to score good runs when we had the best of the conditions. The

RIO DE JANEIRO -- American Ibtihaj Muhammad looked like all the other fencers when she stepped on the piste, save for the non-descript black scarf covering her head.With that small gesture, Muhammad made history.Muhammad became the first American athlete Monday to compete in the Olympics with a hijab, which she wears to adhere to the tenets of her Muslim faith.Muhammad, ranked eighth in the world in sabre, beat Ukranian Olena Kravatska 15-13 in her first match before falling to Frances Cecilia Berder 15-12 in the round of 16.Muhammad will compete again on Saturday in the team sabre event.I feel like its a blessing to be able to represent so many people who dont have voices, who dont speak up, Muhammad said. Its just been a really remarkable experience.The gold medal in the weapon went to Russias Yana Egorian, who scored the final two points to stun teammate Sofya Velikaya 15-14.Muhammad, a New Jersey native and three-time NCAA All-American from Duke, became an instant star when she qualified for her first Olympics earlier this year. And she embraced the spotlight, which helped make her an unlikely face of the U.S. team given how little publicity fencing typically receives.It represents who shes been her entire life. Ever since she was a little girl, she never let anything hold her back. She never set limits. Shes always striving to be the very best, said Ibtihajs brother Qareeb, who was overcome with emotion when he saw his sister compete. Despite the adversity shes faced; being a Muslim, being an African-American, being a female, shes still confident in her ability to be successful. Shes my hero.Muhammads siblings, parents and friends came from as far away as Los Angeles and New Jersey to cheer her on, giving Muhammad a standing ovation ahead of her first match.Muhammad got off to a shaky start against Kravatska, but she rallied with a string of points that put her over the top.But Berder, ranked ninth, took control of their round of 16 match midway through and rolled to victory. Muhammad was so frustrated by her performance that she needed over an hour to compose herself before meeting reporters.In a sport like fencing, youre your own biggest opponent. If you can control yourself and your nerves and your emotions and execute the actions that you want to execute in the way that you want to execute, youll always be successful. I failed to do that, Muhammad said.Muhammads history-making moment overshadowed the upset loss by teammates Mariel Zagunis in the round of 16.Zagunis, a two-time Olympic gold medalist ranked third in the world, was beaten by Russias Ekaterina Dyachenko 15-12.Still, Muhammad and Zagunis are two major reasons why the Americans will be a medal favorite on Saturday.There is that silver lining in the sense that you do have that team event. I know that the Americans didnt perform in the way that we wanted, but I love my team, I love my teammates and I believe in them. I believe in myself. I believe in us, and I want us to win a medal more than anything. I want us to do it for our country, Muhammad said. NMD Canada Online . PAUL, Minn. Adidas Superstar Canada Sale . 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Womens NMD Shoes Canada .Y. - New Orleans forward Anthony Davis was chosen Friday to replace the injured Kobe Bryant in the NBA All-Star game that will be played in his home city. Middlesex 536 for 9 dec (Gubbins 145, Compton 131, Roland-Jones 66, Franklin 56*) beat Durham 204 (Rayner 4-17, Franklin 3-26) and 252 (Rayner 5-85) by an innings and 80 runsScorecard August 15 is late in summer for a first home victory. Yet not until Graham Onions chipped Ollie Rayner to midwicket had Middlesex been able to toast a triumph at Lords, their primary home, in the 2016 County Championship. Even allowing for a victory in their single home game away from HQ, it has been an exasperating wait.Five times Middlesex had played Championship matches at Lords; five times they had ended in draws. So they will be entitled to feel as if they have not merely defeated Durham, but also the pitch here. After a succession of slow pitches in previous home games, here Middlesex got a one with more pace, bounce and carry: a fine surface for Championship cricket.No one exploited it better than Rayner. If his limits - the absence of prodigious turn or anything resembling a doosra - are well-know, Rayner has made himself into an indispensable cricketer for Middlesex, and one of the finest spin bowlers in the county game.It has been a triumph for willpower, resolve and bloodymindedness. Rayner moved from Sussex, his home town club, in pursuit of more opportunities. He had to remodel his action after being