s starting guards, Malachi Flynn and Charles Callison, were a com

RIO DE JANEIRO -- Brazils highest officials celebrated the completion of a much-delayed $3 billion subway expansion that will play a crucial part in the Rio de Janeiro Olympics, holding a ribbon-cutting ceremony Saturday just days before the games are set to kick off.The new Line 4, billed as the most important infrastructure project linked to the Olympics, will transport hundreds of thousands of athletes and fans between the citys iconic beaches and Barra da Tijuca, which is home to the Olympic Park and most sporting venues.What was done here was a miracle, Rio Mayor Eduardo Paes said, praising the subway line which traverses 10 miles of tunnels and verdant hills, through shantytowns and high-end beach neighborhoods.The project has been fraught with problems, with repeated delays to the launch date and costs nearly doubling from the initial estimate. Only two months ago, problems securing final financing sowed doubts that the expansion would be ready on time.In June auditors and experts worried that the delays could compromise safety testing, and an organization of railway specialists filed a complaint asking a judge to postpone the opening until the project was inspected by independent firms. The judge asked the state government earlier this month for more information on the tests that were conducted; the case is still pending.But officials were all smiles during the ceremony, taking photographs, laughing and hugging as they prepared to board the train for its inaugural voyage. The 15-minute ride covers a stretch of Rio that usually takes more than an hour to cross by car, via a congested highway that runs through hills and tunnels.Rio will show the world all that Brazil is capable of achieving, acting President Michel Temer said.The line will begin carrying athletes, Olympic staffers and ticket holders on Monday in trains departing every eight minutes, and will be open to the general public after the games are over.There have been bumps in the road for other areas of Olympic construction.A new bike lane collapsed after being struck by a large wave in April, killing two joggers.And last week, teams arriving to the Olympics complained about water and gas leaks, blocked toilets and electrical problems at the athletes village.---Adriana Gomez Licon is on Twitter http://twitter.com/agomezlicon<a href="http://www.shoptheraidersonline.com/Elite-Antonio-Brown-Raiders-Jersey/">Antonio Brown Jersey</a>. After the whistle, Thornton skated the length of the ice, pulled Orpik to the ice from behind and punched him in the face several times. <a href="http://www.shoptheraidersonline.com/Elite-Hunter-Renfrow-Raiders-Jersey/">Hunter Renfrow Youth Jersey</a>.ca looks back at the stories and moments that made the year memorable. <a href="http://www.shoptheraidersonline.com/Elite-Johnathan-Abram-Raiders-Jersey/">http://www.shoptheraidersonline.com/Elite-Johnathan-Abram-Raiders-Jersey/</a>. After Mondays hard-fought loss, the wait seemed longer than usual. Getting set to go their separate ways for a short Christmas break, the Raptors coach credited his team for their effort on a seemingly impossible three-game road trip, urging them to build on that success when they get back to work at the end of the week. <a href="http://www.shoptheraidersonline.com/Elite-Josh-Jacobs-Raiders-Jersey/">Josh Jacobs Raiders Jersey</a>. Pirlo limped out of Sundays 1-0 win over Udinese after just 13 minutes. Juventus says Pirlo underwent tests on Monday which revealed he has "a second-degree lesion to the collateral medial ligament in his right knee. <a href="http://www.shoptheraidersonline.com/Elite-Bo-Jackson-Raiders-Jersey/">Bo Jackson Youth Jersey</a>. "Thank you for the warm welcome," Beckham said on an 80-degree February morning. In this case, it was soccer weather. The sport moved a step closer to returning to South Florida on Wednesday, when Beckham confirmed he has exercised his option to purchase a Major League Soccer expansion franchise in Miami.KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- Kansas State slowly, methodically broke down Washington State on Saturday night.It probably shouldnt have been a surprise.The Cougars were already playing without forward Jeff Pollard, who has mono, and Vionte Daniels, who is dealing with the effects of a concussion. But then the news hit earlier in the day that Derrien King intends to transfer at the semester, leaving coach Ernie Kents even more short-handed on the road.Any time a player leaves, it hurts your team, Kent said after the Wildcats rolled to a 70-56 victory at the Sprint Center, and yet youre in an era of transferring and he made the decision to do that.It left Washington State with eight guys to match up with a deep, balanced bunch of Wildcats, though, and the Cougars certainly looked tired by the time the final seconds ticked off the clock.Wesley Iwundu had 15 points and eight rebounds, Barry Brown had 14 points, Dean Wade contributed 11 and Xavier Sneed finished with 10, all those scoring options helping Kansas State (9-1) overcome a lousy first-half shooting performance to win its 16th consecutive non-conference home game.It was also the Wildcats third straight win over the Cougars.We were trying to do stuff all on our own, Kansas State coach Bruce Weber said. Our defense was solid again, but we didnt do the things we needed to do offensively in the first half. Much better in the second.Indeed, Washington State (5-5) controlled almost the entire first half, never trailing until the final couple of minutes. But Kents team fell behind 28-26 headed into the locker room, and kept slipping farther behind during the second half, when the Wildcats heated up from the perimeter.They were 2 of 9 from 3-point range in the first half. They were 7 of 13 in the second.I think offensively we just came out slow, everybody was trying to probably put up the ball to see how it was going to go, Brown said. In the second half we just made the right play, made the simple passes and we were able to make some shots.Josh Hawkinson hadd 10 points and 10 rebounds for the Cougars.dddddddddddd Charles Callison also scored 10.In truth, there werent many bright moments in the first half for either team -- at one point, they combined for one field goal over a five-minute stretch. Turnovers were also a problem with the teams giving it up five times during that same abysmal period.But once the Wildcats assumed their first lead with 43 seconds left before halftime, they never trailed again. Their lead approached 20 points midway through the second half before coasting down the stretch.I thought the game was a tale of two halves, Kent said. We played I thought some really good basketball, probably our best basketball of the year in the first half and kept our composure. I thought Kansas State in the second half did a great job to keep their composure.STATS AND STREAKSThe Wildcats Kamau Stokes had just four points on 2-for-10 shooting. He was 0 for 5 from beyond the arc. ... Washington States starting guards, Malachi Flynn and Charles Callison, were a combined 4 for 15 from the field. ... Kansas State had a 30-16 scoring advantage in the paint.BIG PICTUREWashington State probably knew it would be a struggle when it had a tough time beating Carroll College in an exhibition game. But the Cougars only wins since mid-November have come against Utah Valley and Idaho, with losses to Loyola, San Jose State and New Orleans along the way.Kansas State has built a glossy record thanks to an atrocious nonconference schedule. The Wildcats only tough game came in Brooklyn, when they lost 69-68 to Maryland. And things dont get a whole lot tougher with games against Colorado State and Gardner-Webb before Big 12 play.UP NEXTWashington State heads home to play Santa Clara next Saturday.Kanas State plays the Rams next Saturday in Denver.---More AP college basketball: www.collegebasketball.ap.org and https://twitter.com/AP-Top25<a href="http://www.chinawholesalejerseysnfl.com/">Wholesale Jerseys</a> ' ' '