NEW YORK -- A dozen young Australian runners from indigenous tribes once targeted for genocide had a different marathon goal: The finish line is just a start for us.So said Robert de Castella, a onetime top marathoner who trained them for Sundays New York City Marathon.Running a marathon for their first time, the runners will need their new physical and mental prowess to return home and tackle the life-threatening problems of their Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, he said. Generations of abuse at the hands of European colonizers have left many indigenous Australians with a 20-year life expectancy gap due to addictions, mental health illnesses and other diseases, plus heightened suicide and incarceration rates, said de Castella.The 12 Australians -- representing their countrys indigenous population of almost 1 million, or 3 percent -- were raising funds for the Indigenous Marathon Foundation that de Castella started about six years ago.When I saw firsthand what was happening, I was ashamed of our country -- and I also saw the opportunity to use the power of running, de Castella said.The Australians were among a field of about 20,000 foreigners from more than 120 nations running the 2016 race dominated by foreign winners. Mary Keitany, of Kenya, and Ghirmay Ghebreslassie, of Eritrea, won this years race.One proud Frenchman, who had run the Paris race in the past, conceded that he preferred New York.New York is more magical, said Vincent Dogniaux. You feel more support from the crowd here. Its bigger, livelier and more emotional.Seydou Kane, of Niger, said he was so proud to be representing his west African country. He said he didnt think twice about running his first New York marathon instead of another big urban one.Of course, cmon! Iconic, this is the city that never sleeps, he said. The crowd, the stamina -- one of the runs thats a must-do and thats it.As the first three of de Castellas fierce runners wrapped up Sundays race, he concluded: The harder something is, the better, because you need to have a purpose to do incredible things.De Castella brings a new team to New York each year, after each member competes for a slot.I live in a place where poor health killing people is the norm, says Zideon Fielding, 22, a health worker from a community of 300 in the Australian desert. I thought if I tried the marathon approach, I could create change, with drive and persistence.Megan Highfold, an Aboriginal attorney, said shes the daughter of a man who was forcibly adopted by a white family to wipe out his heritage.I want to use my marathon skills to help people make changes, to manage mental health in a good way, she said. Its all about now. Jerseys MLB Wholesale . Barcelonas entertaining victory ensured the defending Spanish champions retained their share of the league lead with Atletico Madrid two rounds ahead of their meeting in the capital. Real Madrid needed a late goal by substitute Jese Rodriguez to earn a 3-2 victory at Valencia to stay in third place and three points behind its title rivals. Discount Baseball Jerseys . Schenn scored the game-winning goal and added two assists to lead the Philadelphia Flyers to a 4-1 win over the Calgary Flames at the Scotiabank Saddledome on Tuesday. http://www.authenticnflchinajerseys.com/ . But what about the officials? Every sport has officials and they also have stories about hard work and sacrifice but their accomplishments are seldom recognized by anyone outside their inner circle. Wholesale Nike NFL Jerseys Cheap . After a lengthy wait, persistent rain finally forced the postponement of the Nationals game against the Miami Marlins on Saturday night. The teams, and a few thousand fans, waited nearly four hours from the 7:05 scheduled start time before an announcement was made shortly before 11 p. NFL Jerseys Wholesale .Y. -- The Buffalo Sabres have placed centre Cody Hodgson on injured reserve and recalled two players from their AHL affiliate in Rochester. LATROBE, Pa. -- Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Bruce Gradkowski has a sizable hamstring tear, according to a source, complicating the teams quarterback depth chart.Gradkowski, who is entering his 10th NFL season, suffered the injury in the preseason opener against the Detroit Lions.Steelers coach Mike Tomlin said Monday that Gradkowskis hamstring injury involves soft tissue and Gradkowski will be out a number of weeks.The Steelers could place Gradkowski, 33, on injured reserve for the second straight year or wait out the injury. Gradkowski misseed all of 2015 with shoulder and hand/finger injuries.dddddddddddd This offseason, he re-signed with the team on a one-year deal.Landry Jones has solidified the No. 2 quarterback job behind Ben Roethlisberger, but behind him is project Dustin Vaughan, who has never taken an NFL snap and was cut in Dallas Cowboys camp last year.For his career, Gradkowski is 375-of-709 for 4,057 yards, 21 touchdowns and 24 interceptions. ' ' '