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For all the ways in which the image of a young Muslim woman proudly playing the national sport offers a modern, hopeful interpretation of liberté, égalité, fraternité and the future of France, there is also something ancient and familiar about Jessica Houra-dHommeauxs passion for soccer.Growing up in Angers, not quite 200 miles southwest of Paris, Houra-dHommeaux played for the same reasons as generations of French children, albeit most of them boys for many of those years. She watched her father play and coach. She watched an older brother play. She played because it was what she knew.So even if the larger culture in which she grew up was, at best, indifferent (and, at worst, openly resistant) to a young womans passion for a sport long dominated by men, her connection to the field not only endured but grew stronger. It remains the bond with her father even after his death. That he never saw her play for the national team doesnt matter.I want that he was proud of me, Houra-dHommeaux said in her second language. So its for that, I think, I still play football. Because I know that he was proud of me when I was [playing for a youth] national team. I do everything knowing hes proud of me now. Its my force, its my inspiration.In dozens of forms, each person with her own story, that explains how a generation of French players convinced a country to accept and embrace the womens game. It became impossible to ignore their passion because it was so familiar. It burrows down into a person and becomes part of them.They gave France the team people wanted to believe in. They made themselves matter to people. And now because they do, they need to give France a champion. That is part of the bargain.Which womens team has the most at stake in the Olympics? The obvious answer is host Brazil, and at least symbolically, its inarguable. To win gold in Rio de Janeiros Maracana, especially in light of missteps by the iconic mens national team in recent years, would be a powerful statement. But it would likely be of more symbolic utility than practical. The infrastructure to consistently develop and support the womens game isnt going to spring up overnight in Brazil.A gold medal, not an impossibility based on Australias World Cup showing, would change the paradigm in the country. Another win would only add to the power wielded for change by American players.But three years ahead of the 2019 FIFA Womens World Cup, France has an opportunity unique to the field. To win gold would in some ways be a small step for a team that played for bronze four years ago and is ranked third in the world at the moment. That small step could ensure the giant changes.Entering the 2011 World Cup, France had qualified just once previously for either that event or the Olympics. The French didnt advance out of the group stage in a European Championship until 2009, and even then, they were outscored in the tournament. The invisible line that ran through Western Europe, separating a successful sport in Germany and the Nordic countries from the soccer chauvinism of the rest of the continent, traced the northern border of France. It was why several French players posed nude before that 2011 tournament, their answer clear in asking what it would take for their country to pay attention.A lot can change in five years.According to UEFA statistics, France is now one of seven European nations with more than 60,000 registered female players (73,484 in 2014-15), the only such country south of that invisible line of cultural separation. With more than 1.8 million total registered players in France, the divide between genders remains a chasm, but the 2014-15 figure represented roughly a 25 percent increase on even two years prior. That mirrors the anecdotal experiences of those involved.When I begin, womens football is not so popular, Houra-dHommeaux recalled of the 1990s. The people when I told them I play football, they say What? You play football? Its weird. So it was not so easy at the beginning.Houra-dHommeaux is only 28, but she already spans multiple eras of womens soccer in France. When she began to play for the Paris Saint-Germain womens team and the French national team less than a decade ago, soccer was not her sole occupation. It could not be. She still worked more than 30 hours a week in a clerical job in the medical field, practicing and playing games around that schedule. But Qatar Sports Investment bought PSG in 2011 and, in addition to pouring millions into the mens team, invested the resources to make the womens team fully professional and one of Europes elite. Only then did Houra give up her job outside of soccer. (After seven seasons with PSG, Houra-dHommeaux moved to Lyon, Frances other giant of womens soccer.)Again, change happens slowly. Only a handful of clubs in the top division of French womens football are truly professional. There are perhaps dozens of female players who are able to make soccer a full-time career. Many of those stars are brought in from abroad to bolster the ranks of PSG or Lyon (given the salaries available in the National Womens Soccer League, that is not necessarily different than in this country). But the opportunity does exist, an evolution that happened in real time for a generation of players.It was hard for my life with my family, Houra-dHommeaux said of balancing two careers. Since I play just football, its easy because Im just focused on football. Im not tired at the end of my