Dein erstes Forum » piled it on in the third. George capped an 8-0

PLA DADET, France -- On the last of four Pyrenees ascents, Rafal Majka winked at a French TV camera and tugged playfully at a motorcycles antenna. Even this late in the Tour de France, the Polish rider made winning look easy as he took Stage 17 on Wednesday. For Vincenzo Nibali, the second ride in the mountains on Frances border with Spain was more serious. "The Shark" nibbled yet more seconds away from several of his closest challengers, and the yellow jersey that he has worn for all but two days of the race seemed to fit just a little more tightly ahead of the finish Sunday in Paris. Nibali was even businesslike with his own prime minister, imploring him not to get too ahead of himself in celebration. "Its true that I received a text message from Matteo Renzi, who invited me to Chigi Palace to celebrate my victory," the cautious Sicilian said about the premiers official residence. "I replied that only after winning -- if I do so -- Ill be able to say that Ill be present." The 124.5-kilometre (77-mile) trek Wednesday was the shortest stage in this years Tour. It covered three hard Category 1 ascents from Saint-Gaudens and a final push up to Pla dAdet ski station above the town of Saint-Lary-Soulan. Majka, who also won Stage 14 in the Alps, again showed hes the best climber in this Tour and tightened his grip on the polka dot jersey awarded to the races King of the Mountains. Giovanni Visconti got the action going on the last climb with a solo breakaway with about nine kilometres (5 1/2 miles) left, but could not hold off Majka. Visconti, who also is Sicilian, was second, 29 seconds back, and Nibali was third, 46 seconds behind. With a last Pyrenean day ahead Thursday, Majka could ensure that he takes the red-dot jersey home. His closest rival for it when the stage started was Spains Joaquim Rodriguez, who swatted the air in frustration at Majka when the Pole broke away on the last climb. Majka said he felt "comfort" in the last five kilometres in part because hed been saving up energy a day earlier by riding easier. He finished in a bunch 24 1/2 minutes behind Australian teammate Michael Rogers, who won Stage 16. By Wednesday, "I felt really, really good in the last climb," Majka said, after tapping his chest, thrusting his arms skyward and shouting in joy at the victory. "For me, when there are a lot of climbs, its the best." There was a time when seemingly effortless victories smacked of something more sinister at the Tour: the use of performance-enhancers. Few know the scars of cyclings doping past more than Majkas own manager at the Tinkoff-Saxo Bank team, Bjarne Riis. Once a national hero in Denmark after winning the 1996 Tour, he admitted to using blood-booster EPO more than a decade later -- and was vilified for it. He laid low for a while, but then returned to the pro cycling world. "I promised Bjarne today that I would win the stage," said Majka. The echoes of doping resonated Wednesday on the grassy Pyrenean mountainside: The last times that Saint-Lary-Soulan hosted Tour stage finishes were in 2001 and 2005 -- won by Lance Armstrong and teammate George Hincapie. Those wins were later stripped because of doping. Their names have been crossed out in the official Tour history book. Cycling has made great strides in fighting doping with enhanced blood and urine testing, along with the biological passport program, but few experts would claim that the peloton today is entirely clean. Nibali, who has called himself a "flag-bearer of anti-doping", made his latest case to become the first Italian to win cyclings showcase race in 16 years -- since Marco Pantani, who was once convicted for doping. Nibali gained just under a minute on four of his closest rivals. Second-placed Alejandro Valverde of Spain, who made a valiant recovery on the last ascent to avoid even more damage, now trails by 5 minute, 26 seconds. The exception was Jean-Christophe Peraud of France, who hugged closely on the leaders back wheel and finished fourth. With his performance, the 37-year-old Frenchman made it an even closer race for the podium spots. He is fourth overall, 6:08 behind Nibali, but just eight seconds slower than fellow Frenchman Thibaut Pinot, in third. American Tejay van Garderen, in sixth, also lost about a minute to Nibali and trails by 10:19. It came a day after his hopes for a podium spot were dealt a big blow when he lost several minutes to the other aspirants for a top-three finish in Paris. "Yesterday was a pity, it was an off day," the BMC leader said. A podium spot is still possible, he added, "but it will be hard." Stage 18s finale in the Pyrenees takes the pack on a 145.5-kilometre (90-mile) loop from Pau to Hautacam, featuring two ascents that are so hard that they defy cyclings ranking system -- one of them an uphill finish. Then its a flat stage heading northward Friday before an individual time-trial a day later, and then whats likely to be the largely ceremonial ride for the yellow jersey in Stage 21 on Sunday to the Champs-Elysees in Paris for the finish of the races 101st edition. While well-positioned to be in yellow then, Nibali was still attacking Wednesday. "I preferred to go and gain a few more seconds and to be even more serene, just