ater sense of urgency.Indecisive in picking out receivers, Lynch he

Excerpted from Courage to Soar: A Body in Motion, A Life in Balance by Simone Biles, Copyright ? 2016 by Simone Biles. Used by permission of Zondervan, www.zondervan.com.From Chapter 19: The Final Five... [On] Tuesday, August 9, our team did exactly what we had been training for so many years to do: We performed almost flawless routines and won team gold. If the all-around win was considered to be the jewel in the crown, the team medal was the crown itself -- the main reason we were there. On the podium afterward, feeling the heavy gold disc around my neck, I felt so privileged to be standing with my teammates. All I could think was, Wow, we did it. How long have I dreamed about this? We were so happy for each other and for ourselves, but our job was only half over. The all-around competition and the event finals were still to come. I wasnt anywhere near finished trying to make my family and my country proud.That afternoon, we told Martha that wed named ourselves the Final Five as a tribute to her. When we explained how wed all agreed on the name, she dabbed the corners of her eyes and said in her thick accent, Oh my God, I love you guys even more now! And she hugged us tightly. The rest of the afternoon and evening was a whirl of press interviews and photo ops, and then it was home to our little pod in the Olympic Village. We all fell right into bed, because we had to be up for our regular eight a.m. training the next morning. Before going to sleep, I carefully folded the green multicolored ribbon around my medal and put it at the bottom of my backpack. Later, they would give us sleek wooden cases to hold our medals, but for now, my makeshift storage would have to do.Can you believe we actually did it? Laurie whispered, stifling a yawn before we drifted off. Were not just Olympians now; were gold medalists.I was too exhausted from happiness to answer, so I just smiled. But when I awoke the next morning, I wasnt quite sure if the day before had all been a dream. I reached for my backpack and pulled out the medal, just to be sure. I unrolled the green ribbon and placed the gold disc in the palm of my hand, feeling its distinctive weight as I sent up a silent prayer of gratitude.Thursday morning, the day of the Olympic all-around competition, dawned bright and clear. The apartment was silent when I opened my eyes. The rest of the girls except for Aly had already gone to breakfast. From there they would head to the training hall. Later, they would be in the gymnastics arena to see Aly and me battle it out with the best in the world for the coveted all-around title.I went to find Aly. She was in her room and still in bed. I feel so good about today, I told her.Me too, she said, holding up one hand for a fist bump.Were so prepared. I have a really good feeling.My heart was galloping in my chest, but it wasnt nerves; it was excitement. I could hardly wait to get into the arena. Aly and I each showered and then we did our hair and makeup together in the living room. We took our time because the competition wouldnt begin until the early afternoon. I outlined my eyes in gold glitter and chose a nude lipstick instead of a bold one. The eye makeup, with my usual winged corners, was dramatic enough, and my sparkly leo would complete the effect. The night before, wed chosen the leos we wanted to wear and laid them out on our beanbag chairs. Aly had opted for the shiny red with lines of crystals fanning out from the neckline like bursts of sunlight, while Id selected a super patriotic number with sheer white crystal-studded sleeves, and dazzling red-and-white stripes running from the shoulders down both sides, framing a high-sheen blue fabric dotted with glittering stars. Id saved this leotard, my favorite, for the all-around. I hoped its shimmer would help me win gold.I was already feeling incredibly happy to be sharing this day with Aly, who was such a rock-solid competitor and friend. As we walked to the bus that would take us to the arena, we held hands like schoolgirls and bobbed our heads to the music coming through our headphones. Every so often wed hug each other and say, Youre good. Youve worked so hard. You deserve to be here. Youve got this. And then wed say, I love you so much. I love you, no matter what. Today will be a good day.Our warm-up in the training hall went without a hitch or a fall, and then it was show time. Before we walked out to compete, we always used the bathroom just in case. As I washed my hands and stared at my face in the mirror, my stomach was suddenly doing somersaults. I plopped down on a bench that was just outside the bathroom and tried to pull myself together. A few