Melissa Gorman

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Nastia Liukin

Anastasia Valeryevna "Nastia" Lyukina (Russian: Анастасия "Настя" Валерьевна Люкина; born October 30, 1989) is a Russian-American artistic gymnast. She is the 2008 Olympic individual all-around Champion, the 2005 and 2007 World Champion on the balance beam, and the 2005 World Champion on the uneven bars. With nine World Championships medals, seven of them individual, Liukin is tied with Shannon Miller and Alicia Sacramone as the American gymnasts having won the most World Championship medals. Liukin has also tied Miller's record as the American gymnast having won the most medals in a single non-boycotted Olympic Games. The daughter of two former Soviet champion gymnasts, Olympic gold medalist Valeri Liukin – the first man to do a triple backflip – and World Champion rhythmic gymnast Anna Kotchneva, Nastia Liukin was born in Moscow and moved to the United States as a young child. She began gymnastics after spending time in the gym while her parents coached. Liukin is coached by her father at the World Olympic Gymnastics Academy, her family's gymnastics club in Plano, Texas. Liukin became a member of the U.S. junior national team when she was 12 years old and won the National all-around title at the age of 13. She was the all-around silver medalist at the 2003 Pan American Games. Since 2005, Liukin has been a key member of the U.S. senior team. She is a four-time all-around U.S. National Champion, winning twice as a junior and twice as a senior. She has been the U.S. senior National Champion on the uneven bars since 2005. Liukin has represented the United States at three World Championships, the 2003 and 2007 Pan American Games, and the 2006 and 2008 Pacific Rim Championships.

Liukin began gymnastics at the age of three because she was "always hanging around in the gym"[16] with her parents, who could not afford a babysitter to look after her while they were working as coaches. Liukin's parents initially did not aspire for their daughter to become a gymnast, knowing the pressure of high-level competition firsthand, but relented when they noticed her aptitude for the sport. Liukin has her own line of gymnastics equipment, which includes mats and balance beams in her signature pink, produced by American Athletic, Inc. Liukin's corporate sponsors include Visa, AT&T, GK Elite Sportswear and Longines. She appeared in an Adidas commercial with Nadia Comăneci which ran during the 2004 Olympics and a 2008 commercial for Visa Inc. She signed an endorsement deal on March 15, 2010 and appears in commercials for Subway After the Beijing Olympics, she was signed to be one of two American Olympians featured on Wheaties cereal boxes. Liukin has expressed interest in the fashion world; she has served as a Longines Sports Ambassador of Elegance since 2006 and, along with her teammates Shawn Johnson and Alicia Sacramone, was one of the first female athletes ever to be signed as CoverGirl spokesmodels. She also collaborated with Vanilla Star Jeans to create a junior girls' clothing line and has modeled for Max Azria. In June 2010, she launched a line of girls' wear called Supergirl by Nastia for department store chain JC Penney. In October 2008, Liukin partnered with World Vision to help her home state of Texas to recover from Hurricane Ike.

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Nastia Liukin and Her Medals

Ryan Braun Photos Collection

Ryan Joseph Braun (born November 17, 1983, in Mission Hills, Los Angeles, California), nicknamed The Hebrew Hammer, is an American right-handed Major League Baseball All-Star left fielder for the Milwaukee Brewers. He played college baseball at the University of Miami. There, he was named "National Freshman of the Year" by Baseball America in 2003, and an All American as a freshman and junior. The Brewers drafted him in the first round (fifth overall) in the 2005 major league draft. He was the team's Minor League Player of the Year in 2006. Braun won the National League Rookie of the Year Award in 2007, after leading the National League (NL) in slugging percentage, while setting a major league rookie record. He was voted a starting NL All Star outfielder in 2008–11, and won the 2008–10 NL Outfielder Silver Slugger Awards. Braun was also the starting left fielder for the USA team in the 2009 World Baseball Classic. He led the NL in extra-base hits in 2008, and in hits for the 2009 season. On defense, he led all major league outfielders in fielding percentage in 2008, and led NL left fielders in fielding percentage and range factor in 2009. His 128 home runs through 2010 were the 8th-most by any major leaguer ever through their first four seasons. Braun was named to the 2011 Sporting News' list of the 50 greatest current players in baseball, ranking No. 16.

