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Canadas Kevin Koe is trying his best to avoid distractions and focus on curling as he prepares for the upcoming mens world curling championship. There have been a few challenges for Koe in the leadup to the competition, which opens Saturday at Beijings Capital Indoor Stadium. Chief among them is news that there are changes coming to his rink next season. Koes current lineup features second Carter Rycroft, third Pat Simmons and lead Nolan Thiessen. Rycroft, whose wife is pregnant, has already said hell be taking a year off after this season. Kevin Martin confirmed to The Canadian Press that Marc Kennedy and Ben Hebert will be leaving his rink to join Koes team next season. Koe preferred to keep his focus on the world championship and declined to comment on the coming changes. The future plans of Simmons and Thiessen were unclear. It was the first major shakeup in whats expected to be a summer of significant change on the mens curling scene now that the four-year Olympic cycle is complete. The timing is less than ideal for Koe and his teammates. Gerry Peckham, the Canadian Curling Associations high-performance director, expects Koe to be able to lock in on the immediate task before him. "Our analysis of his performance skills and performance attributes would suggest that hes an incredibly focused individual and is seldom distracted by anything external to the game at hand," Peckham said. "I think those teammates have looked in each other in the eye again, squared their shoulders, are shaking each others hands and are now moving on to complete this journey of a world championship." Koe won gold in his only previous appearance at the world championship, taking top spot at the 2010 playdowns in Cortina DAmpezzo, Italy. At this years event, Canada will be a favourite along with Scotland, Sweden, Norway and China. The 12-team field is rounded out by the Czech Republic, Denmark, Germany, Japan, Russia, Switzerland and the United States. "Canada used to be known obviously as a big favourite going in all the time but you quickly realize how the gap is changing," Koe said. "Our experience in 2010 was awesome in Italy and it was a great feeling to win. But this is just as important for us. "To get to be two-time world champs would be pretty neat and kind of validate our first win." Koe arrived early in the week so that hed have time to adjust to the 14-hour time change. He was greeted by plenty of smog, heat and humidity. Hes also still getting used to the various culinary options in the Chinese capital. "Its a bit of a culture shock for us," Koe said in a recent interview. "Big difference from what were used to. Obviously a huge city but it will be a great experience." Koe had a strong performance at the Tim Hortons Brier and is enjoying another solid year on the World Curling Tour. Hes third on the money list and fourth in the order of merit standings behind only Olympic champ Brad Jacobs, Howard and Jeff Stoughton. The only change from the 2010 lineup is that Simmons has replaced Blake MacDonald on the Calgary-based rink. "We dont get too excited or too worked up as a team," Koe said. "Were pretty calm. Obviously the experience of being to one (world championship) will help for sure, especially when youre coming to a foreign country where everything is different. "At least we can rely on the experience once we actually get on the ice of knowing weve been to the worlds and we did well last time." Its the first World Curling Federation world championship event to be staged in China. The venue was used for volleyball competition at the 2008 Summer Olympics. The Chinese team skipped by Rui Liu is coming off a fourth-place result at the Sochi Games. Scotlands Ewan MacDonald has three world titles to his name although this is his first appearance as skip. Thomas Ulsrud, who won Olympic silver at the 2010 Games in Vancouver, will skip the Norwegian team. "We know most of these teams and theyre all pretty good," Koe said. "Not too many easy games out there." Swedens Niklas Edin is not back to defend the title he won last year in Victoria. Instead, Oskar Eriksson will skip the Swedish entry. Round-robin play will continue through Thursday evening and tiebreakers will be used if needed to determine the top four teams. The Page playoff system will be used ahead of the medal games on April 6. Koe said the ice conditions in the venue will be a huge factor. "They do have some great icemakers but its really warm here," he said. "Its supposedly pushing 30 (degrees Celsius) here and they had an event in the facility early in the year and there was a lot of problems. But I think theyve brought in some dehumidifiers and air conditioning to cool the arena down. "Thats the big worry here. If the ice is good, I for sure like our chances. Bad ice would be a bit of an equalizer I think. But when you have some of the best icemakers in the world, Im sure theyll get it figured out." Canada has won gold three of the last four years at this event. Stoughton was victorious in 2011 at Regina and Howard won at Basel, Switzerland in 2012. The Canadians are scheduled to open against Denmarks Rasmus Stjerne on Saturday. "You have four very solid, confident, resolved individuals (who are) mentally tough," said Peckham. "I think they realize the significance and the importance of this world championship to themselves individually and as a collective, and then of course representing this curling nation of Canada. "So I think theyve gone out the door with their game face on." The world championship will return to Canada next year as Halifax plays host. Khari Willis Colts Jersey . Still, Inter moved one point ahead of Parma in the race for fifth place and the final Europa League spot. 