NEW YORK -- After Usain Bolts dominating performance in the 100-meter semifinals, NBC track analyst Ato Boldon summed up the chances that a rival could prevent the Jamaican from winning a third Olympic gold medal in tracks showcase event: You better hope he loses a shoe or something in the finals.He didnt lose a shoe -- or the race. Like with Michael Phelps, another Olympic headliner had come through with a crowd-pleasing performance.Its not supposed to be that easy, said Boldon, who suggested the accomplishment puts Bolt in the conversation for greatest athlete of all time.Boldon smartly explained what makes Bolt special: his ability to maintain speed when others decelerate, coupled with the long strides that make him virtually unbeatable in the second half of a race.Silver medalist Justin Gatlin was booed lustily by the crowd, most certainly a reference to the Americans two past suspensions for use of banned substances. Earlier Sunday, NBC aired a soft-focus feature on Gatlin that made you wonder if an athlete from another country under such a cloud would get the same treatment.Oh, wait. You have that answer. Russian swimmer Yulia Efimova, painted as a villain by American rival Lilly King, did not.QUOTE: It has the feel of a heavyweight championship fight, and the champion has made his entrance. -- NBC track announcer Tom Hammond.NEGATIVE VIBRATIONS: Bob Costas didnt even have to get pink eye to set social media aflame. Plenty of armchair music critics didnt like his suggestion that Bolt had exceeded another legendary Jamaican, Bob Marley, in popularity.JONES AND SEACREST: NBCs first recipient of Saturday Night Live star Leslie Jones burst of energy is late-night, or early-morning, host Ryan Seacrest.Hurriedly brought to Rio de Janeiro after her fan-girl social media posts about the games became an Internet hit, Jones is bringing the same enthusiasm in person. Shes giddy at meeting Shaun White and Kerri Walsh Jennings, and cries at the achievement of Simone Biles.Seacrest interviewed her early Sunday for his show, which begins every Olympic day at 12:30 a.m. To viewers steeped in cynicism, Seacrest had to broach the subject: Is this some kind of elaborate joke? Jones insisted it was genuine. I cant believe that my enthusiasm is the biggest thing going on, she said.It was a welcome jolt for Seacrest, whose relatively buzz-free show was developed especially for Rio. The hours centerpiece Sunday was a beach volleyball match featuring Americans Phil Dalhausser and Nick Lucena that took place too late for the prime-time show. There was also a thoughtful story about the Brazilian beach volleyball team of Larissa and Taliti, who live and train with Larissas wife, Lili, another professional volleyball player.As the two women showed off their wedding pictures, you wondered whether NBC would have thought it too risky to air in prime time. The piece should have dug even deeper: it never really explored why the couple werent teammates in beach volleyball, beyond Lilis simple declaration that love and work must be separate.Later, White turned up with an interesting story about skateboardings future as an Olympic sport. In sum, Seacrests show skillfully did what was intended -- appeal to the next generation of Olympics fans -- without being patronizing or heavy-handed.SYNCHRONIZE IT: Speaking of Saturday Night Live, its impossible for anyone of a certain age to watch synchronized swimming and not think of Martin Short and Harry Shearers classic skit. Then you feel guilty seeing how hard it looks and hearing NBCs Heather Olson describe a practice routine for Americans Mariya Koroleva and Anita Alvarez that includes ankle weights, which feels like a recipe for drowning. Olson said Sunday that Koroleva used to tell her teammates at Stanford that she was business under water, party above the water.NOW, THE NEWS: Thumbs up to Costas for not ignoring an unpleasant Rio story, leading Sundays telecast with news of the robbery of American swimmers, including Ryan Lochte. Lester Holt led NBCs Nightly News with the story, too.RATINGS: Phelps proved a draw for his final race in Rio, as 25.5 million people tuned in to watch NBCs coverage on Saturday night. The audience peaked at 32.7 million when Phelps was in the water. NBCs prime-time audience was 26.8 million with cable and streaming added in, compared to 28 million for the corresponding Saturday in London.