Ryan Braun Will Hits The Ball

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Stefan Edberg In Action

Stefan Bengt Edberg (born 19 January 1966 in Västervik, Sweden) is a former World No. 1 professional tennis player (in both singles and doubles) from Sweden. A major proponent of the serve-and-volley style of tennis, he won six Grand Slam singles titles and three Grand Slam men's doubles titles. He also won one season ending championship title the Masters Grand Prix. In addition he won four Masters Series titles and four Championship Series titles.Edberg is noted as one of the finest serve-and-volley players of his era. Edberg did not possess a powerful dominating serve like Pete Sampras or Boris Becker but still had a very effective serve. Edberg would often choose to use a less powerful serve, such as a kick or slice serve. This extra time from using a slower serve gave Edberg more time to get to the net, where he used his quick feet and athleticism to gain control of the point at the net. Edberg also had excellent volley, and could easily redirect powerfully struck balls to the open court. He also had sufficient groundstrokes, and his one-handed backhand is also one of his best shots.In September 2008, Stefan Edberg officially joined the Black Rock Tour of Champions, a tour for professional tennis players who have since retired from the ATP Tour. Edberg won his first tournament in Paris held on clay, winning matches against clay court specialists Thomas Muster in the opening round and Sergi Bruguera in the finals on Sunday, 21 September 2008.


Stefan Edberg, simply the best

Edberg first came to the tennis world's attention as a junior player. He won all four Grand Slam junior titles in 1983 to become the first-ever player to achieve the "Junior Grand Slam". Later that year as a professional, Edberg won his first career doubles title in Basel. Edberg accidentally killed Dick Wertheim with an errant serve during the 1983 US Open. In 1984, Edberg won his first top-level singles title in Milan. Edberg also won the tennis tournament at the 1984 Summer Olympics when the sport was an exhibition event and partnered with fellow Swede Anders Järryd to reach the final of the US Open. Edberg also reached the French Open doubles final with Järryd in 1986 and consequently was World No. 1 in doubles in that year. U.S. fans first took notice of Edberg's professional career when he won the U.S. Indoor in Memphis in February 1985. Edberg's first two Grand Slam singles titles came at the Australian Open. In December 1985, he defeated Mats Wilander in straight sets to claim his first major title. In January 1987, he defended his title by defeating Pat Cash in five sets to win the last Australian Open held on grass courts. Edberg also won the Australian Open and US Open men's doubles titles in 1987 (partnering fellow Swede Anders Järryd). In 1988, Edberg reached the first of three consecutive finals at Wimbledon. In all three finals, he played Boris Becker in what became one of Wimbledon's greatest rivalries. Edberg won their first encounter in a four-set match spread over two days because of rain delays. A year later, Becker won in straight sets. The closest of their matches came in the 1990 final, when Edberg won in five sets after being down a break in the fifth set. In 1990, an abdominal muscle injury forced Edberg to retire from the Australian Open final while trailing Ivan Lendl 5–2 (including two breaks of serve) in the third set. Edberg nevertheless took the World No. 1 ranking from Lendl on 13 August 1990 by winning the Super 9 tournament in Cincinnati. He held it for the rest of that year and for much of 1991 and 1992. Edberg spent a total of 72 weeks as World No. 1. Edberg's final two Grand Slam singles triumphs came at the US Open, with wins over Jim Courier in the 1991 final and Pete Sampras in the 1992 final, who was just months away from being ranked No. 1 in the world. Edberg's last Grand Slam singles final appearances were at the Australian Open, where he lost in four sets to Jim Courier in both 1992 and 1993. In 1996, Edberg won his third and final Grand Slam doubles title at Australian Open with Petr Korda. The only Grand Slam singles title Edberg never won was the French Open. He reached the French Open final in 1989 but lost in five sets to 17-year old Michael Chang, who became the youngest ever male winner of a Grand Slam singles title. Edberg was most comfortable playing tennis on fast-playing surfaces. Of his six Grand Slam singles titles, four were won on grass courts at the Australian Open (1985 and 1987) and Wimbledon (1988 and 1990) and two were won on hardcourts at the US Open (1991 and 1992).

