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NEW ORLEANS (AP) -- Former NFL star Darren Sharper has been sentenced to 18 years and four months in prison in a case where he was accused of drugging and raping as many as 16 women in four states.U.S. District Judge Jane Triche Milazzo sentenced Sharper on Thursday, telling him she couldn't understand how he did what he did, since he was college educated and obviously had grown up "in one of the most loving households." "We can never ignore the damage you inflicted on those women and society at large," she said.Sharper had pleaded guilty in federal court in...

U.S. Olympic gymnast and gold medalist Simone Biles says when she travels, she sometimes takes with her a statue of St. Sebastian, the patron saint of athletes, and she also carries a rosary her mother gave her. \ Biles, who won gold in the women’s gymnastics all-around competition Aug. 11, an individual gold in the vault Aug. 14, and who helped lead the U.S. women to a team gold Aug. 9, with two other events still to go, made those comments to Us Weekly. “My mom, Nellie, got me a rosary at church. I don’t use it to pray before...

How Ryan Lochte turned a drunken, frat-boy night into an international mess Yeah, it’s come to this: The story of the Olympics, a likely fake claim of robbery at the end of a drunken night of debauchery turned into global story courtesy of a publicity-mad swimmer-turned-reality-TV-star who, unlike his three buddies – teammates Jimmy Feigen, Jack Conger and Gunnar Bentz – is home safe in the United States. This is likely bad news for Ryan Lochte, who appears to have found his three compatriots throwing him under the bus to authorities. At least two of the swimmers are at the...

US swimmers Jack Conger and Gunnar Bentz have told police that they fabricated claims that they and their Olympic teammate Ryan Lochte were robbed at a gas station on Sunday. The sudden admission came as video was released in which the men can be seen running to and from the bathroom, spending over 10 minutes at the gas station a little after 6am in the morning. Sources have confirmed to DailyMail.com that Lochte and the group destroyed a gas station door and refused to pay for the damage until a security guard demanded they hand over money.

A television sports presenter is in a coma with malaria in a Rio hospital following a 3,000-mile charity cycle ride. She was admitted to hospital the day after the Olympics opening ceremony after her condition deteriorated. A statement on her Twitter feed two days later said her condition had "since been diagnosed as a severe complication caused by a bacterial infection".

Brazilian police say Ryan Lochte and three other swimmers who claimed they were robbed had in fact destroyed a gas station toilet and refused to pay for the damage until a security guard waved a gun at them, DailyMail.com can disclose. A source with knowledge of the investigation said the four handed over money after the guard at the gas station insisted they pay. The version of events emerged as police in Rio prepared to quiz the taxi driver who picked up the four after they left a nightclub and resume questioning the three swimmers still in Brazil.

A Team GB athlete has been robbed at gunpoint in Rio while on a night out and officials could impose an outright ban on partying in the city 'after dark', it was revealed today. The incident, which happened in the early hours of Tuesday morning, has led to a warning that it is 'not worth the risk' to leave the athletes village, or wander around in their Team GB branded kit. The athlete, who has not yet been named, is believed to be in shock but was uninjured after being robbed by the gunman.

RIO DE JANEIRO — They couldn’t know the result immediately, not in a race decided by a fraction of a drum beat, so the three Americans stood near each other, waiting. There was some measure of celebration and certainty only for Brianna Rollins. Yet even she stared up at the giant scoreboard above one end of Olympic Stadium, wondering.“I knew that I got the gold,” Rollins said. “But I just wanted to make sure that my other teammates medaled as well.”It took Rollins just 12.48 seconds to cross the finish line in the women’s 100-meter hurdles Wednesday night. The next...

And order has been made to seize American swimmer Ryan Lochte's passport by Brazilian authorities after claims he 'lied about being robbed.' Earlier police had further questions for the swimmer - a 12-time Olympic medallist - about the supposed robbery and found 'little evidence' that it had taken place. Lochte claims that he and three of his team-mates were robbed at gunpoint in a taxi, but police say the swimmers were unable to provide key details in police interviews. Lochte’s attorney, Jeff Ostrow, said there was no question the robbery happened and that the swimmer had 24-hour security hired after...

