t spent most of it dallying inside their own half, a smatterin

EVIAN, France -- Its a little known fact that prior to this summers Rio Olympics one nation already had two gold medalists in its professional golfing ranks. Adidas Nmd Dame Tilbud . That country was Russia, the athletes were tennis star Yevgeny Kafelnikov and gymnast Vera Shimanskaya, and neither of them was in Rio.But Maria Verchenova was.The 30-year-old from Moscow may not be Russias most famous professional golfer, but she is comfortably the nations best player of the game and, having set the Olympic course record (and posted a hole-in-one) in the process of finishing tied for 16th, shes rubber stamped that reputation.There was also the little matter of her hat and her dresses: They were flamboyant. They made an impression on sports biggest stage, and these details matter.Golfers who are not golfers? Big hats and retro dresses? It seems to be a rule in Russian golf that the curiosities are always integral, rather than incidental, to the tale.The Evian Championship, the fifth and final major in the LPGA season, takes place this week in the French spa town of Evians-les-Bains on the waters of Lake Leman overlooked by the snow-peaked mountains of the Alps.As a venue it reeks of old world French glamour, of the resorts which played host to Europes aristocrats and mega-rich in the early decades of the 20th century. It was also the very destinations the Russian elite escaped to following the Revolution, where they discovered golf and created the first Russian club, in Cannes during the 1920s.Nearly 100 years later, ahead of her fourth appearance in the event, Verchenova reflects on a month that has changed her profile around the world. And when she talks about the outfits which captured the attention of the world, she does so with a nod to the past.I think my dresses are very elegant, she says. Ive always liked it that in the early days of ladies golf they wore elegant dresses, but now it is more like sportswear. I wanted to return to those old styles. The hat is more sensible. Ive been wearing for a few years now, to protect myself from the sun.Through 54 holes in Rio, the outfits garnered more attention than her scores, a little like her career in microcosm. Its fair to say that she is best known for her magazine shoots. But just as her 13 top-20 finishes on the Ladies European Tour prove, she can play the game. So did her final round in Rio -- a superb 9-under 62 which drew attention to her golf after the cameras and commentators had focused on the hat most of the week.The highlight was her 6-iron at the 155-yard par-3 fourth (her 13th hole of the day) which dropped for a hole-in-one, not that she knew it.It was quite funny, she laughs. You can see on TV that Im not quite sure. There werent many people behind the green, but they were cheering and so I was asking my caddie What happened? What happened? and he was asking me the same question. I only found out for sure when I overheard the scorers radio say Verchenova 8-under. It was an amazing moment.On sports greatest stage she had played the round of her life.It really was one of those days. I was hitting it well all week, but the tactics were wrong. The greens were hard and we were hitting the ball low into them and running through the back. So we talked about it, decided to hit higher approaches, and it worked.That week in Rio was a long way from her introduction to the game on a vacation with her father in the Czech Republic at age 12. She had dreamed of becoming a ballerina, swayed by the beauty of the dancing, but was now taken by the beauty of golf courses and honed her game at Moscow Country Club.The Moscow course is a Robert Trent Jones Jr. design which was first mooted in the 1970s by the American business tycoon Armand Hammer. The son of a Russian emigre, he dreamed that golf could draw Russia back into the international community. Leonid Brezhnev, then general secretary of the Soviet Union, thought otherwise. Moscow had to wait until 1993 for it to be built.For Verchenova, the course, which trails through thick, dacha-dotted forest in the suburb of Nakhabino, was where she fostered her dreams and where more recently she plays golf with Yevgeny Kafelnikov, two-time tennis Grand Slam winner and the tennis gold medalist at the 2000 Sydney Olympics.At the same Sydney Games, Vera Shimanskaya claimed gold in rhythmic gymnastics. Today both athletes are professional golfers, but, with a combined count of zero cuts made in 35 appearances on major tours, there is a gulf in class between themselves and Verchenova.What they do all share is the status of Olympians, something Verchenova cherishes personally and recognizes the importance of for her sport.The whole week was a buzz, she says. I stayed in the Olympic village because I wanted to feel the excitement. Seeing the other athletes going to their event in the morning was so unusual and exciting, so different from any other tournament.For me it was something else. I was so proud to be the only Russian representative and to know the whole country was supporting me was amazing.The Olympics is in our blood. Ever since I was little every two years, winter or summer, we all watch the Games and support our players, it is very prestigious to represent Russia.The final round drama was picked up by Russian broadcasters and