Stefan Edberg During The Match

Stefan Edberg and Trophy

Stefan Edberg Try To Communicate With Audience

Stefan Edberg Happiness Expression

Stefan Edberg and His Wife

Zlatan Ibrahimovic

Zlatan Ibrahimović (born 3 October 1981) is a Swedish footballer who plays as a striker for Serie A club Milan and the Swedish national team for which he is captain. Ibrahimović started his career at Malmö FF in the late 1990s under Roland Andersson. He was signed by Ajax, and made a name for himself under Ronald Koeman. Years later, he signed with Juventus for €16 million. Ibrahimović gained fame in Serie A, benefiting from his strike partnership with David Trézéguet. In 2006, he signed with league rival Internazionale, where he won individual awards such as the Oscar del Calcio, the Guldbollen, and was named in the 2007 and 2009 UEFA Team of the Year, in addition to finishing as the league's highest scorer in 2008–09 while winning three straight Scudetti. In the summer of 2009, he transferred to Barcelona for €69 million, the second highest transfer fee in football history. His time at Barcelona was short lived however; moving back to AC Milan the following season, in a deal which made him one of the highest paid footballers in the world. Ibrahimović has two siblings and three half-siblings. His longtime partner is Helena Seger with whom he has two children, Maximilian (born 22 September 2006), and Vincent (born 6 March 2008). He currently resides in Milan, although he visits his summer home in Malmö annually. Ibrahimović received a black belt in taekwondo at the age of 17, where he attended classes at the Malmö Taekwondo club Enighet. Ibrahimović is fluent in Swedish, Croatian, Bosnian, English, and Italian. He is of Bosnian and Croatian descent. The name Zlatan was trademarked in May 2003 by PRV for "most likely being perceived as Zlatan Ibrahimović", which meant that he received exclusive rights to the name for certain products, including sporting goods, clothing, and shoes. He is under contract with Nike and features in their television advertising. He wears the Mercurial boot line and has the names and dates of birth of his sons embedded onto the external sides of his boots. In the fall of 2007, Ibrahimović, with the help of Nike, self-funded a new football pitch in the streets of his hometown of Rosengård: he provided a playing mat, goalposts, lighting, and a modern fence. In 2008, he donated new Nike kits to his youth club, FBK Balkan.

Ibrahimović signed his first contract with Malmö in 1996, and moved up to the senior side for the 1999 season of Allsvenskan, Sweden's top-flight league. That season, Malmö finished 13th in the league and were relegated to the second division, but returned to the top flight the next season. Arsène Wenger unsuccessfully tried to persuade Ibrahimović to join Arsenal, while Leo Beenhakker also expressed interest in the player after watching him in a training match against Norwegian side Moss FK. On 22 March 2001, a deal between Ajax and Malmö regarding Ibrahimović's transfer to Amsterdam was announced, and in July, Ibrahimović officially joined Ajax for Swedish krona 80 million. Ibrahimović received little playing time under manager Co Adriaanse, but when Adriaanse was sacked on 29 November 2001, new coach Ronald Koeman inserted Ibrahimović into the starting lineup as Ajax won the 2001–02 Eredivisie title. The next season, Ibrahimović scored twice in a 2–1 victory over French champions Lyon in his Champions League debut on 17 September 2002. He scored four Champions League goals overall as Ajax fell to Milan in the quarter-finals. In his final season with Ajax, Ibrahimović's profile rose when he scored a breathtaking goal against NAC on 22 August 2004, a goal that was eventually voted the "Goal of the Year" by Eurosport viewers. He netted only once in the 2003–04 Champions League (against Celta Vigo on 22 October) as Ajax were eliminated in the group stage. On 18 August 2004, Ibrahimović injured fellow Ajax teammate Rafael van der Vaart during an international match against the Netherlands, which led to accusations from van der Vaart that Ibrahimović had hurt him intentionally. This led to Ibrahimović's sudden sale to Juventus on 31 August. Ibrahimović moved from Ajax to Juventus for €16 million. He was promptly inserted into the starting eleven due in part to top scorer David Trezeguet's injury problems, and scored sixteen goals. Near the end of the season, Juventus reportedly rejected a €70 million bid for him from Real Madrid, which was later revealed to be a publicity stunt initiated by Ibrahimović's agent, Mino Raiola, in order to increase his market value. On 14 November 2005, he was awarded the Guldbollen, a prize awarded to the best Swedish footballer of the year. The following season was poor compared to his first season; his role in Juventus' attack changed, as he became less of a goalscorer and moved more to the sidelines, taking much part in the build-up play, especially as a target player, and his assist numbers increased. In the 2005–06 season, Juventus fans often got frustrated with him due to his anonymous presence in certain important games such as the Champions League defeat to Arsenal. Juventus were stripped of their last two Scudetti as part of the verdict from the Calciopoli scandal, and were relegated to Serie B. The new staff tried to persuade Ibrahimović and other top players to stay with Juventus, but the player and his agent were adamant to move on, with Raiola threatening legal action in order to extricate Ibrahimović from his contract.

