RIO DE JANEIRO -- Christian Reitz was thrilled to watch his teammates win Olympic gold the previous two days, hoping he could keep Germanys shooting string going.But whatever they did before was going to have no impact on his final. Reitz still had to shoot well on his own, regardless of what momentum his country might have.He did just that, extending Germanys shooting gold medal streak to three days.Reitz hit 34 of 40 targets, including all five on his final turn, to capture gold in the mens 25-meter rapid fire pistol Saturday at the Rio de Janeiro Games.Jean Quiquampoix of France earned silver, and Li Yuehong of China captured bronze.Its good for the other shooters and medals for us, Reitz said. Its maybe a little bit easier, but the fight against me in the competition is the same.Reitz earned a bronze medal at the 2008 Beijing Games and followed with a sixth-place finish in London.He was one of the favorites heading into Rio after run of strong finishes in World Cup events, including a victory in Azerbaijan in June. The world-record holder had strong qualifying sessions, setting an Olympic record with 596 targets over two stages.Reitz opened the first competition stage by hitting all five targets in four seconds but began having trouble hitting the second target as the competition progressed.He still managed to move atop the standings after the fifth round of five shots and closed out gold by hitting his final five targets. Knowing Quiquampoix could not catch him on his final series, Reitz removed his headphones and glasses then pumped his fist at his coach.Reitzs gold continues Germanys domination in rapid fire pistol at the Olympics. Behind Ralf Schumann, considered his countrys greatest shooter, Germany has won four gold medals and six overall in the event since the 1992 Barcelona Games.Thats a gold and a bronze for the 29-year-old Reitz, putting him in position to follow in the footsteps of Schumann. He still has a long way to go, though; Schumann won three golds and two silvers in rapid fire.Maybe. Well see in the future, said Reitz, who works for the German police force.The 20-year-old Quiquampoix reached the final round after a three-round shoot-off with Li. Both shooters hit 27 shots in the final and eight of 10 in the first two rounds of the shoot-off. Quiquampoix moved on after hitting four to Lis three in the third round.Quiquampoix needed Reitz to falter on his final series, but the German hit all five. Quiquampoix hit four to capture Frances first shooting medal of the Rio Games.It represents a lot of sacrifices for myself and for my family, so this medal represents a lot to all of us, Quiquampoix said through an interpreter.Defending Olympic gold medalist Leuris Pupo of Cuba finished fifth after hitting 18 of 25 targets, and top-ranked Zhang Fusheng of China finished fourth after hitting one target on his sixth series. Tyler Lydon Jersey . NBA officials ruled the court unplayable in the Bucks final exhibition game on Oct. 25 because players were slipping, and the game was cancelled midway through the first period. Gary Harris Nuggets Jersey . At a news conference Tuesday where it was thought that the fiery Schallibaum may be shown the door after a dismal finish to the Major League Soccer season, team president Joey Saputo said no decision has been made on whether the Swiss Volcano will be back in 2014. http://www.authenticnuggetsproshop.com/Malik-Beasley-Jersey/ . The Dutchmans tenure got off to a poor start when referee Guido Winkmann awarded a penalty within two minutes for Niklas Starks clumsy challenge on Alexandru Maxim. Jarred Vanderbilt Nuggets Jersey . Bradwell was scheduled to become a free agent Tuesday. Born and raised in Toronto, Bradwell is entering his sixth CFL season, with all six played for his hometown Argonauts. Custom Denver Nuggets Jerseys .J. -- Josh Cribbs was in the Pro Bowl in February and out of a job six months later. Erik Williams and Brad Knaub had seen every attempt to exorcise the Curse of the Billy Goat go awry, from intrepid Cubs fans who have smuggled more benevolent goats into Wrigley Field to that Greek Orthodox priest who once sprayed holy water on the dugout.Yet their beloved Cubs continued to come up short.Every year.So, the owners of Carnivore Inc., a company that produces food from responsibly raised animals, decided to take matters into their own hands. They carefully selected a goat from a farm about 90 minutes south of Chicago, had it butchered earlier this week, and proceeded to turn the bleepin bleater into traditional Merguez sausage at their shop in the Chicago suburbs.Their hope is that Cubs fans at Wrigley Field on Friday night can collectively lift the plague by devouring their delicacy before Game 1 of their NL divisional series against the Giants.The previous