ERST LESEN! » said hed rather not take part this

The Olympic qualification journey for the countrys top gymnasts is about to get very interesting. The standard has never been higher in the GB squad and Sky Academy Sports Scholar Sam Oldham cannot wait to strut his stuff against his team-mates and rivals in the competitive arena again.Rio is less than five months away and this weekends English Championships and the British Championships in April will go some way to determine who will be on the plane for Brazil.Oldhams Olympic dreams were reignited with a recent trip to Rio, but now the nerves and pressure will crank up. Here are Sams latest thoughts as he prepares for action.....Its finally here! This weekend my competition season gets under way at the English Championships at Loughborough University.Ive spent the last five months preparing for the start of this Olympic year and its been a tough but really motivating process. Oldham (centre left) was in Rio taking in the Olympic facilities in February After the disappointment of picking up small injuries which left me unable to seriously contend for a place on the World Championships team, I took a step back with my coach Sergey to look at the big picture and make some small changes to our training programme.The main thing we decided was that my health needs to come before everything else. It was something at times I sacrificed since making my comeback from my ankle surgery in 2014 after the Commonwealth Games.We went back to basics and built myself back up again to a place where I was healthy and my fitness level was very high. I refreshed my ankle rehabilitation programme and began working on my shoulder stability strength. Oldham has been putting in the hours during the winter and off-season By December my ankle was ready for full training again and I had no pain in my shoulders for the first time in over a year. This was a great platform to start from and I began putting together the routines I wanted to use for 2016.This Olympic year came around and training was really positive. The changes I made to my training schedule meant I stayed healthy with no injury issues throughout January and February. I had the trip to Rio with the GB squad to sample the surroundings which really fuelled my motivation even more. Sam Oldham desperate to get back into the competitive arena I made great progress during this visit and I came home ready to push on towards March and the start of my European team selection campaign.Im really looking forward to getting back into the swing of competition this weekend (poor punch line I know!).Ive had great preparation with my winter training and Im very positive I can hit the ground running. Gymnasts Louis Smith and Sam Oldham discuss the pressures of an Olympics My target for this weekend is to have a solid competition and to compete to the level Ive been training at, no more no less.Next week I fly out to Doha for the second leg of the Apparatus Gymnastics World Cup circuit. So things are really getting going now. Im so excited to get started and motivated to keep working hard.WHATS COMING UP FOR OUR SCHOLARS…MARCH 19: Sam Oldham, English Championships, LoughboroughMARCH 28 - APRIL 3: Jessica Judd, pre-season training in USAAPRIL 9/10: Sam Oldham, British Championships, Liverpool Also See: British Gymnastics About the Scholarship Meet the athletes Blogs Videos Galleries Dave Schultz Jersey . Inter president Erick Thohir says in a club statement on Wednesday that Vidic is "one of the worlds best defenders and his qualities, international pedigree, and charisma will be an asset. Adidas Flyers Jerseys .Y. -- Leading 3-0 with only 11:25 left, the Colorado Avalanche committed a seemingly meaningless penalty to give the New York Islanders a power play. http://www.cheapflyersjerseyschina.com/ . Self was acquired from the Buffalo Bandits in a trade for Alex Hill midway through last season, and made his debut in Rochester on March 16, 2013. Claude Giroux Jersey . -- Damian Lillard and LaMarcus Alrdridge were again the go-to duo for the Trail Blazers against the Kings. Radko Gudas Jersey . The move comes after the Canadiens were approached by the Buffalo Sabres for permission to speak to Dudley - a former Sabres player and head coach. "The Sabres called for permission and I appreciate that, Im flattered, Dudley told TSN Hockey Insider Pierre LeBrun of ESPN. NEW YORK -- Giancarlo Stanton lost his way for a while. He never lost his prodigious power, though.Miamis muscular slugger homered twice to match a career high with five RBI and made a crucial play on defense, sending Wei-Yin Chen and the Marlins