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RIO DE JANEIRO -- When she was 11, Simone Manuel came home and asked her mother a question: Why werent there more people who looked like her in swimming?Mom didnt have an answer.We got on the internet and did some searches and we came up with some information, Sharron Manuel said. At that moment she really realized she was OK with who she was. It was important for me to do that for her because even at that time I saw she could do something special.Her parents were in the stands behind the medal podium at the Olympic Aquatics Center on Thursday night to see their daughter swim her signature event at the Rio Games. When it was over, Marc and Sharron Manuel couldnt immediately see the videoboard with the results.The 20-year-old from Sugar Land, Texas, had just become the first African American woman to win an individual gold medal in swimming. Her time of 52.70 seconds in the 100-meter freestyle was an American and Olympic record.Then my husband saw Olympic record and saw she had gotten first, Sharron told The Associated Press by phone Friday. We know how hard she had worked and she had sacrificed a lot to get to this point.While the world and social media lauded her milestone, Manuel didnt have time to celebrate. She was right back in the pool on Friday, qualifying 11th in the 50-meter freestyle preliminaries. She was staying off her phone that froze up because of an overload of text messages and calls.I just wanted to re-focus and move forward from the 100, she said. I havent really gotten a chance to take everything in, but thats OK because I want to do well in the rest of my events this week.Manuel recognizes the significance of her achievement, yet she has never wanted to be defined solely by the color of her skin. After her win, she mentioned police brutality in the U.S. and said she hoped her victory helps mend the nations racial divide in some way.She wants to be seen as an individual who just like everyone else has worked hard to be where she is, Sharron Manuel said. She would like to be recognized for her merits and dedication. Its not just about her skin color. She understands that its a part of it.At the same time, Manuel knows that by winning Olympic gold in a sport that still has few people of color, especially in the United States, she carries what she described as the weight of the black community.She put her head in her hands and wept in the pool after she tied 16-year-old Canadian Penny Oleksiak and realized the depth of her achievement.I would like there to be a day where there are more of us and its not `Simone, the black swimmer, she said, because the title `black swimmer makes it seem like Im not supposed to be able to win a gold medal or Im not supposed to be able to break records and thats not true because I work just as hard as anybody else.As a child, Manuel always loved the water. When she was 18 months old and her mothers back was briefly turned, she scurried into the bathtub fully clothed to play with her brother.We would have to watch her if it was bath time because she would always try to sneak off to get in the bathtub with him because she loved the water, her mother said. We didnt know then that this is what we were in for.She started swimming at a pool near her childhood home in Brooklyn, New York, where the other kids were mostly Chinese from her school located in Chinatown. Manuel learned Mandarin as a result.She stuck with swimming while her brother played basketball. In 2010, she experienced a turning point, being chosen for USA Swimmings diversity select camp, where she met other talented minorities. That inspired and motivated her to keep going. Now at Stanford, she is majoring in science, technology and society.Before Manuel, there were only a handful of minorities on the U.S. national team. Cullen Jones was the best known, having won two golds and two silvers at the last two Olympics. He is a major proponent of USA Swimmings Make a Splash campaign that seeks to prevent drownings by teaching youngsters to swim with an emphasis on minorities.African Americans make up just 1.3 percent of USA Swimmings 337,084 members, according to the governing bodys 2015 membership data. But those numbers have been creeping up slightly in the past few years.Swimming has struggled to attract minorities in part because typically those who cant swim had parents who also could not swim and were fearful of drowning. According to USA Swimming statistics, 70 percent of African Americans and 60 percent of Hispanic and Latino children cannot swim compared to 40 percent of whites. Black children drown at a rate nearly three times higher than their white peers.A generation ago, African-Americans were largely denied access to pools and so it never became part of their recreational culture to swim. In the 1960s, many whites left cities for private pools and clubs in the suburbs, where segregation continued to exist.JaVe Bonner, a pre-med student at George Mason University, said Manuels win is significant to her because she was told when she was younger that she couldnt go into a neighborhood pool since her skin was dirty.To me, this win shows that black people are resilient and soar through adversity, she wrote in an email.Jones, who didnt make this years Olympic team, tweeted out his pride in Manuel, calling her achievement amazing. Congrats also poured in from Tony Award-winning actor and writer Lin-Manuel Miranda of the Broadway smash Hamilton and NBA Hall of Famer Magic Johnson.Manuel was quick to single out Jones, Olympic and Stanford teammate Lia Neal and former Olympic swimmer Maritza Correia for blazing a path for her.The gold medal wasnt just for me, it was for people who have come before me and inspired me to stay in the sport, and for people who believe they cant do it, she said. I hope Im an inspiration for others to get out there and try swimming. They might be pretty good at it.