On 10 August 2006, Ibrahimović completed a €24.8 million move to Internazionale, signing a four-year-deal, this coming only a few days after Patrick Vieira had completed his transfer. Zlatan revealed that he had supported Internazionale when he was young. He started his spell at the club by scoring one goal and assisting another in a league match against Fiorentina and ended his first season as Inter's top goalscorer with 15 goals. Inter won the league for the first time in 17 years. They finished the league with 97 points, a league record, a feat Ibrahimovic would go on to repeat at F.C Barcelona. During the season Inter also broke the European Big Five League Record for most consecutive wins, 17. The record still stands. Ibrahimović played his 100th Serie A match on 16 September 2007. His contract was renewed in 2007, it was due to expire in June 2013. He was estimated as the top of footballer wages. He scored two Champions League goals in the group stage against PSV on 2 October, which marked his first European goals since December 2005 and his first goals overall in an Inter jersey, and finished with five goals in seven Champions League matches. Against Parma in the final league matchday on 18 May 2008, he returned from a chronic knee injury and scored both goals as Inter won 2–0, clinching their third straight Scudetto. Ibrahimović's 2008–09 season started brilliantly, hitting the back of the net in Inter's first league match. His goal against Bologna was voted "Goal of the Year". He scored it with his heel without moving and accurately into the net from a cross by Adriano. Ibrahimović's form in the season had been eye-catching, with clever movement on and off the ball, and his passing had been outstanding, such as his acrobatic pass against Lazio. He ended a month long goal drought against Genoa, handing them their first home loss of the season, making Inter the only team not to lose at home in the league. In the final league game of the season, Ibrahimović scored twice against Atalanta, securing the Capocannoniere for himself by finishing one goal ahead of Marco Di Vaio and Diego Milito with 25 goals in the domestic season.After Maxwell completed his transfer to Barcelona, president Joan Laporta confirmed that there was an agreement in principle between Barcelona and Internazionale for Ibrahimović to join the club in exchange for Samuel Eto'o, plus a fee. Laporta revealed that the negotiations started when he decided to divert a flight, which was originally from Ukraine to Spain, in order to have talks with Massimo Moratti, the president of Internazionale, in Milan. Ibrahimović left Internazionale during their United States summer tour in the World Football Challenge on 23 July 2009 for negotiations with Barcelona, with his last match for Internazionale being against Chelsea. After Internazionale agreed terms with Eto'o and Barcelona with Ibrahimović, Barcelona announced Ibrahimović would arrive on 26 July 2009 and undergo a medical test on 27 July 2009. Ibrahimović passed his medical and was presented to a crowd of over 60,000 at Camp Nou. He signed a 5-year contract, for €46 million ($65 million) and the exchange of Eto'o (valued at €20 million) and loan of Alexander Hleb (with an option to buy for a €10 million fee), with a €250 million release clause, making Ibrahimović worth €66 million ($94 million). However as Hleb deal collapsed, eventually Ibrahimović cost Barcelona €69.884 million (including other fee). Inter received €69.5 million. and part of Inter fee (about 0.45%) redistributed to youth clubs as solidarity contribution (except Juventus).Ibrahimović started the 2009–10 season with his competitive debut for Barcelona on 23 August 2009 by assisting on a goal by Lionel Messi, leading them to the Spanish Super Cup. In his next competitive match, Barcelona won the 2009 UEFA Super Cup. In his third appearance, he scored his first goal in Barcelona's La Liga season opener against Sporting Gijón in a 3–0 win. Ibrahimović went on to score in his next three appearances, thus setting a team record as the only player ever to score in his first four league matches.Ibrahimović scored Barcelona's only goal in the 2009–10 Copa del Rey first leg match of the round of sixteen in a 2–1 loss to Sevilla on 5 January 2010. On 20 January, he was selected in the 2009 UEFA Team of the Year. His first goal of 2010 came on 14 February against Atletico Madrid. In his next appearance, Ibrahimović scored against Stuttgart in the first leg of their UEFA Champions League knockout stage fixture. He was sent off on 6 March in a league match against Almeria, which Barcelona appealed to no avail, and he was suspended for one game. A calf strain during warmups before the next La Liga match following his return from suspension against Athletic Bilbao ruled Ibrahimović out of the second leg 4–1 victory over Arsenal ,in which he scored two goals away from home, the return leg of the El Clásico against Madrid (which Barcelona won 2–0),[39] and the next league match against Deportivo La Coruña. He made his return as a substitute in the 82nd minute in against Espanyol.

