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Jamaican wins 110 hurdles at Commonwealth Games

By WTOP Staff

DENNIS PASSA
AP Sports Writer

GLASGOW, Scotland (AP) — Andrew Riley won the 110-meter hurdles gold Tuesday to complement his teammate Kemar Bailey-Cole’s 100-meter gold medal on the track at the Commonwealth Games, clinching both high-profile sprint races for Jamaica.

Next up will be the 4×100-meter relay, where Jamaica will be favored when world record holder Usain Bolt makes his only appearance of the athletics program in Glasgow.

Due to a left foot injury, Bolt didn’t attempt to qualify for the individual sprints. The relay qualifying is on Friday, with the final on Saturday.

Jamaica’s women sped to a clean sweep of medals in the 400 meters, with Stephanie McPherson taking gold, Novlene Williams-Mills the silver and Christine Day the bronze.

In Tuesday’s finals on the last night of swimming, Canada’s Ryan Cochrane won the 1,500 meters, England’s Ben Proud took the 50-meter freestyle and Lauren Boyle of New Zealand won the women’s 400 free. Australia won 19 golds and England 10 of the 44 on offer.

Earlier Tuesday, a 16-year-old female Nigerian weightlifter was provisionally suspended after testing positive for banned substances, the first doping case of the games. Chika Amalaha tested positive for the diuretic amiloride and masking agent hydrochlorothiazide — both banned by the World Anti-Doping Agency — after winning the 53-kilogram weight class last Friday, games officials said.

Amalaha asked for the backup “B” sample to be tested, which will happen in London on Wednesday. If that sample also comes back positive, she will be stripped of her medal.

“It sends a strong message to anybody in any sport that if you go down the path of doping, any substance to enhance performance, they will be caught,” Commonwealth Games Federation chief executive Mike Hooper said.

Elsewhere at the games on Tuesday:

ROYALS MEETS BOLT: The king of the track met with British royalty in the athletes’ village. Prince William, his wife Kate, the Duchess of Cambridge, and his brother, Prince Harry, met Bolt, the world record-holder over 100 and 200 meters.

CANADIANS, KIWIS 1-2: Catharine Pendrel of Canada, the 2011 mountain bike cross-country world champion who finished ninth at the 2012 London Olympics, won gold in the women’s cross-country race at the Cathkin Braes Country Park course in Glasgow. Her teammate Emily Batty took the silver. In the men’s race, New Zealanders were 1-2, with Anton Cooper beating Samuel Gaze by just three seconds for gold.

GYMNASTICS GOLD: England gymnasts won the men’s team title, scoring 266.804 points to finish ahead of Scotland (257.603). Canada took the bronze and defending champion Australia was fourth.

LENGTHY POINT: A day after his 41-shot point win over Singapore’s Ning Gao made him a star in one of the must-watch table tennis videos, Nigeria’s Segun Toriola has a bronze medal at the Commonwealth Games. Toriola was trailing 5-4 in the third game of the team semifinals Monday and had lost the first two games when he put on a strong defensive display to win that lengthy point and the next two games. He lost to Gao in five games and Nigeria was relegated to the bronze medal final on Tuesday. Nigeria beat India 3-1 to take the team bronze medal despite Toriola having lost his singles match in straight games.

SUCCESS, FINALLY: After 16 years, 18 consecutive defeats and an overall goal difference of 12 scored and 107 conceded, Trinidad and Tobago had its first win in men’s field hockey, beating Malaysia 4-2 on Tuesday.

LOOKING AHEAD: The diving competition begins Wednesday in Edinburgh, about 45 miles (70 kilometers) east of Glasgow. Scotland’s James Heatly, the grandson of five-time games diving medalist Peter Heatly, is among the 14 starters in the preliminary round of the 1-meter springboard, as is Matt Mitcham of Australia, the 10-meter platform gold medalist from the 2008 Beijing Olympics.

Also, Valerie Adams of New Zealand, the four-time world and two-time Olympic shot put champion, will attempt to add another Commonwealth Games gold to her collection.

