Olympics robs Scots of Lottery cash
Published Date: 23 November 2008
By Eddie Barnes Political Editor
CHARITIES and voluntary groups in Scotland are facing a crippling 70% cut in Lottery funding from next April as funds are sucked away to feed the vast £10bn cost of the 2012 London Olympics.
The body which represents Scotland's charities will warn this week that the Lottery cash available to good causes next year will plummet from £90m to just £25m.The Scottish Council for Voluntary Organisations (SCVO) claims that the cut will have a "devastating" effect on charities across Scotland, many of which rely on Lottery cash to keep going.The massive cutback is being triggered after ministers agreed to plough £2.2bn of Lottery cash into paying for the Olympics. Charities, arts groups and sports bodies across Scotland and the rest of the UK warned that the raid on Lottery funds would choke off funds to themselves, but the full scale of the cutbacks is only now becoming clear.According to the SCVO, the Big Lottery Fund – which distributes most of the cash available from the weekly national draw – will feel the effects the hardest. In Scotland, they claim that BLF funding will fall from £257m between 2006-09 to just £90m between 2009-12.The SCVO says that many groups will not be able to keep going because the cuts will last right up until 2012. Only after the Games are finished in 2012 will the sums start to rise once more. However, even then, SCVO officials say it will be 2015 before funding returns to current levels.The anger in Scotland is being felt across much of England as well, where charities and voluntary groups are also complaining about the vast sums which have been diverted from good causes to build the Olympic site in east London.The cuts are also set to hit the arts and sports bodies across the UK which distribute smaller sums of Lottery cash. However, UK ministers insist that the chance to host the Olympics is a "once in a generation" chance for the whole country to enjoy.In Scotland, groups which may now face heavy cuts include the well-known charity Quarriers Village, the carers for vulnerable people, and Fairbridge, a leading charity which attempts to prevent ex-prisoners from re-offending.Lucy McTernan, acting chief executive of SCVO, said: "The scale of the cuts is truly devastating for the voluntary sector as many charities, voluntary organisations and community projects in Scotland depend on such funding for their survival, especially in these difficult times. We are strongly urging the UK Government to compensate Scottish charities for the loss of Lottery funding which was diverted to pay for the Olympics."Lawrie Russell, chief executive of the Wise Group, a charity which helps unemployed people get back to work, said that the cuts may prevent them from expanding projects."Potentially, this will have a big impact on the whole sector," he said.Sources in the SCVO said they had been preparing for a reduction in funds due to the Olympics but were "shocked" last week when the true scale of the reduction became clear.Alison Magee, Big Lottery Fund Scotland's chairwoman, confirmed: "We will have less money available in the years leading up to 2012 due to the Olympic diversion."Scottish Sports Minister Stewart Maxwell said last night: "These are very worrying figures that point to a dramatic reduction in Lottery funding for Scotland. It cannot be right that the budget for Scotland's community and charitable organisations is reduced by around 70% – more than £150m – to finance the 2012 Olympic Games."But a spokeswoman for the Department for Media, Culture and Sport pointed to the massive benefits which, she claimed, would accrue to the whole country from the Games.She said: "Hosting the Olympic Games is a once in a generation opportunity that will benefit the whole of the UK: a legacy of world-class facilities, the inspiration of a generation to get active and take up sport, as well as huge economic and business benefits with £6bn worth of contracts. "Scotland will host Olympic football at Hampden Park and 29 locations across Scotland are included in the official guide to pre-Games training facilities for foreign teams in 2012."She added: "Scotland has received over £2bn in Lottery money since 1994 and we are clear that no further diversion from Lottery good causes will go to fund the Olympics."Earlier this year, Scotland on Sunday launched a campaign to win a substantial sum of Lottery funds to help to create a sporting legacy from Glasgow's 2014 Commonwealth Games. Campaigners point out that sportscotland, which distributes Lottery funds for sporting groups, is believed to have lost £13m in funds which will now be spent on the Olympics.
Sunday, November 23, 2008
More funding ~ Not less!!!!!!
Funding cut for GB Paralympians
Weir's double Paralympic gold was one of the GB highlights in Beijing
British Paralympic athletes face a cut in National Lottery funding as they work towards the 2012 Games.
UK Athletics says that future funding will be targeted towards supporting a smaller group of athletes who are deemed capable of success in London.
There are now 33 athletes who will be supported by the programme, down from the pre-Beijing total of 42.
Among those who have had their funding cut are former Paralympic champions Danny Crates and Kenny Churchill.
All of the athletes who medalled in Beijing have been given the top level of funding while a further 10 have been named in the next level and six athletes have been selected on the talent level to develop future talent.
Crates, who was the British team's flag-bearer in Beijing, was unable to compete in his 800m event at the Games because of a calf injury while javelin thrower Churchill finished out of the medals.
Beijing medallists Mickey Bushell and Ian Jones both move up from the development level to the top level of funding, along with throwers Claire Williams and Nathan Stephens.
With no major international event until the World Championships in 2009, UK Athletics say the focus for the future must be on 2012.
A new head coach for the Paralympic programme will be named shortly.
Funded athletes:
Podium: Mickey Bushell; Libby Clegg; Daniel Greaves; Sophie Hancock; Katrina Hart; Ian Jones; Chris Martin; John McFall; Stephen Miller; Kim Minett; Ben Rushgrove; Hazel Simpson; Nathan Stephens; David Weir; Daniel West; Claire Williams; Shelly Woods
Development: Brian Alldis; Martin Crutchley; Katherine Deal; David Devine; Thomas Green; Jenny McLoughlin; Kieron Murphy; Daniel Nobbs; Gemma Prescott; Bethany Woodward
Talent: Ola Abidogun; Hollie Arnold; Jonathon Adams; Hannah Cockcroft; Mark Hellard; Paul Willis
Weir's double Paralympic gold was one of the GB highlights in Beijing
British Paralympic athletes face a cut in National Lottery funding as they work towards the 2012 Games.
UK Athletics says that future funding will be targeted towards supporting a smaller group of athletes who are deemed capable of success in London.
There are now 33 athletes who will be supported by the programme, down from the pre-Beijing total of 42.
Among those who have had their funding cut are former Paralympic champions Danny Crates and Kenny Churchill.
All of the athletes who medalled in Beijing have been given the top level of funding while a further 10 have been named in the next level and six athletes have been selected on the talent level to develop future talent.
Crates, who was the British team's flag-bearer in Beijing, was unable to compete in his 800m event at the Games because of a calf injury while javelin thrower Churchill finished out of the medals.
Beijing medallists Mickey Bushell and Ian Jones both move up from the development level to the top level of funding, along with throwers Claire Williams and Nathan Stephens.
With no major international event until the World Championships in 2009, UK Athletics say the focus for the future must be on 2012.
A new head coach for the Paralympic programme will be named shortly.
Funded athletes:
Podium: Mickey Bushell; Libby Clegg; Daniel Greaves; Sophie Hancock; Katrina Hart; Ian Jones; Chris Martin; John McFall; Stephen Miller; Kim Minett; Ben Rushgrove; Hazel Simpson; Nathan Stephens; David Weir; Daniel West; Claire Williams; Shelly Woods
Development: Brian Alldis; Martin Crutchley; Katherine Deal; David Devine; Thomas Green; Jenny McLoughlin; Kieron Murphy; Daniel Nobbs; Gemma Prescott; Bethany Woodward
Talent: Ola Abidogun; Hollie Arnold; Jonathon Adams; Hannah Cockcroft; Mark Hellard; Paul Willis
Sunday, August 17, 2008
GB Athletics ~ Fighting to stay in the limelight...
Athletics must fight to keep No.1 status
ASK people to list their favourite Olympic memories and the vast majority will inevitably include athletics. Daley Thompson, Kelly Holmes, Bob Beamon, Cathy Freeman, Coe and Ovett – track and field moments dominate the proceedings.
For how much longer, though? Athletics has always been the No.1 Olympic sport, but in the eyes of the British sporting public the traditional hierarchy could be turned on its head if the GB athletics team fail to deliver in Beijing.
Britons in other sports have come out firing on all cylinders during the first few days of the Games. As I write this, Nicole Cooke has become Britain’s first “gold pedallist” of 2008 and her team-mates in the GB cycling squad are expected to continue the medal rush this weekend when the action in the velodrome begins.
Elsewhere, in the pool earlier this week Rebecca Adlington became Britain’s first Olympic women’s swimming champion for almost half a century. British cyclists, swimmers, rowers, sailors, triathletes and boxers will only be stronger in 2012, too.
So the message is clear to British track and field athletes this coming week. You’d better get winning, or athletics’ status as the premier Olympic sport will be under serious jeopardy.
ASK people to list their favourite Olympic memories and the vast majority will inevitably include athletics. Daley Thompson, Kelly Holmes, Bob Beamon, Cathy Freeman, Coe and Ovett – track and field moments dominate the proceedings.
For how much longer, though? Athletics has always been the No.1 Olympic sport, but in the eyes of the British sporting public the traditional hierarchy could be turned on its head if the GB athletics team fail to deliver in Beijing.