On 28 August 2010, A.C. Milan announced on their official website that they had acquired the services of Ibrahimović for the 2010–11 season. He will be loaned out to Milan for the 2010–11 season, with Milan having the option to purchase him outright from Barcelona for €24 million at the end of the season. He made his team debut in a 2–0 loss to Cesena on 11 September, in which he missed a penalty late in the match, and scored his first goals for the club when Milan defeated Auxerre in their first Champions League match of the season on 15 September.He received a 3 match ban after getting a red card during a Serie A match against Bari for punching an opponent in the stomach. He also received another 3 match ban on his return from the previous one for supposedly cursing at the ref. Ibrahimovic stated in his defense that he was talking to himself in frustration. He won his first Scudetto with Milan after a stalemate against AS Roma. He is therefore currently on a streak of eight straight league wins in three different countries and with five different clubs, including the later stripped wins with Juventus. All agreements between Milan and Barcelona have been confirmed on 18 June 2011. Even though Ibrahimović was eligible to play for Bosnia and Herzegovina and Croatia, he chose to play for Sweden, his country of birth. Ibrahimović made his debut for Sweden in a 0–0 friendly against the Faroe Islands at the Värendsvallen on 31 January 2001 in the 2000–01 Nordic Football Championship. His first competitive match was a 2002 World Cup qualifier against Azerbaijan on 7 October. Ibrahimović was part of Sweden's 2002 World Cup finals squad who were eliminated in the round of 16 by newcomers Senegal. Ibrahimović was in the starting lineup for Euro 2004, scoring a penalty against Bulgaria and rounding off a fine performance against the solid defense of Italy by scoring a late equaliser. However, he missed a penalty as Sweden were sent home following a shootout loss to the Netherlands. He went scoreless during the 2006 World Cup finals as Sweden were again snuffed out in the round of 16, this time by Germany. He was called up for a Euro 2008 qualifier against Liechtenstein on 6 September 2006, but two days before the match, he violated team curfew by leaving the hotel with teammates Christian Wilhelmsson and Olof Mellberg and visiting a nightclub. Though none of the players consumed any alcohol, they were nonetheless all sent home by Lars Lagerbäck as punishment and did not take part in the match. Mellberg and Wilhelmsson did not appeal the coach's decision, but Ibrahimović felt that it was unjust and therefore refused to take part in Sweden's next qualifiers against Iceland and Spain. He also skipped a friendly against Egypt on 7 February 2007, but ended his self-imposed boycott a month later, and returned for Sweden's loss to Northern Ireland on 28 March. He did not score in any of the 12 qualifying matches; his one goal was disallowed for offside in a 3–0 loss to Spain on 17 November. On 12 November 2007, Ibrahimović was awarded the 2007 Swedish Golden Ball as the "Country's Top Player of the Year." Ibrahimović ended his international goal drought, which had lasted for over two years, against Greece in Sweden's Euro 2008 opener on 10 June 2008, and the next match against Spain four days later. He finished the tournament with two goals as Sweden were eliminated in the group stage by Russia. Ibrahimović scored a goal in a 4–0 win against Malta on 10 June 2009 in a 2010 World Cup qualifier. On 5 September 2009, he scored a last second goal in Stadium Puskás Ferenc against Hungary in a 2–1 win for Sweden in their qualification match. Ahead of the Euro 2012 qualifications, Ibrahimovic was named team captain on his return to the national team.

