Wednesday night.Long was 6 of 9 from the field and

LONDON -- When Usain Bolts legacy is considered in years to come, it might be hard to grasp the significance of the impact the Jamaican has had on his sport.No other track athlete has come close to achieving the triple-triple of sprint gold medals, in the 100 meters, 200m and 4x100m relay, that could be his by the time he turns 30 on Aug. 21.Carl Lewis has nine golds in his collection, but four came in the long jump. Bolts hero Michael Johnson backed up the 400m, but not the 200m.Neither of those two great Americans dominated as Bolt has done since he claimed his first Olympic clean sweep at Beijing in 2008.Yet, despite an injury-interrupted couple of seasons in the lead up to the Games in Rio, you can guarantee that one person who will seem serene in the Estádio Olímpico Jo?o Havelange next month is the man chasing history himself.During a candid media session on Londons South Bank last week, Bolt suggested with a smile that his chance of returning from Brazil to Jamaica with three more gold medals were always the same: great.This is a man who revels in his status as the quickest sprinter. Footballers [soccer players], you have to debate who is the best footballer, he said, but no one can debate who is the fastest man in the world.Neither does Bolt think his world records for the two sprint distances will be bettered by anyone else for a long time -- or that any of his rivals have found the form to give him cause for concern in Rio.Bolt oozes confidence, but his views are proffered with a humor and good grace that has enabled him to become the face of his sport and made him so popular.His self-belief has given him an edge over many of his rivals and, with his playful attitude in the blocks at odds with the blinkered concentration of his contemporaries, nerves have appeared to be an alien concept to him.But that has not always been the case.Bolts international debut came at the age of just 14, when he made the 200m semifinals of the World Junior Championships in Hungary.Already known to many on his home island, the pressure on the young sprinter cranked up a notch 12 months later when Kingstons National Stadium hosted the annual athletics championship.Leading up to the championship I was nervous, and I was saying mum, I dont know if I can do it, Bolt said.Footage from an old ad shows his mother, Jennifer, attempting to motivate her son, while in the blocks before the 200m final, there was none of the bombast that track and field fans have come to expect.I was a nervous wreck that day. It was one of my worst and one of my greatest moments at the same time, Bolt continued. It was stressful because it was my first big Games and competing in front of my home crowd, it was one of the toughest things Ive ever done.He need not have been so concerned. The competition were blown away inside a packed National Stadium as Bolt became the youngest-ever world junior champion.That success apparently flicked a switch in the young Jamaican. After the world juniors I told myself that if I can win in front of my home crowd then I can win in front of strangers, he said.Jamaica is a pretty tough crowd; we really critique you really hard. If you win, were great for you; if you lose, then theres gonna be issues.Ive learned over the years that if I could win in front of a Jamaican crowd then its easy for me to compete in front of anyone else. So theres never any nerves about anything.That attitude survived a disappointing performance at the Athens Games in 2004, where Bolt suffered a first-round exit. I could have made the top four but I was in no shape to come back in the next round, he insisted, citing a training injury.Whether you take Bolts word on that or not, by the 2005 season he had teamed up with coach Glen Mills, under whose tutelage he has become the most dominant athlete in history.Aside from his feats at the Olympics, Bolt has also won 11 of the last 12 sprint golds on offer at the World Athletics Championship, forfeiting the other due to a false start in the 100m final in Daegu in 2011.Worryingly for his competition, the pairs bond remains strong heading towards Rio. When were not around each other I can tell by the conversation we have with each other that we actually miss [each others] company, he said.Ive learned so much from him -- the energy, were always laughing. Its always just fun with me and my coach. But most of the time hes a father figure to me, hes a friend, hes a brother.There is a potential stumbling block to his quest for a historic triple-triple, however. His relay teammate when Jamaica won the 4x100m in Beijing, Nesta Carter, reportedly failed a drug test at the 2008 Games and that could put Bolts third gold in jeopardy.The issue of doping is a tough one for him. While he publicly backed the IAAFs decision to ban Russias track and field squad from Rio last Thursday, his approach has been to focus on winning rather than providing a good news story in Rio next month.Ive been going through it for years, Bolt said. Ive said all I can really. Ive always just tried to encourage athletes just to work hard because hard work does pay off. I cant do anything about it [the suspicion surrounding track and field].I just have to do my part and, hopefully, the younger athletes will follow; the sport will get better through time. All I can do [is] plead to the other athletes to just focus, work hard and be determined like I am.Bolt, as in everything it seems, was confident things would work out on the Carter questions, that he would hold onto his medal and leave his potential triple-triple still very much a live prospect.Looking ahead with optimism has fitted the bill for the 29-year-old for some time, and Mills has told him thats how he should be looking at the end of his amazing running career.The coach is confident Bolt can continue beyond Rio, and?whether he retires in 2017 as has been his publicly-stated plan is still open for discussion.Just dont bet against him having nine Olympic gold medals draped around his neck whenever he makes his announcement. Custom Detroit Red Wings Jerseys . Laudrup revealed Thursday he was notified of his dismissal in "the briefest of letters which gave no reasons why such hasty and final action was deemed necessary. Detroit Red Wings Gear . -- Sergey Tolchinksy scored his second goal of the game 3:56 into overtime as the Sault Ste. https://www.cheapredwings.com/ . To the surprise of many, it isnt the Wolverines but their in-state rivals the Michigan State Spartans. Wholesale Red Wings Jerseys .J. -- Pitcher Carl Pavano is retiring after 14 major league seasons. Cheap Red Wings Jerseys .com) - Richie Incognito has reportedly been admitted to a psychiatric care unit in Arizona. ALBANY, N.Y. -- Lavon Long scored 19 points and grabbed seven rebounds as Siena beat Arkansas-Pine Bluff 66-43 on Wednesday night.Long was 6 of 9 from the field and made all seven of his free throws for the Saints (2-3). Javion Ogunyemi added 11 points and four rebounds and Marquis Wright had eight points and five rebounds. The team averaged 50 percent shooting from the field and 75 percent from the free-throw line. Arkansas-Pine Bluff averaged 26.4 percent from the field.The Saints ttook an 18-2 lead early in the first period and Arkansas-Pine Bluff didnt score a field goal until nearly 12 minutes had passed.dddddddddddd Siena led 31-13 at the break.Khalil Richard hit a jumper to extend Sienas lead to 50-25 with 10:36 to play and the Saints cruised to the win.Trent Steen scored nine points with two rebounds for the Golden Lions (1-4). ' ' '