RIO DE JANEIRO -- He was scalded at 3, kidnapped two years later, and lost a kidney when he fell from a tree at 10. To say Isaquias Queiroz had a rough start in life would be an understatement.The 22-year-old became Brazils first medalist in flatwater canoeing Tuesday, winning a silver in the mens 1,000 meter singles. Hes also competing in the 200-meter sprint and the 1,000-meter doubles.I was really satisfied to win this medal after all the obstacles I have faced, Queiroz said.There is no visible trace of the hardship he endured while growing up; the scar from his kidney operation is hidden by his green uniform. Paddling on the lagoon in Rio, he is a confident young man with a gemstone gleaming in his left ear and tattoos covering his right shoulder.But Queiroz entered his first Olympics with the weight of a nation on his broad shoulders. Brazil counts on him to follow up on his three world titles with at least one Olympic gold medal.The story of this unlikely Olympian begins in Ubaitaba, a small town in Brazils impoverished northeast, where Queiroz grew up with his mother and nine siblings, four of them adopted. His father died when he was 5.The towns name stems from the indigenous word for canoe, historically the main mode of transportation on the Rio de Contas. But Queiroz was more interested in soccer until he tried competitive canoeing when he was 11 as part of a government-funded social project, said Figueroa Conceicao, his childhood coach.From his first contact with the water, I realized that he was good, that he had something special, Conceicao said.He couldnt figure out why everyone called the boy Sem Rim, which means missing kidney in Portuguese.So he showed me the scar and told me the story of when he went to see a snake which was up in a tree, Conceicao said. There was a rock, and he fell on it and he had to go to the hospital. They took out his kidney.It wasnt the only time the boy was in grave danger. As a toddler, he required emergency care after being scalded when a pot of hot water fell over him. When he was about 5, he was kidnapped but returned to his mother unharmed.Conceicao said Queiroz was a restless boy who didnt always do as he was told. Just before a tryout for a national competition, Queiroz ignored his coachs ban on swimming in the polluted river where they were training. Conceicao decided to punish the boy by making him compete in a higher age bracket.He said, `No problem. And the next Saturday, at the tryouts, he came in second, Conceicao said.From there Queirozs career took off. By 2011, he was a junior world champion; two years later, he won the first of three world titles.Coached by Spaniard Jesus Morlan, hes now competing on the Rodrigo de Freitas Lagoon in Rio before a roaring crowd, including his mother and several friends.Queiroz resists talking about his modest background. In several interviews with Brazilian media before the Olympics, he insisted his childhood was a happy one.I have only one kidney, but I usually dont talk about it, Queiroz told reporters Tuesday. I also suffered a burn when I was a kid on almost all of my right side.However, he said he never let his difficulties get in the way of his Olympic dreams.The hardship he has faced, Queiroz told The Associated Press, lies in the countless hours of grueling training it takes to become a top-level Olympic canoeist.I think the journey of an athlete comes with many difficulties, he said. Its not smooth, not easy work. You have to kill yourself daily to get to the competition and win.Adidas Continental 80 Dam . That left plenty of energy for pitching books and swatting away free agency questions. Anthony had 24 points and nine rebounds, and the Knicks avenged an embarrassing home loss with a rout of their own, beating the Boston Celtics 114-88 on Wednesday night for their third straight victory. Adidas Superstar Skor Herr . The (11-11-4) Jets are seventh in the Central Division with 26 points. Fifth place Dallas and sixth-seeded Nashville also have 26 points, but the Stars have three games in hand on Winnipeg while Nashville has two. http://www.nmdsverige.com/y-3-adidas-skor.html . On Mar. 16, coming off a "fight of the year" performance at UFC 154 the previous November, St-Pierre faced Nick Diaz at UFC 158 in what would be his eighth defence of the welterweight title. Using his superior athleticism, St-Pierre cruised to a five round, unanimous decision victory setting up a much-anticipated title defence against number one contender Johny Hendricks. Adidas NMD R1 Rea . This should be celebrated because it will not always be this way. With the amount of money given to players by their clubs these days, it is a wonder that so many of those teams allow the sport to continue to take away many of their assets so they can play for a different team in the