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SPORTS Saturday, July 25, 2015 Soccer Disappointed U.S. faces Panama for third place By RACHEL COHEN Associated Press CHESTER, Pa. — Asked what winning the third-place game at the CONCACAF Gold Cup would mean, U.S. captain Michael Bradley paused for a moment, then said softly, “Not much.” 7KHPLG¿HOGHUTXLFNO\DGGHGWKDW pride and competitiveness would keep the Americans Gold Cup playing hard against a short-handed 3DQDPD VTXDG D promise repeated States often by his team- United vs. mates and coach Jurgen Klinsmann on Friday. Once the U.S. was stunned Panama by Jamaica in the • Saturday VHPL¿QDOV FXWWLQJ 1 p.m. short its bid to repeat • • TV: FS1 as Gold Cup cham- pion, Saturday’s third-place match was left to build momentum and try out different lineups. In many ways, those are always objectives for Klinsmann as he seeks WRGHYHORSDVTXDGWKDWFDQFRQWHQG against the world’s best. For a coach in his position, the trick is to win enough in the short term to stick around to possibly see through those long-term results. “We want to continue the process toward 2018,” he said about the next World Cup. “This is Year 1 after the World Cup in Brazil, a year of rebuilding the pieces and bringing in young, new players, trying a lot of things out.” .OLQVPDQQ VSHFL¿FDOO\ GHIHQGHG two young players, center backs John Brooks and Ventura Alvarado. The 22-year-olds have been shaky at times in the Gold Cup, and they were unable to prevent Jamaica’s Darren 0DWWRFNV IURP KHDGLQJ LQ WKH ¿UVW goal of Wednesday’s 2-1 loss on a throw-in. “They have to go through these pains,” Klinsmann said, adding, “We’re going to do a step back here and there.” He noted Brooks and Alvarado had made for a winning pairing in their brief tenure together before the semi- ¿QDO GHIHDW LQFOXGLQJ EUHDNWKURXJK victories in June exhibitions against world champion Germany and the Netherlands, another European power. “Enormous, enormous talent” is how he described the two. “We’re going to keep on developing young players, keep looking into the future,” Klinsmann said. “Two, three years down the road — what does this team look like? ... You have to keep developing a team that you have in mind toward 2018 that’s hopefully better than you did in Brazil.” Panama, reeling from the chaotic ¿QLVKWRLWVVHPL¿QDOORVVWR0H[LFR ZLOOEHZLWKRXW¿YHSOD\HUVEHFDXVH of suspension or injury. On the verge of victory Wednesday, the Panamanians, playing with 10 men, were called for a disputed hand ball. Mexico tied the game on the penalty kick and went on to win 2-1 after another penalty in extra time. 0LG¿HOGHUV 9DOHQWLQ 3LPHQWHO and Gabriel Gomez and forward Blas Perez are hurt, while forward Luis Tejada and goalkeeper Jaime Penedo were each suspended two games by CONCACAF on Friday. Penedo was disciplined for pushing the assistant referee after Wednesday’s match. Tejada received a red card, then was punished additionally for not leaving WKH¿HOG³LQDWLPHO\PDQQHU´ Panama’s federation also was ¿QHGDQXQGLVFORVHGDPRXQW In the Panamanians’ latest criticism of CONCACAF, the feder- ation’s president, Pedro Chaluja, told reporters earlier Friday that “we feel WKDWWKDWJDPHZDV¿[HG´ “There are third parties with inter- ests, and we know that it can’t be possible that the best-ranked referee in CONCACAF has such a poor and suspicious performance in a game,” he said. Coach Hernan Gomez said Chalu- ja’s reaction was “human nature” but wouldn’t add to the criticism, saying “rules are rules.” CONCACAF FRQ¿UPHG )ULGD\ LW ZRXOG UHYLHZ UHTXHVWV IURP 3DQDPD DQG &RVWD Rica — which lost to Mexico on a GLVSXWHGFDOOLQWKHTXDUWHU¿QDOV Gomez initially said that six players were at risk of missing World &XS TXDOL¿HUV EHFDXVH RI \HOORZ card accumulation, but CONCACAF RI¿FLDOV VDLG \HOORZ FDUGV LQ WKH *ROG&XSZRXOGQ¶WDIIHFWTXDOLI\LQJ Panama played some kickball during Friday’s practice, seeking to add a lighthearted note to a trying week. Klinsmann plans to shake