CALGARY -- The man who gave the host country one of its most

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CALGARY -- The man who gave the host country one of its most memorable moments of the 2010 Winter Olympics faces long odds to compete at the next Winter Games. Pavel Bure Jersey . Jon Montgomerys gold medal in skeleton at the Whistler Sliding Centre and his subsequent auctioning off of a pitcher of beer in the village square elevated him to folk-hero status. But the 34-year-old from Russell, Man., might not make the 2014 team for Sochi, Russia, in February. Montgomerys results the last season and a half have yet to meet Bobsleigh Canada Skeletons qualification criteria. He needs to hit the ball out of the park and also have little luck in the four races he has left to qualify before Jan. 19. "Unfortunately for me, Im fighting an uphill battle in that regard," Montgomery said Wednesday in Calgary. "I would guess the way things have gone it would be nothing short of winning the four races before that deadline." Mellisa Hollingsworth of Eckville, Alta., Calgarys Sarah Reid and John Fairbairn and Eric Neilson of Kelowna, B.C., were introduced Wednesday as Canadas skeleton athletes for Sochi. Canada can qualify a third man and a third woman for Sochi in January, according to head coach Duff Gibson. Should Canada gain those berths, Montgomery is up against Dave Greszczyszyn of Burlington, Ont., for the final spot on the mens team. It will come down to points earned in races. Greszczyszyn is currently ranked 23rd in the world and Montgomery 25th with 32 points separating them. Montgomery didnt qualify in fall selection races for the World Cup team. Hes competing on the secondary Intercontinental Cup circuit where results are worth fewer points than World Cup results. Greszczyszyn will continue to race World Cups. "Dave will be earning twice as many points for his results on World Cup than I will be on IC," Montgomery said. "If I win all four races and Dave gets 13th in his races hell beat me out in points." If the two men end up close or tied in points, it could come down to coachs discretion, which Gibson doesnt relish. The 2006 Olympic champion hopes the sliders sort it out themselves so he can avoid that painful decision. "By delaying our third selection until we know there is a third Canadian spot allows them to separate themselves based on performance, rather than us having to make a subjective choice," Gibson said. Montgomery will race twice in Whistler, B.C., on the track of his Olympic triumph before a pair of races in Park City, Utah, in January. "Im always optimistic," he said. "Ill work until the cows come home for any kind of a chance. Im not going to worry about the race results before they happen. "Im going to be worried about the next run, the next inch, the next corner. If I get ahead of that, Im not focused on whats important, which is the things I can control right now. "I wont be defined by my failures and this is hardly a failure yet." Montgomery has yet to bond with the sled he built from scratch when he took the 2011-12 season off from racing. The first World Cup after the 2010 Olympics was in Whistler and Montgomery won there. But he didnt finish on the podium again that season. Unwilling to race on a sled that got him wins on just one track in the world and looking ahead to Sochi, Montgomery worked with the metal construction company Standens on a new sled. The move hasnt translated into success on the track. Montgomery needed four top-six results in World Cups the last season and a half to automatically qualify for Sochi. He was sixth once in 2012-13 and was at a major disadvantage this season not qualifying for the World Cup. Montgomery doesnt regret the season he took off or the move to a new sled. Hes sure there would be no chance of beating Latvian skeleton superstar Martin Dukars or Russian slider Alexander Tretiakov, who are co-favourites for gold in Sochi, if he didnt make the change. "The sled that Ive got right now is better than the sled I used to be on," Montgomery said. "Theres no question. The only unfortunate part, and the reason why I was so successful in 2010, was because that old sled was like an extension of my body. "When I was competing in 2010 in Vancouver, that sled Id been on for eight years. I knew exactly how it would react to every single situation I was presented with. Im not there with my Standen sled. I havent had the time to get comfortable with it yet." And its not a simple matter of going back to his former sled, he says. Montgomery hasnt been on it for three years and his body would have to re-learn it. There isnt time for equipment tinkering now. Montgomery says he was the fastest Canadian on the Sochi track during an international training week in the fall. "I was the fastest Canadian athlete by a good bit, but thats neither here nor there," he said. "Its disappointing for me not to be given the benefit of the doubt of that leadership, that past performance proof that Im maybe the best person for the job, but Im in this situation by my own doing. "I cant blame anybody. If youre expecting to be given