school, I still feel proud knowing that I shared such an important interest w

RIO DE JANEIRO -- The spectators told Monica Puig they believed she could win Puerto Ricos first Olympic gold medal in any sport, providing a soundtrack of Si se puede! -- Yes, we can! -- during the Rio de Janeiro Games womens tennis final.She could. And she did.The unseeded and unheralded Puig capped her run of upsets with the biggest one of all Saturday, overpowering No. 2 Angelique Kerber of Germany 6-4, 4-6, 6-1 to become the Olympic champion.I did hear everybody saying, Yes, you can! Yes, you can! Yes, you can! I kept repeating it inside myself: `Yes, I can! Yes, I can! Yes, I can! Puig said. They really helped me believe and just showed me they were there for me, whether I was going to win or lose.Puigs father told her he believed, too, emailing the lyrics to the Puerto Rican national anthem a day earlier, just in case they would come in handy.And so, as the strains of that song echoed around an Olympic arena for the first time, and Puerto Ricos red-white-and-blue flag was raised to the highest level during a medal ceremony for the first time, Puig remembered what Dad had written.She recognized plenty of the words as fans belted them out.She just couldnt join in the joyous chorus, for a simple reason: too many tears.If I wouldve stopped crying, I probably would have started singing, Puig said afterward, smiling at the thought. But I couldnt. I was choking up the whole time.A 22-year-old born in San Juan, Puerto Rico, and now based in Florida, Puig is also the first woman representing her country to earn a medal of any color. When she finished a tense closing game -- saving six break points and converting her fourth match point -- she flung away her racket and went over to collect a flag she paraded across the court.I couldnt really believe what just happened, she said. It was such an amazing moment.Gigi Fernandez, who is Puerto Rican, won two Olympic womens doubles gold medals in tennis, but did so while representing the United States.Im particularly happy for Puerto Rico, Fernandez said in a telephone interview from Connecticut. All the hurt that people felt, all the anger people felt because I played for the U.S., I couldnt be happier.Puig had shown promise in the past, reaching the fourth round of Wimbledon as a teen in 2013, but she hasnt been that far again at any major.Also notable about Puig: She is the first unseeded woman to win the singles title since tennis returned to the Olympics in 1988. Ranked 34th, she added her surprising win over Kerber -- a German who won the Australian Open and was the Wimbledon runner-up this year -- to those she picked up in Brazil against two other past major title winners, Garbine Muguruza and Petra Kvitova.Earlier Saturday, Kvitova earned the bronze for the Czech Republic by beating Madison Keys of the United States 7-5, 2-6, 6-2.Kvitova called her medal one of the best things that happened in my career, definitely.Clearly, Puig felt the same.And she played attacking tennis full of powerful shots that seemed to rattle the counter-punching Kerber.Puig smacked a down-the-line backhand -- her 18th winner to that point, 10 more than Kerber -- for a break that gave her the opening set.During the ensuing changeover, Kerber was visited by a trainer, standing on the sideline while her lower back was massaged and manipulated, before heading to the locker room for a medical timeout. Kerber said later that bothered her from the outset, but it wasnt why she lost.She played her best tennis and one of her best matches in her career, for sure, Kerber said. I tried everything.---Follow Howard Fendrich on Twitter at http://twitter.com/HowardFendrich---AP Sports Writers Jon Krawczynski and Tim Reynolds contributed.Allan Houston Jersey Large . The judges scored it 48-47, 48-47, 49-46 for Jones (19-1). It was the champions closest call. Despite the loss, it was a remarkable show by the confident Swedish challenger, who had the best of the early rounds and then hung on in the fourth and fifth. Custom Knicks Jerseys . Haas said he "felt a lot of pain" in his right shoulder when he slammed his racket to the ground in frustration after losing his serve at 3-3 in the first set. http://www.customknicksjersey.com/custom-charles-oakley-jersey-large-319w.html . The Barrie Colts defenceman, who impressed many with his play for Canada at the World Junior Hockey Championship, is the top-ranked skater in the February rankings. He has 19 goals and 24 assists for 43 points in 45 games with the Colts this season. Custom Mark Jackson Jersey . Louis. To which I would say two things: 1. Where there is smoke, there is or perhaps has been a little fire. Or, in other words, the two teams would appear to have at least spoken. And spoken is defined as one calling the other to inquire, no more, no less. Custom John Starks Jersey . The news was first reported on Gonzalezs Twitter account and confirmed by the Rockies. Gonzalez has a six-week window before position players have their first workout at spring training in Arizona.In October, espnWs weekly essay series will focus on heroes.Even as a high school athlete, my father, Hannibal Ware, was known for his long shooting range. He and his youngest brother, James, were a fearless duo on the court. In Lexington, Kentucky, the two lanky teenagers were known as the Ware boys.In 1968, my father played collegiate hoops at the University of the Virgin Islands. When I was a kid in grade school, he loved telling me stories about those days as a young hoops star. An opponent once yelled out, Dont let the Yankee shoot! according to my father.My father could tell a story better than anyone I have ever met. And to this day, I