---Associated Press Writer Alina Hartounian in Phoenix contributed to this report. Camiseta Gareth Bale . Jason Zucker and Matt Cooke also scored for Minnesota, which has won five of six. Kuemper made five saves in the first, nine in the second, and nine in the third. The rookies best save came with 2:17 left in the third period when he denied former Wild forward Matt Cullen from just outside of the crease on the right side. Camiseta Isco Real Madrid Niño . The nimble-footed quarterback got his wish, dashing through the snow and a weary defence all the way into the NCAA record book. http://www.nuevacamisetadelrealmadrid.com/camiseta-toni-kroos-nino.html . - Chris Tierney snapped a tie with a power-play goal late in the third period as the London Knights rallied from a 3-0 deficit to beat the Erie Otters 5-3 in Ontario Hockey League action on Wednesday. Camiseta Isco España . He said Tuesday thats a big reason why he is now the new coach of the Tennessee Titans. Whisenhunt said he hit it off quickly with Ruston Webster when interviewing for the job Friday night. Camiseta Lucas Vazquez Barata . Robredo, ranked No. 16, bounced back from an upset loss to Leonardo Mayer in the second round of the Royal Guard Open in Chile last week to down Carreno Busta in 1 hour, 25 minutes. On a day filled mostly with qualifying matches, fifth-seeded Marcel Granollers of Spain also entered the second with a 7-5, 3-6, 6-2 win over Aljaz Bedene of Slovenia, while Guido Pella of Argentina defeated Guillermo Garcia-Lopez of Spain 7-6 (6), 6-4 to advance. GLENDALE, Ariz. -- Drew Brees two-game funk ended with an offensive eruption in the desert.The New Orleans quarterback threw for 389 yards and four touchdowns, leading the New Orleans Saints past the Arizona Cardinals 48-41 Sunday in the highest-scoring game in the NFL this season.Its good for him, its good for the coach, too, Saints coach Sean Payton said.Brees, who had no TDs and six interceptions his previous two games, completed 37 of 48 with no picks.It wasnt anything earth shattering this week, he said. It wasnt a wholesale change of anything. We just got back to our stuff.It was Brees 21st career game with at least four TD passes and no interceptions, tying Tom Brady for most in NFL history.Brandin Cooks caught seven passes for a career-best 186 yards for the Saints (6-8), including touchdown plays of 65 and 45 yards .Knowing they (the Cardinals) were the No. 1 defensive team in the league, as a competitor you want to accept those challenges and bring it on, Cooks said. As a team, that is what we did. `David Johnson rushed for 53 yards and caught four passes for 55 yards for Arizona (5-8-1). The second-year back became the first player in NFL history to have at least 100 yards from scrimmage in the first 14 games of a season.As impressive of a stat that is, you kind of expect it, Cardinals quarterback Carson Palmer said. Thats how good of a player he is.Johnson rushed for two touchdowns, giving him 17 TDs this season and 30 in the first 30 games as a pro.Palmer threw for 318 yards and two scores in a game that clinched the first losing season for the Cardinals in Bruce Arians four years as coach. Arians praised the play of his makeshift blocking unit, but its strong game wasnt enough.Im extremely proud of the guys on the offensive line, he said, and shocked that we gave up that many points.The teams amassed 913 yards, 488 by New Orleans, 425 by Arizona, which finished 4-3-1 at home.Thats a very good offense with a great quarterback, a great play caller, a lot of weapons, very good offensive line Palmer said of the Saints. You dont expect to come in and play the field position game and kick field goals. You have to come in and score touchdoowns, and they outlasted us.ddddddddddddThe teams traded touchdowns on four possessions in the second half before Brees put New Orleans ahead for good, 41-34, with a 4-yard scoring pass to Michael Thomas with 5:33 to play.A moment later, the Cardinals Brittan Golden fumbled and Ken Crawley recovered for the Saints at the Arizona 29. That led to Tim Hightowers 2-yard touchdown run that made it a two-score game with 3:27 remaining.Palmer threw 30 yards to John Brown for a score with 2:19 left, but the onside kick try went out of bounds and the Saints ran out the clock.Brees threw for three touchdowns in the first half, including the two long passes to Cooks.His only bad moment came when Marcus Golden stripped the ball out of his hands and Calais Campbell grabbed it out of the air. The 6-foot-8 lineman rambled 53 yards for a touchdown.CAMPBELLS LAST?Campbell also had two sacks in what could be his final home game for Arizona.Its just the harsh reality that it could be, he said. I really hope its not, but well see how that goes.His two sacks made him the only player in franchise history to have at least six sacks in seven different seasons.But the 30-year-old lineman is a free agent after this, his ninth NFL season. And theres wide speculation the Cardinals wont re-sign him, opting to devote their resources elsewhere.FITZGERALD MOVES UPArizonas Larry Fitzgerald caught seven passes to give him 1,116 career receptions. He passed Hall of Famer Jerry Rice (1,115) for the most catches in a players first 200 games in NFL history.Fitzgerald and his good friend and former teammate, Anquan Boldin of Detroit, each played his 200th game on Sunday.INJURIESArizona lost cornerback Marcus Cooper to a back injury early in the second half.UP NEXTSaints: Host the Buccaneers next Saturday in the final home game of the season.Cardinals: Visit Seattle next Saturday, a rematch of NFC West foes who tied 6-6 earlier in the year, a far cry from this 89-point affair.---For more NFL coverage: AP NFL website: www.pro32.ap.org and www.twitter.com/AP-NFL ' ' '