of Gary Anderson or Phil Taylor or Michael van Gerwen would have got

OTTAWA -- Hayley Wickenheiser doesnt put much stock in the flag-bearers curse. The womens hockey star, who will carry the Maple Leaf into the opening ceremonies of the Sochi Olympics, says the idea that she and her teammates could be under any more pressure is absurd. After all, they play a sport that many in Canada consider religion. So any sort of cosmic jinx pales in comparison to the weight of an entire countrys expectations for the womens team to win a fourth straight gold medal in Sochi. "I think theres just too much emphasis to put on that," Wickenheiser said Thursday via conference call from Austria. "The pressure that we feel is the pressure that always comes with playing hockey as a Canadian hockey player, whether youre male or female. "The country expects a gold medal. Whether I carry the flag or not, Im pretty sure our team doesnt feel any extra added incentive that theres more pressure to perform, because we already feel that already." Not all athletes see it that way. Diver Alexandre Despatie felt it would be a distraction and said hed decline any offer to carry the flag at the 2012 London Games. Kayaker Adam van Koeverden carried the flag at the 2008 Beijing Olympics and finished a disappointing eighth in the 1,000 metres -- although he did win a silver medal in the 500. Moguls skier Jean-Luc Brassard blamed his disappointing performance at the 1998 Nagano Olympics on being the flag-bearer a day earlier. Wickenheiser and her teammates hope the same thing doesnt happen to them. Hockey Canada says the women will march in the Feb. 7 opening ceremonies despite playing their first game the following night versus Switzerland. Brassard, the assistant chef de mission for the Sochi team, was on the panel that selected Wickenheiser along with chef de mission Steve Podborski, assistant chef France St. Louis and one athlete representative. Hockey Canada nominated her for the honour. "Throughout her successful career, this Canadian athlete has demonstrated true Canadian grit, patriotism and sportsmanship," said Podborski, adding that Wickenheiser will lead the Canadian team with "the utmost pride and class." Wickenheiser is embracing the opportunity to put her sport centre stage. "What I think it does is it shines a very positive light on the sport of womens hockey and just on our sport in general for the world to see," said the 35-year-old forward. "Thats a great responsibility and expectation that every nation in the world has to carry in and I think should really embrace." The Shaunavon, Sask., native, who is at a pre-Olympic camp in Austria and wasnt able to attend the formal announcement Thursday on Parliament Hill, will be making her fifth Winter Olympic appearance. But for the first time since 2006, she wont be Canadas captain. Caroline Ouellette has been handed that job, while Wickenheiser will be an alternate. But she remains Canadas biggest womens hockey star and a pioneer of the game. She and teammate Jayna Hefford will be the only players in the 2014 womens hockey tournament who have played in every Olympic Games since female hockey made its debut in 1998. Her stewardship extends beyond hockey as a spokesperson for Right To Play, Clean Air Champions, KidsSport, Spread The Net, Plan Canadas Because I Am A Girl and Classroom Champions. Wickenheiser read the athletes oath in the opening ceremonies at the 2010 Winter Games in Vancouver and she is running for election to the International Olympic Committees athletes commission in Sochi. Veteran speedskater Clara Hughes carried the flag at the 2010 Vancouver Olympics while womens hockey player Danielle Goyette was the flag-bearer at the 2006 Games in Turin. "I remember we were joking, like Dont trip and fall when you come in," Wickenheiser said of her conversation with Goyette before the opening ceremonies eight years ago. "Thats sort of the same thing we were talking about today. Geez, Id better watch some YouTube videos and figure out how the athletes have done this before." --- Fake Basketball Jerseys Free Shipping . Others describe it as taking the parrot for a walk. Cyber Monday Basketball Jerseys .Tzavelas opened the scoring in the 11th and Pereyra added another in the 51st. Emmanuel Kone pulled one back in the 80th and Levadiakos missed several chances to level in the last 10 minutes. https://www.fakebasketballjerseys.com/ . Parmelee hit a game-ending shot in the ninth inning and the Minnesota Twins overcame David Ortizs big night to beat the Boston Red Sox 8-6 on Tuesday. Basketball Jerseys China . -- Chris Crawford hit a 3-pointer with 1:36 left to put Memphis ahead to stay, and the 21st-ranked Tigers beat seventh-ranked Louisville 72-66 Saturday, sweeping the season series from the Cardinals. Wholesale Basketball Jerseys .The Ottawa Senators winger was relegated to a corner seat in the locker-room to allow Daniel Alfredsson to return to his regular stall one last time. SONOMA, Calif. -- Tony Stewart was running lap times about a second faster than expected at Indianapolis Motor Speedway when a blown tire caused him to wreck this week in a Goodyear test. Goodyear officials said Stewarts accident 17 laps into Tuesdays 20-lap run was the only incident of the two-day test. The three-time NASCAR champion wasnt injured. "Our test speeds were extremely fast at Indianapolis," Greg Stucker, Goodyears director of racing, said in a statement Friday. "Tony was approaching the end of a very strong 20-lap run, with his lap times as much as a second faster than what has become the norm at Indianapolis at that point of a run. "It appears that increased, sustained speed over that run generated a significant amount of heat, which eventually caused the right-front to go down." Stewart wasnt upset with Goodyear over the incident, which he said "destroyed the car, so it was a good hit. "I am not really sure what the cause of it was, but thats part of tire testing," Stewart said. "Thats why you go to the test. Im sure theyll learn something from it and well go on." Joey Logano was one of six drivers at the test and said Stewart easily had the fastest car at Indy. Also at the test were Greg Biffle, Clint Bowyer, Kyle Busch and Ryan Newman, the defending race winner. Stewart, an Indiana native, has two BBrickyard victories and puts a huge emphasis on the July race.dddddddddddd Following Stewarts tire failure, Logano said Goodyear made adjustments "to figure out a way to knock some speed out of these race cars." Teams were given a different left side tire to use and will wait to see what Goodyear decides to bring for the race. "I know when we left they were going to go back and discuss where they wanted to be, but I think theyre going in the right direction on making sure they have the security in the tire, making sure its safe," Logano said. "Its definitely a very big challenge when you come to a race track and you go faster and youre already on edge. Youve got to come back with something thats even more durable and thats hard." Indianapolis has been a difficult track for Goodyear, and the tire brought to the 2008 race was not durable enough to make it more than a dozen or so laps. NASCAR was forced to call a caution roughly every 10 laps to force teams to change tires. "The thing about Indianapolis is the tough conditions the cars and the tires have to endure," Stucker said. "The surface is very abrasive, the long straightaways and short chutes are fast, cornering is tough with very little banking. Combine that with this new car package, and youve got conditions that put a lot of stress on the tires." 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