consideration based on past performance, youre kidding yourself." Montgomery took the risks he did because he wanted another Olympic medal. "I was searching for that special thing I knew I would have to do to be a medallist this go around," Montgomery explained. "Ive got no interest in becoming a two-time Olympian. My interest was always I wanted to do everything in my power to go there and defend my Olympic gold medal, our Olympic gold medal. "Ive got zero regrets. I know I created the bed Im sleeping in, but Im only disappointed. Disappointed is fleeting. Regret is lasting." Custom Vancouver Canucks Jerseys . Pistorius mindset when he stood on his stumps in a bathroom and pulled the trigger on his 9 mm pistol in the early hours of Feb. 14, 2013 remains the crux of the South African trial that has captured worldwide attention and is about to start its seventh week of globally televised proceedings. It was initially scheduled to run for three weeks. Todd Bertuzzi Jersey . CHAUNCEY BILLUPS (Pistons): Yes they got Josh Smith and Brandon Jennings in the off-season and Andre Drummond is a beast (teams are kicking themselves for passing on him - he rebounds and block shots every game - thats two more discernable and significant skills than most guys in his draft class), but dont for a second discount the impact of having a savvy veteran like Billups on your team. http://www.officialcanuckspro.com/Alexander-mogilny-canucks-jersey/ . With the final four being arguably the four best – and most complete – teams from the regular season, picking a winner is not as easy as it sounds.NEW YORK -- Kemba Walker just loves playing at Madison Square Garden. Walker scored 25 points despite suffering a shoulder injury midway through the third quarter and not returning until the middle of the fourth and the Charlotte Bobcats held off a late New York rally to beat the Knicks 102-97 on Tuesday night. "It didnt feel too good at the time. A little pop real quick, but Im fine. I had x-rays and Im fine," Walker said. "I always like winning, especially here against the Knicks. Its always fun." Walker led UConn to the 2011 Big East tournament championship at MSG as the Huskies won five games in five nights. He averaged 21 points against New York last year. Gerald Henderson scored 18 points and Michael Kidd-Gilchrist added 16 for the Bobcats. After falling behind 2-0, the Bobcats took the lead on Walkers 3-pointer and never trailed again. They took their biggest lead of the game, 69-56, on Kidd-Gilchrists two free throws with 9:50 left in the third quarter. But, the Knicks whittled the lead to four, 76-72, on Raymond Feltons jumper with 3:11 left in the third. Charlotte got its lead back up to eight points before settling for an 82-76 advantage after three quarters. Carmelo Anthony scored 32 points to lead the Knicks, but was only 10 for 28 from the field. His back-to-back baskets late in the fourth quarter twice brought the Knicks within two, but every attempt that the Knicks had to take the lead failed. "We dig ourselves these big holes and then we want to fight back and by that time it was a little bit too late," Anthony said. "Tonight was one of those nights." With 16 seconds left, Anthony hit a 3-pointer to get the Knicks within three, 99-96. After a Bobcats turnover, Iman Shumpert was fouled but made only one of two. Henderson then hit his two free throwws with 13 seconds left and the Knicks never got closer. Michael Del Zotto Jersey. "The last four or five minutes wasnt easy," said Bobcats coach Steve Clifford. "We had a lot of guys step up and make plays. To me, those are the best kind of games to win." The Bobcats (2-2) are off to their best start since the 2009-10 season when they began 3-2, while the Knicks (1-3) are off to their worst start since that same season when they started off 1-9. "Were happy with it (the record). Its not fun to come out here and lose every night. We put a lot of work into it just like every other team," Henderson said. "So 2-2 is cool now." Walker hit his first three shots of the game, including two 3-pointers, and finished with 10 in the first quarter. He finished the first half with 17 on 7-9 shooting as the Bobcats took a 64-54 halftime lead. The Knicks also suffered a loss in the game, as starting centre Tyson Chandler left midway through the first quarter and never returned with a right knee injury. "We dont know the severity yet," said Knicks Coach Mike Woodson. "We will know more tomorrow morning, but he is a big piece of what we do." The Bobcats opened a 10-point lead, 49-39, on two Ramon Session free throws with 7:10 left in the first half. However, Metta World Peace, who finished with 18 points, scored the Knicks next seven points. Felton and Shumpert each had 14 for the Knicks. NOTES: Felton also left the floor in the first quarter due to a nose bleed, but returned in the second quarter. ... Felton was drafted fifth overall by Charlotte in the 2005 NBA Draft. ... Bobcats Assistant Coach Patrick Ewing is the Knicks all-time leader in points (23,665), rebounds (1,039), blocks (2,758), steals (1,061), and minutes (37,586). "This is home," Ewing said. ' ' '