in case something could happen," he said. Jordan 11 For Sale Cheap . Ontario Superior Court Case Management Master Ronald Dash released the decision on Monday, saying John McCaw Jr. must testify in front of a jury by live video conference. Moores lawyer, Tim Danson, asked the court to compel McCaw - who is based in Seattle - to testify in the case back on February 27. Cheap Air Jordan 11 For Sale . The All Blacks played their best rugby of recent years when they beat South Africa 38-27 in Johannesburg two weeks ago, clinching the Rugby Championships in a match which has been hailed as one of the best ever played. http://www.cheapairjordan11.com/. The Maple Leafs will play on the road for the first time this season after dropping home contests to Montreal and Pittsburgh to begin the campaign. After losing a one-goal decision to the Canadiens on Wednesday, they were bested 5-2 on Saturday by the Penguins. Air Jordan 11 Retro Low Cheap . Jason Zucker and Matt Cooke also scored for Minnesota, which has won five of six. Kuemper made five saves in the first, nine in the second, and nine in the third. The rookies best save came with 2:17 left in the third period when he denied former Wild forward Matt Cullen from just outside of the crease on the right side. Cheap Jordan 11 Low . The seventh-ranked Berdych wants to focus on the ATP Tour after helping the Czechs beat the Netherlands in the first round. Seeking their third straight Davis Cup title, the Czechs will rely again on veteran Radek Stepanek.The Indiana Pacers struck first in their Eastern Conference Finals series with the Miami Heat and theyll go for a commanding lead tonight when the two sides meet for Game 2 at Bankers Life Fieldhouse. Watch the action unfold live on TSN and TSN GO at 8:30pm et/5:30pm pt. The Pacers took Game 1, 107-96, Sunday afternoon in Indianapolis in a rematch of last years East Finals. The Pacers made six of their first seven shots from beyond the arc and shot 59.5 percent in the first half en route to a 55-45 cushion at the break. Indiana built its advantage up to as many as 19 in the third quarter and staved off every Heat push down the stretch in the wire-to-wire win. For the game, Indiana shot 51.5 percent from the floor and 42 percent from long range. "We played a pretty good basketball game. I think we can play better," Pacers coach Frank Vogel said after practice Monday. "I think were going to need to play better because I think Miami is going to come back and play a more complete basketball game so we have to elevate our level." The Heat lost only their second postseason game, but are staring in the face of something unprecedented. Since the Big Three of LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh descended upon South Beach, the Heat have never gone down 0-2 in a series. "We had a couple of breakdowns. In the Eastern Conference Finals, you cant have that many breakdowns," James said after practice. "It wasnt a bad game at all. We scored 97 points, we got 54 points in the paint, we had 23 assists, only 11 turnovers. But we had some breakdowns defensively that allowed them to get some good shots." Paul George led the way for the Pacers with 24 points and seven assists. Indianas entire starting five scored in double figures and it moved to 6-0 this postseason when Roy Hibbert scores 10-or-more points. He finished with 19 points and nine rebounds. David Wesst tallied 19 points and seven boards, Lance Stephenson posted 17 points, eight assists and four rebounds and George Hill added 15 points for the Pacers, who improved to 4-4 at home in the playoffs after going an NBA- best 35-6 at Bankers Life Fieldhouse during the regular season.dddddddddddd Wade netted 27 points, while James supplied 25 points, 10 rebounds, five assists and three steals for Miami. Chris Andersen finished with 14 off the bench and Ray Allen added 12. Indiana raced out to a quick 7-0 start after Hill hit a quick 3-pointer and sunk a pair of free throws before Stephenson nailed a step-back jumper. The Pacers led 30-24 following a quarter of play. It was their first 30-point opening frame since Feb. 27. James cut Indianas gap to 50-45 following a pair of buckets, but the Pacers netted the final five points of the half. The Pacers piled it on in the third. George capped an 8-0 burst with a layup to extend the margin to 69-52 just before the midway point of the stanza. Two Hibbert free throws made it 81-62, but James layup concluded an 8-0 Miami flurry to get the two-time defending champs within 81-70. Wades layup pulled Miami within 83-74 early in the fourth, but the Pacers responded with six straight and the Heat never got the deficit below double digits again. "We played with a great energy," George said. "Thats been an area where we lacked this postseason. Being consistent with our energy and urgency to start games off. I thought we brought that." Indiana finished the season 7-9 and limped through the playoffs, at times looking brilliant, and other times, inconsistent. Miami has looked generally brilliant during the playoffs, and despite never falling down 0-2, this incarnation of the Heat has won all four series in which they lost Game 1. The home team in this matchup is on a nine-game winning streak. Game 3 will be Saturday night in Miami. ' ' '