new hydrotherapy baths and two new warm-up pools | Forum

Not sure if growing up in Rosario is similar to wet and windy Manchester, but Hernán Bernardello did not put a foot wrong in what was an imposing debut in an Impact shirt for the 27-year old Argentine. Custom Boston Celtics Jerseys . His performance (with almighty weather for the Stade Saputo backdrop Wednesday evening) was one that anyone would associate with the rainforest. It was a virtuoso man of the match performance if ever there was one - as 2008-2009s Cinderella team kicked off its 2013-14 tilt in the Champions League. A passing and checking clinic from Bernardello that the likes of Lou Lamoriello could only dream of. However, it was the shade over 15,000 fans –sitting through the rain-lashed uncovered Impact terraces - I was most impressed with. A raucous atmosphere it was, their sole and most united response as the rain made its appearance in sheets for an extended period. On a far smaller scale, I defy anyone not to compare that extraordinary Stade Saputo atmosphere to a rain-sodden Barclays Premier League evening at Old Trafford. Ive been blessed to witness first-hand the might and majesty of Liverpool supporters celebrating victorious at a European Cup Final. Take a bow, UM02. Ultras Montréal, formed in 2002 are the Impacts original supporter group. Not always on the same page with the club, they are still the most loyal, standing by through thick and thin. On Wednesday, with each and every member seemingly soaked through to the skin, they reached a new higher ground. "The rain has never stopped us before and it certainly would not stop us for such an important game," UM02s apokesperson told TSN.ca the morning after. "The rain always brings a special feeling in the kop, it seems to energize people when they see that the ultras will not give up and keep going 100 per cent." The Ultras have wonderfully spawned superb new supporter groups at Saputo. Whats that they say about imitation and flattery? With the absence of significant travelling supporters making the journey to Montreal - save for Toronto FC - the combined banter that the Impact supporter groups provided added terrific value to the overall Stade Saputo experience on a given match day. The proof of this was in the startled reaction of the casual Saputo visitors Wednesday night. That, alongside the supporter groups in the West and South stand terraces or tucked away in a corporate loge (The Prawn Sandwich Brigade, as legendary Manchester United captain Roy Keane so eloquently described them once).As events on the terraces unfolded Wednesday, I couldnt help but think back and affectionately reminisce about the Impacts previous Champions League campaign. Specifically, the final group stage home game against CD Olimpia played in late October 2008. The 1-1 draw ensured the Impact safely emerged from the group with a game to spare but it was the weather that I wont forget. Nor the fantastic atmosphere generated on what should have been an invigorating fall evening. Now growing up in England, Ive witnessed some shocking blustery-type weather. But this was all together on a completely different level. Goal kicks into the wind seemed to cough up negative yardage and fool you for any attempted back passes. This, though, was the calm after the storm that was the inaugural game played at Saputo back on Victoria Day of 2008. The Whitecaps were the opponent that particular Monday afternoon, and with the Impact provoking for the move into MLS, commissioner Garber was in attendance. For the Ultras, this is all part of the legacy they have carved out over their time. "Weve had memorable rain episodes in the past," said their spokesperson. "Most notably in the playoffs at Centre Claude-Robillard in 2006 I think, where it was just us and a few brave souls that decided to stay and join us, which made the kop instantly grow to over 125 people, which was huge and never seen at the time. "Then the opening game at Saputo in 2008, which was the worst and something we hope to never have to go through ever again. We still have nightmares about that one. For sure, the rain is much more fun in July or August than in April or October but whatever the weather, we keep on giving our all." Anyone who has witnessed it can certainly testify - UM02 most certainly do - it did in buckets Wednesday. Someone who was there for that maiden Impact voyage in the Champions League - and now finds himself on the bench as Schällibaums right hand man - is Mauro Biello. Wednesdays atmosphere was not lost on the only player in the Impacts 20-year history to have his shirt retired. "It was a great atmosphere last night," he said. "I remember back in 2008 during the qualifying rounds of Champions League, even though the crowds were smaller, they were loud and supportive. But last night was extra special because despite the pouring rain, no one left their seats and they were in the game." Biello aptly concluding, "Thats a sign of some passionate supporters. They are starting to get into the CONCACAF Champions League a little more and their support definitely helped us win the game." Earlier this season, MLS Commissioner Don Garber was on the record as stating MLS will be amongst the top 10 leagues in world football within the decade. To make this a reality, not only do we need to see vast improvements on the pitch, a greater consistency with our officials and an erosion of the single entity structure, but our football culture needs