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lingzi
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Feb 6 2013, 02:34 AM
Post #1
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When Julia Wilkinson walks out onto the pool deck at the London Aquatic Centre, she twinkles from her shins down to her toes. Tyrod Taylor Jersey . Her glittery, gold boots reflect the colour of the medal the swimmer would like to win at the London 2012 Olympic Games. It is also a chance for the aquatic fashionista to show her style in a sport where there is not a lot of opportunity to do so. Everyone dresses more or less the same in bathing suits, flip-flops and their national teams warm-up suits. Footwear, however, is where Wilkinson can let her fashion flag fly. Her sparkly, shiny boots are a magpies dream. "Some of the girls, we have a little bit of competition about who can kind of out-diva the other one and Im definitely a front-runner in that competition," the Stratford, Ont., swimmer says. "Its kind of fun, silly, girlie things to do because we spend so much time in the pool being focused on being an athlete." Upon her arrival in the athletes village, Wilkinson immediately found a mall nearby and had her fingernails painted red and white with a gold stripe. Wilkinson built up to her boots. In her senior year of swimming for Texas A&M, she wore maroon high-top shoes in Aggies colours onto the pool deck. Her fiance Shane Minks, who played baseball at A&M, bought her a pair of glow-in-the-dark shoes for last years world championships in Shanghai. "This year, I thought I needed something to top that," Wilkinson explains. "Its an Olympic year." While searching online, Wilkinson hit the jackpot when she discovered a pair of gold boots made by the Australian company Ugg. "I love wearing any kind of boot on the deck because it keeps your feet warm," she says. "I was a little unsure about the amount of money Im spending on them. "I called my fiance. Hes super frugal, but he did say If these are going to make you swim fast, go for it." Wilkinson qualified for London 2012 in three events at trials in Montreal in March. She went under a minute in the 100-metre backstroke for the first time in her career. "The sparkly gold boots worked well at trials so I am going to ride that train to the Olympics," she says. Wilkinson will race backstroke and freestyle in London but not the 200 individual medley because it conflicts with the backstroke event. The Olympic Games are an international platform on which shoe manufacturers market their wares. Think of the buzz around sprinter Usain Bolts golden shoes. It was only a matter of time before marketing opportunities reached the pool deck. U.S. swim star Ryan Lochte has his own shoe line with Speedo, including a pair of emerald green high-tops hes worn on the medal podium. The company is also selling an American-themed womens deck boot in its 2012 collection. Alas, Wilkinsons purchase of the gold boots did not come without buyers remorse. "I saw they have sparkly, red ones now," she exclaims. "I thought Oh, red is Canada but thats a lot of money to spend on deck shoes and Im living on a swimming salary." Ed Reed Jersey . -- Darren Mattocks scored in the 43rd minute to lift the Vancouver Whitecaps to a 1-0 victory over the Colorado Rapids on Wednesday night. Torrey Smith Camo Jersey . A brave, spirited performance from underdogs, denied a famous win in controversial circumstances at one of world soccers most iconic venues. http://www.ravenssuperbowlestore.com/ed-reed-jersey/ . -- The Saints revamped coaching staff said Monday that they are going to have to get use to the huge void left by Sean Paytons suspension for his role in the teams bounty system. Lewis Super Bowl Jersey . -- Linebackers Curtis Lofton and David Hawthorne represented two of the Saints most important acquisitions in free agency and quickly took over starting roles in their first preseason with New Orleans. Torrey Smith Pink Jersey . Catcher Devin Mesoraco got ejected and bumped an umpire on the way out. PENTICTON, B.C. -- North America cruised to a 37-23 victory over the World squad on the final day of the World Financial Group Continental Cup. North America went into the final skins session Sunday at the Ryder Cup-inspired curling tournament with a 26.8-18.5 advantage, a deficit that proved too big for World to overcome in the 60-point competition. World edged North America 8-7 in the first session, but were blown out 10.5-4.5 in the second session on the strength of three straight wins by Winnipegs Jennifer Jones, Edmontons Kevin Martin and Glenn Howard of Coldwater, Ont. "Im just ecstatic," said Howard, who sealed the victory with a three-point skin in the sixth end of his game against Worlds Thomas Ulsrud of Norway to set off a celebration with his teammates. "We had a terrific game, curling wise, and getting along-wise we had so many great times. You feel part of a bigger team, 24 players instead of just four and its that whats more satisfying, playing for a bigger team." North Americas team, which also included Americans Heath McCormick and Allison Pottinger, Edmontons Heather Nedohin, captain Kelley Law of Coquitlam, B.C., and coach Rick Lang of Thunder Bay, Ont. Torrey Smith Jersey. received $52,000 ($2,000 per member), as well as a $13,000 bonus for winning the most points from the final three skins games. "It was so fun to win today. I pretty much could tell you every shot that was played on the other sheets," said Jones. "It was really exciting to watch, and when Glenn made that shot, it was crazy, it was super fun." Worlds team, coached by Swedens Peja Lindholm, captained by Scotlands David Hay and including Scotlands Tom Brewster, Eve Muirhead, Niklas Edin and Margaretha Sigfridsson and Mirjam Ott of Switzerland, settled for the runner-up prize of $26,000, ($1,000 per member). "We just didnt play too well," said Hay. "In a few games we failed in pretty much the last end with several of our last shots and you just cant afford to do that. These guys played very well. It just wasnt to be our week. We werent a mile off the pace, just a fraction ... the North Americans played exceptionally well here. They deserved to win." Both sides have won the tournament four times since the first event in 2002. Next years event will be held in Las Vegas. ' ' '
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