ding popularity as climbing spread from mountain towns to u

Kerry Lee will be praying for a rainy Easter as she contemplates running Russe Blanc in the BoyleSports Irish Grand National at Fairyhouse on March 28. The nine-year-old enjoyed testing conditions to win the Betfred Classic Chase at Warwick in January but the ground had dried out too much at Newcastle when he unseated his rider in the Eider Chase last month.Lee is hoping wet weather returns before the end of the month after Russe Blanc was allotted 9st 13lb for the Easter Monday showpiece. Hes very much a possibility at the moment. Its the dream of his owner Mark Jackson to go to Ireland, but it comes plenty quick enough on the back of the Eider, said the Presteigne trainer, who has enjoyed a run of big-race success since taking over from her father, Richard.He was fine after the Eider. He didnt have a hard race, he just didnt enjoy the ground. It was a bit on the quick side for him.He was a Warwick Classic Chase winner on heavy ground. Were hoping for more of the same in Ireland.Russe Blanc is one of 11 British entries from eight different stables among a list of 90 for the marathon test.Jonjo ONeill has three, headed by Beg To Differ 10st 4lb), as he bids to win the race for the third time after Butlers Cabin in 2007 and Shutthefrontdoor under Barry Geraghty two years ago.Others include the Neil Mulholland-trained Caroles Destrier (10st 13lb), David Pipes Broadway Buffalo (10st 2lb) and Vivaldi Collonges (10st 4lb) from the Paul Nicholls stable.Willie Mullins is making a concerted effort to end his Irish Grand National hoodoo by putting in 17 entries.His team is headed by Grade One winner Valseur Lido, who tops the weights on 11st 10lb from a 90-strong entry for the Easter Monday showpiece.Also among his squad are On His Own (11st 3lb), Measureofmydreams (10st 7lb) and Roi Des Francs (10st 12lb).The first three horses home in last years race are engaged once again with the winner Thunder And Roses (10st 7lb) one of five possibles from Sandra Hughess yard.The Mouse Morris-trained Rule The World (10st 7lb) and Jim Dreapers Sizing Coal (9st 9lb), who were second and third, could try again.Dreaper has another hopeful in the novice Venitien De Mai (9st 13lb), who booked his ticket by winning the Leinster National at Naas on Sunday.Gordon Elliott is another top trainer looking for his first win in the Irish National and has entered a team of 12 including Mala Beach (10st 12lb) and recent Thurles winner Lord Scoundrel (10st 7lb).Cantlow (9st 10lb) finished best of the British challengers in sixth place for Paul Webber last year but is now in the care of Enda Bolger, who also has Gilgamboa (11st 2lb).My Murphy won the Thyestes Chase for trainer Liam Burke at Gowran Park in January and he is on 10st 10lbs as he bids to improve on his seventh place last year. Swell Bottle Brush NZ . Defencemen Drew Doughty, Shea Weber and forward Ryan Getzlaf also scored for the Canadians, who started their gold-medal defence 2-0. Goalie Roberto Luongo, getting the call in place of Game 1 starter Carey Price, was solid when needed in making 23 saves for the shutout. Swell Water Bottle Clearance .com) - The Montreal Canadiens embark on their first road trip of the season as they head out west to battle the Calgary Flames on Wednesday night. http://www.swellwaterbottlenz.com/swell-bottle-wood-collection.html . Patrice Bergeron and Daniel Paille scored 20 seconds apart a few minutes after Stamkos was taken off the ice on a stretcher with a broken right leg, and the Bruins beat the Lightning 3-0 on Monday afternoon. Swell Drink Bottles NZ . The 29-year-old from Port Colborne, Ont., has nothing but good things to say about former U.S. marine Liz (Girlrilla) Carmouche ahead of their co-main event Wednesday on the UFCs "Fight for the Troops" televised card in Fort Campbell, Ky. Swell NZ . Irving scored 23 points, Tristan Thompson had 20 points and 10 rebounds and the Cavaliers beat the Denver Nuggets 117-109 on Friday night. RIO DE JANEIRO -- Simone Biles and Mallory Pugh are the fresh U.S. faces of the Rio Games.Up next: Ashima Shiraishi.The 15-year-old rock climbers sport debuts at the Tokyo Games in four years, and the daughter of Japanese immigrants is an early favorite to serve as the next American teen Olympic sensation.Shes a prodigy, said filmmaker Peter Mortimer, co-founder of the International REEL ROCK film tour, which this year features Shiraishi and fellow teen climber Kai Lightner, of Fayetteville, North Carolina.Already one of the worlds best rock climbers, male or female, Shiraishi (pronounced ASH-ih-mah shee-RAY-shee) isnt from a Colorado mountain town like you might expect. Shes a Brooklynite and the vanguard of a new generation of climbers coming out of urban rock wall gyms.Rock climbing is exactly what the International Olympic Committee had in mind when it passed new regulations allowing hosts cites to propose additional sports for their own games on what is essentially a trial basis.Tokyo added the traditional: baseball-softball -- hugely popular in Japan and absent since being dumped after the 2008 Beijing Games -- along with rock climbing and skateboarding, surfing and karate, all magnets for millennials .While the Olympic stamp will provide enormous boosts to these sports, its a two-way street: Olympic organizers and broadcasters need the new blood, too.The more classic Olympic disciplines are somewhat irrelevant to the younger generation, said Mortimer. These new sports are so popular with the kids.Or, as Shiraishi says: Like, young people are the next generation.And Shiraishi is just the kind of star the new sports need.At such a young age, shes already impressed fellow climbers and competition judges worldwide with her remarkable abilities more befitting seasoned climbers.Shes really climbing at the level now as the best men in the sport, Mortimeer said.dddddddddddd Many people think she will be the best climber, male or female, within a few years. Shes just incredibly strong, climbing since she was a kid, focused and disciplined with a strength-to-weight ratio thats just off the charts. Four years is a long time but shes definitely the gold medal favorite.The highest established grade in competitive climbing is known as V-15, something only a handful of men have ever accomplished. Shiraishi is the only female and the youngest climber ever to reach that score, and she just did it for the second time earlier this month in Melbourne, Australia.Shiraishis rise coincided with the sports exploding popularity as climbing spread from mountain towns to urban centers with the proliferation of rock climbing walls and gyms in the 1990s and 2000s.There are so many good gyms now that even if youre not from the mountains you can still be a good climber and have fun with it, Shiraishi said. And Im one of those people.In climbing, 40 competitors will take part in the disciplines of speed, bouldering (without a rope) and lead (also known as sport).Shiraishi counts as her inspiration 18-year-old Pugh in U.S. womens soccer and Biles, the 19-year-old American who soared to the all-around womens gymnastics title on Thursday, cementing her reputation as the best of her generation and perhaps ever.She wonders whether shell serve as an inspiration in Tokyo.The Olympics are something that inspires young people, Shiraishi said. When you add sports that attract younger people, more people watch and get inspired by them. So, I think its awesome.---AP Summer Games website: http://summergames.ap.org---Follow AP Sports Writer Arnie Melendrez Stapleton on Twitter: http://twitter.com/arniestapleton ' ' '