Kritik und Anregungen » pically ends in gold. For the wome

NEW YORK -- Between her strong serve and how rested she was compared to her opponent, a perfect storm of factors propelled 10th-seeded Karolina Pliskova into her first Grand Slam final thanks to a 6-2, 7-6 (5) win over top-seeded Serena Williams at Arthur Ashe Stadium on a humid Thursday evening.The lean 24-year-old from the Czech Republic had been tempered for the task of meeting Williams before the partisan New York crowd by a harrowing but ultimately triumphant clash with Williams sister, Venus. Serena, meanwhile, had been run ragged less than 24 hours earlier in a grueling 2-hour, 14-minute clash with jackrabbit-quick Simona Halep.Williams, 34, has been in 33 Grand Slam semis. Pliskova was playing her first. Williams visage throughout the match was that of a weary, careworn veteran. Pliskovas eyes were sunken in dark sockets but they burned with ambition. Williams was hampered by an undefined left knee injury that only seemed to become a factor as the match wore on. Pliskova, by contrast, moved swiftly and economically.Finally, and perhaps most importantly, Williams had finally come face to face with a rival who had the tools and intent to outduel her from the service notch.Pliskova smacked seven aces to just five by Williams, whose serve is considered the most potent weapon ever produced in the womens game. The 6-foot-1 Pliskova, also the WTAs ace leader, put a higher percentage of first serves into play (56 to 53 percent) and won more of those vital first-serve points (84 to 66 percent). She put 65 percent of her returns into play compared to Williams 54 percent.My serve is my biggest weapon, Pliskova said. It doesnt matter if I am playing [the] No. 1 or No. 10 player. I can hit any serve I want.Pliskova did to Williams what the 22-time Grand Slam champion usually does to her opponents. The double-fault Williams hit to end the match provided a sad and surprising coda to a match that once again reminded us that those who live by the sword are often fated to die by it as well, usually at the hand of a younger rival.Because shes so tall, [the serve] bounces high, Williams said. Im shorter, so my serve goes through the court. Hers goes a little higher. So I think thats the difference.The result raises an obvious question: How did Pliskova do it?Certainly, her tactical decision to skip the Olympic Games in favor of training for the big summer tournaments played a part. But Milos Raonic did the same thing and we saw where it got him. Unlike Raonic, Pliskova made the most of her choice. She banked wins over No. 3 Garbine Muguruza and new No. 1 Angelique Kerber to win the major US Open tune-up in Cincinnati. The confidence dividend launched her run here.Its all about those last two, three weeks here in States, Pliskova said. I won good matches. If you believe in yourself, you can beat anyone. Its not only about a game and tennis, but its more about the mental things sometimes.Ironically, the mental thing that helped Pliskova the most against Williams was the preview provided by No. 6 seed Venus. Their fourth-round battle was Pliskovas first appearance at Arthur Ashe Stadium.Obviously after I knew what it was [like] to play one of the sisters [and] against all the people there [on Ashe], so I was prepared for it, Pliskova said. I was prepared for a fast game, for great serving. Thats why maybe I won the match today.Venus is either a great teacher or Pliskova is a quick study despite passing the third round at a major for the first time in 18 opportunities. But you can cram a lot of learning into a wild and wooly three-setter decided by a third-set tiebreaker. Pliskova survived a match point in that match, which is partly why she said, Maybe it was a little bit tougher to play Venus.That earlier match also conditioned Pliskovas nerves. Butterflies fluttered in her stomach before the match, but once it started she said she felt no anxiety at all. She avoided the common temptation of trying hard to enjoy her first Grand Slam semifinal, the way some Slam whisperers counsel.[I wanted to] not just enjoy, she insisted, but to win.Williams didnt win, nor did she enjoy. That was evident from the start, and the reason why is something of a mystery. When some suggested that scheduling her matches on successive days was unfair, especially in light of her knock-down, drag-out tussle with Halep in the quarterfinals, she snapped.OK, Im not going to repeat myself. I wasnt tired from yesterdays match, Williams said. Im a professional player; been playing for over 20 years. If I cant turn around after 24 hours and play again then I shouldnt be on tour.Admire her for taking full ownership of the loss, but the answer left many questions hanging. The knee certainly was a factor. As she said, When youre hampered youre thinking of other things. I was missing simple, simple shots that at other times I would make.Its hard to know or say exactly how much of an impact that injury had, but it was clear from the very start that Williams game and mood were flat. She seemed to be lost somewhere within herself, her facial expression sometimes stony, sometimes distraught, sometimes anguished; many things, but never fiery, alert or eager.Theres a price to play when youre 34 and have been walking around with a giant bulls-eye on your back for two decades. It becomes hard to meet every challenge with burning intensity when theres nothing left to prove. It becomes hard to keep fending provocations off when theres so much to defend: titles, rankings, streaks, records.Sometimes, that sword just gets too heavy to lift. Lassana Diarra France Jersey . If ever they start actually putting pictures beside words in the dictionary, the Blue Jays left-handers mug will appear beside “Consistency. NGolo Kante France Jersey . Manuel was offered a position the day he was fired. He accepted earlier this week and the team made the announcement Friday. http://www.nationalfrancesoccer.com/hugo-lloris-france-jersey/ . -- Mike Smith never saw his first NHL goal go in. Raphael Varane France Jersey .Y. -- Canadas Kaillie Humphries and Heather Moyse have another World Cup gold medal after winning the two-women bobsled race on Saturday in Lake Placid, N. Morgan Schneiderlin Jersey . Hamelin, who triumphed in the 500 on Saturday, edged out Victor An of Russia by 0.021 seconds to maintain his lead in the World Cup standings. Russias Vladimir Grigorev was third. In the relay, Canada took