With an impressive showing as a member of Canadas Fed Cup team over the weekend, Blainville, Quebecs Aleksandra Wozniak reflects on her play and her preparation for Roland Garros in her personal blog on RDS. [url=http://www.cheapblazersjerseys.com/]Wholesale Blazers Jerseys[/url] .ca and TSN.ca. --- We took advantage of the opportunity to advance to World Group I at the Fed Cup for the first time in history by beating Slovakia last weekend, so were off to play next season as one of eight finalists in February! Playing at PEPS Stadium at Laval University, the facility was expanded to accommodate 3,500 people. While the stands werent completely filled as they were in Montreal last February, that didnt hold back the great atmosphere. People were encouraging us, shouting out our names and having fun on each point (though I had a very long match where I had to battle until the very end). My family and my friends were also among the crowd and it was really fun to learn as much as I did there. It wasnt just about me as I was playing - it was about playing for my country and all of those watching. The viewing public is important and I dont want to disappoint them, but I wasnt really dwelling on that kind of pressure at the time. I tried to stay in the present moment and simply enjoy the energy to try to give a good show and play a good game. Its always very important to do my best to win. People were just happy to be there and support us and it made for a crazy weekend! Just before the tournament, we spent several days training together in Quebec City and we had our official team dinner on Thursday night. We also took the time to work with Iris Setlakwe, as the fashion designer helped dress us for this special event (as was the case a couple of months ago in Montreal). We also got acquainted with other players and sponsors - a tradition followed by every delegation during the Fed Cup. It was also at this time that we did our traditional gift exchange. Our gift for the Slovaks - maple syrup! Never Give Up It was a bit hard early on in my opening match when I lost the first set. Jana Cepelova, ranked 52nd in the world, was very tough and had lots of confidence after a strong performance in Charleston. This is a player who went to the net a lot and never hit the same ball. Shes already beaten good players like Serena Williams and has the ability to change speeds during a point. She can make three rhythm changes by alternating her slice, or cushioning her forehand before suddenly attacking with lots of force and precision in the corners. Its not easy to guage a girl like this, as she was very gifted. That being said, it was necessary for me to raise my game up a notch and find my pace to reverse the trend. As this was the first time I was facing Cepelova, I was trying to get a read on her game at the start. It took me a little while, because it was not easy adjusting to the ball. I was hooked as I tried to avoid my earlier mistakes while trying to force errors. In short, it was a physical and mental challenge, coming back twice - in the second and third sets - as she was serving for the match. And that first victory on Day 1 was very important to set the tone for the competition. And all this time, captain Sylvain Bruneau was at my side to motivate me, telling me to remember what I should do and to always be alert. Its good to have the opportunity to rely on a coach and his advice during a match. In other tournaments, you cant ask for that much help so frequently. Finally, my next next Grand Slam stop is at Roland Garros. The challenge will be to adapt to the change from hard surface to clay. Ill be in full preparation this week in Montreal, playing on the clay courts of Uniprix Stadium at Jarry Park. Ill then fly off to Cagnes-sur-Mer in France, for the qualifications next week and then make a stop in Prague before the qualifications for the Internationaux de France - which begins on May 21. https://www.facebook.com/WozAlekshttp://www.aleksandrawozniak.com/Twitter @alekswoz [url=http://www.cheapblazersjerseys.com/]Cheap Swingman Blazers Jerseys[/url] .FIFA says it is relaxing the rule which forced match officials to leave its international list at the end of the year they turned 45. [url=http://www.cheapblazersjerseys.com/]Cheap Portland Trail Blazers Jerseys[/url] . DArnaud hit one of three doubles for the Mets as they took a 4-0 lead in the first. Then the catchers seventh home run of the season broke the game open in the fifth. The 41-year-old Colon (10-8) retired the first 20 batters in his last outing Wednesday against Seattle, eventually allowing two runs on three hits in 7 1-3 innings in a 3-2 win. [url=http://www.cheapblazersjerseys.com/]http://www.cheapblazersjerseys.com/[/url] . However, Jim Popp isnt sure how long hell be able to admire wide receiver Duron Carter.First, it was Gary Leeman and friends who filed a concussion class action lawsuit against the NHL. On Thursday, I broke the story that a second concussion lawsuit was filed against the NHL. A copy of the lawsuit can be found here.  