The big race of this weekend is Saturdays Arlington Million at Arlington Park, just north of Chicago. Cheap College Jerseys . And it says a lot about a race when it can wrest the stakes spotlight this time of year from Saratoga and Del Mar.Then again, the Arlington Million has always been a big deal. Its a true trailblazer that broke a glass ceiling the previous existence of which now seems almost quaint.The Arlington Million was first run in 1981, and its inaugural running was won by the great John Henry narrowly over The Bart in a photo that some folks dispute to this very day. As if to address the matter, John Henry went back to Arlington three years later and won the 1984 Million decisively.In any case, the thrilling finish of the first Million was really only part of the story, and maybe not even the biggest part. The Million was special before it was even consummated, and that was because of its purse.As the name suggests, the Arlington Million carried a purse of $1,000,000, making it the first ever million dollar Thoroughbred race. And that made it a major deal in the racing world, and I mean world. The then outsized purse proved a powerful lure for overseas horsemen, spurring international competition.Its funny, but I feel as though I have to explain what a thing it was for the Million to break the seven-figure purse barrier because many who became fans of the sport later on might not fully comprehend the significance of the moment.This is understandable. Certainly the advent and evolution of the Breeders Cup has reset the frame of reference of what big purses in U.S. Thoroughbred racing mean. This year, the 13 Breeders Cup races will have a total value of $25.5 million, with a minimum purse of $1 million that actually applies only to five Breeders Cup races, and spiraling up to $4 million for the Turf, to $6 million for the Classic.But even when you set aside the 13 Breeders Cup races, it might surprise you to know that the Arlington Million, once all alone in terms of value, now has company this year in the form of a staggering 29 other North American stakes with seven figure purses.The Triple Crown races are, of course, members of this club. The 2016 Kentucky Derby had a purse of $2 million, while the Preakness and the Belmont Stakes had purses of $1.5 million, each.The state-to-state breakdown of where these seven figure stakes are run is quite revealing. The Belmont Stakes is one of 11 million-dollar plus events this year in New York, by far the most of any state when you exclude the Breeders Cup, which you must since it is a floating country unto itself, although not nearly as much as it used to be.The state with the next highest number of million dollar-plus races is Kentucky, which has three others in addition to the Derby.Its a bit surprising to me that California has only three million dollar races to call its own (the Breeders Cup will be at Santa Anita this year, but ?), the same as Canada, and only one more than Louisiana and Pennsylvania. But I was also surprised that Florida, which is a major racing center for about 4-1/2 months a year, has only one seven figure race, the same number as West Virginia.That, however, is scheduled to change on Jan. 28, the date of the inaugural $12 million Pegasus World Cup, which, for the moment, anyway, has surpassed the $10 million Dubai World Cup as the richest horse race in the world.Man, just look at what the Arlington Million started. Cheap NCAA Jerseys .500 on the season. The Jets are now 0-5-1 in the second game of back-to-backs. The game started the same way the Vancouver game started the night before, with the Jets taking the first two penalties of the game and killing off the first, but the Oilers getting on the board first, scoring on the second man-advantage. Cheap College Jerseys China . -- Patrick Reed got an early start in golf. http://www.cheapcollegejerseys.us.com/ . Their experience showed Tuesday as the No. 10 Badgers blunted a Saint Louis surge to win 63-57 and advance to face West Virginia in Wednesdays finals of the Cancun Challenge. SAINT-DENIS, France -- Iceland left with heads held high. As well they should.The fairytale of an island of 330,000 people, invading Europe with gutsy football and fabulous fans, was always going to end sometime, because logic dictated that at some point the underdog darlings of the European Championship would bite off more than they could chew.That moment came in a quarterfinal against France on Sunday that exposed the limitations of an Icelandic team that had rocked football in the previous round by ousting England.France now faces Germany riding a wave of confidence that comes from scoring five goals in one match.Iceland goes home having proved to everyone that a great deal can be done with very little.Here are 5 things to know about Frances 5-2 victory at the Stade de France.