Lanschaften » stay on to play in the

MONTREAL -- Theyre armed with T-shirts, face paint and posters -- and theyre headed to Montreal. Founding members of the Genie Army, a group of Eugenie Bouchard supporters who cheered for the rising tennis star during the Australian Open in January, will be in the city for the Rogers Cup, beginning this weekend. The fan club is made up of about a dozen people and six of them are making the long journey to Canada for the tournament. "We thought it would be a great chance to support Genie in her hometown and have the home crowd cheer along with us," said Stephen Ganavas, a 17-year-old student living in Melbourne. Dressed in red and white and waving a banner with her name, the Genie Army emerged as Bouchards unofficial cheering section during an impressive run in January. She ended up losing to the eventual winner, Li Na, in the semifinal. The Australian devotees, mostly men in their early 20s, readily admit they have no ties to Canada and no connection with Bouchard. They acknowledge the tall blonds looks may have played a part in their decision to support her. Ganavas said he and his friends also wanted to back an "up-and-comer" in the tournament and Bouchard fit the bill to a T after showing her potential at Wimbledon in 2013. "Genie is great because she is so genuine and down-to-earth," he said in an email exchange. "For example, after she had just lost at the Australian Open to Li Na, she came out onto the grounds and just had a chat with us when she could have been relaxing and thinking about the match she had just lost." Its been a landmark year for Bouchard. After her success in Australia, the 20-year-old made it all the way to the semis in the French Open in June before playing in the Wimbledon final on July 5. She enters the Rogers Cup at No. 7 in the world rankings. In the process, Bouchard, who hails from the Montreal-area community of Westmount, has gained a whole new legion of fans. Other Genie Army clubs have sprouted up in Montreal, Quebec City and Trois-Rivieres. The hashtag .GenieArmy was a trending topic on Twitter during Wimbledon. And a special Genie Army ticket package to watch Bouchard at the Rogers Cup is already sold out. Meanwhile, the original fan club from Australia has also gained a following of its own. A Genie Army website is under construction and the group is planning to sell T-shirts inspired by those they wore at the Australian Open. One reads, "Eat, Sleep, Genie, Repeat." And, after having their faces splashed across newspapers, websites and highlight reels during the Australian Open, members of the Genie Army will become a sort of cause celebre in Montreal. The group will attend an official photo this Saturday and, according to a news release, fans will "have the chance to take their photo with the now famous group." Ultra Boost España . Berkman almost left the game last off-season before signing with the Texas Rangers. He then had another injury-plagued season and was limited to 73 games. Ultra Boost Rebajas . According to MMAFighting.com, MacDonald needs an x-ray on his right ankle and doctors clearance to fight or he will be subject to a mandatory medical suspension that will end on August 22, 2014. http://www.ultraboostbaratas.es/ . Cain departed in the fourth inning of a 10-5 loss to the Pirates on Thursday. X-rays on Cains bruised forearm were negative. He was hit when Sanchez led off the fourth with a groundout. Ultra Boost Baratas . Summers has seen scant playing time with the Coyotes since being selected 29th overall by the club in the 2006 NHL Entry Draft, having played in 47 career NHL games. Ultra Boost Baratas Online . UCI President Brian Cookson said Wednesday the commission will investigate allegations "that the UCI has been involved in wrongdoing in the past -- allegations which have done so much to hurt the credibility of the UCI and our sport.MONTREAL - Any hopes of keeping Marco Di Vaio on for another season are over for the Montreal Impact.The 38-year-old striker ended speculation on his soccer future Friday by announcing that he will retire at the end of the Major League Soccer season. Di Vaio said he did not want to continue being separated from his wife and children, who have remained in Italy while he played his final three seasons in Montreal.He met Thursday with team president Joey Saputo and decided to make it official.After I spoke with Joey and I came back to my house, I understood that it was the right moment to say I cant come back, said Di Vaio. It was a little bit of a sad day for me because I understood that its done.But I lived