Neues » It feels a lot better than it did

LONDON -- Canadas Eugenie Bouchard stumbled in her first two Grand Slam semifinal appearances this year. Cheap Shoes Wholesale Free Shipping . The third time proved to be the charm Thursday at the All England Club. Bouchard defeated Romanias Simona Halep 7-6 (5), 6-2 to become the first Canadian to advance to the womens singles final at Wimbledon. It was the latest achievement in what has already been a historic run for Bouchard at the sports most prestigious event. "After doing well in the past few (Grand) Slams, Ive been believing since the beginning of the tournament that I can do really well," she said. "Im just trying to take it one match at a time. Its really important not to get ahead of ourselves. "I totally feel like I belong, and Im just so excited for the next match." The 20-year-old from Westmount, Que., has yet to lose a set in her six matches so far at Wimbledon. No Canadian had ever reached the womens singles quarter-finals here in the Open era -- never mind the final -- before Bouchard. There could be a Canadian in the mens singles final as well. Milos Raonic of Thornhill, Ont., will take on Switzerlands Roger Federer on Friday with a berth in Sundays championship on the line. This is uncharted territory for Canadian tennis. Before this tournament, no Canadian had ever reached a mens or womens Grand Slam singles final, according to Tennis Canada. The last Canadian to reach a singles semifinal at a major was Robert Powell at Wimbledon in 1908, the organization said. Montreal native Greg Rusedski reached the U.S. Open final in 1997 but he was representing Great Britain at that time. The 13th-seeded Bouchard, who converted her sixth match point to complete the 94-minute victory, will next face sixth-seeded Petra Kvitova on Saturday. "To get to my first Grand Slam final, its very exciting. Its what Ive worked so long for, you know," Bouchard said. "So Im just proud of myself for todays effort." Kvitova, the 2011 Wimbledon champion, beat fellow Czech left-hander Lucie Safarova 7-6 (6), 6-1 in the early semifinal. Bouchard lost in the semifinals at the years two previous majors, the Australian Open and French Open. Shes projected to rise to No. 7 -- the highest ranking for a Canadian woman -- by reaching the final and would go to No. 6 by winning the championship. Bouchard would also be the youngest Grand Slam champion since Maria Sharapova won the 2006 U.S. Open at age 19. "Ive put in a lot of hard work and its been kind of years in the making to me," Bouchard said. "So I believe in myself and I expect good results. Ive had a good start to the season, but I expect myself to do even better than that." In a semifinal that was delayed twice in the first set -- first by a left ankle injury to Halep, and then when a woman spectator fell ill during the tiebreaker -- Halep double-faulted on break point in the second set and then was broken again by Bouchard to give the Canadian a 4-1 lead. The third-seeded Halep, who saved three match points in the seventh game and two more in the final game, appeared to be increasingly affected by her ankle injury and looked down at her feet several times after hitting shots. "It was difficult to continue ... I felt a big pain in the moment, but then was better with the tape," Halep said. "But still, I couldnt push anymore with my leg. My first serve was really bad after that." On Bouchards first match point, Halep hit an ace, but Bouchard did not appear ready to receive, and she went to speak with chair umpire Kader Nouni. But the point stood and Bouchard failed to clinch the match. "When Simona tossed I heard someone scream in the crowd," Bouchard said. "It had happened a few times already. This time I didnt feel prepared to return, so I put my hand up. I felt like we should have replayed the point, but he said, no, it was her point. Just happy I kept my focus and didnt get distracted." The tiebreaker was delayed briefly when the female spectator became ill. With Halep leading 3-2, Nouni jumped from his chair to alert security officials to the womans illness and told both players to go to their sideline chairs. Temperatures on Centre Court were 25 degrees Celsius under sunny skies. Following a delay of about five minutes and after the woman was escorted from the seating area by medical staff, the tiebreaker resumed. The woman returned to her seat later in the match after treatment. Halep had never been past the third round at a Grand Slam until last year, when she made it to the fourth round at the U.S. Open. Then she reached the quarter-finals at the Australian Open in January, and got to the final at the French Open last month, losing to Sharapova. In the first semifinal, Kvitova -- the only womens player born in the 1990s to have won a major title -- improved her record to 25-5 on the Wimbledon grass. The 24-year-old has made at least the quarter-finals for five years in a row. "I know how (it feels) when you hold the trophy so I really want to win my second title here and I will do everything I can," Kvitova said. She saved her best for last: Up to 6-all in the tiebreaker, Safarova had won more total points, 40-39. From there, though, Kvitova won 31 of the last 48 points in the match. Kvitova beat Bouchard 6-3, 6-2 in their only previous meeting, a second-round match at the Rogers Cup in Toronto last August. "I find her as a very solid and talented player," Kvitova said. "She is confident in her game right now. Shes moving very well ... shes playing aggressively." After sealing the victory, Bouchard appeared pleased with her performance but kept the jubilation to a minimum. "Its not like a surprise to me -- I expect good results like this," she said. "So for me, I was like, OK