attempts to reverse the curse with slaughter and macabre acts are obviously only making things worse, Williams said. Its time to make Chicagoans love goat.Of course, you could write this entire enterprise off as another utterly ridiculous idea from a bunch of crackpot Cubs fans willing to try anything to finally win a World Series.Or, you could recognize that research has proven it just may work -- at least on the field. It turns out that numerous academics, principally psychologists, have been investigating for years and in great detail whether superstitions actually have an effect.And lets be honest: No sport is rifer with superstitions than baseball.Nationals pitcher Sean Burnett dutifully puts a poker chip in his back pocket before taking the mound. Rangers pitcher Derek Holland watches a certain part of the film, For The Love of the Game, the night before he pitches. And Royals outfielder Alex Gordon never stands in the on-deck circle, instead wearing out the perfectly manicured grass in precisely the same spot right next it.Many players refuse to step on baselines when theyre running on or off the field, or use the same glove or wear the same grimy helmet, regardless of how much pine tar is caked on it.Theres so much failure in this game, and there are so many repetitions, that if you find something that you think makes you go well for a while, why change that up? Nationals first baseman Clint Robinson said. I can see why baseball would be a superstitious sport.Some players call them routines. Others call them habits or quirks or customs. But in truth, thats all just semantics. Theyre still engaging in some sort of superstition.And theres a chance theyre succeeding because of it.Researchers at the University of Cologne conducted a series of experiments that found that by activating good-luck-related superstitions, such as telling someone to keep their fingers crossed, it improved performance in golfing, dexterity, memory and solving anagrams.They also found superstitions boost confidennce, which in turn improves an athletes performance.ddddddddddddDutch researchers published an article in Psychological Science that reached similar conclusions, and then deduced that superstitions are more pervasive when the stakes are high.Its hard to get much higher than the playoffs, where the Cubs are shooting for their first World Series title since 1908 -- long before Billy Goat Tavern owner Billy Sianis was asked to leave Game 4 of the 1945 World Series because the odor of his pet goat Murphy was bothering other fans. Sianis, as the story goes, declared that day the Cubs would never win another World Series.Dr. Stuart Vyse, a psychologist and author of Believing in Magic: The Psychology of Superstition, acknowledges that there is no magic behind superstitions. They dont directly affect performance.But, he said, there is growing evidence it has a psychological effect, that if you believe in luck and engage in a superstition you will actually perform better in a skilled activity. And of course, baseball does involve skill.Its worth noting that Vyse grew up a Cubs fan, though hes been rooting for the Red Sox since he moved east. And his father was a lifelong Cubs fan who never saw them win a World Series title.Now, there are superstitions in just about every sport. Basketball players spin the ball a certain way before taking free throws, and hockey goalies slap the pipes a certain number of times before a faceoff, and many athletes listen to certain playlists before they take the field.Yet superstitions are more prevalent in baseball, Vyse said, because of the laborious pace of the game. Players need something to fill their minds while they stand in the outfield or sit in the dugout, so they begin to connect success and failure to certain rituals.Baseball has all this waiting time and if you dont have anything to fill it with, it can make you kind of anxious, Vyse said. Even if youre not superstitious, coaches often recommend players develop a pregame ritual, a routine, something that they can focus on to alleviate anxiety.How does all this translate to fans? Is it possible the superstitious beliefs of a couple of Chicago sausage connoisseurs, and their slaughter of a goat, can help the Cubs win the World Series?In a very loose way, it might be one additional encouragement, Vyse mused. But theres a much more important function for the fans themselves. These people are not unlike players -- their identities are tied up in the local team. Their emotions rise and fall with the fate of the team.So especially for the group, superstitions and bonding -- it makes people feel connected to the team, as if they play a role, even though they can do nothing but be a good fan.---AP Sports Writer Howard Fendrich contributed to this report. ' ' '