up his lineup against Panama, but didn’t RIIHUDQ\VSHFL¿FVRWKHUWKDQWRVD\ DaMarcus Beasley would play in the second half. East Oregonian Page 3B Tour de France Froome upset with stage winner Nibali By JOHN LEICESTER Associated Press LA TOUSSUIRE, France — Chris Froome always expected his rivals to throw everything at him and his Tour de France race lead. He just didn’t expect that would happen when he was stopped by the side of the road. Showing bristle beneath his mild manners, the British rider angrily tore into Vincenzo Nibali, calling him “unsportsmanlike,” after the defending champion accelerated DZD\ ZKLOH )URRPH ZDV ¿[LQJ D stuck wheel on the toughest Alpine climb on Friday. Nibali, who went on to win Stage 19, said: “He was very angry but that’s his problem.” Froome said a stone or piece of asphalt jammed between his brake and rear wheel on the Col de la Croix de Fer climb, forcing him to pull up momentarily to unjam it. While Froome stopped, Nibali rode away. 7KRVHZHUHQ¶WWKHRQO\¿UHZRUNV on the exhausting Alpine stage that moved Froome one step closer to a second Tour victory. 2Q WKH VWDJH¶V ¿QDO FOLPE to the La Toussuire ski station, Nairo Quintana launched his most sustained and telling attack against the 2013 champion, and this time got the better of him. 6KRZLQJ IRU WKH ¿UVW WLPH DW this Tour that he’s not untouchable, Froome chose not to stay with the Colombian, his closest rival, as he rode away, eating into the Team Sky rider’s overall race lead. Froome said he preferred to save energy for Saturday’s last Alpine stage, which features two very hard climbs. So rather than hunt down the Movistar rider, Froome rode steadily, telling himself: “‘I don’t need to panic but I do need to keep something in reserve.”’ He didn’t hold back on Nibali. $WWKH¿QLVK³,WROGKLPH[DFWO\ Wout Poels of the Neth- erlands, left, Britain’s Chris Froome, wearing the overall leader’s yellow jersey, and Robert Gesink of the Netherlands, front right, climb during the nineteenth stage of the Tour de France cycling race with start in Saint-Jean- de-Maurienne and finish in La Toussuire, France, Friday. AP Photo/Laurent Cipriani what I thought of him,” Froome said. There was other unpleasantness out on the road. TV images of the ¿QDOFOLPEDSSHDUHGWRVKRZDVSHF- tator spitting toward the race leader as he sped past. Froome said he didn’t see the man but called his behavior “appalling.” Earlier in the Tour, Froome said another spectator threw a cup of urine at him and another punched his teammate Richie Porte. “We are human beings,” he said. “You can’t come to a bike race to spit at people, or to punch them or to throw urine at them.” Froome’s reduced lead of 2 minutes, 38 seconds over Quintana, down from 3:10 at the start, should still be enough to get the British rider through the last competitive GD\LQWKH$OSVEHIRUHWKH¿QDOVWDJH to Paris on Sunday, which is largely ceremonial and won’t change the overall podium standings. Still, the smaller cushion will force Froome to watch Quintana very carefully and means he cannot afford a bad Saturday on the two “Hors Categorie” climbs, meaning they’re so tough they defy catego- rization. The last of those, up 21 hairpin bends to the Alpe d’Huez ski station, is cycling’s most iconic ascent and will be lined with screaming spec- tators. ³,W¶VWKH¿QDOWHVW´VDLG)URRPH “I’m in a great position,” he added. “I can’t wait to get up there.” Nibali’s win rescued what has otherwise been a disappointing Tour for him. The Italian said he didn’t see that Froome had pulled up, even though television images appeared to show him looking back over his left shoulder at the Team Sky rider before accelerating away. Nibali said he was speaking to a teammate, not looking back at Froome, and that he always had planned to attack on that climb. The manager of his Astana team, Alexandre Vinokourov, defended him, saying: “Vincenzo doesn’t have eyes in the back of his head.” Froome said: “It seemed to me that Nibali had