Karl Malone

Karl Anthony Malone (born July 24, 1963), nicknamed "The Mailman", is a retired American professional basketball power forward who spent the majority of his career with the Utah Jazz of the National Basketball Association (NBA). Malone spent his first 18 seasons (1985–2003) with the Jazz and formed a formidable duo with his teammate John Stockton. He played his final season (2003–04) with the Los Angeles Lakers. Malone grew up in rural Summerfield, Louisiana and played college basketball at Louisiana Tech University. In his three seasons with Louisiana Tech, he helped the Bulldogs basketball team to its first-ever NCAA tournament in 1984 and to first place in the Southland Conference in 1985. The Jazz drafted Malone in 1985 with the 13th overall pick in the first round. Having scored 36,298 points in his career, the second most career points in NBA history, and holding the record for most free throws both attempted and made, Malone is generally considered one of the greatest NBA power forwards. In 1997 and 1999, Malone won the NBA Most Valuable Player award. Malone appeared in the playoffs every season in his career, including three NBA Finals: in 1997 and 1998 with the Jazz and in 2004 with the Lakers. Internationally, Malone competed with the United States national team in the Summer Olympic games of 1992 and 1996; in both years he won gold medals. After retiring from the NBA, Malone joined the staff of the Louisiana Tech basketball team in 2007 and was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 2010.

Karl Malone Slum Dunk

Karl Malone Shooting

Karl Malone Doing Fault

Karl Malone Dribbling

Karl Malone Show His Muscle

Karl Malone and The Ball

Karl Malone Best Performance

Karl Malone In Press Conferences

Justin Verlander

His father Richard, who was president of the local Richmond, Virginia chapter of the Communications Workers of America, told him to play baseball. Richard gave up catching Justin's ball because of the velocity, and sent Justin to The Richmond Baseball Academy. Justin clocked 84 mph shortly after joining the academy. The velocity kept getting faster and it passed 93 when he entered Goochland High School. He had been a top pitching prospect in high school, but his career suffered a setback when he came down with strep throat early in his senior season of baseball. A weakened Verlander topped out at 86 during that season, causing professional scouts to lose interest. After he recovered, his velocity reached 100 during his first year at Old Dominion. Verlander played on the DeWitt Panthers AAA team that placed fourth in the nation. The tournament was played in Chickasha, Oklahoma. Verlander, a 6' 5", 200 pound (1.96 m, 91 kg) right-hander, pitched for the Old Dominion University baseball team for three years. On May 17, 2002, he struck out a then school record 17 batters against James Madison. In 2003, he set a school single-season record by recording 139 strikeouts; in 2004, he broke his own record and established a new Colonial Athletic Association record with 151 strikeouts. Verlander completed his career as the all-time strikeout leader in Old Dominion, the Colonial Athletic Association and the Commonwealth of Virginia (Division I) history with 427 in 335⅔ innings. During his three years, he averaged 11.5 strikeouts per nine innings, and his career collegiate earned run average was 2.57. Verlander pitched for Team USA in 2003 and helped the USA to a silver medal in the Pan Am Games. He was named CAA Rookie of the Year in 2002 and earned All-CAA honors in 2003 and 2004. Verlander was named the ODU Alumni Association's Male Athlete of the Year in 2004, and was the second overall pick in the 2004 Baseball draft by Detroit.

In his first full season, Verlander went 17–9 with a 3.63 ERA, striking out 124 batters in 186 innings. He received the Rookie of the Year award. On July 4, 2006, at McAfee Coliseum in Oakland, California, Verlander, Joel Zumaya, and Fernando Rodney each threw multiple fastballs clocked in at over 100 mph, becoming the first time in MLB history that three pitchers, on the same team, had done so during a game. He allowed only one stolen base in 2006 and picked off 7 baserunners. In 2006, he became the first rookie pitcher in the history of the game to win 10 games before the end of June, which eventually led to him being named Rookie of the Year at the end of the 2006 season. During Game 1 of the 2006 World Series, Verlander was the Tiger's starting pitcher against Anthony Reyes of the St. Louis Cardinals; the first time two rookies faced off to start a World Series.His success continued in 2007, as he accumulated 18 wins and posted a 3.66 ERA with 183 strikeouts 201⅔ innings. On June 12, Verlander recorded a no-hitter against the Milwaukee Brewers, striking out 12 and hitting 102 MPH on the radar gun.In 2008, he started off poorly with 4 straight losses before winning his first game. He could not match his 2007 success and finished with a career low 11 wins, while posting career highs in losses (17) and ERA (4.84).His 2009 season proved successful. He finished with a 19–9 record with an ERA of 3.45 and an MLB-leading 269 strikeouts. Verlander finished 3rd in the 2009 AL Cy Young Award voting. On February 4, 2010, it was announced that Verlander and the Tigers had reached a deal for an $80 million, 5 year contract extension. On July 3, Verlander earned his 10th win of the season. This marked the fourth time in five years he has had double digit wins before the all-star break. On September 18 Verlander beat the Chicago White Sox, throwing a complete game to earn his 17th win of the season. With that win he became the first pitcher to win 17 games in 4 of his first 5 seasons since Dwight Gooden. He would finish 2010 with an 18-8 record and 3.37 ERA.