For Caitlyn Jenner, there are places to be and people to speak with. There are camera crews and magazine covers, finely crafted documentaries and the raw urgency of reality TV. There are ex-spouses with stories to share and 10 children, many of them living their own lives, out loud and then some. There are more transgender women getting to tell their stories about their life journeys. And yet, almost a year-and-a-half since going public with her gender transition, Jenner says her life is much less complicated than it has ever been. "I don't have any more lies," she told ESPN....

Shaunae Miller dived across the finish line to deny Allyson Felix a fifth Olympic gold Monday, in a thrilling women's 400-meter final at Rio 2016. Bahamas-born Miller led going into the final straight and plunged over the line to beat Felix, the world champion, into second place, ahead of Jamaica's Shericka Jackson in third.

a golden oldie of Usain Bolt from 2012

Four years ago, Russia's Ilya Zakharov won gold in the men's 3m springboard. He looked fantastic back then. Fast-forward to 2016, with Zakharov competing in the semifinal for the same event. This time, everything fell apart for him. His knees buckled mid-air, causing him to belly flop into the water. He scored zero points, which put a dent into his total score -- 555.90 back in 2012, but 345.60 in Rio -- and placed him in last place. The fact that he even made it to the semis is pretty noteworthy; during the preliminary round, Zakharov hit the board on...

Two years after being fired as the men’s basketball coach at Oregon State, Craig Robinson — Michelle Obama’s brother — has scored his first NBA gig with a division rival of his Bulls-loving brother-in-law.The Milwaukee Bucks announced Monday that Robinson, who was working as a basketball analyst for ESPN, will serve in a mentoring role as the team’s VP of player and organizational development. According to a team release, Robinson’s responsibilities will include overseeing “the development and implementation of programs that support the professional and personal growth of players through education, mentorship, business and community efforts.”

NFL commissioner Roger Goodell is taking the power granted to him under article 46 of the collective bargaining agreement (CBA) and shoving it down the players’ throats. Goodell ruined the career of Saints DT Anthony Hargrove because the NFL failed to admit that they were wrong during BountyGate. Patriots QB Tom Brady will serve a four-game suspension this season because Goodell had to save face with the owners after spending millions on a tainted investigation. Now Goodell is trying to suspend the players named in the Al Jazeera America documentary on steroid use for an indefinite period of time.

With only six days remaining in the Rio Olympic Games, India's chances of winning a medal look bleak.For the last 10 days, India has waited for its first medal at the Rio 2016 Olympics but its athletes have failed to finish on the podium. Many have come agonisingly close to winning one and many have had shock exits from early stages. With each passing day, the news is become more depressing. India now has only six day left to win that elusive medal from these Games, otherwise, for the first time since 1992, it will return medal-less. The high of...

High schooler Sydney McLaughlin makes her Olympic debut Sydney McLaughlin, who just celebrated her 17th birthday eight days ago, made her Olympic debut, finishing fifth in her heat of the 400m hurdles. McLaughlin made it through to the semifinals on time.

I know we haven't much discussed the Olympic races. But I wanted to say that someone diving over the finish line in a track race doesn't seem like it should be a winning play. Shouldn't it be the required that you end the race, standing??

Canada’s Baffin Island is home to the highest concentration of unclimbed cliff faces on Earth. Naturally, the remote island has become a mecca for elite mountain climbers, known as alpinists. The pilgrimage is often made from Yosemite National Park in the United States, since the two attract a similar cadre of adventurers looking for a challenge. From the Yosemite mountaineering community, alpinists Cheyne Lempe and Dave Allfrey made one particular mountain the target of their climbing crosshairs: the Great Pillar. Even for a pair who are part of a young generation rising through the ranks quickly, a climb like the...

http://www.christianpost.com/news/olympic-swimming-star-michael-phelps-says-rick-warrens-purpose-driven-life-saved-him-from-suicide-167539/ American swimmer Michael Phelps, the most decorated Olympian of all time, revealed that he suffered a crisis of identity two years ago, which led him to consider ending his life, but it was Saddleback Church Pastor Rick Warren's book The Purpose Driven Life that gave him hope. ESPN reported that Phelps was "struggling to figure out who he was outside the pool" in 2014, which led him to heavy drinking and wondering whether his life was worth living. "I thought the world would just be better off without me," Phelps admitted. "I figured that was the best thing to...