the whole climb to attack but he chose the moment that I had a mechanical (problem) to make his move.” “That, in my opinion, is very unsportsmanlike,” he added. “It’s not in the spirit of the Tour de France.” Nibali said he was “very disap- pointed” at the way Froome spoke WR KLP DW WKH ¿QLVK ZLWK ODQJXDJH “too hard and too unjust to be repeated.” He added that as far as he is concerned, no rule says other riders must wait when a race leader has an accident. $IWHU ¿[LQJ KLV ELNH )URRPH rode furiously to catch back up with other podium contenders. But Nibali was gone, chasing French rider Pierre Rolland, who summited WKH&URL[GH)HUSDVV¿UVW Riding with the No. 1 bib as defending champion, Nibali has been crushed by Froome at this Tour. He started the day in seventh place, 8:04 behind. Hitting 70 kph (45 mph) on the Croix de Fer descent and shaving the edges of bends, Nibali caught Rolland and overtook him on the ¿QDOFOLPEWR/D7RXVVXLUH WNBA &DWFKLQJVVXLWLQJXSIRURQH¿QDO$OO6WDU*DPH By DOUG FEINBERG Associated Press ‘Showtime’ Shoni returns for encore By BRIAN KOTLOFF a CTUIR member and former UNCASVILLE, Conn. — WNBA Media Hermiston High School standout. Tamika Catchings didn’t want to The people’s choice garnered get sentimental thinking about her The way Shoni Schimmel sees 8,881 votes, trailing only leading ¿QDO$OO6WDU*DPH it, if the fans who vote want to vote-getter Elena Delle Donne in Catchings, who announced last the East backcourt. see her in the All-Star IDOO WKDW ZRXOG EH KHU ¿QDO Game, the least she can “It’s awesome. You season, will be playing in a record just kind of run with it do is put on a show. 10th game Saturday. The WNBA and embrace it. People The Atlanta Dream usually skips the All-Star Game like you because of guard, who lit up during Olympic years. who you are. That’s the All-Star stage in “I’m excited,” Catchings said. something that I don’t Phoenix with a record “I think everybody thought I’d be take for granted.” 29 points, is back as a sad about this coming to the end, Schimmel, who starter for the Eastern the last this, the last that. I’m really earned the nickname Conference despite not. It’s time. The young players “Showtime” while experiencing a sopho- are playing so well.” playing at Louisville, more slump, averaging Schimmel said she’s been thinking The WNBA’s future is bright with 5.0 points in 15.1 about how to top last year, but young stars Brittney Griner, Maya minutes off the bench. Moore and Elena Delle Donne, who She understands as much “having fun is the main goal.” LV SOD\LQJ LQ KHU ¿UVW JDPH DIWHU as anybody why she is here. WHEN: Saturday, 12:30 p.m. leading the fan voting this season. “It shows how much my fan TV: ABC Delle Donne was supposed to play support means,” said Schimmel, in the last two All-Star contests but missed them because of injuries. “They call me old. I’m not old, anything special was planned for Catchings is one of the few just wiser than you guys,” Catch- Catchings, but did say that everyone All-Star veterans playing in the ings joked. was aware of the situation. game Saturday, which features 10 Eastern Conference coach “We all know what she’s ¿UVWWLPHSDUWLFLSDQWV 3RNH\ &KDWPDQ ZDV TXLHW RQ LI brought to the game and what she’s meant to the WNBA over the years,” Chatman said. It almost would have been ¿WWLQJLIODVW\HDU¶V$OO6WDU*DPH KDG EHHQ &DWFKLQJV¶ ¿QDOH 7KH Indiana Fever forward hit the game-winning layup in overtime to lift the East to a thrilling 125-124 victory over the West. It’s going to be tough to top that. “That was some game last year,” Chicago guard Cappie Pondexter said. “We all know in the locker room that it’s Catch’s last one and ZHGH¿QLWHO\GRQ¶WZDQWKHUWRJR out with a loss.” Moore knows that with Catchings leaving next year, other players are going to need to step up on and off the court. “She’s been so much a part of what I’ve known as the WNBA,” Moore said. “In high school, I was watching her compete and being compared to