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RIO DE JANEIRO -- Olympic boxing is bloody again.Men are fighting without headgear for the first time in 36 years, making the sport debatably safer and undoubtedly more attractive to fans. But the most tangible consequence is gore: More than a dozen boxers at the Rio Games have already incurred significant facial cuts in the first six days of the tournament.Algerian middleweight Ilyas Abbadi was unsure how he got the 1 1/2-inch gash outside his left eye during his victory over Congos Mpi Ngamissengue on Tuesday, but blood trickled down his face during the bout. The cleaned-up wound still gaped to reveal bloody tissue afterward, and he could only hope his training staff could close it satisfactorily before his next fight Friday.Now I know the value of the headgear, Abbadi said through a translator. I think for the amateurs, that would be better. I would prefer to fight with headgear, but this is how it is.The Olympics are the amateur games biggest showcase by far, and the sport desperately hoped a major cut wont ruin a fighters hopes through medical disqualification. It happened for the first time Thursday, when a 2-inch cut near Armenian welterweight Vladimir Margaryans right eye forced the stoppage of his bout with Cuban gold medalist Roniel Iglesias after just 87 seconds.Margaryans coach, Karen Aghamalyan, said his fighter already had a cut from his first Olympic bout four days earlier. Ringside physicians couldnt close the gash when it re-opened in the first minute against Iglesias, who was a heavy favorite.In pro boxing, the sight of blood on a fighters face and chest is common -- and an undeniable part of the sports primal lure. But that visceral reminder of the sports inherent violence had been rare in the modern amateur game until the International Boxing Association (AIBA) removed headgear from its fighters in 2013, citing scientific studies claiming protective padding actually increases brain injury.Although AIBA has worked to improve its boxers fighting styles to minimize head clashes, cuts have become a steady occurrence at major tournaments ever since, often when two skulls collide in an up-close exchange of punches.The absence of headgear has led to several grisly, compelling scenes in preliminary bouts.Russias Adlan Abdurashidov and Algerias Reda Benbaziz both were cut Tuesday during their lightweight bout, which was stopped twice in the second round for Abdurashidov to receive medical attention. Blood dripped steadily from Benbazizs face in the third.The guy was using his head a lot, and he received a warning from the judge, Benbaziz said after winning the decision despite a 2-inch cut through his right eyebrow, which was already swelling moments after the bout. Yeah, it will affect my next fight, but we will have to fight with an injury. I wish I could be using the headguard.Abdurashidov could only grimace in frustration, blood caked to his upper chest above his tank top.The first minute after the cut, it was very uncomfortable for me, Abdurashidov said. I took some punches because of my eye. It was from a head-butt. Usually, its very good to fight without headgear, but today it was a minus. In general, its better for me without.Abdurashidov echoed the feelings of many fighters, who appear to be roughly split on the change. Despite the risk, many boxers prefer the increased peripheral vision and freedom of movement allowed by an uncovered head.I dont like getting cut, but I prefer to fight without headgear, said Irelands David Oliver Joyce, who was left bloodied by a clash of heads in his loss to Azerbaijans Albert Selimov. Im more of a pro-style boxer, and for the past couple of years, the amateur system suited me.Amateur boxers began wearing headgear between the 1980 Moscow Games and the 1984 Olympics in Los Angeles. Organizers believed the cushions around the skull and cheeks would cut down on concussions and other serious head injuries, but they also protected fighters from bloody damage, allowing them to compete in a multi-fight tournament with almost no cuts.With fighters faces hidden behind bulky padding, the amateur sport gradually lost its long-held status as a must-see Olympic event. The headgear era roughly coincided with the move to a computer-based, punch-counting scoring system.Both factors contributed to Olympic boxings evolution into a sometimes plodding sport derided as fencing with gloves, with fighters rewarded for light punches and elusiveness over power, toughness and combinations.AIBA has returned to a pro-style scoring system since the London Games. The resulting sport is more attractive in almost every manner, and the bouts in Rio have generally been more compelling -- but the blood on the fighters faces portends a potential problem.Professional boxers get several months of recovery time between bouts. Olympic boxers must fight up to five times in a nine-day span, with no time for significant cuts to heal in any meaningful way.So fighters will punch and pray.Russian bantamweight Vladimir Nikitin bled all over himself while beating Vanuatus Boe Warawara on Wednesday. A deep cut in the scalp on the left side of Nikitins head sent blood pouring down his face and neck, but he smiled through the reddened mess when his hand was raised in victory.Nikitin believes hell have no problem fighting again Sunday. Custom Lightning Jerseys . LOUIS -- Mike Smith is used to facing plenty of shots, so this was nothing new. Wholesale Custom Lightning Shirts . If ever they start actually putting pictures beside words in the dictionary, the Blue Jays left-handers mug will appear beside “Consistency. http://www.customlightningjersey.com/ . Sgt. Eric ONeal says most of the arrests at Monday nights game were for public drunkenness, though one person was taken into custody on suspicion of trying to steal a seat from the stadium. Authentic Custom Lightning Jersey . Roman Josi had a goal and an assist to lead the Predators to a 4-1 victory over the Dallas Stars on Monday night. Custom Lightning Jersey China . Hamelin, who triumphed in the 500 on Saturday, edged out Victor An of Russia by 0.021 seconds to maintain his lead in the World Cup standings. Russias Vladimir Grigorev was third. In the relay, Canada took control six laps from the finish line to beat Russia and the Netherlands. ST. LOUIS -- The top two scorers in the NHL will be on the ice on Monday night when the Edmonton Oilers visit the St. Louis Blues.Connor McDavid leads the league with 39 points so far this season while the Blues Vladimir Tarasenko ranks second in the league with 37 points.McDavid did not officially add to his point total on Saturday night, even though he scored the shootout goal which gave the Oilers a 3-2 victory at home over the Tampa Bay Lightning.Tarasenko also was kept off the scoresheet on Saturday night for the first time in six games as the Blues could not hold four one-goal leads and lost 6-4 to the Chicago Blackhawks, only their second loss in regulation at home in 18 games this season. The Blues had earned at least one point in 14 consecutive home games, going 11-0-3.McDavid has 12 goals and 27 assists but is in the midst of a scoring lull. He has not had a goal in his last four games and has just one assist over that span. Tarasenko has 15 goals and 22 assists this season. Prior to Saturday night, he had picked up 10 points in his previous five games on two goals and eight assists.Scoring goals was not the problem for the Blues against the Blackhawks. It was their inability to keep Chicago players away from the front of the net, which putt them in position for three of their goals.ddddddddddddIt is a problem they will need to fix if they want to rebound against McDavid and the Oilers.Our execution 5-on-5 is good enough to beat certain teams, but if we want to play with the top dogs, were going to have to execute at a higher level, said Blues coach Ken Hitchcock. Our determination on our 1-on-1s is going to have to increase dramatically if we want to play with the big dogs.What has helped the Oilers lately has been the play of center Leon Draisaitl, who had a goal and an assist on Saturday night and has 14 goals, two more than McDavid, this season.Hes so important to our team right now, said coach Todd McLellan. We still have some key people who are struggling to get on the scoreboard and Leon has been, maybe even more so that Connor, the guy who has been able to step up and fill that void of late. Hes become an essential part of this team in a really short period.The Blues will start backup Carter Hutton in goal, ending a streak of seven consecutive starts for Jake Allen. Huttons last start came on Dec. 3. He will be looking for his first win since Nov. 5. ' ' '