PHILADELPHIA -- Andrea Lawful-Sanders has a ritual for cheering the black heroines of the Summer Olympics.She gets into her corner of the living room, sets up her chair, demands silence before screaming at the top of her lungs, flails her body wildly and -- in keeping with her Jamaican-American heritage -- bangs pot covers together to celebrate victories.From Simone Biles gravity-defying flips to the history-making medal trifecta of the U.S. women racing in the 100-meter hurdles, many of the Olympics most memorable moments have come courtesy of African-American women. Their accomplishments in Rio have spurred excitement and pride at home in the U.S., particularly for black women who say they are seeing themselves in the Olympic Games like never before.While everybody else is talking, we are doing, said Lawful-Sanders, 50, of Philadelphia. When we excel, nobody can take that away from us -- ever. They may try to marginalize us, but how can you marginalize excellence?With competition continuing through Sunday, Americas black female athletes have won more than two dozen of the 100-plus U.S. medal haul.Black women havent just shined in this years Olympics; theyve been ubiquitous -- from gymnastics to water polo, fencing to swimming. Previous Summer Games featured black women mainly in track and field and, more recently, in gymnastics. Fans at home had to wait days to cheer on sprinter Florence Griffith Joyner or gymnast Dominique Dawes.It is very interesting to see black women going into areas where you really dont see black women competing, with all different body shapes, complexions and hairstyles being represented, said Kaye Wise Whitehead, a professor at Loyola University who studies race and gender. Black women see and feel that there is no door closed to us ... and that were not just walking through those doors, but were dominating.In Rio, the two Simones -- gymnast Simone Biles and swimmer Simone Manuel -- both stood atop the podium on a night that made history, with Manuel becoming the first black woman to win an individual medal in swimming. In all, she took home four medals and Biles five. Biles was chosen to carry the American flag for the U.S. team in Sundays closing ceremony.Michelle Carter became the first American woman to win gold in the shot put. Fencer Ibtihaj Muhammad, who won a bronze medal in the womens team sabre event, was the first Muslim-American woman to compete for the U.S. in a hijab.On the track, Dalilah Muhammad became the first American woman to win gold in the 400-meter hurdles, and three black women -- Brianna Rollins, Nia Ali and Kristi Castlin -- became the first Olympians from the same nation to finish 1-2-3 in the 100-meter hurdles.Jacqueline Wills has loved rooting on female gymnasts since she was a child watching the Olympics. During these games, as she lost count of the numerous black women winning, her cheers went beyond just Biles.At this point, its like too many to name, said the 38-year-old who lives in Brookhaven, Georgia. Its the same reason we cheer Michelle Obama when she does something fabulous: Its (a black woman) doing things well and on their own terms and being unapologetically black. Those images kind of reaffirm us.Some said the Olympics also provided a much-needed respite from racial tensions at home.It is a good distraction and a good way to celebrate our successes, even as the world may not appreciate us, said Luvvie Ajayi, a pop culture blogger and author. In a Facebook post, Ajayi quipped: Black women had a secret meeting before (hash)Rio2016 and the only thing on the agenda was: `TAKE ALL THE MEDALS. And it was done.Black women are showing that weve always been a force to reckon with, but now ... were showing that we kind of are superheroes that are real, Ajayi said in an interview. We are really unstoppable; we can dominate at anything we want to do.Black women have also felt the struggles of their athletic counterparts at the games. Many took to social media to defend veteran gymnast Gabby Douglas amid remarks that she lacked patriotism for not placing her hand on her heart during the national anthem, that her hair was not polished enough and that her attitude was unsportsmanlike.The stereotype of the angry black woman was familiar to Wills.That is one of the things that comes with being a black woman in this country, she said, adding that she tried to shrug off the criticism in a Facebook post.I said, `People are just mad at her bold lip, Wills said, referring to Douglas lipstick color.As the games come to a close this weekend, Lawful-Sanders is warming up her pot covers for a few more chances to cheer.We have made up our minds that we are going to give it the best that we have, and we are watching it manifest in the Olympics, she said. Its black girl magic. We are tired of being told that we couldnt or we shouldnt. ... Were taking no prisoners, and Im enjoying every second of it.---Errin Haines Whack covers urban affairs for The Associated Press. Follow her on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/emarvelous and read more of her work at http://bigstory.ap.org/journalist/errin-haines-whack Chaussure Air Max Pas Cher Chine . On Tuesday, Ottawa placed forward Cory Conacher and defenceman Joe Corvo on waivers as trade rumours swirl around the Senators. Air Max Soldes . 1 position. The Mustangs (6-0), who beat Queens 50-31 last weekend, earned 17 first-place votes and 287 points in voting by the Football Reporters of Canada. Western was last ranked first in the country in October 2011. http://www.airmaxpascher.info/ .ca looks back at the stories and moments that made the year memorable. Destockage Nike Air Max .ca looks back at the stories and moments that made the year memorable. Air Max Pas Cher Chine . MLS Commissioner Don Garber and Miami-Dade County Mayor Carlos Gimenez also will attend the session, which was announced Monday. The league has discussed placing its next two expansion teams in Miami and Atlanta. The Arizona Coyotes?placed veteran center Antoine Vermette on unconditional waivers Monday and will buy out the remaining $3.75 million on his contract.According to generalfanager.com, Vermettes buyout cap hit will be $1.25 million for next two seasons. It saves the Coyotes $2.5 million this upcoming season.This move also allows center prospects Dylan Strome and Christian Dvorak a chance to make an impact at the NHL level for the Coyotes this season. With Martin Hanzal and Brad Richardson already established centers, theres simply no room for Vermette (or his cost) on the roster, given his decline in play.Vermette, 34, does not fit into the top-six role and the team did not want to pay him.In order to give our team more flexibility, we needed to make this difficult decision, Coyotes general manager John Chayka said in a statement. This move will provide an opportunity for some of our young, talentedd players to step up.ddddddddddddhe Ottawa Senators originally drafted Vermette in the second round (No. 55 overall) in 2000. After five seasons with the Senators, he was traded to the Columbus Blue Jackets on March 4, 2009, for Pascal Leclaire and Columbus second-round pick (Robin Lehner) in the 2009 draft.On Feb. 22, 2012, Vermette was traded to the Coyotes for Curtis McElhinney and second- and fourth-round picks in 2012. Vermette played four seasons for the Coyotes before he was traded to Chicago?at the deadline in 2015. Helped the Blackhawks win the Stanley Cup that season.Vermette re-signed with Arizona as a free agent in July 2015 on a two-year deal worth $7.5 million. He registered 17 goals and 21 assists in 76 games for the Coyotes last season. He was a minus-14. ' ' '