---Follow David Bauder at twitter.com/dbauder. His work can be found at http://bigstory.ap.org/content/david-bauderNFL Jerseys Cheap . MLS Commissioner Don Garber and Miami-Dade County Mayor Carlos Gimenez also will attend the session, which was announced Monday. The league has discussed placing its next two expansion teams in Miami and Atlanta. Jerseys NFL Wholesale . Bjorn, who had a 36-hole total of 8-under 134, made a testing six-foot putt to save par on the 16th and a birdie on the 17th before bogeying the final hole after a misjudged approach shot. American Kevin Streelman was in second place after shooting a 69. http://www.nfljerseyschina.net/ . -- Sergey Tolchinksy scored his second goal of the game 3:56 into overtime as the Sault Ste. Cheap Jerseys . He was followed closely by David Clarkson, donning red, seconds later. Clarksons actions one night earlier, leaping off the bench in defence of Kessel during a pre-season game against the Buffalo Sabres, will cost him the first 10 games of the regular season. China Jerseys . The defending champion beat Gael Monfils of France 7-6 (6), 6-3, while second-seeded Andy Murray of Britain dispatched Edouard Roger-Vasselin, also of France, 6-3, 6-3. Making his first appearance since injuring his wrist a month ago, Del Potro had difficulty with his service games in the first set. NEW YORK -- Former New York baseball stars Darryl Strawberry and Dwight Gooden are forever linked in the publics mind, but not necessarily their own.That fitting line concludes ESPNs latest 30 for 30 documentary , Doc & Darryl, which examines their relationship. The film premieres Thursday at 9 p.m. EDT, two nights after the All-Star game.Both men symbolized the New York Mets mid-1980s resurgence, winning back-to-back Rookie of the Year awards. They had freakish talents: Strawberry to hit moon shot home runs and Dr. K Gooden to freeze batters with his fastball and curve. Drug abuse cut short both of their careers, and they eventually served time in the same jail, although not at the same time.Directors Judd Apatow and Michael Bonfiglio wanted to see what sort of relationship the men had, and the heart of the film is a conversation held before cameras at a Queens, New York, diner, the same one where scenes from the movie Goodfellas were shot.Their body language and lack of eye contact betray a discomfort, reminiscent of get-togethers with friends who hadnt connected in years.The interview revealed that Strawberry had never asked Gooden why he missed the ticker tape parade celebrating the 1986 Mets championship, even though the outfielder had gone to Goodens house to give him a ride and hadnt found him. Similarly, Gooden had never talked to Strawberry about an incident where teammate Ray Knight approached Strawberry about rumors that one of the Mets two black superstars was involved in drugs. Knight confronted Strawberry, who said it wasnt him.Theres a connection and a love between them, Bonfiglio said. They bonded as teammates. But theyre not close. They never had the conversation that they had at the diner.The subject matter -- seemingly endless relapses, lost dreams and betrayals -- isnt particularly easy, either.Apatow, maker of comic films like Knocked Up, and Bonfiglio seem like odd teammates themselves. Apatow had tweeted praise about an ESPN documentary to a contact at the network once, who shot back a response wondering whether hed like to make one himself. He expressed interest in a piece on Gooden and Strawberry, if they could be persuaded to participate.Apatow once followed the Mets, but he found rooting for a team too nerve-raacking and gave it up, just before their magical 1986 season.dddddddddddd.He had met Bonfiglio, a noted documentarian known for films on Metallica and Bo Jackson, when he interviewed Apatow for an episode of Sundances Iconoclasts series. Apatow asked him to collaborate for the ESPN film.While Apatow is known for inducing belly laughs on films like The 40-Year-Old Virgin and This is 40, many people overlook his sensitivity, Bonfiglio said.It would be such a different film if I had done it myself, Bonfiglio said. We were in total synch with the vision, but hes so interested in how people behave and how they deal with the challenges of life.Apatow has seen plenty of people in show biz unable to handle sudden success. Its a very common theme, except when you are one of the greatest hitters and pitchers of all time while going through it.If youre in New York, people would get upset if you dont come through for the team, Apatow said. They dont care what your life is like, what your childhood was like and what youre struggling with. They just want results.The film shows how early the seeds of their abuse were planted, which may surprise some fans. Both men dealt with difficult dads. Strawberrys was abusive and alcoholic. Goodens dad was also alcoholic, and he drove his son relentlessly to achieve his own failed dreams. Both future stars drank and drugged in high school. Gooden recalls being rip-roaring drunk the first time he met Strawberry.Doc & Darryl is noteworthy, too, in not being a redemption tale. Both former stars are trying hard to stay clean, Strawberry with the help of religion and a grounded relationship.But too many people have been burned thinking this part of their journey is over.A lot of times when people tell an addiction story it ends with people who are clean and sober, theyre fine, or theyre dead, Bonfiglio said. A lot of times its not the case. A lot of times its a lot more complex than that. We didnt want to make it easy, because it isnt easy.---Follow David Bauder at twitter.com/dbauder. His work can be found at http://bigstory.ap.org/content/david-bauder---Online: http://www.espn.com/30for30/ ' ' '