to a 5-2 victory that snapped the New York Mets five-game winning streak Tuesday night.Im coming back, said a smiling Stanton, who had three hits to raise his batting average to .226. Its a long road from here. Thats why you dont worry about where youre at on the season stats. Just keep plugging away.Chen (5-3) tossed seven innings of three-hit ball, spoiling Jose Reyes return to the Mets in his first major league game since a 59-day domestic violence suspension.Back with his original team, the speedy switch-hitter received a warm welcome from the Citi Field crowd of 29,477 but went 0 for 4 with a strikeout in his first big league appearance this season. Batting leadoff after getting called up from the minors, Reyes quickly doffed his helmet to cheering fans when he stepped to the plate in the first inning. Some were standing and applauding.They showed me a lot of love and I respect that and I just tipped my hat as appreciation, he said. I didnt know what to expect when I came here today and to see the crowd reaction like that, that was good.The four-time All-Star shortstop also played a new position, third base, but the ball was never hit his way.All-Star starter Yoenis Cespedes and pinch-hitter Alejandro De Aza homered for New York.Mets starter Steven Matz (7-4) sailed into the seventh with a 1-0 lead before first-time All-Star Marcell Ozuna hit a leadoff single. Stanton then lined a 1-2 changeup over the left-center fence to put Miami ahead.The Mets put two runners on in the bottom half, but Stanton prevented them from tying the game when he charged in to make a sliding catch of Juan Lagares two-out liner to right field.Christian Yelich was hit by a pitch with two outs in the eighth and Ozuna singled again before Stanton sent a 3-1 fastball from Erik Goeddel into the second deck in left-center for his 17th home run, making it 5-1.Hes the most powerful guy in the league, Mets manager Terry Collins said.It was the sluggers 17th career multihomer game and first since June 9, 2015, at Toronto. Four of those multihomer games have come against the Mets, his most vs. any opponent.You feel like hes going to be there, Miami manager Don Mattingly said. If he gets hot at all, its going to be a big boost for us.After slumping through mmuch of a subpar first half, Stanton has started to break out with five homers, 16 RBI and a .dddddddddddd324 batting average over his past 17 games.He hit .118 with two homers and five RBI in his previous 29 games from May 7 to June 15.Thats what Ive been working to get to for a long time now. Just happy that the work finally showed on the field, Stanton said. Ive just been in there doing it over and over again with no results.Cespedes homered in the fourth, his first at-bat after the Mets put his picture on the big video board to inform fans the slugger had been elected to the National League squad. Cespedes tossed his bat aside after connecting on a drive that clanked off the facing of the second deck in left field.I know that Stanton can hit further than me, Cespedes said through a translator.One night after the Marlins squandered a six-run lead in an 8-6 loss to the Mets, Chen struck out five and walked one before giving way to a pair of All-Star relievers. Fernando Rodney gave up De Azas first career pinch-hit homer, but A.J. Ramos worked a hitless ninth for his 25th save in 26 chances.New York had won seven straight at home.YES AND NOThough hes not on the All-Star team, a grinning Stanton said he would participate in the Home Run Derby next Monday in San Diego if asked. Unfortunately, I missed two Home Run Derbies that I was supposed to be in. Ive got some catching up to do, he said. Tell `em to ask. Cespedes, who won the contest in 2013 and 2014, said hed rather not take part this time.POWER PLAYStanton has six home runs in his last 11 contests at Citi Field. He has 24 career homers against the Mets, fourth-most among active players, and six of his last nine hits vs. New York have been home runs.FISH FRYMatz fell to 0-3 in his last seven starts after winning seven straight. He is 5-2 in 10 career outings at Citi Field, with both losses coming against the Marlins this year.TRAINERS ROOMMarlins: 1B Justin Bour went back to Miami for an MRI on his sprained right ankle.Mets: RHP Jim Henderson (right biceps tendinitis) was tagged for four runs and four hits in one inning of a rehab appearance with Double-A Binghamton against Hartford.UP NEXTMarlins LHP Justin Nicolino (2-4, 5.34 ERA) starts the series finale Wednesday afternoon against RHP Jacob deGrom (4-4, 2.62), who halted a 10-start winless streak last Friday against the Chicago Cubs. ' ' '