REGINA - Olympic gold-medal favourite Mark McMorris is in "great spirits," despite a fall that fractured a rib and nearly derailed his dream. Andre Dawson Jersey . Don McMorris, the snowboarders father, says Mark is moving around quite well after the incident during Saturdays slopestyle event at the Winter X Games in Aspen, Colo. "When we left him (Sunday), he could bend over and touch his toes because of where (the injury) is at," Don McMorris told The Canadian Press on Monday. "You know a cracked rib in the front, you couldnt do that, but where its at (around the back), he could bend to his toes and could raise his knees up to kind of his chest. "He was really doing better than we all thought. Hes got five or six days before he has to worry about riding and hes got the best people around him." Mark McMorris caught his snowboard on the lip of a rail and went sliding down the bar on his right side before landing hard on the snow during the final. He stayed on the ground for a few minutes before riding down the hill under his own power. It seems the 20-year-old Regina native lost focus. "He probably hit that rail through the week, I dont know 50 times, and never had a problem with it or any of the rails because thats, I think, one of the strongest parts of his riding," said Don McMorris, who was in Aspen when his son fell. "But obviously he was focused on what he was going to do on the jump line because he was going to try something pretty major." Don McMorris says his son didnt hurt much at first, but the pain got worse as the afternoon wore on. Mark McMorris finished with a silver medal at the event, but was "pretty down," said his father. Mark McMorris had said being an Olympian is a dream come true. He was the two-time defending Winter X Games champion in slopestyle. When he was named to the Olympic team earlier this month, McMorris said hes been "preparing like a mad man." The fall raised questions as to whether he could compete in Sochi. "He was really scared, not necessarily about his own well-being, I dont think, but that he wouldnt get to go to the Olympics," said Don McMorris. "That was really playing on his mind and when he does that, he just gets really quiet and doesnt really talk or say much to anybody. "And you could just tell that he was really scared and worried about not getting to fulfil his dream." The elder McMorris says the tough part was waiting to hear what the team doctors had to say. He describes it as an agonizing wait of about three hours. They eventually decided Mark would go to Sochi, as planned. "I cant tell you what he said because that would not be printable," joked Don McMorris. "He was really relieved." A fractured rib usually takes six weeks to heal, so Mark McMorris wont have time to fully recover before the Games start Feb. 7. But his father is cautiously optimistic. "Yes, Im optimistic, (I) have to be," he said. "I mean maybe too optimistic because theres going to be a lot of pain and . . . you dont know how the body will react, but compared to what it could have been, were pretty happy." Felix Heredia Jersey . The 49ers announced the deal Thursday. San Francisco selected Kilgore in the fifth round of the 2011 draft out of Appalachian State. He has played in 33 regular-season games, plus all six playoff games the last two seasons. Fake Marlins Jerseys . PAUL, Minn. https://www.cheapmarlinsjerseys.us/1591r-ed-vosberg-jersey-marlins.html . The Brazilian-born strikers brace drew him level with Real Madrid star Cristiano Ronaldo as the leagues leading scorers with 17 goals apiece through 16 rounds. "The important thing is to help the team win, not the goals," Diego Costa said. After a first half dominated by defence, Atletico pressed Valencia into its area and Diego Costa did the rest.MELBOURNE, Australia - Eugenie Bouchard — the unwitting protagonist of an Australian Open saga that has been dubbed Twirlgate — would prefer if people just focused on her tennis.For the record, Bouchard said Friday she was not offended by the male interviewer who asked her to twirl for the crowd earlier in the week.I think it was just kind of funny, the Wimbledon runner-up said after advancing to the fourth round in Melbourne. Im fine with being asked to twirl if they ask the guys to flex their muscles.This is not the first time the Australian Open has offered up a headline-grabbing sideshow that has nothing to do with tennis.In previous years, two-time champion Victoria Azarenkas former boyfriend, the rap star Redfoo who was a regular front-row fixture, got as much press as she did. In 2011, former No. 1 Caroline Wozniacki told a colorful tale about getting into a fight with a kangaroo and showed a scratch to prove it. She later retracted the story, saying she had bumped into a treadmill but wanted to spice up a dull news conference.This year, the seasons opening Grand Slam tournament has Twirlgate, a term being used by Australian media and as a hashtag on Twitter.It started Wednesday when Bouchard, one of the rising stars of womens tennis, was asked by a male interviewer to give us a twirl and show off her tennis dress after winning her second-round match. Noticeably embarrassed, Bouchard complied with a laugh and later said, it was very unexpected.Social media erupted with chatter. Some called it sexist, some questioned whether a male player would be asked to twirl after winning a match, and some dismissed the debate, saying they didnt feel sorry for a highly-paid athlete being asked to twirl.Billie Jean King added to the chorus of criticism.This iss truly sexist, tweeted King, an 11-time Grand Slam winner and a longtime campaigner for equal rights in tennis. Adam Conley Jersey. Lets focus on competition and accomplishments of both genders, and not our looks.The 20-year-old Bouchard, a 1.78-meter (5 foot-10) photogenic blonde, has become one of tennis newest cover girls. She won the Wimbledon juniors title in 2012 and has made rapid progress ever since. She reached the semifinals at last years Australian and French Opens followed by the Wimbledon final which ushered her into the No. 7-ranking — the highest ever for a Canadian player.Bouchard won her third-round match Friday, beating Caroline Garcia of France 7-5, 6-0. After a few questions on tennis, her post-match news conference turned to the twirl.I was waiting for this one, Bouchard said, smiling.Players typically say that during big tournaments they try to stay away from newspapers and limit their time on social media to keep their minds on the game. But Bouchard said she was aware that the incident had caused a stir.My friends are texting me, saying I dance and twirl well and stuff, as jokes, she said. Its just funny how its taken a life of its own. Im just going to try to focus on my tennis.She raised her eyebrows when asked if this was a deja vu of an embarrassing question she faced last year, when an on-court interviewer asked her which celebrity shed most like to date.You mean the Bieber question? she said. Her answer at the time had been fellow Canadian Justin Bieber. I dont know. They try to ask funny questions. Its entertaining, I guess. I dont mind it.But she added that it would be nice to move on.Im happy that Ive played three solid matches here, Bouchard said, and we could definitely be a little bit more focused on that. ' ' '