Offtopic/fun » Hopefully, it changes all of sporting culture in

RIO DE JANEIRO -- Usain Bolt is leaving and insists hes not coming back.How will track and field ever be the same?The departure of the sports most electric athlete from the Olympics certainly makes the Tokyo Games feel like a less enticing prospect.Thats hardly the only issue track and field faces as it tries to clean up its act and find some new headliners before 2020.A look at what the sport might look like -- needs to look like? -- four years from now.---SPRINT GAMESomebody will have to claim center stage in the marquee events, the mens sprints. The early candidate is 21-year-old Andre de Grasse of Canada. As a teen, he ran one of his first races wearing basketball shorts and borrowed shoes. He stood up in the blocks while others crouched. It launched his career and led him to signing a big contract with Puma -- the same company that sponsors Bolt.In his own small way, de Grasse may have helped nudge the narrative of Bolts story in Rio a bit off line. His pushing of Bolt in the 200-meter semifinal -- probably unnecessary and maybe even a bit reckless -- made for the only real race the Jamaican faced all week.Bolt conceded that push-to-the-finish semifinal played into his inability to break his 200-meter world record a night later in the final. A small victory for de Grasse, even if it was a loss for everyone else.I was just happy to be part of history with him, said the Canadian, who finished second in the 200 final, and third in the 100. If people are talking about him, theyre probably talking about me, that I was in the same race.---STARS AND STRIPESAllyson Felix is 30. She has nine Olympic medals. Six are gold, a record for women on the track. After a long, hard season that didnt go the way she planned, she said Tokyo is nowhere in her thoughts.London, she said, speaking of next years world championships. Thats next on the agenda. As far as the next four years, taking it year by year.When Felix goes, who can step in as the next great female American track star? Heres a nod toward 400-meter hurdler Sydney McLaughlin, who made her first Olympics at 17. McLaughlin is the junior world-record holder in the event who really wasnt thinking about the Olympics this year.She made it to the semifinals at the Olympics. Now, its back for the start of her senior year of high school in New Jersey.---CRIME, DOPING, CORRUPTIONOnce the action got going, a lot of this sports troubles receded to the background. Still, the absence of the Russians could not be ignored. It was emblematic of a wide-scale doping crisis that has roots in the upper reaches of the International Association of Athletics Federations.President Sebastian Coe has taken over the organization, but there are still questions about what he knew, and when, while serving as vice president under Lamine Diack, who is accused of using blackmail to help perpetrate the Russian doping scandal.The IAAF banned Russia from the Olympics -- all but long jumper Darya Klishina, who lived and trained in the United States -- and many viewed that as a positive step, and one the International Olympic Committee was unwilling to take regarding the rest of the Russians.But the depths of the corruption in IAAF and Russia will continue to be exposed after the Olympics end. The IAAF is undergoing changes, including grappling with a proposal to handle drug testing independently. For the sports sake, this storyline needs to shift well before Tokyo.---RELAY MATTERSThe 32 medals the U.S. grabbed pretty much hit the mark that Duffy Mahoney, the chief of sport performance for USA Track and Field, predicted if the Russians didnt show.The U.S. won gold in three relays. Not bad. Oh, but that fourth one. The mens 4x100 team flamed out again with an illegal pass of the baton. The U.S. is medal-less in that event for the past three Olympics, hasnt won gold since 2000, and it cant all be blamed on the pressures of racing Bolt.There have been so many studies and working groups and practice plans for this team, and none of them really work.One suggestion: Find runners who want to make relays their top priority. Take a look at the program in Japan, which captured a silver medal Friday night.