didn't think twice about the footwear until she got an e-mail--in all capital letters--from her brother. "YOU WORE FLIP-FLOPS TO THE WHITE HOUSE????!!!!" he wrote.
White Sox, 2006. The president who occupied the White House was the former co-owner of a major-league team, and George W. Bush empathized with the Sox's achievement in welcoming the 2005 world champions to the ceremonial East Room on Monday for a long-awaited Washington victory lap. "After 88 years of waiting, the White Sox have earned the right to be called world champs," Bush said as he stood before three rows of 17 players assembled on risers and a roomful of onlookers capturing the moment with digital and cell-phone cameras. Conspicuous by his absence was manager Ozzie Guillen, who was on vacation.
Bulls, 2009. President Obama cracked a joke about wanting to stand next to the 6-foot-3 Ben Gordon during a photo shoot and invited the team back for pickup basketball. "I'm just amazed at how personable he is," Gordon said. "He's way above average, but he just seems like an average guy. He made everybody feel comfortable in the room." Center Brad Miller said he had a red dress shirt sent via overnight mail just so he could break out a red-white-and-blue ensemble for the visit. The players took a tour of the White House that included a stop at the one-lane bowling alley, where guard Derrick Rose said he threw a gutter ball. "I was too nervous," Rose said.
Bears, 2011. "This is as much fun as I will have as president of the United States," Obama said as he stood on the South Lawn and introduced the 1985 Chicago Bears, a team that marched to a Super Bowl victory the same year Obama showed up in town as a young community organizer. Standing to Obama's left was head coach Mike Ditka, to his right defensive coordinator Buddy Ryan. "And in a sign that anything is possible -- even in Washington -- Coach Ditka and Buddy Ryan are here together," Obama said. Dan Hampton, a defensive lineman, chose to stay away, in part because he is "not a fan of the guy in the White House," he told a radio station. The Bears were supposed to have been honored in 1986 by then-President Ronald Reagan. But two days after the Super Bowl, the space shuttle Challenger blew up, killing the crew of seven.
