morning that Chris Amon had passed away, Denn

CLAIREFONTAINE, France -- Like a theater audience demanding to be entertained, French football fans can be a fickle lot.The team will be keen that tradition doesnt re-emerge on Sunday when it takes on Iceland in the quarterfinals of the European Championship. Iceland, after all, is extremely popular among neutrals after its 2-1 victory over England in the round of 16.Les Bleus have often endured a fractious relationship with their fans. Relations are better, but still precarious.Last weekend in Lyon, the players were jeered off at halftime against Ireland, when trailing 1-0. In the group game against Albania in Marseille, the vocal frustration was evident until Antoine Griezmanns 90th-minute goal.Any frayed nerves among the French contingent at the Stade de France this Sunday will surely contrast with those of Icelands devoted fans, who will be shouting their traditional Viking chant and cranking up the pressure on Frances players.Ideally for France, a quick goal or two would help settle nerves.That France has failed to score in the first half in this tournament may not be just a coincidence. Players start games nervously as if trying to avoid mistakes. Chances are snatched at, the body language is tense and cagey, the fans rarely indulgent.I think we should be a bit more supportive, France fan Ahmed Kchikech told The Associated Press after a public team training session on Wednesday. Were fed up with things only happening in the second half ... French fans are like this. We dont forgive (the players) the slightest mistake.Kchikech said he feels envious at the way Ireland and Iceland supported their teams at this tournament, with prolonged chants and heart-warming songs.Its magnificent ... but thats not the French way, he said.Over the years, games have often mapped out the same way at the national stadium.A flag-waving rendition of La Marseillaise -- the national anthem -- followed by some hearty early encouragement and then a tense, watchful silence. If France fails to impress, jeers and boos ring out from the stands.The French players have often spoken about being upset during games when the fans turn. Speaking after a 2-0 defeat to Argentina in 2009, left back Patrice Evra berated France fans for sarcastically supporting Argentina.All the matches we play in France feel like theyre away from home, Evra said.Theres little doubt that the French side has not always helped itself -- notably at the 2010 World Cup in South Africa when the players went on strike.Things have improved, especially in November 2013 when France overturned a 2-0 first-leg deficit against Ukraine to win 3-0 at the Stade de France and qualify for the World Cup.Since coach Didier Deschamps took charge after Euro 2012, he has opened up more training sessions to the public.On Wednesday, some 500 fans attended a training session at Frances base at leafy Clairefontaine on the outskirts of Paris. Deschamps and the players happily signed autographs and chatted with fans before training.On Sunday, they will hope they remain supportive. Cheap Air Max 95 VaporMax . 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Chris Amon, the man widely considered to be the best never to have won a Formula One race, has died aged 73 in New Zealand after a long battle with cancer.Amon competed in F1 between 1963 and 1976, which included a three-year spell at Ferrari. His career began slowly with races for Reg Parnell Racing but his performances improved enough to catch the attention of Enzo Ferrari in 1967, prompting an invitation to join his team that year.Despite a run of podiums and pole positions in his time at Ferrari, reliability issues and bad luck continued to dog his career and prevented him claiming the win his peers felt he deserved. He quit Ferrari mid-way through the 1969 season after his most frustrating campaign, joining March Engineering the following year.Spells at Matra and Tyrrell followed, before a failed attempt at running his own team, Chris Amon Racing, in 1974. His career finished with further stints at Ensign and Wolff in 1975 and 1976.Amon called time on his career after witnessing Niki Laudas horrific crash at the 1976 German Grand Prix. Having seen the flaming wreck of Laudas Ferrari, Amon refused to join the race restart and was fired by the Ensign team -- prompting him to retire from F1. ?He briefly returned with Wolf at the end of the season but failed to qualify for a race.?Amon did enjoy more success outside of Formula One, winning the 1966 Le Mans 24 Hours with fellow Kiwi Bruce McLaren - founder of the eponymous team which still carries his name.dddddddddddd Current McLaren chairman Ron Dennis paid tribute to the late Amon on Wednesday morning.It was with profound sadness that I heard the news this morning that Chris Amon had passed away, Dennis said.Chris started 96 Grands Prix but won not one of them -- and it is safe to say that he was the greatest racing driver never to have won a race at the very highest level. He nearly won a fair few, but always it seemed that his luck would run out before he saw the chequered flag.However, he won at Le Mans, in a mighty 7.0-litre Ford, exactly 50 years ago, his co-driver his friend and fellow Kiwi, Bruce McLaren, whose name still graces the team to which I have devoted my working life. I have not met Chris for many years, but, even so, I have extremely fond memories of him, and indeed I would describe him as one of the most likeable men I have met in my long racing career.For all those reasons I want to take this opportunity to extend the heartfelt sympathies of all 3300 of us at McLaren to the family and friends of a great New Zealander, a true gentleman, and one of the fastest racing drivers there ever was: the one and only Christopher Arthur Amon.May he rest in peace. ' ' '