middle of their season. Adidas NMD R1 Herr Rea . After a replay, the winner will meet Sunderland in the quarterfinals. Sagbo did well to control Sone Alukos right cross and fire past Brighton goalkeeper Peter Brezovan. Aluko was making his first start in four months after recovering from an Achilles injury.SAN FRANCISCO -- With his knuckleball dancing at a variety of speeds, R.A. Dickey once again looked like the Cy Young Award winner the Toronto Blue Jays acquired in the off-season. Dickey allowed two hits in 8 1-3 innings and sparked a four-run fifth with an RBI double, leading Toronto to a 4-0 victory over the San Francisco Giants on Wednesday. "He was just about perfect today," Blue Jays manager John Gibbons said. "He had it all going on. He was in the strike zone. Everything was really dancing today. ... Thats him at his best right there." Mark DeRosa added a two-run single and Adam Lind had three hits for his eighth multihit performance in the past 12 games, helping the Blue Jays earn a split of the two-game series. Barry Zito (4-4) was done in by the one big inning and lost at home for the first time since last August. The defending World Series champion Giants have lost 11 of 18 games heading into a nine-game road trip. Dickey (5-7) bounced back from a pair of rough starts in which he allowed six runs each to Baltimore and Atlanta. With the back and neck problems that contributed to his slow start in Toronto now in the past, Dickey returned to the form that helped him dominate the National League last season for the New York Mets. He was able to change speeds with his knuckler and throw it for strikes all game, getting the Giants to swing early in a very efficient outing. "I was changing speeds a lot today, which was good," Dickey said. "I was able to throw a 63, 64 miles per hour one for a strike and I was able to throw a 79 miles per hour one for a strike. As Ive gotten healthier, I felt like Ive been able to have the latitude to be able to do that. Before it was just trying to muster everything I could to survive an outing." Dickey retired his first 11 batters before Pablo Sandoval lined a clean single to right field. He didnt allow another baserunner until Hunter Pence walked to lead off the eighth in his best start since joining the Blue Jays in the off-season. He was replaced after allowing a single to Gregor Blanco and walking Marco Scutaro with one out in the ninth inning. "He was commanding the knuckleball to where he wanted to throw it," Blanco said. "He was unbelievable. ... He has a lot of movement on it, whichh makes him so difficult.dddddddddddd You dont know where the ball will go. You have to hit a mistake like I did in the last inning when that ball hung up." Casey Janssen got Sandoval to hit into a double play for his 12th save in 12 chances. The Blue Jays also helped Dickey with their gloves, with shortstop Maicer Izturis making diving stops to rob Buster Posey and Sandoval of possible hits. Zito ran into trouble when he walked struggling No. 8 hitter Henry Blanco with one out in the fifth inning. Dickey then squared around to bunt when he saw Sandoval crashing in from third base and Brandon Belt from first. Dickey pulled back and decided to swing away, knocking a grounder past the charging Sandoval and into the left-field corner for an RBI double. "I saw both Panda and Belt crashing," Dickey said. "It was slug bunt all the way. I had played it out in my mind that that was what I was going to do if I saw both those guys closing in on me." Dickey scored on a two-out single by Jose Bautista. Zitos second walk of the game led to more trouble after Edwin Encarnacion and Bautista pulled off a double steal when Sandoval couldnt get the tag down in time even though Poseys throw beat Bautista to third base. That set up DeRosas two-run single. "The fifth inning was the Achilles heel today," Zito said. "Being unable to minimize the damage, the slash hit was OK, but then I gave up a couple of two-out hits that hurt." Zito allowed seven hits and walked three in six innings while losing at home for the first time since Aug. 2, 2012, against the Mets. The Giants had won Zitos last 14 starts at home, including one in the World Series, and he entered the game with a 1.40 ERA this season at AT&T Park. NOTES: It was Dickeys first extra-base hit since doubling against Philadelphia on Sept. 24, 2010. ... Zito became the first Giants starter to pitch at least six innings and not strike out a batter since he did it May 12, 2007, at Colorado. ... San Francisco CF Angel Pagan missed his 10th straight game with a strained left hamstring but manager Bruce Bochy hopes he will be able to play Friday in Arizona. ... The Blue Jays finished 3-4 on their road trip that included stops in Atlanta and San Diego and return home to face Texas on Friday. ' ' '