Britons in other sports have come out firing on all cylinders during the first few days of the Games. As I write this, Nicole Cooke has become Britain’s first “gold pedallist” of 2008 and her team-mates in the GB cycling squad are expected to continue the medal rush this weekend when the action in the velodrome begins.
Elsewhere, in the pool earlier this week Rebecca Adlington became Britain’s first Olympic women’s swimming champion for almost half a century. British cyclists, swimmers, rowers, sailors, triathletes and boxers will only be stronger in 2012, too.
So the message is clear to British track and field athletes this coming week. You’d better get winning, or athletics’ status as the premier Olympic sport will be under serious jeopardy.
And he's dome it!
Michael Phelps wins another gold today to bring his total to 8!
Greatest swimmer ever!
Greatest Olympian ever!
Greatest athlete ever?
Sunday, August 10, 2008
Rowing to Gold
GB rowers backed to strike gold in Beijing.................
Sir Steve Redgrave thinks Britain's rowers will win seven medals in Beijing. GB Rowing's target is more modest: four rowing medals, of any colour, will secure their Lottery funding
Sir Steve Redgrave thinks Britain's rowers will win seven medals in Beijing. GB Rowing's target is more modest: four rowing medals, of any colour, will secure their Lottery funding
Stabbing in Beijing............
The father of a former American Olympian was stabbed to death while sightseeing in Beijing with his wife on Saturday, stunning tourists and local residents.
A knife-wielding man attacked the two U.S. tourists at a popular Beijing attraction, killing Todd Bachman, the father of volleyball 2004 Olympian Elisabeth "Wiz" Bachman.
Elisabeth Bachman's mother, Barbara, was also attacked. She survived but suffered life-threatening injuries and is in hospital. The Bachmans' tour guide was also injured and taken to hospital.
The Bachmans are the in-laws of U.S. men's volleyball coach Hugh McCutcheon, their daughter Elisabeth's husband.
Their attacker, a Chinese national, committed suicide after the incident. He threw himself off the second level of the Drum Tower, a 13th century structure about eight kilometres from the main Olympic site.
"For all intents, it appears to be a random attack by a deranged man," an American member of the International Olympic Committee, Jim Easton, told The Associated Press.
"The only thing we've heard is they were not identifiable except for a small volleyball pin which would probably be invisible to a guy."
American tourist Lynn Ledford said she hoped the incident did not take away from China's hospitality.
"I hope something like this doesn't end up being a stain on how China has been to us," she said.
Denise Carpenter, a Canadian tourist visiting the area, said Beijing was no less safe than any other major city.
"It doesn't matter if you're in Beijing or Toronto or London," she told CTV News. "Things like this are going to happen and you just have to be careful."
The attacks have devastated the U.S. volleyball team.
"They are deeply saddened and shocked," Darryl Seibel, a spokesman for the U.S. Olympic Committee said.
Team member Logan Tom broke down crying while discussing the attack.
"God, we all love Wiz," she said. "It's hard to put it in words. That's not something that's supposed to happen."
The midday attack is considered particularly shocking because violent crime against foreigners is rare in China, although Canadian model Diana O'Brien, 22, was murdered in Shanghai a month ago. Security in Beijing itself has been further tightened for the Olympics.
Xinhua, China's official news agency, identified the attacker as Tang Yongming, 47, from the eastern city of Hangzhou.
Interpol told AP that Tang appears to have been recently divorced. The news service reported he had not been seen by relatives for two months.
With a report by CTV's Lisa LaFlamme in Beijing and files from The Associated Press
Which Canadian won the most medals at a single Games?
Test yourself
Related Stories
Host country China wins two gold medals
Several Canadians have solid days in Beijing
Sports psychologists help Olympians cope
Video
CTV News: Lisa LaFlamme on the fatal knife attack
document.write(format_clip_duration('00:02:02.00')); // see common.js
2:02
CTV News: Steve Chao reports on the Olympic protests
document.write(format_clip_duration('00:01:34.00')); // see common.js
1:34
A knife-wielding man attacked the two U.S. tourists at a popular Beijing attraction, killing Todd Bachman, the father of volleyball 2004 Olympian Elisabeth "Wiz" Bachman.
Elisabeth Bachman's mother, Barbara, was also attacked. She survived but suffered life-threatening injuries and is in hospital. The Bachmans' tour guide was also injured and taken to hospital.
The Bachmans are the in-laws of U.S. men's volleyball coach Hugh McCutcheon, their daughter Elisabeth's husband.
Their attacker, a Chinese national, committed suicide after the incident. He threw himself off the second level of the Drum Tower, a 13th century structure about eight kilometres from the main Olympic site.
"For all intents, it appears to be a random attack by a deranged man," an American member of the International Olympic Committee, Jim Easton, told The Associated Press.
"The only thing we've heard is they were not identifiable except for a small volleyball pin which would probably be invisible to a guy."
American tourist Lynn Ledford said she hoped the incident did not take away from China's hospitality.
"I hope something like this doesn't end up being a stain on how China has been to us," she said.
Denise Carpenter, a Canadian tourist visiting the area, said Beijing was no less safe than any other major city.
"It doesn't matter if you're in Beijing or Toronto or London," she told CTV News. "Things like this are going to happen and you just have to be careful."
The attacks have devastated the U.S. volleyball team.
"They are deeply saddened and shocked," Darryl Seibel, a spokesman for the U.S. Olympic Committee said.
Team member Logan Tom broke down crying while discussing the attack.
"God, we all love Wiz," she said. "It's hard to put it in words. That's not something that's supposed to happen."
The midday attack is considered particularly shocking because violent crime against foreigners is rare in China, although Canadian model Diana O'Brien, 22, was murdered in Shanghai a month ago. Security in Beijing itself has been further tightened for the Olympics.
Xinhua, China's official news agency, identified the attacker as Tang Yongming, 47, from the eastern city of Hangzhou.
Interpol told AP that Tang appears to have been recently divorced. The news service reported he had not been seen by relatives for two months.
With a report by CTV's Lisa LaFlamme in Beijing and files from The Associated Press
Which Canadian won the most medals at a single Games?
Test yourself
Related Stories
Host country China wins two gold medals
Several Canadians have solid days in Beijing
Sports psychologists help Olympians cope
Video
CTV News: Lisa LaFlamme on the fatal knife attack
document.write(format_clip_duration('00:02:02.00')); // see common.js
2:02
CTV News: Steve Chao reports on the Olympic protests
document.write(format_clip_duration('00:01:34.00')); // see common.js
1:34
Michael Phelps ~ What an athlete!!!!!!!!!!!
Michael Phelps ~Athlete Profile
On track to win 8 golds in the Beijing games!!!!!
Set four individual world records and won seven gold medals at the 2007 World Championships to become the winningest athlete in World Championship history.
In 2004, became first athlete ever to win eight medals (six gold) at a non-boycotted Olympic Games.
His eight medals tie 1980 USSR gymnast Alexandr Dityatin for most medals by an athlete in a single Olympics.
2003 Sullivan Award winner, becoming the 10th swimmer to be honored as the top amateur athlete in the country.
Only man to win five U.S. National titles at the same Championships.
Only man to ever win a U.S. National title in three different strokes at one national championship.
Youngest male Olympian since 1932 (2000 Olympics).
Youngest man (15 years, nine months) to set a world record, breaking 200m fly mark at the 2001 Spring Nationals.
Earned the award for Swimmer of the Year for a third time in 2004.
2004 - Gold 100m FL, 200m FL, 200m IM, 400m IM, 400m MR, 800m FR-R; Bronze 200m FR & 400m FR-R
On track to win 8 golds in the Beijing games!!!!!
Set four individual world records and won seven gold medals at the 2007 World Championships to become the winningest athlete in World Championship history.
In 2004, became first athlete ever to win eight medals (six gold) at a non-boycotted Olympic Games.
His eight medals tie 1980 USSR gymnast Alexandr Dityatin for most medals by an athlete in a single Olympics.
2003 Sullivan Award winner, becoming the 10th swimmer to be honored as the top amateur athlete in the country.
Only man to win five U.S. National titles at the same Championships.
Only man to ever win a U.S. National title in three different strokes at one national championship.
Youngest male Olympian since 1932 (2000 Olympics).
Youngest man (15 years, nine months) to set a world record, breaking 200m fly mark at the 2001 Spring Nationals.
Earned the award for Swimmer of the Year for a third time in 2004.
2004 - Gold 100m FL, 200m FL, 200m IM, 400m IM, 400m MR, 800m FR-R; Bronze 200m FR & 400m FR-R
Cooke caters for British appetite!
Cooke serves up British gold
Welsh cyclist becomes 200th Brit to top the podium at Olympics
Last Updated 10th August 2008
Cooke: First British gold in Beijing
Also see
Results
Schedule
Medal Table
Team GB News
Betting
Nicole Cooke claimed Great Britain's first gold medal in Beijing with an impressive victory in the women's cycling road race.
