SEATTLE -- Not that it should come as a surprise, but Seattle is still crazy about its Super Bowl champion Seahawks. The latest example came Sunday when an announced crowd of 22,000 turned out at Safeco Field for Richard Shermans charity softball game. After being played in a minor league baseball park in Tacoma last season, Shermans event filled the entire lower bowl of the Seattle Mariners home stadium from one foul pole to the other. Shermans event featured a litany of Seahawks teammates, including quarterback Russell Wilson, defensive end Michael Bennett, wide receiver Doug Baldwin and safety Earl Thomas. Also playing was Kobe Bryant, who said he hadnt swung a bat in 20 years. It certainly didnt look that way in his first at-bat, with Bryant hitting a solo homer over the temporary fence in the outfield. "I respect these guys tremendously and its humbling, its not something you can put into words," Sherman said before the game started. "You dont wake up one day and be like Im going to have Kobe Bryant, Nate Robinson, Lawyer Milloy playing in my softball game, and Macklemore. Its something that happened and youre numb to the feeling until like years later when you realize that was a pretty incredible event." Sherman was able to draw from a wide cross section of Seattle sports stars to participate in the event to benefit his foundation. Along with current NBA players Bryant, Robinson and Jamal Crawford, former Seattle SuperSonics stars Shawn Kemp and Gary Payton took part, as did Chris Hansen, the investor hoping to bring the NBA back to Seattle. "Hes a psycho like me," Bryant said of Sherman. "I think its just mutual respect and I have a great amount of respect for people who work at their craft. When him and I met, we just talked and hit it off." Bryant said it was his first time back in Seattle since the departure of the SuperSonics for Oklahoma City after the 2008 season. After earlier saying the Eagles were his favourite NFL team, Bryant admitted he needed to make up for that statement. "Ive always enjoyed coming here. Id much rather come here in the post-season than Oklahoma," Bryant said. Fake Nike Air Max . The German has taken the pole for three straight races -- winning the first two. Hes aiming for a third consecutive win at the Yeongam circuit and, most importantly, a fourth consecutive F1 championship. Nike Air Max Clearance . The closer wasnt available. The road trip, a disaster to that point. https://www.fakeairmaxwholesale.com/.com) - The University of Montana named Bob Stitt as its new head football coach on Tuesday. Nike Air Max From China . Raonic, the No. 8 seed from Thornhill, Ont., fired 11 aces and did not have a double-fault as he comfortably advanced to the third round at the Masters Series event. Nike Air Max Discount . Although the deal cannot be made official until the free agent moratorium period is lifted on July 10, Patterson has agreed to a three-year, $18 million extension to remain in Toronto, sources confirm to TSN.CORK, Ireland -- After months of indecision over who to represent, Rory McIlroy announced Wednesday that he will play for Ireland -- not Britain -- at the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro. The 25-year-old McIlroy, who is from Northern Ireland, was eligible to play for either Ireland or Team GB when golf makes its return to the Olympics in Brazil for the first time since 1904. Having played all of his amateur golf under the auspices of the Dublin-based Golfing Union of Ireland, the two-time major winner opted to stay with Ireland for the Olympics. "I have been thinking about the decision a lot and remembered all the times I represented Ireland as an amateur," McIlroy said on the eve of the Irish Open in Cork. "I was always very proud to put on the Irish uniform and play as an amateur and as a boy, and I would be very proud to do it again." McIlroy has twice played in golfs World Cup for Ireland, both times alongside fellow Northern Irishman Graeme McDowell. "Just because Im getting paid to play this great game now doesnt mean I should change (team)," McIlroy said. "So Im very happy with my decision. It means I can look forward to the Olympics in a couple of years time -- you know, if I qualify, obviously, for the team. "I just thought it was the right thing to do. It was the right time to let everyone know. Now Im really looking forward to Rio in 16." McIlroy announced his decision ahead of next months International Golf Federation meeting that will finalize the eligibility criteria for the 2016 and 2020 Olympics.dddddddddddd "Theres no point in delaying it and letting it linger any longer," he said. "Watching the World Cup in Brazil, thinking about Brazil in a couple of years time, it just sort of got me thinking, maybe I should just go ahead and get it out of the way." Still, McIlroy said, winning an Olympic medal would not match winning a major championship. "The majors in our sport are the biggest and best prizes in the game," he said. "But as hopefully golf grows in the Olympics and becomes, say, bigger in four or five games down the line, then it might become bigger." Citizens of Northern Ireland, which is part of the United Kingdom, can hold both British and Irish citizenship. Most of the Protestant majority is British, most of its Catholic minority Irish. McIlroy, while raised a Catholic, grew up in the predominantly Protestant town of Holywood east of Belfast and once said he considered himself more British than Irish. His 2012 comments -- suggesting he might prefer to join the British team -- provoked strong ill feelings from Irish golf fans. McIlroy initially said he might skip Rio entirely to avoid alienating fans further. Two other top Northern Ireland golfers, Darren Clarke and McDowell, are Protestants who have identified with Ireland. ' ' '