work day, and I can have a good time with my family. I think its important to have good time with your family if you want to be good at football because when you are happy outside of football, in your life, I think you are better and better on the pitch.The cause and effect of change in France is muddled, as it often is in reality. Coming on the heels of a disastrous and nationally embarrassing effort by the mens team in the 2010 World Cup, when French players boycotted a training session and then exited in the group stage, the run the womens team made to the semifinals of the 2011 World Cup in nearby Germany catapulted womens football into the spotlight. The womens team then made it to the semifinals of the 2012 Olympics, while the wounded mens team quietly bowed out of that years Euros.The timing was fortuitous. But when the French womens team seized its moments in 2011 and 2012, it marked the product of more than a decade of preparation, a concerted effort to raise the level of play. Girls were finally allowed to live and train alongside boys at the national training center, commonly known as Clairefontaine, a decade after it opened its doors. Among the early beneficiaries were many of the players on the 2011 or 2012 teams, players like Houra-dHommeaux, Camille Abily and Laura Georges.What happened in 2011 and 2012 -- the arrival of a golden generation that also included Louisa Necib, Wendie Renard, Elodie Thomis and so many more familiar names -- altered the map of womens soccer. It birthed a new power.Players are not afraid anymore to play against Germany, to play against the U.S., said?Georges,?the veteran defender who was forced to withdraw from the team shortly before the Olympics because of injury.?Before there was like a supremacy of the really big teams, and we were kind of scared. We could not even really play together, we were just playing long ball, we were not keeping the ball and playing around. We were kind of scared of the big teams. Now players are more comfortable playing against the big teams. We have more experience, more confidence.When France beat the United States 2-0 in February 2015, it marked the Americans first loss in the history of the series. But far from embarrassing, it served as an important component of the preparation for the Americans World Cup title that followed. Few teams pushed the United States the way France did.Its the trifecta, its mentality, technique and athleticism, U.S. coach Jill Ellis said of what makes a program elite. When I took over [the U.S. program], I said to our team that we have the beauty of having all three. Many countries dont have two out of three. France certainly has the athleticism and technique. People would question their mentality, just in terms of they havent won a big event yet, but I wouldnt knock them there. On any given day in our game, any of these top four teams can beat each other.But they have [technique and athleticism] locked down.What they dont have, as Ellis gently alluded to, is a trophy or medals from a major tournament to show for all the progress. France lost 3-1 to the United States in a 2011 World Cup semifinal and 2-1 to Japan in an Olympic semifinal a year later. France fell victim to a dubious format in the World Cup a year ago -- even as group stage winners, the French were forced into a quarterfinal against Germany. On a day when the French had the better of play but couldnt put away the game, the country nonetheless exited in a penalty shootout.The small sample size notwithstanding, France struggles in big games to finish what it starts.Technically, possession, I think we are pretty good, Abily said of the state of the program. Its our strength, but it needs now to be maybe better -- well, for sure -- in front of the goal. To be more killer, you know.Its great to keep the ball, to play well, but it misses something.That again reared its head this spring, when France, despite some notable absences due to injury, played generally appealing soccer without ever scoring a goal against England, Germany or the United States in the SheBelieves Cup.This problem to score has been the problem for France since the last eight to 10 years, coach Philippe Bergeroo lamented with a perfectly Gallic shrug of the shoulders after that event.At some point, fans will want results. The accessibility and relatability of players will lose its luster. Expectations, in this case, represent their own brand of equality.I think we have to win because [coming close] is almost boring for them, Abily said.That would be a missed opportunity of almost tragic proportions, not because wins and losses really matter that much but because of the potential influence the French team can have.France might be the most diverse team in the womens game, certainly among the handful of elite championship contenders. It is a reflection of a changing society, changing not without tension, not just because of gender but all the labels with which it is too easy to separate each other and isolate ourselves.The daughter of an Algerian immigrant, Houra-dHommeaux was taken aback by the attention she received for a professionally shot photo in which many assumed she wore a hijab -- It was just a capuche, she said, using the French word for hood. But in the same breath, she noted she was proud to represent her faith as a womens soccer player.You see on our national team, there are a lot of black girls or Arabic girls, Houra-dHommeaux said. I think soccer in France, its easier for