a lot of moments here that were really important for me, for the club, for history. We won the (Voyageurs) Cup two times. We got to the playoffs (last season). We got to the quarter-finals of the (CONCACAF) Champions League. So Im really happy with what weve done.The former Italian Serie-A star, who joined the Impact as their first designated player in May 2012, will play in the teams final two home games of the season Oct. 11 against New England and Oct. 25 against D.C. United.There was no word on whether he would be in the starting 11 for a game Sunday in Chicago. The 6-18-6 Impact are out of playoff contention with four regular-season matches to go. Di Vaio has been questioned repeatedly by fans and media over his future. Some wondered if he would stay on to play in the Champions League quarter-finals in February and March. There was hope he would play one more season because of the chemistry he has developed with new designated player Ignacio Piatti.But he said he will not spend another year away from his family.And he scotched the notion that he would return to Bologna to retire as a member of his former team, although he hopes to stay in the sport in some capacity. The 25th will be my last match, he said. When I go back to Italy, Ill start a new phase of my life.As for the future, I dont know. Id like to stay in soccer. I grew up with it and I want to stay involved. Well see what happens in Italy.The Rome native scored 142 goals in 342 Serie-A matches with Lazio, Bari, Salternitana, Parma, Juventus, Genoa and Bologna. He added another 31 in 72 MLS games.He will be difficult to replace in Montreal. The stocky forward brought a level of skill that is rare in MLS and he did not short-change his club on effort or intensity.Montreal has 21-year-old Jack McInerney on its roster, but will likely seek another striker for depth up front.Since Ive been here I dont think the guy has missed one day of training, coach Frank Klopas said.dddddddddddd Hes got a winning mentality and I think were going to miss that a lot.The mentality and effort he brought every day is something we lack a bit. We need to bring in more guys like that.Di Vaio arrived amid a wave of Italian players who got fans excited for the clubs move to MLS in 2012, including defender Matteo Ferrari who is still with the team and legendary defender Alessandro Nesta, who retired at the end of the 2013 campaign.But Di Vaio was the one people noticed, both for his goal-scoring ability and the emotion he showed on the field.In many ways, he was the perfect DP for Montreal, said team captain Patrice Bernier. Not just for the club, but for the city, because of the style we like and the blend of soccer we want.Hes on another level. Ive told a lot of young kids that they have to pay attention to the way he plays and way he moves because he has the blueprint for how a striker should move.Added defender Hassoun Camara: Were very proud to share this moment with him because hes a very good player as everyone knows, but hes also a very good guy. I take him as a friend. Im happy to have played with him, for sure.Bernier felt Di Vaio helped put the Impact on the world soccer map and that it helped make the team better-known around Europe.Saputo said Di Vaio gives the team a link to Europe that may help in recruiting players.Details are still to be worked out on a tribute for his final game.Di Vaio, known as Il Bomber, will retire as the teams leader in MLS goals and shots. He scored 20 times in 2013, when he was named to the MLS Best XI and was a finalist for league most valuable player honours. He has made 62 starts and played a total of 5,636 minutes for Montreal.Asked to comment on his time in MLS, Di Vaio said: This is the future. MLS will be the future for soccer. Im sure that in the next few years theres going to be a lot of players coming to play in MLS. They are ready to be one of the best leagues in the world.Di Vaio began his career with Lazio in 1995.After bumping around with a few teams, he was sold for 14 million euros in 2003 to Juventus and he helped the club win a league championship. He also helped Juventus reach the Champions League final in 2003, scoring four goals in 11 matches.He then moved for 10.5 million euros to Spanish club Valencia, where he played from 2004 to 2006, scoring 11 goals in 35 La Liga matches.Di Vaio joined Bologna in 2008. He served as captain for two seasons and scored 65 goals in 143 games.He had two goals in 14 international matches for Italy. He played in the 2004 European championship with Ferrari and former Impact forward Bernardo Corradi. ' ' '