Copyright 2014 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Don’t Settle for Student Loans to Pay for Online Education

By WTOP Staff
Online college programs are becoming a more popular choice for prospective students, with one study finding that more than 6 million students enrolled in at least one online course in fall 2015. The popularity of these courses can be attributed in part to their flexibility with working adults' schedules, students' ability to progress more quickly through online programs and, oftentimes, cheaper tuition. [See 10 low-cost online bachelor's programs for out-of-state students.]Online degrees can be beneficial to many college students, but some studies have shown online learners complete their programs at lower rates than students at traditional brick-and-mortar campuses. Individuals with student loans but no degree comprise two-thirds of defaulted borrowers. Though these numbers are not encouraging, just like for traditional programs, there are ways to reduce how much you'll need to borrow for an online program to ensure you won't become one of these statistics. Don't just settle on borrowing student loans to cover the whole cost of your program and living expenses. Instead, start thinking about how to cut costs and cover your balance in different ways, such as the following. -- Grants and scholarships: Even though you are taking an online course, you can still apply and receive grants and scholarships. But your first step should be to complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid, commonly referred to as the FAFSA, which will allow you to receive a Pell Grant if your expected family contribution is low enough. The EFC criteria and award amounts are adjusted annually, but the 2017-2018 academic year awards range from $606 to $5,920, which could significantly lower the amount you borrow annually. Your next step is to apply for scholarships. You can start by checking online scholarship search engines, such as the Salt Scholarship Search, College Board's BigFuture and Peterson's. But don't forget to take advantage of local organizations and your school's financial aid office. Both may offer scholarships that you can't find with a national scholarship search. [Review these 10 sites to kick off your scholarship search.]For instance, organizations like the Elks Club, Knights of Columbus or the Rotary Club typically offer scholarships annually to local students. Just because you're going to school online doesn't mean you're ineligible. Visit your local library for scholarship listings, and ask around town. You might be surprised how many local organizations offer scholarships. While these scholarships typically aren't large, every little bit counts. Each dollar you receive in a scholarship is a dollar you don't have to borrow and pay interest on. -- Work-study: Another option for online students may be work-study awards. Not all students enrolled in online programs are eligible, but students at some schools -- including, for example, SUNY Empire State College and Liberty University -- are. Work-study awards are not given upfront like scholarships and grants. In most cases, they are an offer to earn up to the awarded amount if you secure an eligible work-study job. While there is a misconception that all work-study jobs must be on campus, students can work for off-campus, nonprofit or public employers as long as the work is in the public's interest. You may be able to work for a for-profit employer if the job is relevant to your course of study. No matter who the outside employer is, it will need to have an established agreement with your college for you to receive work-study funds. Remember, to be eligible for federal financial aid, you must be enrolled and pursuing a degree or certificate. If you're not working toward a credential, Pell Grants and work-study won't be option, but you may still be able to take advantage of private scholarships -- just be sure to read the eligibility criteria carefully. [Explore what to know about financial aid in online programs.]-- Pay as you go: One of the great benefits to enrolling online is the flexible schedule, which can allow you to complete your college coursework around your responsibilities. But prospective students often overlook using their part- or full-time job earnings as an option for paying for college. Almost 80 percent of college students in 2015 worked at least part time while attending classes, according to the National Center for Education Statistics. By budgeting and thinking strategically about your college costs, you can likely reduce your dependence on student loans by paying a portion out of pocket. Many -- but not all -- online programs are less expensive than traditional programs and often have shorter payment periods. Six, eight or 10 weeks are common course durations. Because of the frequency of payments in an online setting, you may be well-placed to pay as you go and possibly avoid borrowing altogether. Attending college online and avoiding student loans may be challenging, but if you are willing to put in the effort, you can limit the amount you need to borrow. More from U.S. News Q&A: Understanding Student Loan Discharge Eligibility Student Loan Refinancing Isn't Right for All Borrowers
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