On April 22, Verlander recorded his 1,000th career strikeout in a 9–3 win over the White Sox, becoming the 15th Tiger to do so. On May 7 he recorded his second career no-hitter against the Toronto Blue Jays, throwing four strikeouts, walking one batter and throwing at a maximum speed of 101 MPH on the radar gun. He carried a perfect game into the 8th inning before surrendering a walk to J. P. Arencibia. Verlander became the second Tigers pitcher since Virgil Trucks, and the thirtieth pitcher in the history of baseball, to throw multiple no-hitters. On his next start, against the Kansas City Royals on May 13, Verlander took a no-hitter into the sixth inning before surrendering a triple. Altogether, he pitched 15⅔ consecutive no-hit innings, spread over three starts. On June 14, Justin took a no-hitter into the eighth. He pitched 7⅓ innings until he gave up a base hit to Cleveland's Orlando Cabrera. Verlander ended up with a complete game shutout allowing two hits. In his next start on June 19, he threw another complete game allowing a solo home run to Ty Wigginton On June 26, he recorded a career-high 14 strikeouts against Arizona. On July 3, 2011, Verlander was selected to his fourth AL All-Star team, but he was unable to participate in the game due to the scheduling of his starts. On July 31, 2011, Verlander took a no-hitter into the eighth inning before surrenduring a single to Maicer Izturis. He walked two and struck out nine. On August 11th, Justin won his 100th major league game against the Cleveland Indians. On August 27th, he became the first pitcher in the major leagues to attain 20 wins in the current season. The victory also made Verlander the first Tiger since Bill Gullickson in 1991 to win 20 games, and the first major leaguer since Curt Schilling in 2002 to reach 20 wins before the end of August. He features two fastballs: a four-seamer in the high-90s (which routinely pushes and occasionally eclipses 100 MPH) and a two-seamer in the mid-90s with good swing-back movement. He also throws a 12-6 curveball in the 78-83 mph range, a circle changeup in the low to mid-80s, and a slider which he throws 83-89 mph.

Lin Dan

Lin Dan (Chinese: 林丹; pinyin: Lín Dān; born October 14, 1983 in Longyan, Fujian) is a professional badminton player from China. By the age of 27, Lin completed the "Super Grand Slam", having won all major titles in world badminton: Olympic Games, World Championships, World Cup, Thomas Cup, Sudirman Cup, All England Open, Asian Games, and Asia Championships, becoming the first and only player to achieve this feat. He was recognized as the greatest badminton player of all times. He has been nicknamed "Super Dan" by his fans.


2008 Korea Open - MS Final - Lin Dan vs Lee Hyun-il - 1/8

Lin Dan Simple Smile

Lin Dan Perfect Body

Lin had a good start to 2004, earning the BWF's number one world ranking for the first time in February. He helped China win the qualifying round of Thomas Cup and then captured the Swiss Open. He won his first ever All England Open title by beating Peter Gade in the final. He reached the semifinal of the Japan Open before going off to Jakarta, Indonesia in May for the Thomas Cup campaign.

Lin Dan On The Stage

Lin Dan and His Girl Friend

Lin Dan Kiss The Trophy

In Thomas Cup, Lin won every match he played except his semifinal clash with Lee Chong Wei, and helped China to a third successive title in the tournament. After easy victories over Nigeria and Canada in the group stage, China defeated Thailand in the quarterfinals. Despite Lin's loss to Lee Chong Wei in the semifinals, China still managed to qualify for the final over Malaysia 3–2 and retained the title after beating South Korea 3–1.

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