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Since the Rio Olympics, when Feyisa Lilesa made an anti-government gesture during the marathon, he has traveled from country to country out of fear of going home. He worries about the family he left behind in Ethiopia. His young kids ask when they will see him again.That one he just cant answer at the moment.Lilesa became an international figure when he crossed his wrists at the finish line last month in Brazil on his way to a silver medal. The gesture drew global attention to the recent deadly protests in his home region of Oromia.Concerned with what might happen to him should he return to his country, Lilesa spent 2+ extra weeks in Rio before arriving in the U.S. about a week ago on a special skills visa, which allows him to train and compete until January. He hasnt seen his wife, 5-year-old son and 3-year-old daughter since Aug. 17.If I wouldve taken my medal and went back to Ethiopia, that wouldve been the biggest regret of my life, Lilesa said through a translator in a phone interview with The Associated Press as he begins speaking out in the U.S. I wanted to be a voice for a story that wasnt getting any coverage.The Oromia region has experienced enormous anti-government protests in the past few months. The government is now vowing to take drastic measures to deal with mismanagement, corruption and nepotism. But yet, the government has shown few signs of opening up the political space for opposition.Many social media users have changed their profile pictures with the image of Lilesa crossing his wrists, and many are describing him as a national hero for speaking up and bringing it to the international arena.The crossed-wrists gesture has been widely used by anti-government protesters in recent nationwide demonstrations as a sign of peaceful resistance, and before that by the Muslim community when it revolted against the government. It is meant to symbolize being handcuffed by security forces.Lilesas not alone, either: Fellow Ethiopian Ebisa Ejigu flashed a similar gesture when he won the Quebec City Marathon on Aug. 28. Over the weekend, another Ethiopian, Tamiru Demisse, also made the X sign at the Rio Paralympic Games after capturing silver in the 1,500 meters.That solidarity meant a great deal to Lilesa.It gives me hope -- them following in my footsteps and making a stand by saying, `Enough, said Lilesa, who has no plans to file for political asylum.With about 40 million people, the Oromo are Ethiopias largest ethnic group. Their region has seen anti-government protests since November 2015 that activists say have left more than 400 dead.Ethiopias government is often accused of silencing dissent, even blocking internet access at times. Recently, video obtained by the AP showed Ethiopian security forces beating, kicking and dragging several protesters during a rare demonstration in the capital.Theres been increased international pressure on Ethiopia and its treatment of protesters. The United States, for one, last week said it has raised grave concerns about what it called the excessive use of force against protesters in Ethiopia, describing the situation there as extremely serious and calling for an independent investigation.What we are asking for is peace, justice and freedom, said Lilesa, whos currently in Washington, D.C., but hoping to train in a city with a higher elevation. If the situation continues as it is, without any change, its going to degenerate into a conflict that could take a very, very bad direction. ... We need peace. We need change.Lilesa said his wifes brother -- a student at Mada Walabu University in Bale -- was arrested in a protest nearly eight months ago. They still dont know his whereabouts.One of my main concerns if she finds out her brother was one of those who were killed is what will she do? How will she feel? he said. Im not there to support her and comfort her.Ethiopias state broadcaster, EBC, did not re-broadcast images of Lilesas gesture when he finished runner-up on Aug. 21. Some people who were watching live and cheering for Lilesa quickly hushed when they saw his gesture.Lilesa said in a follow-up email hes received no backlash from the International Olympic Committee for his gesture.They came and asked me what the gesture was. I explained, Lilesa said. They empathized with my situation.And while the government assures him he will not face prosecution upon his return home and will have a heroic welcome, as a government spokesman recently said, hes wary of it.Usually, what the government says and what the government does are very opposite, Lilesa said. If change comes to Ethiopia, and the regime changes, and people are finally free, I look forward to the day I can go home and meet with my people. Live with my family in peace.---This story has been corrected to show that the spelling of Lilesas first name is Feyisa, not Feysia.---AP Sports Writer Pat Graham reported from Denver and AP Writer Elias Meseret from Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. John Ross Bengals Jersey . -- The Magic have their first victory of the new year. Josh Malone Youth Jersey . The quest begins with what is supposed to be an easy one, although Germany has traditionally been a stubborn opponent to Canadian teams at international tournaments. http://www.nflbengalsgearofficial.com/carl-lawson-jersey/ . Note: The Calgary Flames announced Tuesday that Sean Monahan would not be made available to Canadas World Junior team. Jake Elliott Jersey . The catch: It needs a lot of money, and it needs it fast. Josh Malone Womens Jersey .ca look back at each of the Top 10 stories of 2013. Today, we look back at Boston Strong - a citys recovery from tragedy. And just like that, the lights came on for English cricket. For months it had been mooted, only to fade from likelihood as the season turned to autumn and the opportunity to fine-tune a radical concept came and went.But now, at the eleventh hour, with tickets for the 2017 season due to go on sale in two working days time, the ECB has taken the plunge on the strength of a three-day 2nd-XI fixture between Warwickshire and Worcestershire, some pioneering work from the MCCs World Cricket Committee and with Cricket Australias enthusiasm for the format rather forcing their hand ahead