good. Its a step in the right direction. I get to play in the final and I still have another match so its not a full celebration yet." Bouchard is the only woman to have advanced to all three Grand Slam semifinals this year. The 2012 Wimbledon junior champion said shes proud to be the first Canadian to make it this far in the tournament. "Its always exciting and special when I can make history," she said. "My job is not done, I want to go another step further. So Im going to stay focused and enjoy it after." Also Thursday, Vasek Pospisil of Vancouver and American Jack Sock upset the second-seeded duo of Alexander Peya of Austria and Bruno Soares of Brazil in mens doubles quarter-final play. The third-seeded team of Torontos Daniel Nestor and Nenad Zimonjic of Serbia dropped a 3-6, 7-6 (7-5), 6-3, 6-4 decision to fifth seeds Leander Paes of India and Radek Stepanek of the Czech Republic. Top-seeded Novak Djokovic will play Grigor Dimitrov in the other mens semifinal Friday. The final is scheduled for Sunday. Cheap Shoes Free Shipping Worldwide . Hoefl-Rieschs exit — from the downhill course into safety nets, then airlifted from the slope by helicopter — left Anna Fenninger of Austria favourite to win her first giant crystal trophy one month after becoming an Olympic champion. Cheap Clearance Shoes Online . He was with the New York Jets in 2011 when the NFL locked out their players after they failed to agree on a new contract. Willy went undrafted but was given a look by four NFL teams before heading north. http://www.cheapshoeschinafreeshipping.com/ . A criminal complaint filed in Hennepin County District Court said his girlfriend told police they got into the argument early Thursday at his suburban Minneapolis home.EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. - Eli Manning participated with the first-team offence Thursday at the New York Giants organized team activity, showing no signs of the ankle surgery he underwent nearly two months ago. "I feel like I can do almost anything football related," said Manning, who took most of the snaps during the workout. "Im not going to take any time off. This is the second day, and I want to see how its responding. There is no swelling, no discomfort, no issues. Im able to go about my business." Manning had ankle surgery in early April after enduring the worst season of his 10-year NFL career. He threw 27 interceptions with just 18 TDs and was sacked a career-high 39 times. The Giants finished 7-9. The ankle bothered Manning for most of the season and knocked him out of the final game against the Washington Redskins, the first time Manning went to the sideline because of an injury in his career. "My goal was always to be back for the OTAs," Manning said. "The doctors said that I needed seven weeks after surgery. They didnt tell me that I wouldnt be ready, but I had it in my mind that I should be ready. After three weeks, I knew I was feeling pretty good." The Giants are installing a new version of the West Coast offence under the guidance of new offensive co-ordinator Ben McAdoo. "It has been a learning experience for me and for everyone, learning the new offence," Manning said. "I like it. Everything about it makes sense. Weve made some good plays over the last two days. Its still the early stages, but I like where were headed." Giants coach Tom Coughlin isnt surprised by Mannings progress. "When he first started, we tried to slow him down," Coughlin said. "But he wants to go. We thought the progress would be slow, but hes so far ahead. There may be a day where hes a little sore, but he hasnt shown it yet. " Manning believes that he made the right decision having the surgery. "It feels a lot better than it did," Manning said. "Its why we went ahead and hhad the surgery. Cheap Shoes Wholesale China. Theres no discomfort. Im running and doing drills. I dont want to have to worry about the ankle. I thought I might miss some time, but I didnt want to. "After a while, I was able to do certain things without pain. After three weeks, I was able to do about 15 to 20 drops and I felt good. I thought I could be here. I wanted to be smart and not rush it if I wasnt ready. The goal now is not to have any setbacks. Ill continue to monitor it, rehab it. I still have some work to do." Hes not the only Giant player making a comeback from surgery. Defensive end Jason Pierre-Paul spent the off-season rehabbing a shoulder injury after back surgery last June. Having lost 20 pounds down to 275, Pierre-Paul feels fit and ready to return to his All-Pro status. "I feel great," said Pierre-Paul, who had only two sacks in 11 games last season. "Nothing is bothering me. Its all behind me. I know I wasnt at 100 per cent last year. Its a new season, a team with a lot of new faces. Im ready to go out there and show everyone what I can do." Running back David Wilson had neck surgery after the first-round pick out of West Virginia played five games in 2013, collecting only 146 yards. Doctors said at the time that his surgery was possibly career-threatening. "The doctors are worried about me bumping into someone or falling down," said Wilson, who is still prohibited from enduring any contact until his next MRI on Wednesday. "I feel great, but its out of my hands. I just have to rest." Wilson participated in some light drills Thursday. "Hes out there running and hes looking good," Coughlin said of Wilson. Safety Stevie Brown, who had left knee surgery last fall after tearing it in preseason, wore no brace. "One of the first things I did when I first started rehab was not having to rely on any brace," said Brown, who was second in the NFL in interceptions with eight in 2012, before missing all of last season. "I did things slowly without a brace." ' ' '