can still see his lean brown form standing in my grandmothers living room reenacting his winning jump shot.I remember watching him stand behind the 3-point line on our neighborhood basketball court. He made so many baskets in a row, it felt like magic. He loved perfecting his basketball skills.He never made it to the pros, but he imparted his basketball knowledge to my sister, Saneda, and me. Be aggressive when going inside, he told me. Dont play with fear.In high school, I wore a jersey emblazoned with his number -- 14. Maybe, I thought, it would bring me luck. Or maybe I was just proud to wear the same number as a superstar. I was a pretty good player. Like him, I had a consistent jump shot of my own and was one of the star players on the Bryan Station Middle Schools Bearcats. I am very proud that both my father and I were part of teams that won championships for Bryan Station.Even though I chose not to continue my basketball carRIO DE JANEIRO -- The spectators told Monica Puig they believed she could win Puerto Ricos first Olympic gold medal in any sport, providing a soundtrack of Si se puede! -- Yes, we can! -- during the Rio de Janeiro Games womens tennis final.She could. And she did.The unseeded and unheralded Puig capped her run of upsets with the biggest one of all Saturday, overpowering No. 2 Angelique Kerber of Germany 6-4, 4-6, 6-1 to become the Olympic champion.I did hear everybody saying, Yes, you can! Yes, you can! Yes, you can! I kept repeating it inside myself: `Yes, I can! Yes, I can! Yes, I can! Puig said. They really helped me believe and just showed me they were there for me, whether I was going to win or lose.Puigs father told her he believed, too, emailing the lyrics to the Puerto Rican national anthem a day earlier, just in case they would come in handy.And so, as the strains of that song echoed around an Olympic arena for the first time, and Puerto Ricos red-white-and-blue flag was raised to the highest level during a medal ceremony for the first time, Puig remembered what Dad had written.She recognized plenty of the words as fans belted them out.She just couldnt join in the joyous chorus, for a simple reason: too many tears.If I wouldve stopped crying, I probably would have started singing, Puig said afterward, smiling at the thought. But I couldnt. I was choking up the whole time.A 22-year-old born in San Juan, Puerto Rico, and now based in Florida, Puig is also the first woman representing her country to earn a medal of any color. When she finished a tense closing game -- saving six break points and converting her fourth match point -- she flung away her racket and went over to collect a flag she paraded across the court.I couldnt really believe what just happened, she said. It was such an amazing moment.Gigi Fernandez, who is Puerto Rican, won two Olympic womens doubles gold medals in tennis, but did so while representing the United States.Im particularly happy for Puerto Rico, Fernandez said in a telephone interview from Connecticut. All the hurt that people felt, all the anger people felt because I played for the U.S., I couldnt be happier.Puig had shown promise in the past, reaching the fourth round of Wimbledon as a teen in 2013, but she hasnt been that far again at any major.Also notable about Puig: She is the first unseeded woman to win the singles title since tennis returned to the Olympics in 1988. Ranked 34th, she added her surprising win over Kerber -- a German who won the Australian Open and was the Wimbledon runner-up this year -- to those she picked up in Brazil against two other past major title winners, Garbine Muguruza and Petra Kvitova.Earlier Saturday, Kvitova earned the bronze for the Czech Republic by beating Madison Keys of the United States 7-5, 2-6, 6-2.Kvitova called her medal one of the best things that happened in my career, definitely.Clearly, Puig felt the same.And she played attacking tennis full of powerful shots that seemed to rattle the counter-punching Kerber.Puig smacked a down-the-line backhand -- her 18th winner to that point, 10 more than Kerber -- for a break that gave her the opening set.During the ensuing changeover, Kerber was visited by a trainer, standing on the sideline while her lower back was massaged and manipulated, before heading to the locker room for a medical timeout. Kerber said later that bothered her from the outset, but it wasnt why she lost.She played her best tennis and one of her best matches in her career, for sure, Kerber said. I tried everything.---Follow Howard Fendrich on Twitter at http://twitter.com/HowardFendrich---AP Sports Writers Jon Krawczynski and Tim Reynolds contributed.Allan Houston Jersey Large . The judges scored it 48-47, 48-47, 49-46 for Jones (19-1). It was the champions closest call. Despite the loss, it was a remarkable show by the confident Swedish challenger, who had the best of the early rounds and then hung on in the fourth and fifth. Custom Knicks Jerseys . Haas said he "felt a lot of pain" in his right shoulder when he slammed his racket to the ground in frustration after losing his serve at 3-3 in the first set. http://www.customknicksjersey.com/custom-charles-oakley-jersey-large-319w.html . The Barrie Colts defenceman, who impressed many with his play for Canada at the World Junior Hockey Championship, is the top-ranked skater in the February rankings. He has 19 goals and 24 assists for 43 points in 45 games with the Colts this season. Custom Mark Jackson Jersey . Louis. To which I would say two things: 1. Where there is smoke, there is or perhaps has been a little fire. Or, in other words, the two teams would appear to have at least spoken. And spoken is defined as one calling the other to inquire, no more, no less. Custom