The 25-year-old from Glamorgan came home first in a sprint finish involving five competitors following a 126km ride.
Cooke's victory makes up for her disappointing fifth-placed finish in Athens four years ago and means she is the 200th Brit to win Olympic gold.
Sweden's Emma Johansson won the silver and Tatiana Guderzo of Italy finished third to claim the bronze.
Welsh cyclist becomes 200th Brit to top the podium at Olympics
Last Updated 10th August 2008
Cooke: First British gold in Beijing
Also see
Results
Schedule
Medal Table
Team GB News
Betting
Nicole Cooke claimed Great Britain's first gold medal in Beijing with an impressive victory in the women's cycling road race.
The 25-year-old from Glamorgan came home first in a sprint finish involving five competitors following a 126km ride.
Cooke's victory makes up for her disappointing fifth-placed finish in Athens four years ago and means she is the 200th Brit to win Olympic gold.
Sweden's Emma Johansson won the silver and Tatiana Guderzo of Italy finished third to claim the bronze.
Saturday, August 9, 2008
Friday, August 8, 2008
Something wrong here ~ Gavin case raises serious issues & questions
Gavin withdrawal under scrutiny
Gavin has now flown home from Team GB's training camp in Macau.
UK Sport is to launch an investigation after Great Britain medal hopeful Frankie Gavin had to pull out of the Olympics at the last minute.
The lightweight world amateur boxing champion was one of Britain's brightest medal hopes in China but he withdrew after failing to make his weight.
The 22-year-old had benefited from Lottery funding worth £70,000 a year in the run-up to the Olympics.
UK Sport said it was the boxer's responsibility to make the weight.
Gavin's Lottery funding included a £25,000 annual payment with the rest going on support services such as coaching, sports medical expertise and dietician's advice.
"We will review the sport post-Games as a matter of course, and not about just one individual," said the UK Sport spokesman.
"Clearly, this will be an issue for the boxing review.
"We do think he has trained incredibly hard and always had the right support but ultimately only he has responsibility for the weight that he is."
GB boxing coach Terry Edwards refuses to apportion blame.
Britain's boxing head coach Terry Edwards defended his decision to withdraw Gavin after the fighter was 3lb (1.36kg) over his 60kg mark.
"I felt if I pushed it any further there would have been a serious health risk," he said. "It was the hardest decision I have ever had to make in boxing."
But nutritionist Kerry Kayes, who had worked with Gavin in the build-up to Beijing, said team officials should be blamed for his early exit.
"It's simply criminal that he's not going to the Olympics," Kayes, who has also worked with Ricky Hatton, told The Guardian. "I can only guess that some real errors have been made and that Frankie has been let down."
"What happened has cost Frankie Gavin a million pounds. That's how much they were saying an Olympic gold medal would have been worth to him if he turned pro straight after the Games. And it's just been ruined now."
BBC OLYMPICS BLOG
All that is certain is a young man will be flying home now with a bag full of regrets rather than the gold medal many thought was his for the taking
BBC Sport's Matt SlaterKayes said he had been denied the chance to work with Gavin in Macau by British amateur boxing officials and was sure he could have helped the fighter reach his weight.
"I guarantee that I would have got Frankie Gavin to make the weight," he added.
"I'm the guy who starts working with Ricky Hatton when he rolls into the gym, weighing 185 pounds, and I get him to shift 45 pounds in time to make the weight every time before every fight."
Amateur Boxing Association chief executive Paul King said: "ABAE will launch an internal investigation into the circumstances leading up to [Gavin's] withdrawal, which is a massive blow to our gold medal hopes, and to our essential UK Sport and lottery funding."
Gavin has now flown home from Team GB's training camp in Macau.
UK Sport is to launch an investigation after Great Britain medal hopeful Frankie Gavin had to pull out of the Olympics at the last minute.
The lightweight world amateur boxing champion was one of Britain's brightest medal hopes in China but he withdrew after failing to make his weight.
The 22-year-old had benefited from Lottery funding worth £70,000 a year in the run-up to the Olympics.
UK Sport said it was the boxer's responsibility to make the weight.
Gavin's Lottery funding included a £25,000 annual payment with the rest going on support services such as coaching, sports medical expertise and dietician's advice.
"We will review the sport post-Games as a matter of course, and not about just one individual," said the UK Sport spokesman.
"Clearly, this will be an issue for the boxing review.
"We do think he has trained incredibly hard and always had the right support but ultimately only he has responsibility for the weight that he is."
GB boxing coach Terry Edwards refuses to apportion blame.
Britain's boxing head coach Terry Edwards defended his decision to withdraw Gavin after the fighter was 3lb (1.36kg) over his 60kg mark.
"I felt if I pushed it any further there would have been a serious health risk," he said. "It was the hardest decision I have ever had to make in boxing."
But nutritionist Kerry Kayes, who had worked with Gavin in the build-up to Beijing, said team officials should be blamed for his early exit.
"It's simply criminal that he's not going to the Olympics," Kayes, who has also worked with Ricky Hatton, told The Guardian. "I can only guess that some real errors have been made and that Frankie has been let down."
"What happened has cost Frankie Gavin a million pounds. That's how much they were saying an Olympic gold medal would have been worth to him if he turned pro straight after the Games. And it's just been ruined now."
BBC OLYMPICS BLOG
All that is certain is a young man will be flying home now with a bag full of regrets rather than the gold medal many thought was his for the taking
BBC Sport's Matt SlaterKayes said he had been denied the chance to work with Gavin in Macau by British amateur boxing officials and was sure he could have helped the fighter reach his weight.
"I guarantee that I would have got Frankie Gavin to make the weight," he added.
"I'm the guy who starts working with Ricky Hatton when he rolls into the gym, weighing 185 pounds, and I get him to shift 45 pounds in time to make the weight every time before every fight."
Amateur Boxing Association chief executive Paul King said: "ABAE will launch an internal investigation into the circumstances leading up to [Gavin's] withdrawal, which is a massive blow to our gold medal hopes, and to our essential UK Sport and lottery funding."
Thursday, August 7, 2008
US Defeated in China........
Norway 2, United States 0
Olympic Competition Opens With a Defeat for U.S.
The first appearance by the Americans in a major international tournament under Coach Pia Sundhage ended disastrously on Wednesday with a defeat to Norway.
By JERÉ LONGMAN
Published: August 6, 2008
QINHUANGDAO, China — When Pia Sundhage became head coach of the United States women’s soccer team late last year, she serenaded her discouraged players by singing “The Times They Are A-Changin’.”
Apparently they are not changing quickly enough.
The first appearance by the Americans in a major international tournament under Sundhage ended disastrously on Wednesday with a 2-0 loss to Norway in an opening-round match of the Beijing Olympics.
Olympic Competition Opens With a Defeat for U.S.
The first appearance by the Americans in a major international tournament under Coach Pia Sundhage ended disastrously on Wednesday with a defeat to Norway.
By JERÉ LONGMAN
Published: August 6, 2008
QINHUANGDAO, China — When Pia Sundhage became head coach of the United States women’s soccer team late last year, she serenaded her discouraged players by singing “The Times They Are A-Changin’.”
Apparently they are not changing quickly enough.
The first appearance by the Americans in a major international tournament under Sundhage ended disastrously on Wednesday with a 2-0 loss to Norway in an opening-round match of the Beijing Olympics.
BBC TV Olympics Schedules 2008
BBC TV Olympics schedule
All the details of what you can watch, where and when from the Olympics with BBC Sport.
Click the links below to download our planned daily coverage from Athens on BBC One and Two, and also on our interactive service via the red button on your remote control.
If you cannot access these documents, we will also be offering a detailed daily listings service on our Olympics website when the action gets under way in Athens.
TV SCHEDULES
Most computers will open PDF documents automatically, but you may need to download Adobe Acrobat Reader.
Download the reader here
The complete schedule for the whole Games (3.2MB)
Friday 13 August (128KB)
Saturday 14 August (212KB)
Sunday 15 August (231KB)
Monday 16 August (226KB)
Tuesday 17 August (221KB)
Wednesday 18 August (229KB)
Thursday 19 August (221KB)
Friday 20 August (234KB)
Saturday 21 August (238KB)
Sunday 22 August (212KB)
Monday 23 August (232KB)
Tuesday 24 August (223KB)
Wednesday 25 August (216KB)
Thursday 26 August (234KB)
Friday 27 August (237KB)
Saturday 28 August (219KB)
Sunday 29 August (191KB)
All the details of what you can watch, where and when from the Olympics with BBC Sport.
Click the links below to download our planned daily coverage from Athens on BBC One and Two, and also on our interactive service via the red button on your remote control.
If you cannot access these documents, we will also be offering a detailed daily listings service on our Olympics website when the action gets under way in Athens.
TV SCHEDULES
Most computers will open PDF documents automatically, but you may need to download Adobe Acrobat Reader.