everybody. ... Its easy to play football in France, and its good for all the people to see that we are white, we are black, we are Muslim, we are Catholic or something like that, but we can play football. Everybody can play football. And I like it for that.Having three years to use the momentum of a gold medal to continue to build the game, at both the youth and professional levels, would set up a potentially remarkable World Cup. To keep this particular team in the spotlight could resonate far beyond the field at a time when others try to divide and terrorize.If we can do it in sport, we can do it in life, Abily said of the diversity. Its important to think like this, especially after the terrorist attacks [in Paris in 2015]. Its very good to be like this now, even more than before. Bartolo Colon Jersey . Fellow centre Pavel Datsyuk remains out because of a concussion. Zetterberg has 11 goals and 19 assists for a team-high 30 points, and Datsyuk has a team-high 12 goals and 11 assists. Tom Seaver Jersey . - Connor McDavid scored 53 seconds into overtime as the Erie Otters came from behind to defeat the visiting Guelph Storm 4-3 on Saturday in Ontario Hockey League action. https://www.cheapmetsjerseys.us/1860l-tyler-bashlor-jersey-mets.html . After dropping their final six games of December, the Wild opened the new calendar year with four consecutive wins. Following a loss to Colorado on Saturday, Minnesota rebounded the following night to blank Nashville 4-0, but then had the tables turned on them Tuesday. Robinson Cano Jersey .com) - Following a late-game loss to the reigning NBA champs, the Toronto Raptors will look to sustain their recent high-level play as they travel to Indiana to take on the Pacers. Jonathon Niese Jersey . 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.SAN DIEGO - Jason Marquis combined with four relievers on a four-hitter to win his fifth straight start and Will Venable homered to lead the San Padres. Marquis (6-2) has won five consecutive starts for the first time since 2007 with the Chicago Cubs. He allowed two runs, one earned, on three hits in six innings while striking out three and walking four. With the St. Louis Cardinals leading the San Diego Padres 2-1 in the sixth inning, manager Mike Matheny had seen enough of Shelby Miller. The rookie right-hander had just walked his second batter of the inning, with two outs, on his 107th pitch. The Padres scored twice to take the lead, sticking Miller with the loss in a 4-2 defeat. "He hit some real good spots," Matheny said. "But it was one of those games where they fouled off a lot of pitches to get his pitch count up. It was too high to really get himself out of trouble late in the game." Chris Denorfia went 3 for 3 with an RBI for the Padres, who have won three straight and five of seven. Huston Street pitched the ninth for his 11th save in 12 chances. Venable homered into the Jack Daniels Old No. 7 Deck atop the right-field fence leading off the seventh, his seventh. It came on the second pitch from Mitchell Boggs, who just returned from a demotion to Triple-A Memphis. Miller (5-3) allowed three runs and five hits in 5 2-3 innings, struck out five and walked three. "It was more just missing my spots and them not swinging," Miller said. "When you face a good-hitting offence, its not going to be easy to throw it and have them swing at it every single time. Its something I have to realize just to get the ball around the zone." The Padres scored two runs in the sixth on three walks, one hit and a hit batter. After Miller was pulled, Denorfia greeted Fernando Salas with an RBI single. John Baker walked to load the bases aand Salas hit pinch-hitter Jesus Guzman with a pitch to bring in another run.dddddddddddd "It seems like 20 pitches every single inning, every single outing, back-to-back starts," Miller said. "Throwing so many pitches in back-to-back games is not good. It accumulates with a little bit of everything. My curveball wasnt really good tonight. Neither was my changeup. My fastball wasnt really there. Multiple things were off." Miller entered with a 1.40 ERA, tied with Clayton Kershaw of the Los Angeles Dodgers for the lowest in the majors. It went up to 1.74. Two starts earlier, Miller allowed a single to start the game and then retired the next 27 batters in a 3-0 home win against Colorado. Millers scoreless streak of 14 2-3 innings ended in the first when Everth Cabrera hit a leadoff single and scored on Chase Headleys one-out single. The Cardinals tied it in the second when Headley, San Diegos Gold Glove third baseman, booted Millers bases-loaded grounder for an error, allowing Yadier Molina to score. The Cardinals added a run in the third when Carlos Beltran hit a leadoff double, advanced on Matt Hollidays single and scored on Allen Craigs double-play grounder. San Diego had a prime opportunity to score in its half when Cabrera hit a leadoff triple to right-centre. But he was stranded when Miller struck out Will Venable and Headley before Carlos Quentin popped up. NOTES: Cardinals 3B David Freese was a late scratch due to getting three stitches in the base of his right thumb after getting spiked by Milwaukees Norichika Aoki while tagging him out during a rundown Sunday. Freese was replaced by Ty Wigginton, who grew up in suburban Chula Vista. ... Marquis has a 2.27 ERA during his five-game winning streak. ... The series continues Tuesday night when St. Louis RHP Adam Wainwright (5-3, 2.51 ERA) faces RHP Edinson Volquez (3-4, 5.55). ' ' '