RIO DE JANEIRO - A bright yellow cat-like figure, which also combines elements of monkeys and birds, is the mascot of the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro. Zapatillas Baratas Spain .The smiley-faced mascot represents the animal life of Brazil. The mascot for the Paralympics is a mopped-headed doll with leafy hair, meant to represent the vast diversity of the flora in Brazil.The mascots made their first official appearance on Monday at a school in the Santa Teresa neighbourhood, which is a mix of precarious slums and homes for millionaires. The school is named for former International Olympic Committee President Juan Antonio Samaranch.Their purpose is to delight and engage the audience, particularly the children, Carlos Nuzman, head of the Rio organizing committee, said of the mascots. In addition, the mascots will always be remembered by the people.A public poll will be conducted to name the two from a shortlist of possibilities. The possibilities for the Olympic mascot are: Oba, Tiba Tuque and Vinicius The choice for the Paralympic mascots are: Eba, Esquindim and Tom. They must be voted on in pairs: Oba and Eba, Tiba Tuque and Esquindim, and Vinicius and Tom.Votes for the names can be cast on the organizing committees website and Twitter feed. The winning names will be announced on Dec. 14.The cuddly, cartoon-like mascots are also big business.Organizers hope that Olympic merchandise, much of it carrying the mascot logo, will generate sales of 1 billion reals ($400 million). The organizing committee will receive about 15-20 per cent of the sales of branded merchandise, with the rest going to licensed manufacturers and vendors.Income from merchandising makes up a chunk of the $3 billion operating budget. Half of that budget is to come from the sale of local sponsorships.The Olympic merchandising campaign will comprise about 12,000 products aimed mostly at children. About 90 per cent of sales are expected from the domestic market.Our mascots represent the diversity of our people, our way of life and our natural environment, said Beth Lula, the organizing committees brand director.Olympic officials expect the mascot to represent 25 per cent of merchandising sales.The mascot for this years World Cup in Brazil — an armadillo named Fuleco — generated little interest. Some blamed this on pre-World Cup protests, and repeated delays and distractions in preparing venues.In addition to the operating budget, Rio is spending about $20 billion in a mix of private and public money to prepare sports venues and urban infrastructure. Brazil spent about $15 billion on the World Cup.___On the Web: www.rio2016.com/mascotesTwitter: @Rio2016.__Stephen Wade on Twitter: http://twitter.com/StephenWadeAP Zapatillas Nike España . -- John Senden never imagined it would take more than seven years to win again. Zapatillas Baratas .C. Lions signed cornerback Dante Marsh to a contract extension on Friay and released receiver Paris Jackson. https://www.zapatillasbaratasspain.es/ . But the young forward is more than willing to shed a little blood if thats what it takes to make the team this season. "It caught me pretty good, dazed me for that shift, but I didnt want to be off the ice for too long," he said after practice, his lip still bleeding a little despite the plastic stitches holding it together.South Bend, IN (SportsNetwork.com) - Jerian Grant, Zach Auguste and Steve Vasturia all scored 19 points as No. 25 Notre Dame shot the lights out in a 93-67 rout of Mount St. Marys on Tuesday. The Irish (9-1) snuck into the top-25 this week with an overtime victory over nationally-ranked Michigan State and have won five in a row since losing to Providence on Nov. 23. They entered Tuesdays game with the best field goal percentage in the nation (55.8 percent) and bettered it by making 59.0 percent of their shots. Demetrius Jackson added 15 points for Notre Dame, while Chris Martin led Mount St. Marys (2-5) with 19 points on the strength of five 3-pointers. The onslaught started early, as the Irish scored 14 points in the first three minutes and jumped outt to a 14-3 lead on a Jackson 3-pointer. Air Jordan Baratas España. A Martin triple had the visitors within 22-18 midway through the opening half, but a Grant jumper and two Vasturia 3-pointers stretched the difference back to double digits. After a Mount St. Marys bucket, Notre Dame scored 22 of the next 24 points and went into the break with a comfortable 52-27 advantage. The outcome was never threatened in the second half. Game Notes Notre Dame won the only other meeting against Mount St. Marys, 78-64, back on Nov. 29, 2003 ... The Irish open their ACC schedule on Saturday against Florida State ... Notre Dame is 22-0 all-time against teams currently in the NEC ... The Mountaineers host Norfolk State on Saturday. ' ' '