---ICELANDS 4-4-2Icelands formation, with two lines of four and two strikers, is a throwback to the days of mullet haircuts. Very old school. And their rigid adherence to that 4-4-2 formation was their undoing against France.Exhibit A: Olivier Girouds opening goal after 12 minutes.With a pass from the back left of Frances 4-2-3-1 formation, holding midfielder Blaise Matuidi cut out the whole of Icelands midfield and defense with a pass that landed just behind the Icelandic back four and into the path of Giroud, whod been lurking in a gap between Ragnar Sigurdsson and Kari Arnason, both big defenders but hardly the fastest out of the blocks.From there, it was fairly straightforward for the Arsenal forward: a left-footed kick straight through the legs of Iceland `keeper Hannes Halldorsson.More versatile teams might, at that point, have switched formations, perhaps got the full backs on the left and right to push high up the field in search of an equalizer.But 4-4-2 has been Icelands default through Euro 2016 and, against France and its tactical and technical limitations became starkly apparent all too quickly.---POGBA DELIVERSFrance had been waiting for a standout moment from Paul Pogba, its much coveted midfielder. It got it with a jump that came out of the playbook of Michael Jordan, His Airness himself.The tall (1.91 meters/6-foot-2) and strapping midfielder and Iceland striker Jon Dadi Bodvarsson jumped together for a looping corner-kick that Antoine Griezmann landed in the danger zone in front of Halldorsson, just out of reach of the Iceland `keeper but close enough to be a threat.The difference was that Bodvarsson wasnt moving and Pogba was. Pogba jumped a head higher than his marker, and powered the ball into the net with his head for Frances second goal after just 20 minutes.Pogba played deep in the center of the French midfield, in a distribution role that his former teammate at Juventus, Andrea Pirlo, made an art of. Pogbas pass ffrom deep that Giroud flicked on for Griezmann was the origin of Frances fourth goal. Cheap NCAA Jerseys China. Pogba, although still just 23, is also taking on a leadership role. As the teams came back out for the second half, Pogba gave his teammates a vigorous talking to in the tunnel, seemingly exhorting them to not rest on the laurels of their 4-0 first-half lead.---DYNAMIC DUO:France winger Dimitri Payet kissed one of Griezmanns boots after his goal. Really, he should have kissed Girouds, too, because of the essential role the striker has played in allowing Griezmann to become top scorer, for now, at Euro 2016, with four goals.The effectiveness of their partnership is built, in large measure, on Girouds selflessness. He seems as happy making assists for Griezmann as trying to score himself. His onward flick of the ball in the center of the field that led to Griezmanns goal was just one example of that.Girouds height (1.92 meters; 6-feet-3) makes him a different sort of attacking threat to the shorter, more nimble Griezmann. Their complementarity showed in Frances third goal: Giroud headed down Bacary Sagnas cross; Griezmann passed to it Payet, who scored.----ICELANDS PARTY TRICK FAILSFrance wasnt as naive as England.In the 23rd minute, Iceland wheeled out the party trick it used to such great effect in its run to the quarterfinals: A huge 25-meter throw-in by captain Aron Gunnarsson into the box, a teammate flicking the ball on with his head and someone else getting a leg to it and diverting it into the net.This time, the leg was Bodvarssons but his effort went over France `keeper Hugo Lloris crossbar.Iceland tried the trick -- which worked in its 2-1 defeat of England in the previous round -- again in the 30th minute and in the second half, but both times French defender Patrice Evra headed the ball away.---BEST FANSFans from Ireland, Northern Ireland and Wales have lit up Euro 2016 with their good humor and full-blooded support for their teams. But Icelands supporters have taken fandom to a whole other level.Their lusty rendition of the song Ferdalok before the defeat to France and again during it sent shivers down the spine.Sun shimmers in the water, see the glacier glow, all is bright for the two of us, because I am back home, they bellowed.Liverpool should invite the Iceland team for an exhibition match. Because hearing Ferdalok echo from one end of Anfield stadium and Youll Never Walk Alone from the other would be something.---John Leicester is an international sports columnist for The Associated Press. Write to him at jleicester(at)ap.org or follow him at http://twitter.com/johnleicester Cheap NFL Jerseys Cheap NFL Jerseys China Cheap Jerseys From China Cheap NFL Jerseys Authentic Wholesale Jerseys China Cheap NFL Jerseys China NFL Cheap Jerseys Cheap NFL Jerseys ' ' '