esources they struggle to win, which means sponsors

Former France international Djibril Cisse has revealed he wants to come out of retirement.The former Liverpool, QPR and Sunderland striker hung up his boots in October last year due to a hip injury.The 34-year-olds last club was French outfit Bastia following a spell with Al Gharafa in Qatar, and he wants to return to the game after having surgery on his troublesome hip. If I want to make it back onto the pitch? That is not a rumour, I have never hidden that desire, he told BeIN Sports.I had to stop because of a hip problem, I never stopped because I no longer had the desire to play or because I was bored of football, I stopped because of medical reasons.Today, those reasons no longer exist, I have received the green light from the surgeon.After my operation, things went very well, after one week I started running again. Cisse scored 13 goals for Liverpool from 2004 to 2007 The striker joined Liverpool in 2004 and spent three seasons at the Reds before returning to his homeland to sign for Marseille.He spent a year on loan at Sunderland in 2009 followed by Panathinaikos in Greece and Italian giants Lazio.Cisses last club in England was a year at QPR in 2012 where he scored nine goals in 19 league games.Also See:Ligue 1 fixturesLigue 1 tableBet ￡5 Get ￡20 FreeRobert Covington Timberwolves Jersey .C. United of Major League Soccer. United chose the defender in the second round of the 2013 MLS re-entry draft. Custom Minnesota Timberwolves Jerseys . -- Playing time has been limited for Maxim Tissot this season, so the Montreal Impact defender made the most of his first scoring opportunity on Saturday. http://www.timberwolvesgear.com/authentic-jerryd-bayless-timberwolves-jersey/ . 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Gorgui Dieng Jersey . -- Catcher Brett Hayes has agreed to a $630,000, one-year contract with the Kansas City Royals, avoiding salary arbitration.RIO DE JANEIRO -- Mention to a badminton superfan the widespread American view that the sport is mostly a backyard lark and watch the steam come out of their ears.They find it inconceivable that anyone, even Americans steeped in football and basketball, could mistake badminton for anything other than a complex, endlessly fascinating symphony of power, agility and speed.With apologies to the purists: Most Americans cant see past their leisurely, backyard BBQ encounters with the game.It wasnt always that way.Badminton once enthralled many in the United States. Its athletes graced the cover of Sports Illustrated, staged badminton on ice escapades and won world championships.That was half a century ago. They now struggle to make it out of the first rounds of the Olympics, and to win fans enamored with swimming and track superstars.The problem, as it is for many Olympic sports that are sensations internationally but less popular in the United States, is money.When a U.S. athlete faces a player from a traditional badminton power, theyre not just facing the individual, theyre facing an entire system -- all of its financial backing, training facilities, coaching and scouting infrastructure.For the U.S., we are all still self-funded. Were individuals. Were not a team, said Iris Wang, a 21-year-old U.S. Olympian from California, after a recent practice session in Rio.Wang pointed toward some South Koreans practicing nearby.They fly together; they train together. We all train separately. They have the resources to bring in a masseuse, physical therapy, said Wang, who took three years off from UCLA to focus on badminton and who will return soon for her sophomore year. I heard China sometimes brings chefs to tournaments, and were just struggling to make it through.Until the mid-20th century, Americans often dominated badminton, and the sport enjoyed widespread popularity.Dave Freeman, the Pasadena Flash, a neurosurgeon considered by some to be badmintons greatest player, was the only American man to reach world No.dddddddddddd. 1 and won the equivalent of the world championship in 1949.FBI agent Joe Alston boosted the sport when he appeared on the cover of Sports Illustrated in 1955 after winning his second U.S. Open singles title.Badminton comedy shows toured America in the `40s and `50s, and people lined up for badminton on ice reviews.Gradually, however, football, baseball and basketball began to rob attention from badminton.Those who now embrace the game in the United States often do so because their parents are fans or because they have relatives or friends whove shown them how seriously badminton is taken in parts of Asia and Europe.A return to its 20th century heyday will be difficult.In Asia, the big powers often subsidize their badminton programs. Prospects are scouted young, brought into well-run training programs and nurtured. They dont, for the most part, have to worry about money.U.S. players, by contrast, must often hustle to pay for a court to practice on, a coach to instruct them, equipment, sparring partners, air fare and tournament entry fees. Without resources they struggle to win, which means sponsors are reluctant to help.Wang has a sponsorship with a Taiwan-based tech company but also gets help from her parents. She played hard in Rio, but ran into Li Xuerui, the defending Olympic champion from China, and lost 2-0.Wang said making badminton an NCAA sport could help increase its popularity and encourage more high school students to play. Otherwise, many potentially good players will go to other sports.Wang smiles when asked how she discovered badminton.A backyard birthday party for my sisters friend, she said. I thought, `Oh my gosh, thats so cool. I was really intrigued by it, and I was really bad at it.---Follow Foster Klug at www.twitter.com/apklug . His work can be found at http://bigstory.ap.org/content/foster-klug ' ' '