her, wearing knee pads like her. She’s somebody who embodies so many things that you want the next generation to look like. The responsibility she takes off the court. She brings so much heart to the WNBA.” NASCAR Drivers still adjusting to new rules package at Brickyard By JENNA FRYER Associated Press INDIANAPOLIS — A new rules package for Indianapolis Motor Speedway provided visibility issues for drivers. More troubling for NASCAR, though, is that after QHDUO\¿YHKRXUVRISUDFWLFH)ULGD\ there was little indication the changes will produce better racing. NASCAR, in its effort to improve the on-track product, is XVLQJ IRXU WUDFNVSHFL¿F DHURG\- namic packages to see what could EHDEHWWHU¿WIRUWKHKHDY\VWRFN cars. The package used two weeks ago at Kentucky was well-received by the drivers, but NASCAR switched to a high-drag setup for Indianapolis, where passing has DOZD\VEHHQGLI¿FXOW “Hey man, this is a big event for us, it’s crucial that this event goes down as a good race every time we are here,” Clint Bowyer said. “Settling for second-best is not an option. I’m proud that NASCAR realizes that and pushes hard to WU\WR¿JXUHRXWVRPHWKLQJWKDWLV better than what we’ve had in the past when we come to such an important venue.” There were mixed opinions after three long practice sessions Friday, and many drivers said anytime they got too close to another car, the turbulence was so rough, they had to back off to avoid crashing. AP Photo/Michael Conroy Sprint Cup Series driver Kevin Harvick (4) drives through the first turn during practice for the NASCAR Brickyard 400 auto race at In- dianapolis Motor Speedway in Indianapolis, Friday, July 24, 2015. “Passing will be tough to say the least, but we’re trying something new,” Denny Hamlin said. “I can’t fault (NASCAR) for trying — they tried what we wanted to try (at Kentucky) and I thought we had a pretty successful race. Now we’re trying something different. We’ll see if it’s better or not.” Last year’s Brickyard 400, ZRQ IRU D UHFRUG ¿IWK WLPH E\ Jeff Gordon, featured just 15 lead FKDQJHVDWWKHVWDUW¿QLVKOLQH²D number that NASCAR would like WRVHHJRXS7KH¿YH\HDUDYHUDJH IRUJUHHQÀDJSDVVHVIRUWKHOHDGLV 16, and the margin of victory is a whopping 2.371 seconds. With drivers feeling as if they had to back off whenever they closed in on another car, it’s not clear if those statistics will be improved Sunday. Carl Edwards said “I couldn’t get closer than 15 car lengths,” to another car before he had to back off. But Jamie McMurray, winner of the 2010 Brickyard, said it’s too early to judge the package. “We haven’t had a restart, and to me, the restart is where this package is going to play a bigger role than in practice,” McMurray said. “The thing with practice is that as you start to catch the car in front of you, typically their car is not very good. So, when you see somebody catching you fairly TXLFN\RXSXOOLQVR\RXFDQZRUN on it and get your car better.” Part of the high-drag aero package includes a 9-inch spoiler with a 1-inch wicker bill. Although part of the spoiler is clear and gives drivers a gap, most seemed to think it wasn’t big enough to see through from the rearview mirror. “It’s challenging to see,” Joey Logano said. “I think I can see DERXW ¿YH FDU OHQJWKV EHKLQG PH and any cars that are further back than that I can’t see. “That isn’t the end of the world. If WKH\¶UH¿YHFDUOHQJWKVEDFN\RX¶UH probably not too worried about it anyway. When they get close is when you want to see it, but it is nice sometimes because we don’t know. We’ll see with this whole drafting package down the straightaway when that run is going to start.” Hamlin said he’d have preferred a clear wicker, but was surprised at how much he was able to see. But that wasn’t even Hamlin’s biggest issue Friday. His vision out the front wind- shield was severely hampered during practice when his hood ÀHZRSHQ7KHPLVKDSDSSDUHQWO\ occurred because his team failed to tighten the hood pins before the second practice.
