team. Despite Alabamas success in the 1960s, from corse178's blog
RIO DE JANEIRO -- It came down to a dare in the headwinds, a bit of verbal jockeying by elite triathletes at a moment when mere mortals would have been too gassed for banter. Cheap Football Japan Jerseys .Two-time world champion and prerace favorite Gwen Jorgensen of the United States knew she wouldnt win on reputation alone. A flat tire derailed her chances in the Olympic triathlon in London four years ago. On Saturday, she found herself rounding into the bell lap with defending champion Nicola Spirig of Switzerland. The two women hadnt been on the same course since that day in 2012.The 34-year-old Spirig had fought to get to the start on Copacabana Beach after a bike crash in early March. She raced with three plates and 23 screws in her surgically repaired left hand. She had helped make it a two-woman race with multiple aggressive attacks during the bike leg.Now, with no other athletes within realistic striking distance, the front-runners had a short discussion.No one wanted to lead, Spirig said. I was like, Come on, we share the work. And she said, No, I was leading before. I said, I was leading over there.It was just some mental games. I had to try everything to get her out of the rhythm a bit.It didnt work. She said, I already have a medal, Jorgensen said. And its fair enough. Now she has two and I still only have one.Jorgensen has the color she wants -- the gold she won by 40 seconds in 1 hour, 56 minutes, 16 seconds as she pulled away in the stretch, taking the first Olympic triathlon title by a U.S. athlete. Her pursuit compelled her to search for a coach on the other side of that world and to train with a group of young, hungry Australians who refer to her as grandma because she is 30 years old and consistently early to bed.Even as her honors and her aura expanded over the past few seasons -- two world championships, 17 World Triathlon Series wins and an undefeated 2015 -- Rio remained the big, flashing object on her radar.Jorgensen had controlled all that she could control. She won the test event held on the same course a year ago, and she was not about to let her feet betray her. She allowed herself a smile as she bore down on the finishing arch and hit the tape with her face awash in relief, followed by a few tears.She credited her husband, Patrick Lemieux, and Kiwi coach Jamie Turner, saying, Its as much their medal as it is mine.Ive said for four years that this was my goal, Jorgensen said, with just the slightest hitch in her voice. Aug. 20. I wanted to cross that line, I wanted to get a gold medal. Its pretty incredible that I was actually able to do it. Four years comes down to one day. To be able to perform on the day is something pretty amazing.Jorgensens quest combined her long-held Olympic ambition, the methodical mind of a certified public accountant, a multisport background at the University of Wisconsin and fearsome closing speed in the 10-kilometer run.Swimming was her first love, and when she was tapped by USA Triathlon college talent scout Barb Lindquist, I kind of laughed at them, Jorgensen said. I just felt like I didnt have what it took, Im not good enough.[Lindquist] said, On paper, you could be an Olympian. I just didnt believe that, and actually when I qualified for my first Olympics in 2012, it was a complete shock to me. Im just really thankful that Ive had those people to believe in me throughout the way and encourage me along the way, because without them I wouldnt be doing triathlon.Great Britains Vicky Holland saw Jorgensens kick from a familiar vantage point.To watch Gwen in full flight, usually from behind, is quite something, said Holland, who outsprinted teammate Non Stanford for the bronze medal. I think even today when I was watching the two of them duke it out in front, I could see they were running together for a long time before Gwen edged away.Its almost inevitable. Ive seen it in so many races. When Gwen is gone, its very hard to get her back again, and I think thats been shown time and time again. On the most important day and the most important stage, Gwen did it today.Jorgensens U.S. teammate Katie Zaferes finished 18th in 2:00:55.New Hampshires Sarah True, fourth in London, had a different kind of heartache Saturday as she tweaked her right quadriceps during the swim and had to abandon during the bike leg. Initial reports that she had crashed were incorrect. My leg seized up at the start of the bike, she posted on her Twitter feed. While I fought to ride as long as I could, I had to pull out.In an online note to ESPN.com, True wrote, No matter how we try to ignore it, theres always an element of luck to sport and I was just on the wrong side today. Authentic Soccer Japan Jerseys . 