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SPORTS FRIDAY, AUGUST 12, 2016 1B FOLLOW US ON TWITTER @EOSPORTS Olympics HERMISTON Knowles hoping for boost Steer wrestler Trevor Knowles, of Mount Vernon, com- pletes his run in 4.8 seconds Thurs- day at the Farm City Rodeo in Herm- iston to win the event. AP Photo/Martin Meissner United States’ Michael Phelps swims during a men’s 200-meter individual medley semifi nal in the swim- ming competitions at the 2016 Summer Olympics, Phelps swims to 22nd gold Staff photo by Kathy Aney By PAUL NEWBERRY Associated Press Oregon steer wrestler trying to extend fi nals streak By MATT ENTRUP East Oregonian Oregon steer wrestler Trevor Knowles has made the Wrangler National Finals every year since 2004, and entered the rodeo his uncle helped found 28 years ago feeling the pressure of keeping that streak going. “It’s been a rough year for me,” said the Mount Vernon cowboy of a season that has him at No. 21 in the world standings. “Long story short my dad’s health wasn’t real good this spring. I came home for quite a while, and then he started doing a little better and I decided I could go compete again. So I’ve been trying to make a comeback here since June.” After an initial hot streak that saw him win the aggregate in Sisters and place second in Reno, Nevada, things have cooled considerably, and Knowles needs to make up about $7,000 to get into the running for the world fi nals. “It always turns, and I’m getting impatient,” he said. “You know, it’s August and I’d like to have some opportunities to fi ll my pockets in the next 60 days.” He should get a bit of that in Hermiston after a 4.8 in the second performance of the Farm-City Pro Rodeo on Thursday moved him into second place in Round 2. He had a 7.5 in the afternoon’s slack to give him 12.3 on two for sixth in the aggregate. “If it holds up it’s a check, and when you’re behind people think you have to win fi rst. You just need to win a lot of checks and they all add up,” Knowles said. “I’m entered everywhere and I’m just hoping to get some momentum here, sooner than later. I’m ready for it, it’s just part of the game — the frus- trating part of it.” Clayton Hass’ 10.3 on two from Wednesday held up for the aggregate lead, and Knowles won’t be surprised if it makes it through the next two days as See FARM-CITY/2B Staff photo by Kathy Aney Brady Nicholes rides to victory in the saddle bronc event Thursday at the Farm City Rodeo with a score of score of 81 points. Olympics Biles soars for gold, Raisman takes silver United States’ Simone Biles, left, and Aly Raisman celebrate after winning gold and silver respectively for the wom- en’s individual all-around fi nal in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Thursday, Aug. 11, 2016. United States continues dominance in individual women’s all-around By WILL GRAVES Associated Press RIO DE JANEIRO — Forget the pressure. Forget the hype. Simone Biles is immune to all of it. Dynamic on vault. Effortless on beam. Jaw-dropping on fl oor. Brilliant all over. And now, fi nally, an Olympic champion. The 19-year-old American soared to the all-around title on Thursday, putting the gap between herself and the rest of the world on full display under the Olympic spotlight. Her total of 62.198 was well clear of silver medalist and “Final Five” teammate Aly Raisman and Russian bronze medalist Aliya Mustafi na. RIO DE JANEIRO — Michael Phelps waggled four fi ngers, recognizing another historic achieve- ment. Now, he’s the fi rst swimmer ever to win the same event at four straight Olympics. Ryan Lochte was left in his wake every time. In what was billed as the fi nal showdown between two of America’s greatest swimmers, Phelps blew away Lochte — and everyone else — to win his fourth gold medal of the Rio Olympics and 22nd overall with a victory in the 200-meter individual medley Thursday night. Phelps fi nished a full body-length ahead of the fi eld with total dominance on the breaststroke and freestyle legs, fi nishing in 1 minute, 54.66 seconds. Lochte didn’t even make it to the podium this time, after taking two silvers and a bronze behind Phelps at the last three Olympics in this event. Leading at the midway point, Lochte faded to fi fth. Japan’s Kosuke Hagino took the silver, while China’s Wang Shun claimed the bronze. But Phelps was in a league of his own. As usual. He’s got one more individual