---A MODEST PROPOSALThe final scene of Bolt in action on the track came in the wee hours of Saturday morning. He was throwing a javelin. Think of the possibilities.Yes, he says his Olympic career is over, but also concedes his coach, Glen Mills, has told him not to rush into retirement.In the past, Bolt has talked about trying the long jump. More realistic -- how about a return to the 400 meters that was once tabbed as his second race, after the 200?He hates the training, but you could see a little gleam in his eyes after South Africas Wayde van Niekerk broke Michael Johnsons 17-year-old world record and set the mark at 43.03. Only two guys really ever had a chance to break that, Bolt said: van Niekerk, of course, and himself.Bolt turned 30 on Sunday. Hes got four or five decades of retired life ahead.What to do?I dont know, I dont know, he said. You just stressed me out.Nike Air Max Sale . The scientists believe the small earthquake during a Marshawn Lynch touchdown was likely greater than Lynchs famous "beast quake" touchdown run three years ago, which also came against New Orleans during a playoff game. 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"I wrote 36 on my sheet at the beginning of the game," the Cincinnati coach said, referring the yard line the ball would need to be snapped from.RIO DE JANEIRO -- Joseph Schooling was working on a school essay one morning in 2008 when Michael Phelps showed up to train at his club in Singapore ahead of the Beijing Olympics.While other kids rushed at Phelps wanting photos, Schooling was frozen. He couldnt believe his swimming idol was in front of him. Eventually, the 13-year-old mustered the courage to get a picture, too.I couldnt really smile, Schooling said. I just opened my mouth.Their long-ago chance meeting made the rounds of social media Friday night after Schooling upset Phelps in the 100-meter butterfly to win his island nations first Olympic gold, with the American losing the last individual race of his career. Phelps finished in a three-way tie for silver with longtime rivals Chad le Clos of South Africa and Lazslo Cseh of Hungary.A lot of this is because of Michael, Schooling said. Hes the reason why I want to be a better swimmer.The youthful looking Schooling might be unknown to the rest of the world, but in swimming circles he has solid credentials. He earned bronze in the 100 fly at last years world championships in Russia, and he owns a slew of medals from the Asian, Commonwealth and Southeast Asian Games.The 21-year-old Schooling competes for the University of Texas, where hell be a junior this fall. He swept the 100 and 200 butterfly at this years NCAA championships and swam on all three winning relays for the Longhorns. He has the schools mascot and the words `Come and take it tattooed on his left shoulder blade.Did he ever.Schooling created a stir in the preliminaries, beating Phelps by 0.19 seconds in their shared heat. They swam in different semifinal heats, with Schooling winning his and Phelps getting beat by Cseh in the other.Schooling was just getting warmed up.He won gold in an Olympic-record 50.39 seconds, leaving Phelps, Le Clos and Cseh in hiis wake.dddddddddddd The winning margin of 0.75 seconds was the largest since American Mark Spitz won gold at the 1972 Munich Games and the time was faster than Phelps winning time four years ago in London.I dont think Im anywhere close to these three guys next to me, Schooling said. A real roller coaster ride and a real fun one, too.Phelps steered Schooling in the proper direction during the medalists parade around the deck, the veteran of dozens of such walks showing the newest champion the way.I was like, `Dude, this is crazy, Schooling told Phelps. He looked at me, he smiled and its just, `I know.At the medalists news conference, Phelps urged reporters to ask Schooling some questions.Im proud of Joe, Phelps said. Ive been able to watch him grow and turn into the swimmer that he is.By winning his countrys first Olympic gold, Schooling earned a bonus of $1 million Singapore dollars or nearly $750,000 US. Hell have to give back $150,000 US to the National Sports Association for future training and development.I hope this paves a new road for sports in Singapore, Schooling said. I hope it shows that people from the smallest countries in the world can do extraordinary things. Hopefully, it changes all of sporting culture in Singapore.Schoolings grand-uncle Lloyd Valberg was Singapores first Olympian at the 1948 London Games. Hearing about him as a child, Schooling told his father he wanted to compete in the Olympics.This race means more to my family and my friends and those people who supported me. I did this for them, Schooling said. When you race for people bigger than yourself, I think it means a lot to accomplish what you wanted to.---AP Sports Writer James Ellingworth contributed to this report. ' ' '