moments later, Aly walked out and sat down beside me. When she leaned her head back against the wall, I noticed she looked really pale.Are you okay? I said.She shook her head from left to right.Are you okay? she asked me.No, I said. I feel like Im going to throw up.The two of us sat there for several minutes, breathing slowly and trying to settle ourselves down.Were okay, I said after a while.Weve got this, Aly said.We can do this.Weve done this so many times.I love you, Aly.I love you, Simone.Lets go.We did another fist bump and walked out onto the arena floor.Courage to Soar releases on Tuesday, order your copy here. Wilmer Flores Jersey . At a Manhattan federal court hearing, attorney Jordan Siev said his law office has gotten more evidence nearly every day to support its lawsuit accusing MLB and Selig of going on a "witch hunt" to ruin Rodriguezs reputation and career. He said the defendants went "way over the line. Lenny Dykstra Jersey . 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DENVER -- If the Broncos guessed right, Paxton Lynch will be a very good quarterback someday.Sunday he looked like a rookie, though, and Denver walked away with its first loss of the season along with the sobering realization that the quarterback they need now is Trevor Siemian.Siemian sat out of Denvers 23-16 loss to Atlanta with a sore left shoulder he received after being hurled to the ground last week against Tampa Bay. Against Atlanta, Lynch made his first NFL start and went 23 for 35 for 223 yards, but also took six sacks. He looked every bit like an indecisive rookie and not much like he did in his relief appearance last week against the Bucs.Obviously, you have some butterflies, Lynch said. Its my first NFL start, its not a preseason game and your teams 4-0.Given all that, not even a week to prepare for a team that turned out to be much better than the Bucs was enough. Lynch looked like the rookie who couldnt come close to winning the job in the offseason, after John Elway traded up five places to pick him in the 26th spot.He had a really good week of practice, coach Gary Kubiak said. We felt really good about him going into the game.The way Denvers defense had been playing, why not?By sweeping their first four games with Siemian as the starter, the Broncos dismissed all those who doubted a repeat was possible with an offense that had to reinvent itself following the departure of Peyton Manning and Brock Osweiler.Its a delicate balance, and the defense helped validate Kubiaks decision to start Siemian, the seventh-round pick out of Northwestern in 2015, over Lynch and Mark Sanchez, who didnt even make the team after being acquired in the offseason.Turned out, Siemian wasnt simply holding down the spot. He turned out to be quite good, with six touchdown passes and a 99.6 passer rating.One debate that gained steam in Denver last week -- now almost laughable -- was what to do with this abunddance of riches.dddddddddddd Lynch threw for 170 yards and a TD last week and helped the Broncos pull away from Tampa Bay. How long could Siemian possibly remain a Bronco, given the rookies all-but-inevitable elevation to the starting position?Save that one for later.Kubiak said Siemian practiced all week and was very close to getting the start for this game. We just didnt think he was ready, the coach said.Unsaid in all that is that Denvers next game is Thursday at San Diego, and by sitting out against the Falcons, the hope is that Siemian might be healthy enough to start again.After the Atlanta game, that plan takes on a greater sense of urgency.Indecisive in picking out receivers, Lynch held the ball too long and took six sacks, along with eight more hits.But this wasnt all his fault.For Siemians four starts, the defense created eight turnovers, many of which either went for touchdowns or put the offense in good field position. The defense kept Denver in the lead or within a score for the majority of the first quarter of the season.For Lynchs first start, the defense promptly gave up a 75-yard touchdown drive and the Broncos trailed 7-0 less than 4 minutes into the game.Theyre a team that plays a lot of ... zone, and you have to be very patient, Kubiak said. You get down 13 to them and you cant just pick away to get yourself back in the game. You start pulling down and getting it downfield too much, its tough.Lynch doesnt know when his next start will come. One thing seemed clear after this one: Denvers quarterback of the future is just that. When healthy again, Siemian will be the starter.Im upset, obviously, because we lost, but Im happy I got the first one under my belt, Lynch said. If we get put in this situation again, Ill play better than I did the first time. ' ' '