Download the reader here
The complete schedule for the whole Games (3.2MB)
Friday 13 August (128KB)
Saturday 14 August (212KB)
Sunday 15 August (231KB)
Monday 16 August (226KB)
Tuesday 17 August (221KB)
Wednesday 18 August (229KB)
Thursday 19 August (221KB)
Friday 20 August (234KB)
Saturday 21 August (238KB)
Sunday 22 August (212KB)
Monday 23 August (232KB)
Tuesday 24 August (223KB)
Wednesday 25 August (216KB)
Thursday 26 August (234KB)
Friday 27 August (237KB)
Saturday 28 August (219KB)
Sunday 29 August (191KB)
GB's prospects!!
The Olympic games are all about participation we are told.
It's the taking part etc etc etc ...............
How many medals do you think GB will win?
It's the taking part etc etc etc ...............
How many medals do you think GB will win?
Philip Studd looks over the GB athletes as they limber up for the Games.
Philip Studd
7 Aug 08, 03:55 AM
Macau
I hopped down to the Macau Athletics stadium on Tuesday, eager to check on the progress of our track and fielders.
This branch of the British team have taken their fair share of flak over recent years; by and large medals have been hard to come by.
Performance Director Dave Collins is expecting five in Beijing, and hoping for more.
The chief Gold medal hope is triple jumper Philips Idowu, freshly crowned world indoor champion, world leader and in the form of his life.
It is a rest day for the new star of the team, but it's not long before another name on Collins wish list rocks up.
Kelly Sotherton is a world class hepthathlete and a proven performer on the big stage.
She's won World Championship and Olympic medals before, and she well knows that in the absence of the all-conquering swede Carolina Kluft, it could be gold this time, but there's a slight flaw in the cunning plan - the javelin.
Sotherton struggles to throw the damned thing much further than 30m.
That's a serious hinderance in getting to the top of the rostrum and it's long been a sore point for Kelly, who shoots a suspicious glance at the media as we assemble our mini gazebo trackside to shelter from the searing sun, before she jogs off into the distance.
While Kelly limbers up, the men's 100m relay team are practicing their baton changes.
Standing two-a-breast and running (or rather walking fast) on the spot, they shuttle the aluminium tube back and forth with aplomb.
Realistically, the chance of an invdividual 100m medal is non-existant - none of these guys have run under 10 seconds - but Simeon Williamson, in the absence of Dwain Chambers the fastest Britain can muster and not short on self-belief, is sure they can retain their Olympic relay title.
"Were not as fast as the Americans, but we're better with the baton"
Before too long, another pair of medal contenders make their entrance.
Christine Ohuruogu looks reluctant to be filmed as she continues her quest to add Olympic 400m gold to the world title she won in such sensational fashion in Osaka last summer, when she just managed to hold off teammate Nicola Sanders, who trots onto the track with her.
Christine hasn't done much 400m running of late, preferring to work on her speed in the 200m, and frankly, it showed at last month's Crystal Palace Grand Prix where she beat Sanders, but by her own admission was "rubbish".
Then again her chief rival, americas Sanya Richards hasn't exactly been pulling up trees this year either, so all things are possible in Beijing.
Gerry Sutcliffe certainly hopes so.
The Sports Minister is braving the heat alongside us, and when I asked him about the importance of British success, he was rather more insistant than BOA Chief Executive Simon Clegg about the need for Britain to reach, and preferably exceed UK Sports stated target of 41 medals in China this summer.
There has been what Sutcliffe describes as a "massive investment" in Team GB and it's payback time. "Success is vital", he tells me." We'll evaluate immediately after Beijing."
Besides, I suspect Prime Minister Brown could do with an Olympic feel-good factor right now.
Philip Studd is a BBC reporter and commentator based at Team GB's pre-Olympics holding camp in Macau. Our FAQs should answer any questions you have.
7 Aug 08, 03:55 AM
Macau
I hopped down to the Macau Athletics stadium on Tuesday, eager to check on the progress of our track and fielders.
This branch of the British team have taken their fair share of flak over recent years; by and large medals have been hard to come by.
Performance Director Dave Collins is expecting five in Beijing, and hoping for more.
The chief Gold medal hope is triple jumper Philips Idowu, freshly crowned world indoor champion, world leader and in the form of his life.
It is a rest day for the new star of the team, but it's not long before another name on Collins wish list rocks up.
Kelly Sotherton is a world class hepthathlete and a proven performer on the big stage.
She's won World Championship and Olympic medals before, and she well knows that in the absence of the all-conquering swede Carolina Kluft, it could be gold this time, but there's a slight flaw in the cunning plan - the javelin.
Sotherton struggles to throw the damned thing much further than 30m.
That's a serious hinderance in getting to the top of the rostrum and it's long been a sore point for Kelly, who shoots a suspicious glance at the media as we assemble our mini gazebo trackside to shelter from the searing sun, before she jogs off into the distance.
While Kelly limbers up, the men's 100m relay team are practicing their baton changes.
Standing two-a-breast and running (or rather walking fast) on the spot, they shuttle the aluminium tube back and forth with aplomb.
Realistically, the chance of an invdividual 100m medal is non-existant - none of these guys have run under 10 seconds - but Simeon Williamson, in the absence of Dwain Chambers the fastest Britain can muster and not short on self-belief, is sure they can retain their Olympic relay title.
"Were not as fast as the Americans, but we're better with the baton"
Before too long, another pair of medal contenders make their entrance.
Christine Ohuruogu looks reluctant to be filmed as she continues her quest to add Olympic 400m gold to the world title she won in such sensational fashion in Osaka last summer, when she just managed to hold off teammate Nicola Sanders, who trots onto the track with her.
Christine hasn't done much 400m running of late, preferring to work on her speed in the 200m, and frankly, it showed at last month's Crystal Palace Grand Prix where she beat Sanders, but by her own admission was "rubbish".
Then again her chief rival, americas Sanya Richards hasn't exactly been pulling up trees this year either, so all things are possible in Beijing.
Gerry Sutcliffe certainly hopes so.
The Sports Minister is braving the heat alongside us, and when I asked him about the importance of British success, he was rather more insistant than BOA Chief Executive Simon Clegg about the need for Britain to reach, and preferably exceed UK Sports stated target of 41 medals in China this summer.
There has been what Sutcliffe describes as a "massive investment" in Team GB and it's payback time. "Success is vital", he tells me." We'll evaluate immediately after Beijing."
Besides, I suspect Prime Minister Brown could do with an Olympic feel-good factor right now.
Philip Studd is a BBC reporter and commentator based at Team GB's pre-Olympics holding camp in Macau. Our FAQs should answer any questions you have.
Frankie Gavin leaves the Olympics
Even before the competition starts, our most promising of young hopefuls Frankie Gavin is leaving the Olympics. This superb boxer with a quality of performance which made him a certainty for a medal ~ probably a gold ~ has received a knock-down punch without even getting in the ring.And the problem is not drugs, nor fitness but the simplest of things ~ getting his weight right for the competition.
He has weighed in too heavy for the division!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I ask you.....can you believe this? We send an athlete, a brilliant boxer to the Games and the coaching staff can't even enter him for the appropriate weight devision and/or can't prepare him to fight at that weight.
The mind boggles!!!!!!!!!!
Frankie Gavin ~ Weighs up his Future!
What Gadget does Frankie Gavin need more than any other?
Gavin fails in Games bid ~ British Gold Medal hope to miss Beijing after failing to make lightweight limit!
Gavin: Out of the Olympics
Frankie Gavin's Olympic dream is over after the world champion failed to make the lightweight limit. The 22-year-old had been one of Team GB's big gold medal hopes in Beijing having become Britain's first ever world amateur champion in Chicago in November.
However, Gavin had only boiled down to the 60kg division having campaigned at light-welterweight - even winning the European Amateur Championships at 64kgs in June. It was hoped he could drop down again for the Olympics. However having stayed at the Great Britain holding camp in Macao in a desperate bid to lose the final few pounds ahead of Friday's weigh-in, I’m afraid all his attempts were in vain.
So, the British Olympic Association faced with an overweight boxer, has now decided to pull Gavin out of the event with the Birmingham boxer still short of the limit. Terry Edwards, Gavin’s Olympic coach said, “It is the nature of our sport that we try and get our boxers to the top of their weight and it has been well documented that Frankie has struggled with this over recent months”.
So what does Gavin need ~ apart from a more alert Coach?
If Gavin’s a "gadget" person, he might appreciate the Tanita BC554 Ironman Innerscan Body Composition Monitor Elite (*est. $130) .
This pricey digital scale measures weight, body fat, body water, muscle mass, bone mass, metabolic age, visceral fat, physique rating and daily calorie intake. By the user's programming in age, gender, height, current weight and activity level, the Innerscan can calculate accurate measurements. The weight capacity is 330 pounds and the scale measures in pounds, kilograms and stone. Useful for a coaching staff that seems to have a very limited ability to read anything.
The scale can store data for up to four people. So, appropriate for the GB Boxing team which is around that number and getting smaller each day. The Innerscan also has a guest mode for visitors and an athlete mode for those on a rigorous fitness regimen. For most people this scale is probably overkill. Owner opinion is mixed, but mainly positive. A few owners complain that there really isn't a manual to show you how to use all the various features.
