Preise » n Saturday, led Serbia at the 2012 Games in London

RIO DE JANEIRO -- Andy Murray is one of the worlds best in his sport, a proud champion of the Olympics and an outspoken figure in the fight against drugs cheats.Aside from his support for Scottish independence from the rest of the United Kingdom a couple of years ago, there surely couldnt be a better choice of flag bearer for the British team at the Rio Games.Murrays role is not just about leading the?small Team GB delegation in the opening ceremony on Friday and keeping the Union Flag flying high.He will address the other British athletes once or twice and have the chance to inspire the less experienced and successful among them.Murray should provide the benchmark for the others, too, as he has effectively been made the symbol of what the British Olympic Association thinks is good about sport in the UK.From a public relations perspective, Murray is a sharp choice given the Lizzie Armitstead missed-drugs-test furore. Who better to try to move the agenda on before she is due to compete in the womens cycling road race on Sunday?Murray, who has three Grand Slam titles (including this years Wimbledon) to go with his 2012 Olympics gold, is a consummate professional, and the idea of him erring on World Anti-Doping Agencys whereabouts rule seems unlikely. Having the guy who has called for increased testing and transparency as a figurehead cannot be a bad thing.His diligence and work rate should also be a good example to young athletes, as hes known for the attention he pays to the physical side of his game and the time and effort he devotes to it.Murray is a player who has matured and made himself stand out from the crowd despite a lack of the flashy trappings of the famous and wealthy who reside at the top of their sports.He is a father, a husband, a dog lover and a fan of a range of other sports. In fact, looking closely at him, it is a wonder Team GB chef de mission Mark England and his panel considered anybody else.Murray wont be the only flag bearer from tennis in the ceremony; Rafael Nadal will also lead out Spain. Novak Djokovic, who has also arrived to play here when the sports competition starts on Saturday, led Serbia at the 2012 Games in London.Ironically, the two other best players, Swiss Roger Federer and Stan Wawrinka, have pulled out of the competition,?and 4 of the top 10 highest-ranked players will be missing.Murray, unlike Nadal, was due to stay outside the athletes village during the Games because of the size of the entourage he has with him and his desire to focus on the event.The Spaniard has reportedly run up against the time-consuming issue of other athletes seeking autographs and selfies while he tries to go about his business.But Murray stayed in the village on Tuesday night and may spend more time there before finding some peace and quiet to focus on his game outside the commotion.He summed up his feelings for the Games after his first practice session in Rio on Tuesday. You are around the best athletes in the world and you want to perform well for your country and your teammates, he said.I remember in Beijing, although I didnt perform well, it was nice being surrounded by the best athletes in your country and seeing them come back with medals. It feels a lot more like a team environment and I have enjoyed that throughout my career.Other nations have gone a different route than Britain in selecting their flag bearers, with the U.S. picking Michael Phelps ?-- a character whose image has been a long way off squeaky clean (the swimmer has two DUIs on his record).Nicola Adams, who made history by becoming the first female Olympic boxing champion in 2012, was an alternative to Murray for the Team GB role and would also have represented some laudable values for British sport.But the Scots success, fame, conduct and credentials must have looked undeniable. Those involved in selecting him say he was brimming with pride when he was told about it, too, and the only thing that could take the edge off that would be the fact that wife Kim and daughter Sophia wont be here to see him parade with the team. Wholesale Stars Jerseys .J. -- New York Giants wide receiver Victor Cruz will miss the rest of the season after having surgery on his left knee. Cheap Stars Jerseys Authentic . They reached the 100-point plateau for the fourth time in five games, bested the visiting Trail Blazers by 34 in the paint and scored 19 of the final 25 points in regulation. http://www.cheapstarsjerseys.com/ . According to a report from the Winnipeg Free Press, the Bombers will name Acting GM Kyle Walters to the post full time. Cheap Dallas Stars Jerseys . "Were just throwing s--- at the wall hoping something sticks," said Tortorella about the possible line combinations for Fridays game against Columbus. The Canucks have lost five straight games and six of their last seven, leaving them in a logjam in the Pacific Division, currently sitting fifth - good for ninth in the Western Conference. Cheap Adidas Stars Jerseys . But Bourque, who has missed three games with a lower-body injury, wont be in the lineup when the Habs travel to Buffalo to take on the Sabres on Wednesday. STANFORD, Calif. -- After watching his team fall flat in the season opener a year ago, Stanford coach David Shaw decided to change his approach this season.Shaw eliminated one two-a-day practice, cut out two more practices and reduced a few others all in hopes of making sure the eighth-ranked Cardinal are fresher for Friday nights game against Kansas State than they were a year ago in a loss at Northwestern.I dont think it put us at any disadvantage because we still went scrimmages, we still went live, Shaw said. We were very, very physical but I think we shaved off just enough so that we could get into this week pretty fresh. I think we saw a little of that toward the end of last week where we were still running well. We didnt have a lot of tired legs. So far it seems to have worked.Just about nothing worked a year ago at Northwestern when the Cardinal were held to 240 yards, 17 first downs and no touchdowns in a 16-6 loss to start the season. Making that result stand out even more was the fact that Stanford scored at least 30 points in each of the final 13 games with one of the countrys most dynamic offenses.There were factors in last years game that wont apply to the opener Friday night. The Cardinal will be at home instead of on the road, playing at night instead of a morning kickoff for their body clocks and have learned from that loss.We got beat in the first game of the year last year and it wasnt close, Shaw said. Not to take anything awway from them, but we didnt play our best game.dddddddddddd Its incumbent on us to play our best game.Shaw said there has been some talk this summer of that game and how to avoid a repeat. In an odd coincidence, this years game will also be against a team nicknamed the Wildcats that wears purple.Kansas State also presents a tough test for Stanfords first-year starting quarterback Ryan Burns with nine returning defensive starters from a unit that improved as last year progressed and figures to be even stouter this season.We need to up the ante a little bit, star running back Christian McCaffrey said. Its definitely tough to win a Division I football game. Going in and playing a team like Kansas State thats extremely talented and well-coached, we know we have to do everything to get the job done.That season-opening loss might have cost the Cardinal a chance at a bid for the College Football Playoff. They finished the regular season sixth in the rankings after losing just one more game the rest of the way, falling two spots out of a playoff spot.We use it as motivation, defensive lineman Solomon Thomas said. Its not something were thinking about all the time. Its something in the back of our head. We learned from this mistake. Its time to move on and make sure this doesnt happen again. We have to start fast from day one. ' ' '