John Starks Jersey . The news was first reported on Gonzalezs Twitter account and confirmed by the Rockies. Gonzalez has a six-week window before position players have their first workout at spring training in Arizona.In October, espnWs weekly essay series will focus on heroes.Even as a high school athlete, my father, Hannibal Ware, was known for his long shooting range. He and his youngest brother, James, were a fearless duo on the court. In Lexington, Kentucky, the two lanky teenagers were known as the Ware boys.In 1968, my father played collegiate hoops at the University of the Virgin Islands. When I was a kid in grade school, he loved telling me stories about those days as a young hoops star. An opponent once yelled out, Dont let the Yankee shoot! according to my father.My father could tell a story better than anyone I have ever met. And to this day, I can still see his lean brown form standing in my grandmothers living room reenacting his winning jump shot.I remember watching him stand behind the 3-point line on our neighborhood basketball court. He made so many baskets in a row, it felt like magic. He loved perfecting his basketball skills.He never made it to the pros, but he imparted his basketball knowledge to my sister, Saneda, and me. Be aggressive when going inside, he told me. Dont play with fear.In high school, I wore a jersey emblazoned with his number -- 14. Maybe, I thought, it would bring me luck. Or maybe I was just proud to wear the same number as a superstar. I was a pretty good player. Like him, I had a consistent jump shot of my own and was one of the star players on the Bryan Station Middle Schools Bearcats. I am very proud that both my father and I were part of teams that won championships for Bryan Station.Even though I chose not to continue my basketball career after middle school, I still feel proud knowing that I shared such an important interest with him. Basketball will always remind me of the special moments that connected us.But in my second year of college, I received a terrible shock. My fatheer was diagnosed with throat cancer.dddddddddddd What started off as a tiny bump on his neck gradually grew into a large tumor.My father was stubborn and unwilling to go for a checkup. My grandmother, sister and I watched as he slowly deteriorated. He began to forget little things. He was aware of his decline. I could see the fear on my fathers face at times. It was difficult watching my?hero meet his kryptonite. He spoke as if he would beat cancer, but deep down I believe he knew his fate.During the last stages of his illness, I dropped out of school. The stress of witnessing my fathers illness left me in a dark place. I remember lying to my uncle about still being enrolled at the University of Kentucky. I was too ashamed to say that I had failed.I watched my Dad -- my first love -- wither away in a nursing home. I saw the light fading from his large almond eyes and I knew that he was leaving me. He would stare off into space, listening to R&B. In his last days he seemed to find some peace listening to slow music. I can still see him breathing, gasping for air.My life will forever be changed by these events. I will always have the special moments we shared to bring me joy. His love for his children and basketball taught me compassion and commitment. Eventually, I found the strength to go back to school and graduate with a masters degree in social work.So Daddy, thank you for the wonderful moments we shared. Thank you for your kind heart and your dedication to others. Thank you for being my first love and my first encounter with a real-life superhero.Ebonie Ware is a writer based in Kentucky. She started the blog Ware Im Coming From.?Follow her on Instagram?for?inspirational nuggets.? ' ' ' eer after middle school, I still feel proud knowing that I shared such an important interest with him. Basketball will always remind me of the special moments that connected us.But in my second year of college, I received a terrible shock. My fatheer was diagnosed with throat cancer.dddddddddddd What started off as a tiny bump on his neck gradually grew into a large tumor.My father was stubborn and unwilling to go for a checkup. My grandmother, sister and I watched as he slowly deteriorated. He began to forget little things. He was aware of his decline. I could see the fear on my fathers face at times. It was difficult watching my?hero meet his kryptonite. He spoke as if he would beat cancer, but deep down I believe he knew his fate.During the last stages of his illness, I dropped out of school. The stress of witnessing my fathers illness left me in a dark place. I remember lying to my uncle about still being enrolled at the University of Kentucky. I was too ashamed to say that I had failed.I watched my Dad -- my first love -- wither away in a nursing home. I saw the light fading from his large almond eyes and I knew that he was leaving me. He would stare off into space, listening to R&B. In his last days he seemed to find some peace listening to slow music. I can still see him breathing, gasping for air.My life will forever be changed by these events. I will always have the special moments we shared to bring me joy. His love for his children and basketball taught me compassion and commitment. Eventually, I found the strength to go back to school and graduate with a masters degree in social work.So Daddy, thank you for the wonderful moments we shared. Thank you for your kind heart and your dedication to others. Thank you for being my first love and my first encounter with a real-life superhero.Ebonie Ware is a writer based in Kentucky. She started the blog Ware Im Coming From.?Follow her on Instagram?for?inspirational nuggets.? ' ' '