There are nine plaintiffs in this latest lawsuit against the league: Dan LaCouture, Dan Keczmer, Jack Carlson, Richard Brennan, Brad Maxwell, Michael Peluso, Tom Younghans, Allan Rourke and Scott Bailey. These are not household or brand names, and for casual fans, the only recognizable names may be Peluso, and to a lesser extent, LaCouture. The lawsuit alleges fraudulent concealment. In particular, the players complain that the league knew of the long-term neurological impact of repeated headshots and elected not to share that information with the players. By not revealing that information, players did not have an opportunity to make an informed decision about playing in the NHL. As was the case with the over 200 NFL concussion lawsuits filed, concealment is a critical component of this lawsuit. The players are also alleging that the NHL was negligent in the way it handled the welfare of players. The lawsuit states that the NHL fostered and promoted a culture of violence with a view to generating revenue. In doing so, the league failed to institute reasonable safeguards and protocols to protect its players from head trauma. By failing to protect the players from the risks and consequences of headshots, the league failed to discharge a legal duty owed to its players.  Like concussion lawsuits generally, this one faces challenges. The first is causation. In order to get paid, the plaintiffs are going to have to show that the brain damage they suffered was caused at the NHL level. On the flip side, the NHL will point out that no one can say for sure what caused a players neurological condition, and even if it was caused by repeated headshots while playing hockey, how much of that damage was sustained while in the NHL and not in places like the AHL, CHL or Europe. So what caused the damage and when it was caused become critically important issues. Brennan played 50 NHL games, while Rourke and Bailey played 55 and 19 NHL games respectively. With so few NHL games played, its going to be tough for these plaintiffs to show that the NHL is responsible for their brain damage. As well, Peluso played 458 NHL games. He also played over 250 games outside the NHL during his professional career. Can you say definitively that the damage was sustained at the NHL level? Not easy. The league will also take the position that it didnt conceal any information. They will say that there wasnt any conclusive science at the time and they had the same information the players had. Basically, they wiill say we knew what you knew. [url=http://www.cheapblazersjerseys.com/]Cheap Blazers Jerseys[/url]. That being the case, the league will then maintain that the players were aware of the risk associated with playing hockey based on the science at that time, and agreed to those risks each time they stepped onto the ice. This legal principle is called informed consent. The NHL could also maintain that this lawsuit doesnt belong in court in the first place, but rather should go to arbitration. The collective bargaining agreement provides that issues of player health and safety go to arbitration and not court. On the flip side, the players would take the position that since this case involves fraud, it properly falls outside of arbitration and within the jurisdiction of the courts. So the bottom line is this: the players will need to provide good evidence showing that the league concealed the harmful impact of repeated headshots. If they dont have that evidence, they will have a very difficult time. On top of that, they will need to deal with the very tricky issue of causation. The way the lawsuit itself was drafted is a bit unusual. It provides that Gordie Howe is dead (hes not) and misspells Sidney Crosbys name (Sydney). It also makes reference to movies, including Gladiator, Youngblood and Friday the 13th. This is atypical. The lawsuit also relies on the concussion history of other players as support for the position that the game inflicts permanent neurological damage. In part, the lawyers point to players like Marc Savard, Nick Kypreos, Geoff Courtnall, Petr Svoboda, Keith Primeau, Pat LaFontaine, Tony Granato and Paul Kariya as having suffered long-term damage. However, this doesnt necessarily belong in this type of document. It looks more like evidence that needs to be presented at trial.  So the lawsuit is perhaps atypical in the way it was drafted. From a legal standpoint, these inaccuracies may not ultimately hurt the merits of the lawsuit. These things can be corrected. However, it may undermine the credibility of the claims being made. As well, and perhaps more importantly, the whole idea with a class action lawsuit is to recruit other players. Its possible that other players may not feel entirely comfortable with this particular lawsuit given the oversights in the document. Still, there is time to right the ship and this lawsuit has some good lawyers associated with it. As far as next steps, the NHL will do what the NFL has done in the past: go to court and ask a judge to punt this lawsuit. Assuming the lawsuit is not dismissed, we are still years away from a resolution.  One more thing: while this is the second NHL concussion lawsuit filed to date, it likely wont be the last. Expect to see more of them filed. [url=http://www.jerseysv.com/]Cheap NFL Jerseys[/url] [url=http://www.wholesalejerseysbests.com/]Wholesale Jerseys[/url] [url=http://www.cheapnikenfljerseyschina.com/]Wholesale NFL Jerseys[/url] [url=http://www.cheapjerseysali.com/]Jerseys From China[/url] [url=http://www.cheapnfljerseysclub.com/]Wholesale NFL Jerseys[/url] [url=http://www.cheapjerseysfastshipping.com/]Cheap NFL Jerseys[/url] [url=http://www.cheapjerseysgoodquality.com/]Cheap Jerseys[/url] [url=http://www.cheapjerseysquality.us.com/]Cheap NFL Jerseys[/url] ' ' '