control six laps from the finish line to beat Russia and the Netherlands. RIO DE JANEIRO -- The Martha Karolyi Way is a pinch on the neck. A tilt of the head. A purse of the lips. A nod of approval. A series of directives, most of them blunt, all designed for maximum impact.It is a compound tucked in the Texas woods where the rest of the world slips away so the foundation of a gymnastics dynasty can be laid.For the last 15 years, the U.S. womens national team coordinator has methodically molded a once floundering program into a globe-trotting, podium-topping machine. The group of five young women Karolyi will lead into Rio Olympic Arena on Tuesday night for the Olympic team final is perhaps her greatest creation, and a fitting tribute to all she has built before she heads into retirement.Judging by their showing during qualifying -- when the U.S. posted the top score by a staggering 10 points -- the question may be not if the Americans will win the gold but by how much. Yet its in keeping with the Karolyi Way that all that dominance was met with only a small smile and a reminder that their work is not yet finished.I always tell the girls, were competing against ourselves, Karolyi, 73, said in her distinct Eastern European accent. We dont want to beat this or that. But we want to come as close as possible to perfection.No team, perhaps in any sport, comes as close to it as the U.S. womens program.Looking back, this is exactly what Martha and husband Bela Karolyi had in mind when they defected from Romania in 1981 after helping Nadia Comaneci reach perfection in Montreal during the 1976 games.That was the goal, to build something which works for USA and not try to install a copy of the Romanian system, Karolyi said. I think that was the key because you cannot copy an original.Though the Karolyis and USA Gymnastics enjoyed periods of success in the 1980s and `90s -- helping Mary Lou Retton become the first American woman to win the Olympic title in 1984 and reaching the top of the podium with the Magnificent Seven in Atlanta in 1996 -- it wasnt until Martha took over the program in 2001 when Belas contract was not renewed after a disappointing showing at the Sydney Olympics that the U.S. finally took flight. The proof lies in the 88 world championship and Olympic medals the Americans have captured during her tenure, a number that could be near 100 by closing ceremonies in Rio.She turned the sprawling ranch she and Bela own on the border of the Sam Houston National Forest about an hour north of Houston into an incubator. Where the national team was once a nominal description for a group of factions that came together only for international events, she created a sense of cohesion.Everyone was very combative and competitive, said Rhonda Faehn, who trained under the Karolyis in the `80s and now serves as the senior vice president of the womens program. We were expected to compete as a team overseas and youre still an individual. Its an incredible byproduct of what she has set in place.Team members and their coaches visit the ranch regularly to receive specialized instruction and produce a true sense of camaraderie. The athletes become roommates during camp, staying in comfortable -- if rustic -- suites where cell reception can be spotty at best.Its almost like camping out, said Laurie Hernandez, at 16 the youngest member of Team USA in Rio.dddddddddddd Theres camels and horses and there are bunk beds. We get very close when were there.Its the same for the coaches, who gather after hours to play cards with Martha or hang out at Belas lodge. Theres just one rule: keep the shop talk to a minimum. That time away to decompress helps them stay primed for what happens when they get back to work, a process that feels collaborative rather than competitive.Now there are a lot of coaches I could call and say `Hey, Im having trouble with this skill, do you have any ideas to help out, said Olympic national team coach Aimee Boorman, who is also the personal coach of three-time world champion Simone Biles. Its been an emotional support and a technical support ... and its Martha. She knows what shes doing.Each session begins with the athletes lining up according to height, tallest on the left, shortest on the right. Then a brief pep talk from Karolyi. No wasted time with pleasantries.Very short, to the point, this is how she works, Bela Karolyi said of his wife of over 50 years. Two or three things to work on, then go.And go they do. Training sessions are quiet and intense. There is no wasted movement. While coaches line each apparatus, Karolyi will wander about, offering advice where she sees fit. If the way its delivered occasionally comes across as a little cold, thats not her problem.She is a very intimidating lady, Biles said. Shell tell you how it is. She wants you to succeed. She never wants you to look back and say `I could have given it more.Karolyi stopped measuring the U.S. against the rest of the world long ago. They havent lost a major international meet in six years and are the model of efficiency when theyre on the road. During podium training -- a dress rehearsal on the event floor held before the meet -- the Americans do a couple of sets on each apparatus and then theyre done while their competitors continue to tinker.We used to say that we win our meets in the training gym because all of the other countries sit and watch us train and we dont watch them train, said three-time Olympic medalist Aly Raisman. You focus on yourself and your teammates and thats the best you can possibly do.The Americans best typically ends in gold. For the women Karolyi coaches, there is something nearly as valuable: a pinch on the back of the neck.To get that was huge, Faehn said. Bela was all bear hugs but Martha, shes the only one you always wanted to please.There will be a few more to go around in Rio but the next chapter for Karolyi and the empire she built beckons. The Karolyis will officially hand over the keys to the training facilities at the ranch to USA Gymnastics later this month. Then the search for her successor will begin in earnest while she travels back to Romania to spend time with family.Its a decision shes at peace with, even if the idea of her walking out of her house one morning during a training camp and going for a walk instead of the gym seems unfathomable.Its hard to replace her, said longtime friend and coach Mihai Brestyan. It will be the hardest job because of the shoes to fill. ' ' '