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Devin Funchess Youth Jersey . "Im proud of him," Jones said in an interview from Sacramento, site of the UFCs weekend televised card. "I think hes listening to his body and hes doing what makes him happy and thats what life is about ultimately.IRVING, Texas - Jason Garrett loves the story of Pudge Huffelfinger, by all accounts the first American pro football player.Heres why: The basics of winning football in 1892 were no different than they are today, which means the message doesnt have to change.And the message never changes with the Dallas coach. Not during three straight 8-8 seasons that raised persistent questions about his job security. And not during a breakthrough this season that has the Cowboys (12-4) set for Sundays wild-card game against Detroit (11-5), their first in the post-season since 2009.Hes been giving the same speech since the first day he got the job, cornerback Orlando Scandrick said.Circumstances have changed.Garrett took over when owner Jerry Jones fired Wade Phillips with the Cowboys at 1-7 in 2010. Garrett was the offensive co-ordinator, and Jones believed quarterback Troy Aikmans backup from the Super Bowl days of the 1990s could match the success of one of his coaches, Jimmy Johnson.When the Cowboys finished 6-10, there was little reason to doubt the move. But then came the .500 rut, questionable game management by Garrett, and three straight season-ending losses that kept the Cowboys out of the playoffs. Not to mention several significant changes in the coaching staff.Garrett came into this final season of his contract with Jones steadfastly maintaining an extension wasnt imminent. But now the question has essentially been answered, replaced by talk of Garrett as a Coach of the Year contender.I think Jason is going to be a better coach five years from now than he is today, and I think hes a much better coach today than he was five years ago, Jones said earlier this season. Hes a growing, smart, hard-working coach that is really getting some great experience.Garretts unflinching message is simple. Show up every day and do your job. Be the best version of yourself, regardless of circumstances. Be ready to play, whether its home, road, parking lot or the moon, as he likes to say.I think you coach them emotional on how to be their best, Garrett said. Thats ultimately what youre asking them to do: be your best, not try your best.The message was never lost on the two players hes been around the longest , quarterback Tony Romo and tight end Jason Witten, even through the monotony of season-ending disappointments. Romo recently said one of the best moves Jones made was keeping Garrett even though the Cowboys got within a year of the longest playoff ddrought in franchise history.ddddddddddddes done a great job motivating, said Romo, who set a franchise record with an NFL-leading 113.2 rating this season. I think hes just a great leader and someone that everyone looks up to. Hes done a great job this year.Case in point, according to Witten: Garretts upbeat outlook after a season-opening loss to San Francisco that included three first-half interceptions by Romo in his first game since back surgery at the end of the 2013 season.I think great coaches are always a step or two ahead of the rest of us, Witten said. He just kind of pointed out a lot of things we did well and talked about, Guys, if we continue to do these things, were going to be a real good team.The son of former NFL coach and scout Jim Garrett, Jason grew up in the game with brothers John, who was on the Dallas staff until a shuffling two years ago, and Judd, a former practice squad player and now director of pro scouting for the Cowboys.John Garrett agrees that his younger brother succeeds through his consistent message. He says it helped that the Cowboys drafted offensive linemen in the first round three of the past four years. Now they have NFL rushing leader DeMarco Murray to take some of the load off Romo.Jones also took some of the load off Garrett by pulling play-calling duties last year, although it took another season for him to get more comfortable with the hiring of Scott Linehan before this season.I always knew that Jerry and Stephen (Jones) and the entire organization had the utmost respect for him and they really believed in him as a leader, as a good football coach, and as the leader of the team, John Garrett said. With all those traits and all those beliefs, what has to come with it is success on the field. If they had not had a successful year, you wouldnt have been surprised if they didnt stick with him.Now that Jones has, it might be worth noting that his coach hasnt had a losing record and is 41-31 in four-plus seasons. And that there are only two coaches with more wins in Dallas: Tom Landry and Johnson.We were always to the point there were a few things that happened that could have went a different way, Scandrick said. It wasnt like we were just horrible and this coach is terrible. No. And it wasnt his fault that we werent getting over the hump.___Online:AP NFL website: www.pro32.ap.org and www.twitter.com/AP_NFL___Follow Schuyler Dixon on Twitter at https://twitter.com/apschuyler ' ' '