of the 2017-18 Ashes.A floodlit Test match at the height of the English summer holidays in the nations second most populous urban area will now take place at Edgbaston next summer against a team, West Indies, that might once have been considered the biggest drawcard in the sport.If you thought the ECB had made enough agenda-seizing announcements for one close season, you thought wrong. But following hot on the heels of last months fast-tracking of the city-based T20 format, and with Durham still cowering after their horse-whipping earlier this week, you scarcely needed to analyse the tone of Tom Harrisons ECB statement to recognise this move as the final panel of a very modern triptych.Its a great opportunity to attract more fans to the game and see how staging Test cricket in the afternoon and evening fits with working patterns and modern lifestyles, said Harrison. We think it can help attract different fans and families to Test cricket.Retrenchment on the one hand, re-evaluation on the other, the boards every move at present has, at its heart, the battle for crickets soul. It will be coming up on the 40th anniversary of Kerry Packers World Series Cricket when England and West Indies take the field at Edgbaston on August 17, and like children of the revolution, it is as if Packers most famous utterance, may the devil take the hindmost, has become the motto of the sports current rulers.That doesnt have to be taken as a criticism, by the way, although Durham in particular may be reluctant to see it in any other light right now. Packer, after all, was reviled for his rampant anti-establishmentarianism, but it barely needs pointing out how many of his innovations remain market-leading norms to this day, not least the notion of playing cricket under lights. The wonder is that it has taken half a lifetime to persuade the sports marquee format to countenance the same direction of travel.Reaction is destined to be mixed, for opinions and predilections have rarely been so fragmented in the modern game. For the record, there is no doubt in my mind that floodlit Test cricket has to be embraced, for the sake of a sport so defiantly behind the times that it sometimes seems to be volunteering itself for redundancy.But equally, it would be blasé to ignore the doubts that many of the worlds best players harbour when it comes to messing with the sports oldest and purest format. Alastair Cook, to name but one significant naysayer, is not enamoured, although his reservations stemmed specifically from the prospect of a pink-ball Ashes Test.A lot of the games have really good attendances, he said of the prospect of facing Australia under lights next winter. Its probably not a series where you need to do it.But therein, with apologies for taking Cooks words somewhat out of context, lies thhe point.dddddddddddd The health of the Ashes is no barometer for the overall well-being of Test cricket, and that means it cannot be the rivalry by which to judge the merits of floodlit cricket either.And nor is the health of Test cricket in London - as evidenced by regular sellout crowds at Lords and The Oval, and referenced recently by MCCs president, Roger Knight, at the clubs AGM - any reason to extrapolate the sports rude health elsewhere in England.In fact, in 2012, Glamorgan - an Ashes host three years earlier - found the following years tourists, West Indies, such a hard sell that the club instead offloaded its fixture to Lords. The crowd for that rescheduled Test, Knight pointed out, ended up being larger than those at the other two grounds for the three-Test series - Trent Bridge and, yes, Edgbaston - added together.With that in mind, you can understand Harrisons enthusiasm for using a non-London venue as his day-night guinea pig. Cricket may be faring better in this country than in many other Test-playing nations, but that is all the more reason to shore up the sport while its strongest markets are still viable.But unfortunately not all non-London venues are equal in the current climate, and panel two of the ECBs triptych - their brutal and punitive treatment of one of the best cricket-playing clubs in the land - reveals the realpolitik at play in their recent chain of decisions. If the dangers of relying too heavily on one big payday were scrawled in red lettering across Durhams finances, then the reasons why the ECB chose to make an example of their struggles were tucked more subtly into the small print.Durhams inability to diversify - in particular to attract non-cricket activities, such as conferences and concerts, to supplement their income in the long winter months - was cited as the biggest reason why their debts became so unmanageable. But it also signed the Riversides death warrant as a venue of any merit in the ECBs brave new world. Whereas Birmingham City Council felt it worthwhile to offer Warwickshire a repayment holiday on debts in the region of ￡20 million - no doubt recognising the benefits to the local economy from major match-day tourism, among other perks - Durham County Council had no similar reasons to offer leniency on debts a fraction of the size.Notwithstanding the huge value that Durham retains as a production line for emerging talent, and as a first-class team of rare pedigree - and for all the beauty of the Riverside as a venue - it has failed the one test that no amount of revision could have enabled it to pass. Namely, it lacks the ability to attract passing trade. To be at the centre of an epoch-seizing buzz. To be relevant to more people than the 990,000 who currently attend cricket matches in England and Wales.In other words, it is not a city - let alone one with a population of 1.1 million that is about to host Englands first floodlit Test match in the height of the English summer, let alone one that has already preemptively rebranded its T20 team in the anticipation of future upheavals to the sport.Whether you accept or abhor the direction of travel, this particular gravy train is just pulling out of Birmingham New Street. There seems little option but to get on board. Wholesale Hoodies NFL Shirts Outlet Jerseys NFL Wholesale Cheap NFL Jerseys Free Shipping Wholesale Jerseys Cheap Cheap NFL Jerseys China Wholesale Jerseys Wholesale NFL Jerseys Cheap NFL Jerseys China Cheap NFL Jerseys ' ' '