NEU » eet spot in order to adhere properly to the c

ADDIS ABABA, Ethiopia -- The Ethiopian marathon runner who made an anti-government gesture at the Rio Games while approaching the finish line will not face prosecution upon his return home and will have a heroic welcome, a government spokesman said Monday. But it was not clear whether the runner would go back.Feyisa Lilesa told reporters on Sunday that he may be killed or imprisoned if he ever returns to the East African country. He called protesting inside Ethiopia very dangerous.The silver medalist crossed his wrists in an attempt to draw global attention to recent deadly protests in his home region, Oromia. He told reporters that Ethiopias government is killing his people.Oromo is my tribe, he said. My relatives are in prison, and if they talk about democratic rights they are killed.The crossed-wrists gesture has been widely used by anti-government protesters in recent nationwide demonstrations as a sign of peaceful resistance, and before that by the Muslim community when it revolted against the government. It is meant to symbolize being handcuffed by security forces.Lilesa will not face any problems for his political stance, the government spokesman, Getachew Reda, told the state-affiliated Fana Broadcasting Corporate. After all, this is an athlete who secured a silver medal for his country.Lilesa told reporters that he would discuss what to do next with family and friends.Ethiopias state broadcaster, EBC, did not re-broadcast images of Lilesas gesture. Some people who were watching live and cheering for Lilesa quickly hushed when they saw his gesture.The Oromo are Ethiopias largest ethnic group with about 40 million people. Their region has seen massive anti-government protests since November 2015 that activists say have left more than 400 dead.The protests were ignited by the governments decision to annex some Oromia land into the capital, Addis Ababa. The plan has been abandoned, but demonstrations calling for wider freedoms have continued.Ethiopias government, a close security ally of the West, is often accused of silencing dissent, even blocking internet access at times. Earlier this month, video obtained by The Associated Press showed Ethiopian security forces beating, kicking and dragging several protesters during a rare demonstration in the capital. Marcos Rojo Argentina Jersey . The 26-year-old Ireland striker, who has four goals this season, has signed a three-and-a-half year contract with his new club. Maxi Rodriguez Jersey . -- The Magic have their first victory of the new year. http://www.argentinasoccerauthentic.com/Federico-Fernandez-Copa-America-Jersey/ . The International Olympic Committee released the official list of bid cities on Friday after the deadline for applications had passed. The candidates -- all previously announced in their own countries -- are: Almaty, Kazakhstan; Beijing; Krakow, Poland; Lviv, Ukraine; Oslo, Norway; and Stockholm. Javier Pastore Jersey . -- Brandon Jennings made the most of his first game with the Detroit Pistons on Sunday night. Argentina Soccer Jersey . After a lengthy wait, persistent rain finally forced the postponement of the Nationals game against the Miami Marlins on Saturday night. The teams, and a few thousand fans, waited nearly four hours from the 7:05 scheduled start time before an announcement was made shortly before 11 p. Being a pioneer has its pluses and minuses.Thats the lesson the Los Angeles Dodgers have learned this season, regarding their 3-D batting helmet logos.The raised logos -- the first such helmet graphics in Major League Baseball history -- were introduced in April and have drawn interest from fans and other teams but have also been problematic, because the rigid, plastic LA marks have frequently chipped, cracked or come askew.We were just breaking em every day -- not just during games, but during travel, said Dodgers equipment manager Mitch Poole, who would replace the broken logos with new ones. I could barely keep up with it. We had about 160 of the logos and now Im down to six.So now Poole is switching gears. He has ordered a fresh batch of 3-D logos, but the new set is made of Santoprene, a rubber-like polymer thats flexible and therefore shouldnt crack. Poole expects to receive a batch of the new logos in time for Friday nights game against the Cincinnati Reds at Great American Ball Park. Hell begin swapping in the new logos as the old ones break.With these, you could take a hammer to them and they wouldnt break, said David Sulecki, owner of Pro Helmet Decals, the Florida-based vendor that has supplied both sets of logos. It probably would have been better to go with this material from the starrt, but there just wasnt time to test things out beforehand.ddddddddddddThe new material has an additional advantage: Because the plastic logos are rigid, they were manufactured with a built-in curvature and had to be positioned in just the right sweet spot in order to adhere properly to the curved helmet shells. That wont be an issue with the new flexible logos, which should adhere more like a traditional logo decal.If the new logos perform better than the old ones, other MLB teams might adopt them next season. Poole said the New York Mets and Washington Nationals equipment staffs had spoken with him about the 3-D logos, and Sulecki said he has fielded inquiries from the New York Yankees and Houston Astros. The Yankees switched to matte-finish batting helmets for road games earlier this season, suggesting that their longstanding reluctance to tinker with their uniform program might be diminishing.Paul Lukas writes about uniforms for ESPN.com. You can follow him on Twitter and Facebook. Want to learn about his Uni Watch Membership Program, be added to his mailing list so youll always know when a new column has been posted, or just ask him a question? Contact him here. ' ' '