So what does Gavin need? ~ His very own Digital scale and a manual for the coaching staff.
Gavin fails in Games bid ~ British Gold Medal hope to miss Beijing after failing to make lightweight limit!
Gavin: Out of the Olympics
Frankie Gavin's Olympic dream is over after the world champion failed to make the lightweight limit. The 22-year-old had been one of Team GB's big gold medal hopes in Beijing having become Britain's first ever world amateur champion in Chicago in November.
However, Gavin had only boiled down to the 60kg division having campaigned at light-welterweight - even winning the European Amateur Championships at 64kgs in June. It was hoped he could drop down again for the Olympics. However having stayed at the Great Britain holding camp in Macao in a desperate bid to lose the final few pounds ahead of Friday's weigh-in, I’m afraid all his attempts were in vain.
So, the British Olympic Association faced with an overweight boxer, has now decided to pull Gavin out of the event with the Birmingham boxer still short of the limit. Terry Edwards, Gavin’s Olympic coach said, “It is the nature of our sport that we try and get our boxers to the top of their weight and it has been well documented that Frankie has struggled with this over recent months”.
So what does Gavin need ~ apart from a more alert Coach?
If Gavin’s a "gadget" person, he might appreciate the Tanita BC554 Ironman Innerscan Body Composition Monitor Elite (*est. $130) .
This pricey digital scale measures weight, body fat, body water, muscle mass, bone mass, metabolic age, visceral fat, physique rating and daily calorie intake. By the user's programming in age, gender, height, current weight and activity level, the Innerscan can calculate accurate measurements. The weight capacity is 330 pounds and the scale measures in pounds, kilograms and stone. Useful for a coaching staff that seems to have a very limited ability to read anything.
The scale can store data for up to four people. So, appropriate for the GB Boxing team which is around that number and getting smaller each day. The Innerscan also has a guest mode for visitors and an athlete mode for those on a rigorous fitness regimen. For most people this scale is probably overkill. Owner opinion is mixed, but mainly positive. A few owners complain that there really isn't a manual to show you how to use all the various features.
So what does Gavin need? ~ His very own Digital scale and a manual for the coaching staff.
Wednesday, August 6, 2008
American cyclists apologise!!!
Beijing Olympics: American cyclists apologise for 'smog masks'
Four American cyclists who arrived at Beijing Airport with their faces covered by black respiratory masks have been forced to apologise to the Beijing Olympic organising committee (BOCOG).
By Simon Hart Last Updated: 12:51PM BST 06 Aug 2008
Controversy: Michael Friedman was one of four US cyclists who arrived in Beijing wearing a black respiratory mask. Photo: Reuters
"Those athletes regret that action and have written an apology to BOCOG on their own behalf," said Jim Scherr, chief executive of the United States Olympic Committee. "They now realise and understand how their actions were perceived by the host nation and by the organising committee".
He added: "It probably wasn't the most opportune time for these athletes to wear these masks. They were overly cautious."
Images and TV footage of the four riders - Mike Friedman, Sarah Hammer, Bobby Lea and Jennie Reed - were beamed all over the world on the day the International Olympic Committee went on the front foot on the subject of Beijing's pollution problem by claiming it had been exaggerated by the media.
The cyclists were later summoned to a meeting with the US Olympic Committee's head of sport, Steve Roush, where they agreed to apologise to their Chinese hosts.
Roush said: "Unfortunately, you never want to go to somebody else's place and cause any embarrassment, but in this case I think they did."
One of the four, track cyclist Lea, said that he and his colleagues had not intended to make a statement or protest about the air quality.
"We didn't realise the impact that wearing the masks would have," he said. "From our standpoint it was to take care of a perceived health risk. In reality it came across as offensive. We don't want to insult BOCOG or the Chinese public."
Sherr said that around 200 of the 596-strong American team had been issued with masks through their governing bodies but he believed improvements in the air quality in Beijing would mean they would not have to use them.
He added: "We would not prevent athletes if they want to wear a mask and feel it is in their best interests to do so. It is their right to do so."
The city remained covered with a murky haze for the third successive day today, with temperatures reaching a stifling 34C, though the official Air Quality Index rating of 85 was a slight improvement on the previous day.
A BOCOC spokesman said: "The conditions are not unfavourable at the moment and my understanding is that we are not going to be taking any extra measures."
Four American cyclists who arrived at Beijing Airport with their faces covered by black respiratory masks have been forced to apologise to the Beijing Olympic organising committee (BOCOG).
By Simon Hart Last Updated: 12:51PM BST 06 Aug 2008
Controversy: Michael Friedman was one of four US cyclists who arrived in Beijing wearing a black respiratory mask. Photo: Reuters
"Those athletes regret that action and have written an apology to BOCOG on their own behalf," said Jim Scherr, chief executive of the United States Olympic Committee. "They now realise and understand how their actions were perceived by the host nation and by the organising committee".
He added: "It probably wasn't the most opportune time for these athletes to wear these masks. They were overly cautious."
Images and TV footage of the four riders - Mike Friedman, Sarah Hammer, Bobby Lea and Jennie Reed - were beamed all over the world on the day the International Olympic Committee went on the front foot on the subject of Beijing's pollution problem by claiming it had been exaggerated by the media.
The cyclists were later summoned to a meeting with the US Olympic Committee's head of sport, Steve Roush, where they agreed to apologise to their Chinese hosts.
Roush said: "Unfortunately, you never want to go to somebody else's place and cause any embarrassment, but in this case I think they did."
One of the four, track cyclist Lea, said that he and his colleagues had not intended to make a statement or protest about the air quality.
"We didn't realise the impact that wearing the masks would have," he said. "From our standpoint it was to take care of a perceived health risk. In reality it came across as offensive. We don't want to insult BOCOG or the Chinese public."
Sherr said that around 200 of the 596-strong American team had been issued with masks through their governing bodies but he believed improvements in the air quality in Beijing would mean they would not have to use them.
He added: "We would not prevent athletes if they want to wear a mask and feel it is in their best interests to do so. It is their right to do so."
The city remained covered with a murky haze for the third successive day today, with temperatures reaching a stifling 34C, though the official Air Quality Index rating of 85 was a slight improvement on the previous day.
A BOCOC spokesman said: "The conditions are not unfavourable at the moment and my understanding is that we are not going to be taking any extra measures."
Terrorist arrives from USA to Beijing Olympics
When I first saw this photo I thought an American terrorist had landed in Beijing to do his utmost at dispoiling the games. But hang on ~ he's an athlete ~ protesting against the pollution levels!!
Dalai Lama
Dalai Lama offers good wishes for Olympics
Press Trust of India8/6/2008 7:24:00 PM
Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama on Wednesday offered prayer and expressed good wishes for the success of Beijing Olympics starting on Friday.
"I would like to offer my greetings to the People's Republic of China, the organisers and the athletes participating in the forthcoming Olympics games in Beijing," said the Tibetan temporal head in a message released from the headquarters of Tibetan government in-exile Dharamsala.
"Right from the time of China's application to hold the Olympics Games, I have supported China's right to host the mega event," he said."This is a moment of great pride to the 1.3 billion Chinese people. These games should contribute to promoting the Olympic spirit of friendship, openness and peace. I send my prayers and good wishes for the success of this event," the Tibetan Noble laureate said.
The Tibetan leader's message for the success of the Olympics came at a time when his followers are holding agitations for permanent solution to the vexed Tibetan issue.Faced with widespread protests by the Tibetans, Chinese authorities had charged the Dalai Lama with instigating violent protests to sabotage the Olympics.
Press Trust of India8/6/2008 7:24:00 PM
Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama on Wednesday offered prayer and expressed good wishes for the success of Beijing Olympics starting on Friday.
"I would like to offer my greetings to the People's Republic of China, the organisers and the athletes participating in the forthcoming Olympics games in Beijing," said the Tibetan temporal head in a message released from the headquarters of Tibetan government in-exile Dharamsala.
"Right from the time of China's application to hold the Olympics Games, I have supported China's right to host the mega event," he said."This is a moment of great pride to the 1.3 billion Chinese people. These games should contribute to promoting the Olympic spirit of friendship, openness and peace. I send my prayers and good wishes for the success of this event," the Tibetan Noble laureate said.
The Tibetan leader's message for the success of the Olympics came at a time when his followers are holding agitations for permanent solution to the vexed Tibetan issue.Faced with widespread protests by the Tibetans, Chinese authorities had charged the Dalai Lama with instigating violent protests to sabotage the Olympics.
Link to the Olympics.......
May I suggest a link related to the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games?
Our site:URL: http://www.2008chinaolympics.com
Title: Beijing Olympics
Please let me know if you want a link back.
Many thanks for your reply.Best Regards,Donchinaolympics8@gmail.com
August 6, 2008 12:06 PM
Our site:URL: http://www.2008chinaolympics.com
Title: Beijing Olympics
Please let me know if you want a link back.