prompted a welcoming party on her return.It was such a long journey home, we were stuck in Madrid six hours, but when we arrived the people were still standing there at the airport. A group of junior golfers from Moscow CC had waited six hours for me. They were just young kids, but they gave me flowers as congratulations.As a youngster herself, Verchenova had limited assistance outside her family. Not only was there little in the way of structure for the still fledgling game, but it very definitely remains a pastime for the elite in Russia. The recently opened Tseleevo Golf and Polo Club, peppered with fake Greek temples and boasting a helicopter park, is rumored to have (and need) less than 20 members. Even if that is not true, the fact many believe it could easily be is instructive in itself.It would have been nice to have support like other nations and to have a role model, says Verchenova, but I want to do my best to be a pioneer. I did a lot of speaking about golf before the Games, lots of photo shoots, TV and interviews. I wanted to promote Russian golf. But who knows if they will put money in?Ahead of this weeks challenge she is keen.Rio has given me confidence. It shows what I can do. I know it is only one round, but then I remember how much work I put into this. Ive worked hard with my coach, my gym coach, my psychologist. The 62 was the result of that hard work. Hopefully it will push me on. I also won the European qualifying for Evian back in May, that was another boost.At the end of the year she will head to qualifying school, hoping to write the latest chapter in the quirky story of Russian golf -- the one about the Russian girl in the big hat winning a card to play on the LPGA. Adidas Nmd Herre Udsalg . They were putting most of their energy into a record-setting offensive display. Adidas Basketball Sko Danmark . The team also announced Tuesday that the Braves will wear a commemorative patch on the right sleeve during the season. The patch, shaped like home plate, carries the number 715, Aarons autograph and a "40th Anniversary" banner. http://www.dknmdskotilbud.com/ .J. -- New York Giants wide receiver Victor Cruz will miss the rest of the season after having surgery on his left knee. The A-League has its early title favourites, now the long wait is on for a blockbuster round 10 clash when Melbourne City and Sydney FC meet to decide whose case is stronger.No other side has neared the class and utter ruthlessness displayed by the two glamour clubs in the opening two rounds.Sydneys back-to-back 4-0 floggings of Western Sydney and Central Coast have them at the top of the table on goal difference from second-placed City, whose 4-1 Melbourne derby whitewash has to be seen to be believed in much the same fashion as Tim Cahills preposterous goal.There was only a slim possibility that Cahill, the figurehead of Football Federation Australias marketing campaign, could match the enormous expectations surrounding his long-awaited debut in the league.That the Socceroos all-time leading scorer exceeded them has already gone along way toward paying for the mega-money investment, the 36-year-old describing his audacious 35m half-volley as being up there with the best goals of his career.It sets up the seasons first clash between Sydney FC and Melbourne City, at ANZ Stadium on Friday, December 9, as a mouth-watering encounter, though both sides have been keen to keep a lid on expectations.City midfielder and man of the match Luke Brattan agreed with coach John van `t Schips assessment that championships are not won in the first two games.Yet he was not surprised at the way his team ripped crosstown rivals Melbourne Victory to shred in a performance coach Kevin Muscat labelled an embarrassment.If you look at our squad and the pre-season weve had, were very confident in ourselvess, said Brattan, who scored Citys third goal. Adidas Nmd Dk. .Weve got lots of talented players, were extremely fit and I think that showed.The Sky Blues were up against lesser opposition in the battling Mariners, yet the ease with which Graham Arnolds men disposed of them suggested they could comfortably lift several more notches when required.I dont think it was our best performance, but to still win pretty comfortably when youre not playing your best was a good sign, right-back Rhyan Grant said.Its early doors but we can be pretty happy with our start to the season.Paul Okons reinvented Mariners dominated possession but spent most of it dallying inside their own half, a smattering of schoolboys errors soon leading to self-destruction.Last seasons wooden-spooners have just a point to show for their first two games, but there is promise that more improvement will come as the team familiarise themselves with Okons fluid game philosophy.The Wanderers, humiliated by their record Sydney derby drubbing, picked themselves off the floor to beat reigning champions Adelaide United in Friday nights grand-final rematch.Brendon Santalab came off the bench to bag a brace, including an injury-time winner minutes after laying a crunching challenge on Reds midfielder James Holland for which the super-sub was lucky not to be sent off.Newcastle stunned perennial powerhouse Brisbane 4-0 on Sunday to climb to third on the table, before Perth dismantled Wellington at home 2-0. 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