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. Japan Jerseys From China .com) - Christian Ponder will get another chance to prove himself for the Minnesota Vikings, with head coach Leslie Frazier announcing Wednesday that the struggling quarterback will start this weekends game against the Green Bay Packers. http://www.cheapjapanjerseys.com/ .com) - The women will also have a new champion at the Australian Open. There are big college football games and then there are those that rise to the level of being called Game of the Century. To be one of those games, whats needed is a No. 1 and No. 2.The Associated Press poll has been ranking college football teams for 80 years, helping to set the agenda for the season and provide context for big games. A matchup of undefeated teams or rivals with winning records is appealing. Make it 1 vs 2 and now you have something special. Maybe even a Game of the Century.In 1966 Notre Dame and Michigan State played a Game of the Century that still holds up today. It produced a memorably unsatisfying result and led to a vote in the AP poll that is still debated.College football in the 1960s began with an AP championship by Minnesota, its last before fading away as a Midwestern power, and ended with a Texas title, the last by an all-white team. In between, coach Bear Bryants Alabama Crimson Tide was the most dominant team, winning three national titles. But the centerpiece was a 10-10 tie between the Fighting Irish and Spartans that put more focus than ever on before on who finished No. 1.There were nine 1 vs. 2 matchups before the Notre Dame-Michigan State game on Nov. 19, 1966.This was different. Television was now a part of the equation. The game was initially not scheduled to be televised nationally because of restrictions about how many times each school could be on a national broadcast. Pressure from fans on the West Coast and down South helped persuade ABC to air the game everywhere on tape delay.It was the final regular-season game for Michigan State and second-to-last for Notre Dame. With the last poll still being taken before the bowls were played, it was apparent the winner would be in line for a national championship.The buildup was unprecedented. There was too much emphasis on the game, said 89-year-old Roger Valdiserri, who was Notre Dames sports information director in 1966. We had press conferences every day. There was so much interest in that game.Michigan State recceived more than 600 requests for media credentials, Valdiserri said. Replica Japan Jerseys. hat was unheard of at the time, he said.Playing with a banged up team and confident a tie would be enough to hold on to the No. 1 ranking going into the Southern California game the next week, Fighting Irish coach Ara Parseghian played it safe with the ball in his own end of the field and mostly ran out the last 70 seconds of the game.As Parseghian suspected, Notre Dame held the top spot in the poll, thumped USC 51-0 the next week and won the championship. Michigan State was second and unbeaten Alabama third.The result of the game and the vote led Michigan State coach Duffy Daugherty to call for a major college football playoff -- in 1966!Crimson Tide fans understandably felt slighted by the vote and wondered if AP voters from outside the region held the contentious politics of Alabama Gov. George Wallace during the Civil Rights movement against the football team. Despite Alabamas success in the 1960s, the Tide was only voted No. 1 nine times, less than Texas (23), Southern California (19), Ohio State (17), Notre Dame (16) and Michigan State (13).BEST PROGRAMSAlabama appeared in 77.78 percent of all polls taken.Texas, 71.43 percent.Southern California, 64.29 percent.BEST RIVALRYTexas vs. Arkansas. While Southern Cal vs. UCLA was great, Frank Broyless Razorbacks and Darrell Royals Longhorns were at the top of the old Southwest Conference. Their famous 1969 game was a 1 vs. 2 matchup that effectively decided the national championship, with the help of President Richard Nixon.MAIN TAKEAWAYNotre Dame changed course and started participating in the postseason in 1968, the same season the AP decided for good that the final poll would be taken and national title awarded after the bowl games.---Follow Ralph D. Russo at www.Twitter.com/ralphDrussoAP---AP college football website: collegefootball.ap.org Cheap NFL Jerseys Cheap NFL Jerseys China Cheap Jerseys From China Cheap NFL Jerseys Authentic Wholesale Jerseys China Cheap NFL Jerseys China NFL Cheap Jerseys ' ' '
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