Many thanks for your reply.Best Regards,Donchinaolympics8@gmail.com
August 6, 2008 12:06 PM
Tuesday, August 5, 2008
Ping Pong ~ Not what it used to be.
Beijing, August 5: China still dominates the world at table tennis and its supremacy is unlikely to be challenged at the Olympics but the seeds of a decline may already have been sown in the parks and playgrounds of Beijing.
For many Chinese like 72-year-old retiree Xu Tianwu, table tennis is more than a game.
It is the national sport that brought glory to China from as early as the 1950s and even played a major role in international relations during the ping pong diplomacy period of the 1970s.
National team members are lionised, and former stars like Olympic and world champion Deng Yaping are household names.
"The reason so many Chinese consider our table tennis players to be heroes is because they bring honour and glory to China," said Xu.
"For me, ping pong keeps me happy and healthy," he said as he played his daily three-hour stint at one of the tables found in every Beijing park.
"I hope I'll still be playing when I am 80."
However, not far from the park where Xu plays his daily ping pong marathon, others are enjoying a different, more edgy experience in the Dongdan open-air basketball ground just east of central Tiananmen Square.
"Basketball lights up my life, it's the only fun for me and I play as much as I can," said Zhao Chao, 18, who says he puts in at least an hour on the court each day.
Image matters to younger Chinese -- and table tennis is seen more and more as the game of an older generation who had no other leisure choices.
The British-born game was imported into China in the early 20th century and became so popular that many Chinese believe that it is their own invention along with gunpowder and printing.
"Ping pong expresses the dexterity, speed and agility of the Chinese," said Xu.
Easy to learn and cheap to play, the sport gained a wide following after the founding of communist China in 1949. It brought China its first taste of international sporting glory with a world title in 1959.
Under late strongman Mao Zedong -- who launched the 1950s slogan "Develop a sports movement, stengthen the physical condition of the people" -- table tennis was the diplomatic tool for a rapprochement with Washington.
In 1971, Mao invited the US table tennis team to China for a series of friendly matches that ended a lengthy period of enmity and set the wheels in motion for the 1979 normalisation of US-China ties.
At the Beijing Olympics, table tennis, with four gold medals almost assured, is also the sport the could help the host nation dominate the medal standings for the first time ahead of the United States.
Even though Chinese basketball superstar Yao Ming is likely to get widespread media attention, Pierre Justo, head of media and research at CSM Media Research/TNS Sport, says it is too early to write ping pong's epitaph.
Table tennis has to face up to some serious challenges, including the younger generation's growing affluence and their taste for other sports.
"But table tennis is still a major sport because unlike football and basketball, it touches every single Chinese person," he said.
For many Chinese like 72-year-old retiree Xu Tianwu, table tennis is more than a game.
It is the national sport that brought glory to China from as early as the 1950s and even played a major role in international relations during the ping pong diplomacy period of the 1970s.
National team members are lionised, and former stars like Olympic and world champion Deng Yaping are household names.
"The reason so many Chinese consider our table tennis players to be heroes is because they bring honour and glory to China," said Xu.
"For me, ping pong keeps me happy and healthy," he said as he played his daily three-hour stint at one of the tables found in every Beijing park.
"I hope I'll still be playing when I am 80."
However, not far from the park where Xu plays his daily ping pong marathon, others are enjoying a different, more edgy experience in the Dongdan open-air basketball ground just east of central Tiananmen Square.
"Basketball lights up my life, it's the only fun for me and I play as much as I can," said Zhao Chao, 18, who says he puts in at least an hour on the court each day.
Image matters to younger Chinese -- and table tennis is seen more and more as the game of an older generation who had no other leisure choices.
The British-born game was imported into China in the early 20th century and became so popular that many Chinese believe that it is their own invention along with gunpowder and printing.
"Ping pong expresses the dexterity, speed and agility of the Chinese," said Xu.
Easy to learn and cheap to play, the sport gained a wide following after the founding of communist China in 1949. It brought China its first taste of international sporting glory with a world title in 1959.
Under late strongman Mao Zedong -- who launched the 1950s slogan "Develop a sports movement, stengthen the physical condition of the people" -- table tennis was the diplomatic tool for a rapprochement with Washington.
In 1971, Mao invited the US table tennis team to China for a series of friendly matches that ended a lengthy period of enmity and set the wheels in motion for the 1979 normalisation of US-China ties.
At the Beijing Olympics, table tennis, with four gold medals almost assured, is also the sport the could help the host nation dominate the medal standings for the first time ahead of the United States.
Even though Chinese basketball superstar Yao Ming is likely to get widespread media attention, Pierre Justo, head of media and research at CSM Media Research/TNS Sport, says it is too early to write ping pong's epitaph.
Table tennis has to face up to some serious challenges, including the younger generation's growing affluence and their taste for other sports.
"But table tennis is still a major sport because unlike football and basketball, it touches every single Chinese person," he said.
Our Charlotte wants to build sandcastles with our Gavin ~ but they don't know where!
Charlotte Church to Marry on The Beach
By Adam Nutburn, August 5 2008
Charlotte Church will marry boyfriend Gavin Henson on the beach, she has revealed.
The singer-turned television presenter, 22, says although she and rugby player Gavin have a location in mind for the wedding, they haven't set a date.
She tells Britain's Hello! magazine, "We just don't want to [get married] at the moment. It will come in time – when we want to do it, not before. All those reports about Gavin being seen shopping for rings are completely untrue.
"I can confirm that we both think a wedding on a beach somewhere would be very romantic – when the time is right."
The couple, who have a ten-month old daughter, Ruby-Megan, are expecting another baby in November.
Charlotte added, "I knew that Gavin would be a good dad, but not this good. He's very focused. He even gets up when Ruby has a feed at night. I love everything about him. He's practically perfect – nice, kind, considerate, funny and serious when he has to be. He's got an amazing body, as well. I wait on him hand and foot. His mother spoiled him and now I spoil him too."
The former child star won't be stopping at just two children, though. "I'd like to have more children, a big family. Four or six, maybe," she said. "Gavin wants eight! Maybe he wants his own rugby team. I’m 22 now, and like to think that I’ll stop having babies in about ten years time. That seems sensible.”
Charlotte then went on to reveal that she and Gavin like to grow their own vegetables. "I love gardening. Gavin and I grow a lot of our own vegetables and we have some hens for fresh eggs," she said. "We've got dogs and geese as well. It's all very 'River Cottage' Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall would be very proud of us. We'd love to get an allotment as well."
By Adam Nutburn, August 5 2008
Charlotte Church will marry boyfriend Gavin Henson on the beach, she has revealed.
The singer-turned television presenter, 22, says although she and rugby player Gavin have a location in mind for the wedding, they haven't set a date.
She tells Britain's Hello! magazine, "We just don't want to [get married] at the moment. It will come in time – when we want to do it, not before. All those reports about Gavin being seen shopping for rings are completely untrue.
"I can confirm that we both think a wedding on a beach somewhere would be very romantic – when the time is right."
The couple, who have a ten-month old daughter, Ruby-Megan, are expecting another baby in November.
Charlotte added, "I knew that Gavin would be a good dad, but not this good. He's very focused. He even gets up when Ruby has a feed at night. I love everything about him. He's practically perfect – nice, kind, considerate, funny and serious when he has to be. He's got an amazing body, as well. I wait on him hand and foot. His mother spoiled him and now I spoil him too."
The former child star won't be stopping at just two children, though. "I'd like to have more children, a big family. Four or six, maybe," she said. "Gavin wants eight! Maybe he wants his own rugby team. I’m 22 now, and like to think that I’ll stop having babies in about ten years time. That seems sensible.”
Charlotte then went on to reveal that she and Gavin like to grow their own vegetables. "I love gardening. Gavin and I grow a lot of our own vegetables and we have some hens for fresh eggs," she said. "We've got dogs and geese as well. It's all very 'River Cottage' Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall would be very proud of us. We'd love to get an allotment as well."
Bush & his views on China
Bush Says It's 'Important to Engage' China
A Mixed Appraisal on Eve of Visit
Bush said that he speaks candidly with Chinese President Hu Jintao about human rights, particularly religious freedom, and that he has shared his religious beliefs with Hu and Hu's predecessor, Jiang Zemin, urging them to lift restrictions on underground churches.
"My main objective in my discussions on religious freedom is to remind this new generation of leadership that religion is not to be feared but to be welcomed in society," Bush said in an interview. Asked whether he thinks he is making an impact on Hu, he replied: "Oh, I think he listens, absolutely. I think he's interested. . . . He absorbs, he takes in, he listens."
Bush said China must do more to pressure repressive governments in Burma and Sudan, where he suggested Beijing's interest in acquiring raw materials to fuel China's booming economy is conflicting with an interest in stopping the killing in Sudan's Darfur region. But he skirted a question about a pre-Olympics security drive by Chinese authorities that human rights advocates call a crackdown on dissent.
