Ayres1234
member
offline  |
| |
| posts: |
154 |
| joined: |
11/12/2015 |
| from: |
safdsgd, IL
China |
|
|
 |
|
|
| most disappointing teams in his two seasons there |
| There was nothing second-rate about their performance, but second place is where Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir find themselves following their short program in the ice dance event on Sunday. Following a pattern that has become all too familiar for the defending Olympic champions, the American team of Meryl Davis and Charlie White bested Virtue and Moir by a margin of 2.56 points at the Iceberg Skating Palace in Sochi to take top spot. Elena Ilinykh and Nikita Katsalapov fed off the pro-Russian crowd and tallied a 73.04, putting them in bronze-medal position heading into Mondays free dance (10:00 a.m. ET, streaming live at cbc.ca/olympics). Virtue and Moir, skating to Ella Fitzgeralds Dream a Little Dream of Me, put their slip-up in the team event far in the rear view mirror with a seemingly flawless performance, carving perfect turns, nailing their rotational lifts and staying in sync during their twizzle sequences. As the music ended and they struck their final pose, Moir let out a triumphant "Yes!", knowing that the skate represented one of their best performances of the season. Their joy was short-lived though, as their score of 76.33 came in below their season best score of 77.59 at the Grand Prix Finals in December, leaving the door wide open for the reigning world champions Davis and White, who set a new short dance world record with a score of 78.89. Canadas other medal hopefuls, Kaitlyn Weaver and Andrew Poje, skated a strong routine that earned them a 65.93, good for seventh place. The third Canadian entry, featuring Toronto-born Alexandra Paul and Barries Mitchell Islam, skated a light, airy and up-tempo routine, marred only by a small bobble on the opening twizzle by Paul. The 2010 world junior silver medallists finished with a score of 55.91, putting them in 18th place. Virtue and Moir have some work to do to catch the leaders, but they were still happy with how the day unfolded. "It was a really fun performance," the 24-year-old Virtue told CBC Sports. "Obviously, you are here to defend your title. You also want to have fun. You still love what you do." Moir, 26, said that it was this type of performance that has kept them going for the last four years. "Its definitely the reason we keep going. To be on this stage representing Canada, its a huge thing for Tessa and I to be part of a fantastic Olympic Canadian team." Moir added that they still get plenty of enjoyment out of competitions like these. "We love what we do. We love skating together. We have a lot of special moments, and that was one of them." Sundays short dance marked the third head-to-head battle between the Canadians and Americans at these Olympics. Davis and White beat Virtue and Moir by three points in the short dance portion of the team event early in the Games, and repeated the feat in the free dance portion with a seven-point victory. The two rivals bring contrasting styles to the sport. Virtue and Moir boast an elegant and flowing style, and a sense of unison that no other team can match, thanks to nearly 17 years as an on-ice tandem. Davis and White, on the other hand, typically display a faster and bolder technique than the Canadian duo, albeit one with arguably less precision. Virtue and Moir have laid claim to an Olympic gold medal in Vancouver, two world titles and six Canadian championships during their careers, but theyve consistently come up short against the American pair over the past two seasons, including at the 2013 world championship in Virtues hometown of London, Ont. What makes the rivalry even more peculiar, if not slightly peculiar, is the fact they share not only the same training facility in Canton, Mich., but also the same coach and choreographer, Russian-born Marina Zoueva. Zoueva has coached Davis and White for the past 14 years, and has been working with Virtue and Moir for 10 years. While they arent close friends with the Americans off the ice, Virtue and Moir have often said that they have a good relationship with them and that both sides enjoy the friendly rivalry. Another storyline that has surrounded the athletes since the team event, an alleged judging scandal, has fortunately faded into the background. During the opening weekend, the French sports publication LEquipe had reported that the American and Russian judges were conspiring against Canada in order to assure a gold medal for Russia in the team competition and gold for the U.S., in ice dancing. Despite being at the centre of the controversy, Virtue and Moir insist that the rumours havent affected their focus on or off the ice. Jerseys