The story till thenBy the mid-1990s, Indian badminton had administered itself into irrelevance, causing the mostly non-confrontational but suitably incensed Prakash Padukone to lead a players rebellion in 1997. Calgary Flames Gear . It was to mark the sports year zero. There was change at the top of officialdom, and a push to have the athletes take centre stage again - in this case, it was national champion Pullela Gopichand who did. A quiet but extremely driven battler through competition and past injury, Gopi moved from Hyderabad to Bangalore to learn under Padukones tutelage and set out to test himself against the worlds best. In 2000 he led the Indians in their first appearance in the Thomas Cup eight-team finals in 12 years, won two events in Europe, and by January 2001 had shot up the world rankings from No. 38 to No. 6.The moment The 2001 All England tenth seed was a 27-year-old who had had three operations in four years on his left knee. What could he possibly do? In the round of 16 at Birminghams National Arena, Gopichand beat Sydney Olympics gold medallist Ji Xinpeng in straight sets. Considered one of the outliers of world badminton, respected, but without heavyweight silverware, Gopichand entered the last eight at the All England for the first time. What more could happen?In the semi-final he played a dominant game, toppling world No. 1 and top seed Peter Gade in straight sets. This was a time when badminton had its old scoring system, where points could only be won on serves. In the final, against Chen Hong of China, Gopichand came back from a deficit in the first game and held on to his lead in the second. When a floating drop from Chen landed wide, Gopichand threw his arms in the air. The final lasted less than an hour but it had taken more two than decades in coming.The reaction I know that my biggest disappointments have come from sport. But I also know that the only happiness I get in my life is also through my sport. This is where I belong. Ive seen my life without badminton and its not very nice. - Pullela GopichandExpert view It is a fantastic achievement, a great day for Indian badminton. Gopichand has proved that Indians can be world beaters. He can only go higher from here. - Prakash Padukone, Indias first All England badminton championThe story since Gopichand went on to become his sports most stubborn revolutionary. At the height of his success, he refused an endorsement contract from a cola giant, since he believed aerated drinks were harmful. He set up his academy in Hyderabad in 2008, which, in less than a decade, has gone on to produce a stream of Indian badminton players who belong on the world stage - starting with Saina Nehwal, the sports biggest and most successful new millennium star, world championship medallist PV Sindhu, and a clutch of top ten male players. It has led to a revolution in the sport in terms of participating numbers, relevance and reach. Gopichand must today be recognised as the man who started the Indian badminton renaissance. He gave Indian badminton its wings again - first as a player, then as coach and mentor.Recommended reading Pullela Gopichand: The World Beneath His Feet by Sanjay Sharma, Shachi S Sharma Calgary Flames Store .Y. -- Leading 3-0 with only 11:25 left, the Colorado Avalanche committed a seemingly meaningless penalty to give the New York Islanders a power play. Flames Jerseys 2021 . The 29-year-old from Port Colborne, Ont., has nothing but good things to say about former U.S. marine Liz (Girlrilla) Carmouche ahead of their co-main event Wednesday on the UFCs "Fight for the Troops" televised card in Fort Campbell, Ky. https://www.cheapflames.com/ . Brett Kulak and Jackson Houck of the Vancouver Giants were each charged with assault causing bodily harm on Aug. 18, according to the B.C. court services. SALT LAKE CITY -- Utah continued its early-season onslaught Friday with its third consecutive 40-plus point win.Lorenzo Bonam scored 19 points as the Utes rolled over a weary Coppin State team 94-51. Utah has now won its first three games by a combined 130 points.Its a tough stretch for those guys and they didnt have a whole lot in the way of legs, Utah coach Larry Krystkowiak said. Were just trying to learn how to respect the game regardless of who it is were playing. And the price of pokers going to go up.The energy and effort, that type of thing has been there for us. Now weve got to combine that with quite a bit more complicated scouting report, be able to engage the brain and body and everything at the same time. Thatll be a challenge for us.The Utes opened the game with a 19-3 run and never looked back as their 3-point shooters had their best stretch of the season. Utah shot 64.3 percent from behind the arc in the first half, including three triples apiece from Parker Van Dyke and Jake Connor. Van Dyke matched his career high with 15 points.On the flip side, Coppin State seemed gassed from the beginning as it played its third game in three nights. The Eagles shot just 26.9 percent from the field in the first half, making it impossible to keep up with the dead-eye Utes.Utah transfer JoJo Zamora scored a season-high 22. The Utes connected on a season-high 12 3-pointers.Coppin State has played five games in eight days, all in different cities. The Eagles also wrapped up their third consecutive game in three nights -- Coastal Carolina, BYU and Utah. All three games were 30-plus point losses.Tre Thomas, Dejuan Clayton and Keith Shivers scored a team-high 10 apiece for Coppin State.These are going to be life experiences for these guys, Coppin State coach Michael Grant said. You have to preparre yourself mentally every single day. Calgary Flames Shirts. Every time you step out here on the floor, you have to be ready to play. We havent been getting that.We have to look in the mirror. They have to assess where they are and find a way to grind this thing out because the road is not going anywhere. The schedule is not going anywhere. This is the hand were dealt.BIG PICTURECoppin State: The Eagles are in the money-making portion of their season, traveling the country for paydays against more talented programs. The conference season is what matters for Coppin State and it doesnt start MEAC play until January.Utah: The Utes continue to use the early part of the season to grow a roster with just two significant contributors from last season. The first half was their best 20 minutes of the season, but the level of competition didnt allow for a good feel of Utahs progress.NEW STARTERUtah forward Tyler Rawson started the first game of his Utes career after transferring from Salt Lake Community College. Rawson has been the second-leading scorer through the first two games and had six points, a game-high 12 rebounds and six assists Friday. Jayce Johnson moved to the bench and Krystkowiak said it wasnt a punishment, but Johnson has had some mental breakdowns in games.Im going to be mixing some stuff up, probably, throughout the course of the year, Krystkowiak said. Tylers had some good practice, thats been another factor. Starting doesnt mean much to me.UP NEXTCoppin State: The Eagles travel to play Ball State on Monday as part of 11 of 12 games on the road to start the season.Utah: The Utes continue their early, soft nonconference schedule when they host UC Riverside on Friday ' ' '