"They're hypersensitive to a potential terrorist attack," Bush said. "And my hope is, of course, that as they have their security in place, that they're mindful of the spirit of the Games, and that if there is a provocation, they handle it in a responsible way without violence."
The president has been criticized by some lawmakers and human rights groups for his decision to attend the Games. He explained his rationale: "One of the reasons I'm going is because I want to show respect to the Chinese people, and this is a proud moment for China."
Bush also grappled with how to gauge openness and freedom in China today. "I mean, this is a closed society in many ways," he said. "The Internet provides interesting opportunities for people to express themselves. Sometimes it's open, sometimes the filters are there. I've talked to the evangelicals who go there who feel like the underground church movement has gotten a few steps forward, a step-and-a-half back. It's really hard to tell."
During a half-hour interview in his private office aboard Air Force One, Bush emphasized that it is "important to engage the Chinese" -- a striking comment for a president who came to office with aides depicting China as a "strategic competitor" and surrounded by hawks who looked suspiciously upon the Chinese government. Even critics of the president say he has emerged as an unexpected diplomat with China, conducting a personal campaign to woo the senior Chinese leadership.
The president was on his way to Alaska for a brief rally with troops before flying to Seoul for the first stop of a seven-day trip to Asia, culminating this weekend with an appearance at the opening ceremonies in Beijing, attendance at athletic events, worship at a Chinese church, and meetings with Hu and other officials.
Bush's planned meeting with Hu at the Olympics this month will be his 15th meeting with a Chinese president. His visit to China will be the fourth of his presidency; no other U.S. president has visited China more than once.
Over the course of his administration, Bush has delivered for China in important and unexpected ways: A president who in his early days made a guarantee to defend Taiwan later warned the island against declaring independence and has established what China experts see as a de facto freeze on arms sales to Taiwan. After angering China by labeling North Korea part of an "axis of evil," Bush led a diplomatic initiative aimed at cooling tensions on the Korean Peninsula. While critical of China on human rights, Bush has not hectored authorities in Beijing. authorities.
He and his advisers say his approach has paid off: The United States has secured Chinese help on North Korea and Iran while avoiding a blowup in the Taiwan Strait, despite the intense passions and military buildups on both sides.
Where have all the protests gone?
Protest Zones, In Theory, At Least
The Chinese government has designated three Beijing parks for approved protests. Would-be demonstrators must apply at least five days in advance. Expect plenty of open space in those parks during the games.
The Chinese government has designated three Beijing parks for approved protests. Would-be demonstrators must apply at least five days in advance. Expect plenty of open space in those parks during the games.
Best Chinese athletes.
Pressure On Chinese Athletes Liu Xiang And Yao Ming
Peter Parks
Liu Xiang electrified China when he won the 110-meter high hurdles in Athens, becoming the first Chinese male athlete to win a gold medal in track. He became a huge national sports hero, right up there with NBA basketball star Yao Ming.But he's been struggling with a hamstring injury — and his world record was shattered by Dayron Robles of Cuba. China, of course, is hoping for a storybook finish, with the trailblazing star capturing a second gold medal in front of the adoring home crowd. But the speedy Robles and Liu's balky hamstring could ruin the storyline.
Yao Ming is just getting back into shape after suffering a stress fracture in his left foot during the past NBA season. The Chinese men's team isn't expected to win a medal. But as the great global crossover star in China, Yao needs to play well for home country pride.
Peter Parks
Liu Xiang electrified China when he won the 110-meter high hurdles in Athens, becoming the first Chinese male athlete to win a gold medal in track. He became a huge national sports hero, right up there with NBA basketball star Yao Ming.But he's been struggling with a hamstring injury — and his world record was shattered by Dayron Robles of Cuba. China, of course, is hoping for a storybook finish, with the trailblazing star capturing a second gold medal in front of the adoring home crowd. But the speedy Robles and Liu's balky hamstring could ruin the storyline.
Yao Ming is just getting back into shape after suffering a stress fracture in his left foot during the past NBA season. The Chinese men's team isn't expected to win a medal. But as the great global crossover star in China, Yao needs to play well for home country pride.
CHINA Versus USA ~ Who will win the Golds?
The New, Big International Sports Rivalry — U.S. Vs. China
The U.S. has won the most gold medals at every Summer Olympics since 1996. Now it's China's turn. At least, that's what forecasters are saying. The time and place of the games will make for some intense competition between the two countries.
The first big showdown is the men's basketball game on Aug. 10. The advantage there clearly goes to the U.S. Also, women's gymnastics could be especially dramatic. The two teams are the best in the world.
My monies are on the Host nation to win most medals. They have home advantage, have put plenty of preparation into their athletes and USA are over the top!!
The U.S. has won the most gold medals at every Summer Olympics since 1996. Now it's China's turn. At least, that's what forecasters are saying. The time and place of the games will make for some intense competition between the two countries.
The first big showdown is the men's basketball game on Aug. 10. The advantage there clearly goes to the U.S. Also, women's gymnastics could be especially dramatic. The two teams are the best in the world.
My monies are on the Host nation to win most medals. They have home advantage, have put plenty of preparation into their athletes and USA are over the top!!
Looking forward to the Olympics
I'm really looking forward to the Olympics ~ after all I've been waiting 4 years since the last one!
I'm sure China will put on a great games ~ their preparation has been meticulous. I have been a China-Observer now for about 10 years and I have watched a nation in the painful process of change and development ~ and so much has changed for the better.
Good Luck China in your Games!!!!!!
I'm sure China will put on a great games ~ their preparation has been meticulous. I have been a China-Observer now for about 10 years and I have watched a nation in the painful process of change and development ~ and so much has changed for the better.
Good Luck China in your Games!!!!!!
Monday, August 4, 2008
Murray wins at Cincy
Murray fights off Djokovic for Cincy title
Mason, OH (Sports Network) - Eighth-seeded Scotsman Andy Murray scored an upset of third-seeded Serbian Novak Djokovic in a heated battle at the $2.615 million Western & Southern Financial Group Masters tennis event on Sunday.
Murray won in straight sets 7-6 (7-4), 7-6 (7-5), but the feisty Djokovic forced a tie-breaker in each before Murray ultimately pulled out his third ATP title of the year. It was the sixth title of his career in just his 10th career ATP final. The Scotland native notched victories at Doha and Marseille earlier this year.
Murray pocketed $420,000 for the hard-fought victory.
"I mean, it's huge to win your first sort of major tournament, and to do it in a match like today makes it more special," said Murray. "I've been in the semifinals four times before this week, and lost every time against tough players. This week I played well the whole week, and even though he had the chance to when he get back into the match, I was really happy with the way that I fought and stayed in there. I put in a lot of work off the court to be able to win these sort of tournaments, and it makes it all worthwhile."
Djokovic owned a 4-1 advantage in head-to-head matchups coming into the match including a win this year at Monaco. Murray, however, was victorious in their last meeting, a quarterfinal matchup at the Rogers Cup just two weeks ago.
Murray advanced to the final with a 6-4, 6-4 triumph over 16th-seeded Ivo Karlovic in a match that lasted one hour and 21 minutes.
Djokovic ousted second-seeded Rafael Nadal in the semifinals with a shocking 6-1, 7-5 upset of the soon to be No. 1 ranked player on tour. The Serb failed in his bid for a fourth title this season in his 15th career ATP final.
Despite Djokovic's snapping of Nadal's 32-match winning streak, the Wimbledon and French Open champion will dethrone Roger Federer as the No. 1 ranked player on August 18th. Federer has held the top ranking a record 235 consecutive weeks (since February 2, 2004), while Nadal has been No. 2 for a record 158 straight weeks (since July 25, 2005). The last player to rank No. 1 before Federer was Andy Roddick.
Nadal will become just the third Spaniard to take hold of the No. 1 position, joining Carlos Moya (1999) and Juan Carlos Ferrero (2003).
08/03 20:24:40 ET
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Mason, OH (Sports Network) - Eighth-seeded Scotsman Andy Murray scored an upset of third-seeded Serbian Novak Djokovic in a heated battle at the $2.615 million Western & Southern Financial Group Masters tennis event on Sunday.
Murray won in straight sets 7-6 (7-4), 7-6 (7-5), but the feisty Djokovic forced a tie-breaker in each before Murray ultimately pulled out his third ATP title of the year. It was the sixth title of his career in just his 10th career ATP final. The Scotland native notched victories at Doha and Marseille earlier this year.
Murray pocketed $420,000 for the hard-fought victory.
"I mean, it's huge to win your first sort of major tournament, and to do it in a match like today makes it more special," said Murray. "I've been in the semifinals four times before this week, and lost every time against tough players. This week I played well the whole week, and even though he had the chance to when he get back into the match, I was really happy with the way that I fought and stayed in there. I put in a lot of work off the court to be able to win these sort of tournaments, and it makes it all worthwhile."
Djokovic owned a 4-1 advantage in head-to-head matchups coming into the match including a win this year at Monaco. Murray, however, was victorious in their last meeting, a quarterfinal matchup at the Rogers Cup just two weeks ago.