event at what he insists will really be his fi nal Olympics — remember, he already retired once — and will be looking to add a fourth straight gold in the 100 butterfl y to his stag- gering resume. Then, he’ll close out these Olympics in the 4x100 medley relay. There seems to be little doubt he’ll go six-for-six. Led by Phelps, it was quite a night for the powerful American team, which picked up two more golds when Ryan Murphy completed a sweep of the men’s backstroke events in the 200 and Simone Manuel tied 16-year-old Canadian for the top spot in the 100 freestyle, stunning world-re- cord holder Cate Campbell of Australia. With the win, Manuel became the fi rst African-American woman to win gold in swimming. The Olympics came to an end for another U.S. back- stroke champion. Missy Franklin fi nished 14th in the semifi nals of the women’s 200 back — beating out only two other swimmers. It was a far cry from the London Games, where “Missy The Missile” became only the second U.S. woman to take four gold medals in a single Olympics. This time, she was limited to a single gold, which came for swimming the prelimi- naries of the 4x200 freestyle relay. Franklin failed to even make it to the fi nal of her two individual events. In the only non-American victory of the night, Rie Kaneto of Japan pulled away from Yulia Efi mova to take gold in the women’s 200 breaststroke. AP Photo/Dmitri Lovetsky Biles became the fourth straight American woman to win the all-around title and fi fth overall while cementing her reputation as the best of her gener- ation and perhaps ever. She burst into tears when her fi nal total was posted and her long journey to this moment ended. Biles has spent the last three years dominating her sport, winning 15 world championship medals — including 10 gold — with routines so astonishing in their mix of ambition and precision that 1984 Olympic champion Mary Lou Retton called her “the greatest gymnast I’ve ever seen.” One last test awaited in Brazil, a See GYMNASTICS/2B Sports shorts Roy abruptly quits as Avalanche head coach, vice president (AP) — Patrick Roy has stepped down as coach and vice president of hockey operations for the Colorado Avalanche. Roy made the announcement FACES Thursday through a public relations agency, two months before the start of the NHL regular season. Roy cited his vision and the organization’s vision not being aligned and his lack of say in team decisions as reasons for stepping Roy down. Colorado went 130-92-24 in three seasons under Roy, who won the Jack Adams Award as coach of the year in 2013-14. In his playing days, Roy won four Cups, two with the Montreal Canadiens and then two with the Avalanche, three Vezina Trophies as the league’s top goaltender. “I”m just so blessed to have a gold medal. This medal is not just for me. It’s for a whole bunch of people who came before me and have been an inspiration ... It’s for all the people after me who believe they can’t do it.“ — Simone Manuel United States swimmer talking with NBC after the 20-year-old won the gold medal in the 100-meter freestyle, becoming the fi rst African-American woman to win an individual Olympic swim medal. EOU spikers top preseason poll LA GRANDE — For the second-straight season, the EOU volleyball team claimed the top spot in the Cascade Collegiate Conference (CCC) Coaches’ Preseason Poll. With 117 points and nine fi rst-place votes, the Mountaineers fi nished well ahead of the pack. College of Idaho (103) edged Southern Oregon (102) for the second slot, while Northwest (93) and Corban (77) rounded out the top fi ve. The Mountaineers won their fi rst outright regular season CCC title in 2015 and made it to the CCC Championship before falling to College of Idaho. EOU opens the 2016 season on Aug. 18 against Westmont at the Biola Red Lion Summer Slam in La Mirada, California. THIS DATE IN SPORTS 1994 — Major league baseball players strike in the sport’s eighth work stoppage since 1972. 2008 — Michael Phelps wins the 200-meter freestyle for his third gold medal at the Beijing Games. It’s his ninth career gold which ties Mark Spitz, Carl Lewis, Soviet gymnast Larysa Latynina and Finnish runner Paavo Nurmi for the most ever. 2011 — Tiger Woods misses the cut at the PGA Championship. With a 3-over 73, Woods fi nishes out of the top 100 for the fi rst time ever in a major. Contact us at 541-966-0838 or sports@eastoregonian.com