ASPEN, Colo. - About a dozen Winter X Games stars — more than a few of them owners of Olympic gold medals — were milling about the tent before the action began.Only one drew a crowd.Shaun White.Now 28 and coming back after the most humbling year of his life, White will be a multimillionaire megastar regardless of whether he wins or loses Thursday night, when he drops into the halfpipe for his first competitive trip since the disappointments of 2014.But behind the clothing lines, the guitar, the new life as an event promoter and those 1.46 million Twitter followers is one, simple fact: White wouldnt have any of that if he wasnt great on that snowboard.He doesnt want that to change — one reason he finds no use dwelling on his less-than-successful year.I guess, going forward, yeah, why look back? White said. I definitely learned some lessons and definitely feel better off than before, in a way. I think that, for me, it was a learning experience and Im pumped to be riding still.The inevitability that White brought to almost every contest he entered was washed away last year, with a series of injuries, falls, withdrawals and, finally, that fourth-place finish on the halfpipe that pushed the snowboarding world off its axis at the Sochi Olympics.He wasnt happy about it, said his coach, Bud Keene. Such is the risk you take when you put on a bib and lay it on the line. His career is far from over, athletically. Hes still, hands down, the best halfpipe rider in the world, and not by a small margin.For the first time since he won his first Winter X gold in 2003, there are some people who would argue that.Whites chance to end — or at least stall — that discussion comes at the event where he brandished his reputation with eight gold medals on the halfpipe, five more in slopestyle. (He has another two golds in X Games skateboarding.)But for the first time in a while, it matters who else is in the field.—Theres the Olympic champion, Iouri Podladtchikov — the iPod — whose invention of the 1440-degree Yolo spin, along with his ability land it in Russia when White could not, rewrote the book on 2014.—There are high-flying and technically precise Ayumu Hirano and Taku Hiraoka of Japan, who took silver and bronze in Russia last year, proving, if nothing else, that they could outscore White on any given day.—And theres the defending champion here, Danny Davis, who conceded after his win last year that it took a little of the thrill away because White had chosen not to attend while he prepared for the Olympics.Davis also struggled on that mushy halfpipe in Russia last year, falling on both his runs in the finals and finishing 10th.Some guys landed and rode well. Others didnt. Thats just the way it goes, Davis said.But the stakes, especially away from the halfpipe, are nowhere near as high for Davis, or iPod, or anyone, as they are for White.Such is the nature of celebrity.Before Wednesdays news conference, White posed for the most pictures and signed the most autographs, frequently handing his cup of hot tea off to a friend so he could grab a pen. When the questions started, he drew the most interest, fielding queries on topics that ranged from Russia, to fashion, to music, to his hair, to his pre-competition rituals.Currently, I dont have too many, he said of the rituals. Yeah, when theres a lot of contests, thats when it happens.But between business, music and, yes, practice, there havent been a lot of contests lately — or any — which makes Thursdays runs down the halfpipe that much more intriguing.He may have wiped away the past. A win might help his millions of fans do it, too.I guess in my mind, in some way or another, Ive kind of scratched it off, he said. It was a frustrating circumstance for me. In hindsight, you can always look back and question what you did. That was the beauty of being in the hunt of it.___Follow Eddie Pells on Twitter: http://twitter.com/epells Adidas Nmd Senza Lacci Scarpe . The Major League Soccer teams were scheduled to play on Saturday night, but their game was rescheduled after Stu Tudor was hit during a pregame storm. The 54-year-old lieutenant in the Columbus Fire Department is in critical condition in the intensive care unit of the Ohio State Medical Center. Yeezy 350 Bianche Italia .J. - The New York Jets have signed former Green Bay Packers backup quarterback Graham Harrell, giving them some added depth at the position. http://www.scarpenmdscontate.it/scarpe-s...ade-outlet.html. Top-seeded Djokovic swept to a 6-1, 6-3 win over 51st-ranked Roberto Bautista Agut of Spain in just 57 minutes, but fourth-seeded Federer had to see off a serious challenge from 48th-ranked Radek Stepanek of the Czech Republic before coming through 6-2, 6-7 (4), 6-3. Adidas Nmd Sconti . Harrison Barnes had 15 points and Reggie Bullock scored 11 for the Tar Heels (17-3, 4-1 ACC), who took the court for the first time without starter Dexter Strickland. The junior guard tore his right ACL last Thursday at Virginia Tech and will miss the rest of the season. Scarpe NMD R2 Italia . Both sides came closest to scoring in the first half, when Roma had a goal from Mattia Destro waved off for offside and Inters Rodrigo Palacio headed high. "A draw was a fair result. Neither squad had many chances," Roma midfielder Miralem Pjanic said. KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- Royals ace James Shields is open to staying in Kansas City beyond this season. That news should make the thousands of fans, already flying high over the teams strong finish a year ago, feel even better as they turned out for their annual FanFest on Friday. The Royals exercised their $13.5 million option on Shieldss contract shortly after going 86-76 last season, their best finish since 1989. The durable right-hander was a big reason behind the success, going 13-9 with a 3.15 ERA in an American League-leading 228.2 innings. Shields told a small group of reporters at Bartle Hall that he was willing to discuss an extension, but he said those talks with general manager Dayton Moore have not taken place. "Id definitely be open-minded to it," Shields said. "A player in my position, where I have one more year left before free agency, I mean, Im definitely open to it. I like Kansas City. I like the organization and I like the direction were going." If Shields went to the open market, its unlikely that the Royals would be a player in the chase. There were reports this off-season that he would seek a contract similar to that of former Royals star Zack Greinke, who signed a $147 million, six-year deal with the Dodgers last season. "Thats absolutely not true at all," Shields said. "I have no clue where he got that from, to be honest with you. Ive had no discussions with Dayton at all. "If Dayton wants to talk about it, Im more than willing to sit and talk about it. But during the season, my main focus is trying to win games and get some wins for this team." Pitchers and catchers are due to report to Surprise, Ariz., for the start of spring training on Feb. 14. The first full-squad workout is Feb. 20. Most of the Royals key pieces return from last season, when they conntended into September for the first time in a decade.dddddddddddd Their two biggest holes were filled by trading reliever Will Smith to Milwaukee for right field Norichika Aoki and signing Omar Infante to solidify second base. "I didnt think our defence could get any better," Shields said, "but theyre definitely filling some holes that we had. And theyre great additions to our lineup." Then theres the starting rotation, where Ervin Santana has become a free agent. While the right-hander has yet to sign elsewhere, the Royals appeared to move on when they signed left-hander Jason Vargas to a contract early in the off-season. Along with Jeremy Guthrie, the first three spots in the rotation are set. That leaves two up for grabs among a handful of candidates, including starters-turned-relievers Wade Davis and Luke Hochevar, veteran Bruce Chen, left-hander Danny Duffy and flame-thrower Yordano Ventura. "Ive just been working hard, resting my arm," said Ventura, who had a 3.52 ERA in three late-season starts in Kansas City. "Ive just been getting ready because I want to get out there and make the team." That doesnt figure to be an easy task given the glut of competition. "Its a competitive game anyway," Davis said. "Why not do it from within a little bit?" Davis said that he spent the off-season in the weight room, and pronounced himself more ready for this season than any previous year. He also said that hes already been throwing some bullpen sessions, giving him a head start on reporting for spring training. "Im definitely going in to start," said Davis, who began last season in the rotation but was demoted to the bullpen when he proved ineffective. "Hopefully I get that opportunity." ' ' '