an injection along the same vein as the financial doping (thanks, Arsene) that permeates certain parts of European club football. An international brand and pedigree attached to the CONCACAF Champions League (and if we factor in that back in 1955 UEFA created the European Cup for one sole purpose) and staging an annual continental club competition that would be played in midweek under floodlights. Following Wednesdays spectacle at Saputo, we might finally be onto something. Hopefully, as the Impact look to break out of their current single MLS victory in seven-deepening malaise, long-time Impact equipment manager Aldo Ricci arranged for his staff to bottle Wednesday evenings atmosphere and pack it on board the their charter. Destination Chicago for Saturday evenings rather critical Eastern Conference encounter. You can reach and follow Noel Butler at:Noel.Butler@BellMedia.ca @TheSoccerNoel on Twitter Stitched Celtics Jerseys . Capitals head coach Adam Oates said Ovechkin was injured in the first period against the Vancouver Canucks on Monday and clarified it was not a head injury. Boston Celtics Pro Shop . It was Kerbers third final of the year after losing to Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova of Russia in Monterrey in April and to Petra Kvitova of Czech Republic in Tokyo two weeks ago. The 10th-ranked German improved her record in finals to 3-5. https://www.cheapceltics.com/ . -- Ryan Getzlaf grabbed the three pucks wrapped in tape and held them up to his chest in the Anaheim Ducks dressing room for a celebration nine seasons in the making. RIO DE JANEIRO -- It looks as if the water polo pool is turning green with envy.The mens Olympic tournament resumed Wednesday in green-tinged water after the diving pool at Maria Lenk Aquatics Centre turned a dark green the previous day. There was no sign of any water-quality issues with the water polo pool during the first day of the womens competition Tuesday.A decrease in the alkaline level in the diving well Tuesday led to the green color, Rio 2016 spokesman Mario Andrada said. He added that the pool for water polo and synchronized swimming is being affected in the same way.We have treated both pools during the night and the alkalinity levels have already improved, Andrada said. We expect the color to be back to blue very shortly.Maybe not, according to a U.S. pool expert.Once you get behind, it gets hard to get back in front of it, said Jerry Wallace, chairman of the California Pool & Spa Association, a trade group.According to FINA, the world governing body for aquatic sports, water tanks ran out of some of the chemicals used in the water-treatment process, causing the pH level to go outside the usual range, leading to the discoloration. Andrada and FINA said there is no risk to athletes competing in either pool.Just from TV and pictures on the computer, it looks more like an algae than alkaline problem turning the water green, Wallace said by phone from Sacramento, California.Andrada said algae also is an issue. The algae makes the water look green. We kept the same level of maintenance as we did before, but we had far more athletes, he said. We had more dirt in the water and that generated more algae.Wallace said if theres a reaction with iron in the water, the pool would turn a translucent green. But a murky green color, as seen in the diving pool, would indicate an algae issue. Wallace said some strains of algae will grow even in water that has the proper pH balance.If theyre cleaning the diving pool and then using the same tools in water polo, they could contaminate it, hee said. Cheap Celtics Jerseys. . Algae spores can be transmitted.The warm and humid climate in Rio could be a factor, too.There are no such problems at the swimming venue, a temporary facility with its own filtration system. The diving and water polo pools are part of a permanent facility opened in 2007.The black lines at the bottom of the water polo pool were clearly visible as play continued throughout the day, and there was no evidence of the color affecting the action. But a couple players said they could tell the chemical mixture is off.They put way too much chlorine, U.S. captain Tony Azevedo said. The last quarter, I can barely open my eyes.Everyones obsessed with the green water. Who cares about the green water? Azevedo continued. Sometimes you can have green water, black water, it doesnt matter as long as its safe for us. You throw in too much chlorine, all of the sudden you cant see. These are things that, its the Olympic Games, you cant have that.Hungarian water polo player Gergo Zalanki got some drops for his eyes after an 8-8 draw against Greece. But he wasnt sure chlorine was the problem.Yes, it feels like that, but I dont know, Zalanki said between sniffles. In Hungary theres lots of water like this. It feels like lots of coloring, but theres something different.The Maria Lenk Aquatics Centre, named after the first Brazilian woman to compete in the Olympics, was renovated before the Rio Games. The major upgrades included new springboards, a refurbished medical center, new hydrotherapy baths and two new warm-up pools. There is no mention of any update to the water-treatment system in the venue description.Andrada said a test event at the facility did not account for the increased use for longer periods that the pools would see during the Olympics.We probably failed to note that with more athletes, the water could be affected in a different way, he said. ' ' '