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MINSK, Belarus -- The capital of Belarus was chosen Friday to host the 2019 European Games, despite criticism of the countrys human rights record and concerns over the cost of the event.The European Olympic Committees approved Minsk -- the only candidate -- by an overwhelming majority to host the second edition of the multi-sport games. The Netherlands withdrew as host last year, citing financial worries.Belarus is not a superpower but we pay a lot of attention to sports, Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko told the EOC assembly before the vote. You can count on Belarus.Minsk was backed by a large majority of EOC assembly delegates despite objections from Norwegian and Danish representatives that the committee had rushed into picking Belarus without enough scrutiny.We dont know the concept or structure for the games. We dont know the financial consequences, Danish Olympic Committee general secretary Morten Moelholm Hansen told The Associated Press. The greatest worry now is that we take a decision that we dont know anything about.Lukashenko has been in power for more than 20 years in Belarus, a former Soviet republic where political opposition is tightly restricted. It is also the last country in Europe to use the death penalty.After criticism of last years inaugural European Games in Baku, Azerbaijan, on human rights grounds, EOC acting president Janez Kocijanic said there could be more of the same in Belarus in 2019.It might happen, of course, he told the AP. You know, we are living in the times of democracy. Everybody is entitled to have his own opinion. What I would like to emphasize is that sport can come into any country, bringing in elements of democracy and free air. From our point of view, we will use sport as a tool of democracy.The games in Baku involved lavish spending on new arenas and ceremonies, but failed to attract many top athletes. Belarus is focusing on quality over quantity.Kocijanic said the games would be a little bit more modest but normal, but an excellent games in terms of the level of competition. Belarus Olympic Committee general secretary Anatoly Kotov said he expected to have between 10 and 15 sports on the program, compared to more than 20 last year.Whether that will include swimming or track and field -- traditionally the two Olympic sports with the largest following -- is unclear. The European governing bodies for the two sports jealously guard the popularity of their own European championships, and have banded together to stage a joint event in 2018.In Baku, swimming was held as a junior competition and track and field as a team event.We want to see track and field but it must be competitions of the top division, qualifying for the Olympic Games, Kotov said. Its completely possible we may have to go without some track and field disciplines, to be sure of 100 percent top level. If we cant do that, well have to make some sacrifices ... Its the same situation with aquatic events.In his speech to the assembly, Belarusian president Lukashenko urged more events from the European Games to be made qualifiers for the Olympics in order to attract more top athletes and fans, a position shared by the EOC.Controlling spending is a key concern for Belarus, which is in recession and has asked the EOC and International Olympic Committee to provide financial support for the games, though it was not clear Friday whether that would be provided.Minsk would likely need to spend far less than Baku to host the games, having built or refurbished many sports venues in recent years. The Belarusian capital hosted the world track cycling championships in 2013 and world ice hockey championships a year later.After the Netherlands withdrew as host last year, Russia was the EOCs preferred backup choice for 2019. But Russia showed little interest in hosting the event, even before the IOC said the country was not an appropriate choice because of its doping scandals.Doping is also a possible area of concern for Belarus, which has a record of performance-enhancing drug use in ice hockey, weightlifting and track and field.Cheap Nike Daybreak .Y. - Free agent outfielder Jacoby Ellsbury, fresh off winning the World Series with Boston, reached agreement with the rival New York Yankees on a seven-year contract worth about $153 million, a person familiar with the negotiations said Tuesday night. Cheap Vapormax Plus Uk . But what about the officials? Every sport has officials and they also have stories about hard work and sacrifice but their accomplishments are seldom recognized by anyone outside their inner circle. http://www.vapormaxwholesaleuk.com/wholesale-vapormax-mens-trainers/vapormax-mens-white-cheap-uk.html . Marincin has played in two NHL games so far this season with two penalty minutes. 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United chose the defender in the second round of the 2013 MLS re-entry draft.The 2016-17 season couldnt have started better for the San Antonio Spurs, who began the post-Tim Duncan era with impressive back-to-back wins on the road.Now the Spurs open their home schedule Saturday night at the AT&T Center against the New Orleans Pelicans, who dropped their first two games, both of them at home, despite two superstar performances from forward Anthony Davis.San Antonio has been led in its first two games by forward Kawhi Leonard, who had 35 points in the Spurs surprisingly easy 129-100 win over defending Western Conference champion Golden State on Tuesday and 30 points in a 102-94 come-from-behind victory over Sacramento on Thursday.Leonard was hitting shots over two guys, Sacramentos DeMarcus Cousins said after Thursdays game. I heard he was working with Kobe (Bryant), and there were some flashes of Kobe tonight. Hes really good.But Leonards early-season success story has been as much about his defense (he is the two-time defending NBA defensive player of the year) as his scoring prowess.Leonard, who always seems to get to the correct spot in the passing lanes and outworks most opposing players, had five steals in each of the first two games, in the process becoming the first player to put together back-to-back 30-point, five-steal games since Miamis Eddie Jones in December 2002.Its also the first time a Spurs player has achieved that stat line in consecutive games since Alvin Robertson did so in 1986.In the win on Thursday, San Antonio went on a 16-2 run and held Sacramento without a basket for the final 7:20 of the third quarter, with the Kings missing nine straight shots in tthat stretch, as the Spurs rallied to take a 76-71 lead into the fourth quarter.ddddddddddddSan Antonio led by as many as 10 points in the fourth quarter before fending off a final Sacramento surge and rolling in the end game.Sometimes things are not going to be as pretty, but the bottom line is we dug in and found a way to get it done, Spurs center Pau Gasol said. Experience is the heart of this team and were resilient and kept fighting. It was a good win.Its the flip side for the Pelicans. New Orleans lost at home to Golden State 122-114 late Friday night despite another video-game-like performance by Davis (45 points and 17 rebounds in 39 minutes).That showing came on the heels of Davis 50-point, 16-rebound, seven-steal, four-block performance in 41 minutes of court time in New Orleans season-opening 107-102 loss to Denver on Wednesday. It was only the third 50-point performance in an NBA season opener since 1963-64.Point guard Tim Frazier has been New Orleans second leading scorer each game, scoring 15 and 21 points, respectively.Im going to have to bring, probably not 50 every night, but get somewhere along those lines every game to give ourselves a chance to win, Davis said after the loss Wednesday. Thats the bottom line. I just got to keep finding guys and trust those guys that theyre going to make shots.The Spurs were 2-1 against the Pelicans last season, losing early in the Crescent City before winning in February in San Antonio and then in New Orleans in March. ' ' '