called for throwing. He has honed his batting to make himself harder to drop, last year declaring: When I see young kids around the grounds in county matches and their mums tell me that they bowl spin and do I have any tips for them, I say, yeah, learn to bat. Never has Rayner shied from bowling when conditions are toughest.Last year, Jeetan Patel criticised English spinners for not spending enough time honing their art. Without wishing to sound full of self-pity, it is not easy being an English spin bowler at this moment in time, Rayner wrote for ESPNcricinfo in response. I, like many other spinners around the country, bowl the majority of my overs on green pitches such as Lords where we are often being used in short bursts to pick up the over rate.Those days are over. Rayner has moved from being a stock bowler to one entrusted to take wickets at crucial times. Indeed, when Durhams openers had begun serenely on the first day, Rayner was tossed the ball at 12.12pm. He promptly took 4 for 17.Here, when Rayner punched the air in jubilation at the match-clinching wicket - he is never one to knowingly undercelebrate any wicket, prizing each as if it is his last - it was the latest proof of his growing importance to Middlesex. A few minutes later, Rayner doffed his caps to the MCC members, and had the honour of leading Middlesex off. How he had earned the right. Rayner had done what spinners are meant to, bowling Middlesex to victory in the second innings. Match figures of 9 for 102, and a haul of 35 Championship wickets at 22.51 this season, are a triumph for his thirst for self-improvement - and, perhaps, the ECBs attempts to encourage spin bowling.Ollie was still a good spinner last year but because his understanding of what hes trying to do has improvedd, I think hes really improved as a spin bowler, James Franklin, Middlesexs captain in this game, said.dddddddddddd The wickets have obviously helped: it helps when you see the ball grip as a spinner, so I think hes taken huge confidence and encouragement from what hes done this year.Ollie is starting to understand his art, and the different paces that he needs to bowl on different wickets and to different batsmen and also the fields hes setting. Hes prepared to give the ball a bit of air this year, and long may that continue.For Middlesex these three days could scarcely have gone better. Frolics from Toby Roland-Jones lifted their lead to 332 in the morning while, in between Rayners wickets in the afternoon, Harry Podmore showcased a strong repeatable action in a fine spell that included the scalp of Paul Collingwood, playing on to a ball that nipped back down the slope. It was the latest evidence of the depth of Middlesexs squad; even the absence of Steve Finn, Eoin Morgan, Sam Robson and an overseas player for this game never looked like stymying them. We dont just back 12 or 13 players - we back the whole squad Franklin said. Guys like Stevie Eskinazi have come in and had an outstanding start to their careers. Harry Podmores another one.But Durham could reflect with no pride on their performance in this game. Unbeaten until August, this was their second consecutive defeat inside three days. While at Taunton they had reason to grumble about the pitch, here they had no excuse: if the Lords track had bounce and turn on the third day, it only magnified Durhams implosion on the first day, when 74 for 0 became 74 for 4 in 17 crushing deliveries.It was a good toss to win but we didnt take advantage of that, Collingwood said. We didnt have the desire to get through hard periods and the desire to score good runs when we had the best of the conditions. The weaknesses of his sides batting are obvious, and will be exacerbated by the departure of Mark Stoneman to Surrey. A good thing, then, that Keaton Jennings has just signed on for another four years: when he thrashed Roland-Jones through the covers, Jennings became the first man this summer to 1000 Championship runs.Even his 45 could only briefly delay Middlesexs waltz to victory. As Lords basked in blissful sunshine, and Middlesexs players headed to the Lords Tavern for a well-earned post-match pint - they have the rare luxury of a 16-day wait until their next fixture in any competition - they could revel in having opened up a hearty gap at the summit of Division One. While onerous fixtures at Edgbaston, Trent Bridge and Old Trafford await, it would be remiss of Middlesex not to dream of lifting the County Championship crown when they next return to Lords, to play Yorkshire on September 20. It would be immodest of me to say no were not, Franklin smiled, a thoroughly contented stand-in skipper who will now hand the reins back to Adam Voges. Theres an opportunity there. ' ' '