From China . Brett Kulak and Jackson Houck of the Vancouver Giants were each charged with assault causing bodily harm on Aug. 18, according to the B.C. court services. Cheap NHL Jerseys . Self was acquired from the Buffalo Bandits in a trade for Alex Hill midway through last season, and made his debut in Rochester on March 16, 2013. http://www.cheapnfljerseyschinaus.com/ . The team said Saturday that Lopez was hurt during its 121-120 overtime loss at Philadelphia on Friday. The Nets said they would issue another update next week after consultation with their doctors. Wholesale NFL Jerseys . If ever they start actually putting pictures beside words in the dictionary, the Blue Jays left-handers mug will appear beside “Consistency. Cheap Jerseys . The catch: It needs a lot of money, and it needs it fast.ALAMEDA, Calif. -- Less than three years after being one of the most prized free agents on the open market, Nnamdi Asomugha NFL career is over. Asomugha formally announced his retirement Friday at the Oakland Raiders headquarters, ending his 11-year career at the place he had his most success. "Im just grateful to be back, grateful for everything to go full circle," Asomugha said. "For all of the achievements and awards, to be able to retire as a Raider ranks highest among all of those." Asomugha made three Pro Bowls and was a two-time first-team All-Pro during his eight seasons with the Raiders when he was considered one of the leagues top cover cornerbacks. But his career quickly fizzled after signing a $60 million, five-year contract with Philadelphia in the summer of 2011. He was cut after two years with the Eagles and played just three games this season for San Francisco before being released in November. He said he had opportunities to come back since then but felt the time was right to go on with the rest of his life. Asomugha was joined at his retirement news conference by three of the Raiders best defensive backs: Hall of Famer Willie Brown, Lester Hayes and Charles Woodson. Asomugha credited all three, along with others like Rod Woodson and Mike Haynes for his transformation from a college safety to an elite NFL cornerback. "He turned into what they call that shut-down corner," Woodson said. "People just decided going into the game they werent going to throw at him. Thats a testament to his hard work." Asomugha came into the NFL as a first-round pick out of California in 2003 and became one of the rare Al Davis first-rounders to pan out in his later years running the Raiders. After taking a few years to adjust to playing cornerback after being mostly a safety in college, Asomugha thrived in the Raiderrs system that often left cornerbacks alone on an island matched up man-to-man against opposing receivers.dddddddddddd "When I first came into the league not too many people really knew who I was," Asomugha said. "When I first got here I was definitely called a reach. In great Al Davis fashion, he took a reach that he believed in and instilled confidence in me like nobody else could and I was able to become all that he expected of me." Asomugha had a breakthrough season in 2006 when he intercepted eight passes and was a rare bright spot on a 2-14 team. By the next season, opposing quarterbacks rarely even threw the ball his direction. In his final four seasons with the Raiders, Asomugha had just 136 passes thrown at him in 60 games, allowing just 66 completions and only two touchdowns. Asomugha was paid well for his performance in Oakland, earning $9.5 million in 2008 and then signing a $45.3 million, three-year deal the following off-season. That contract voided after his second year and he became one of the most prominent free agents after the lockout ended in 2011. After never playing on a winning team in his eight seasons in Oakland, Asomugha joined the Eagles in what was billed as the "dream team." But he never fit in to a system that had him playing zone coverage instead of being exclusively in man-to-man. Philadelphia was one of the leagues most disappointing teams in his two seasons there, going 12-20 and missing the playoffs both times. Asomugha signed a minimum contract with the 49ers last off-season but made one start and played three games before being released, meaning he will end his career having never made the playoffs. "We didnt get a championship, that was the goal," Asomugha said. "But we had a lot of championship moments here and thats the stuff I can be proud of moving forward." wholesale jerseys cheap jerseys cheap nfl jerseys wholesale jerseys cheap soccer jerseys wholesale jerseys wholesale jerseys cheap nfl jerseys china ' ' ' |
|
|
|
|
|
Email To Friend | 
Set Alert To This Topic
New Topic | 
Post Reply 
posted on: 02/25/2016 08:36:50 AM
Edit
Quote
Report
Profile
Reply