Murray advanced to the final with a 6-4, 6-4 triumph over 16th-seeded Ivo Karlovic in a match that lasted one hour and 21 minutes.
Djokovic ousted second-seeded Rafael Nadal in the semifinals with a shocking 6-1, 7-5 upset of the soon to be No. 1 ranked player on tour. The Serb failed in his bid for a fourth title this season in his 15th career ATP final.
Despite Djokovic's snapping of Nadal's 32-match winning streak, the Wimbledon and French Open champion will dethrone Roger Federer as the No. 1 ranked player on August 18th. Federer has held the top ranking a record 235 consecutive weeks (since February 2, 2004), while Nadal has been No. 2 for a record 158 straight weeks (since July 25, 2005). The last player to rank No. 1 before Federer was Andy Roddick.
Nadal will become just the third Spaniard to take hold of the No. 1 position, joining Carlos Moya (1999) and Juan Carlos Ferrero (2003).
08/03 20:24:40 ET
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Vaughan ~ Should have gone earlier!
When one thinks of Vaughan's poor and unspirited recent displays, his inability to see through his own worth to the team and his lack of muscle and consistency as captain, the question to be asked is : Why wasn't he sacked a year ago?
England's results will be better without him dragging the team down!
England's results will be better without him dragging the team down!
Pietersen gets the England job!!
Pietersen appointed England cricket captain
The Associated Press
Published: August 4, 2008
LONDON:
Kevin Pietersen's remarkable career took its latest and arguably most dramatic turn Monday when he was named England cricket captain.
The South African-born batsman will lead England in test, one-day and Twenty20 matches, starting with the fourth test against South Africa this week.
The appointment came a day after Michael Vaughan's sudden resignation and caps a remarkable rise for the 28-year-old Pietersen, who was viewed as the enfant terrible of English cricket when he made his debut against Australia three years ago.
He has since toned down his outspoken comments — and outrageous haircuts — to become one of the team's most reliable members.
"I will always respect what has happened in the past and I will always respect what Michael did and what my predecessors did," Pietersen said. "I will always look for advice because I'm new in this job.
The Associated Press
Published: August 4, 2008
LONDON:
Kevin Pietersen's remarkable career took its latest and arguably most dramatic turn Monday when he was named England cricket captain.
The South African-born batsman will lead England in test, one-day and Twenty20 matches, starting with the fourth test against South Africa this week.
The appointment came a day after Michael Vaughan's sudden resignation and caps a remarkable rise for the 28-year-old Pietersen, who was viewed as the enfant terrible of English cricket when he made his debut against Australia three years ago.
He has since toned down his outspoken comments — and outrageous haircuts — to become one of the team's most reliable members.
"I will always respect what has happened in the past and I will always respect what Michael did and what my predecessors did," Pietersen said. "I will always look for advice because I'm new in this job.
Thursday, July 10, 2008
England Rugby in decline
ITN - 10.07.2008 13:56
Rugby stars fined over misconduct
© ITN 2008
England rugby players Topsy Ojo and Mike Brown have been found guilty of misconduct following an investigation into the tour of New Zealand.
The inquiry was conducted Jeff Blackett, the Rugby Football Union's chief disciplinary officer, and found David Strettle and Danny Care not guilty of misconduct.
Ojo was fined £500 and reprimanded after he was found to have stayed out all night.
Brown was fined £1,000 and reprimanded after also staying out all night and arriving late for a physiotherapist appointment.
Ojo, Brown and Care were at the centre of sex allegations following England's 37-20 defeat by the All Blacks in Auckland.
But no official complaint was made against the players, who denied any wrongdoing.
In a report, Blackett said: "All the players I have interviewed vehemently deny any criminal wrongdoing.
"I have seen or heard no evidence which has been tested to gainsay those denials."
He revealed Strettle was not in the list of people the New Zealand police wished to interview.
Rugby stars fined over misconduct
© ITN 2008
England rugby players Topsy Ojo and Mike Brown have been found guilty of misconduct following an investigation into the tour of New Zealand.
The inquiry was conducted Jeff Blackett, the Rugby Football Union's chief disciplinary officer, and found David Strettle and Danny Care not guilty of misconduct.
Ojo was fined £500 and reprimanded after he was found to have stayed out all night.
Brown was fined £1,000 and reprimanded after also staying out all night and arriving late for a physiotherapist appointment.
Ojo, Brown and Care were at the centre of sex allegations following England's 37-20 defeat by the All Blacks in Auckland.
But no official complaint was made against the players, who denied any wrongdoing.
In a report, Blackett said: "All the players I have interviewed vehemently deny any criminal wrongdoing.
"I have seen or heard no evidence which has been tested to gainsay those denials."
He revealed Strettle was not in the list of people the New Zealand police wished to interview.
Wednesday, July 9, 2008
Federer V Nadal at Wimbledon
James Lawton: Why Federer v Nadal was simply the greatest sporting event I've ever seen
Tuesday, 8 July 2008
Related Articles
Nadal triumph means Federer faces greatest ever challenge
Champion takes a break before setting sights on world No 1 spot
Leading article: Splendour on the grass
Nadal reigns in Spain, despite missing his next tournament
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Facebook
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Yes, you're right, it could be that the emotion of the moment distorts, and perhaps devalues, the glories of the past. True, also, that all attempts to make some absolute judgement on the superiority of one passage of sport over another are always going to be arbitrary and perhaps easily flawed.
So does this mean we are bound to revisit Wimbledon on Sunday night and concede we might just have got a little carried away when Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer fought out what John McEnroe and Rod Laver believe to be the best Wimbledon final anyone has ever seen?
You may think that it needs to be done, if only as a mark of respect to all those who had gone before, men like Laver and Borg and McEnroe and Sampras and, perhaps not least, Goran Ivanisevic, who came as a wild card after three final defeats and distilled all his passion for the game into an unforgettable victory over the formidable Australian Pat Rafter. But then I don't.
Indeed, the stronger inclination is to return to SW19 and hoist a flag or plant a tree and reaffirm that here, on Sunday 6 July 2008, we not only saw the greatest tennis match ever played, we were also given, cleanly, beautifully, the very essence of all that is best in sport and in a way I had never quite seen before and do not confidently expect ever to see again.
Maybe we should try to define the best of sport. It can come in a variety of forms but always it must be underpinned by a purity of effort, a refusal to hold back on anything of yourself, even in the most discouraging circumstances, and when we see this, as we did on Sunday as the day stretched into the night, we can only hope for one ultimate bonus. It is that the competition is so balanced, and so intense and brilliant, that it is only in the very moment of victory that we can draw a line between the victor and the vanquished and that even when this has happened, we know as surely as we have known anything of what we have seen in any sports arena, that if the prospect of defeat had become unbearable the one who suffers the pain of it is not diminished in any eyes but his own.
Who could not say this of Roger Federer after he brought himself back from the possibility of annihilation so superbly that the obituaries being penned even before he stepped on to the Centre Court against his strong and magnificently competitive young challenger were made to seem premature to the point of bad taste?
No, we do not know how Federer will respond over the months to the loss of his Wimbledon title, but it should not be forgotten that, at the age of 26 and after recovering from a bout of glandular fever, he long ago negotiated the challenge that now faces the precocious boy-man from Majorca. It is the one that comes when you have exceeded all your hopes and then wake up one morning wondering about the health of your appetite – and your eagerness to go on repeating all those days of self-sacrifice, of continuing to see your sport as the core of your life. If Roger Federer proved nothing else on Sunday, he did that, and then when you consider the scale of his recovery and the fineness of his eventual defeat and all the searing virtuosity that had preceded it, is it not fatuous to believe that this was the end of something that for so many years was unique?
You could see on the faces of Nadal and Federer how much this match meant to them, both at the start and the finish. Nadal had ecstasy at the end and Federer, it seemed, the deepest resolution to revisit this place and make a different result. Yet even as you speculated on how they would readjust to their new situations, you could not but return to the astonishing inspiration and facility of the tennis they had produced under pressure that, plainly, neither of them had quite felt before.
Nor, when you left Wimbledon, could you ignore the question that beat in your brain and tugged at your heart: had anything you had ever seen of sport before touched you so deeply, not so much in the spectacle of it – though heaven knows it was breathtaking enough – but in the spirit and the conduct and the ambition of the men who made it?
Of course, there are more than a few contenders and perhaps the one which is closest in the intensity of the head-to-head competition, and the profundity of the commitment of both men, is the great world welterweight title fight between Sugar Ray Leonard and Tommy Hearns in Las Vegas in 1981. It ended in the 14th round and it was titanic. It shifted in turns subtly and violently and you could never be sure of the outcome until Leonard, whose wife Juanita had been crying from ringside, "No more, baby, no more," finished it in the fashion of the street fighter he really was beneath the glitter of dazzling skills.
That fight was great in the way Nadal-Federer was great because when Hearns was taken out of the ring, hanging on the shoulders of two beefy security men and his feet trailing in the dust, you knew that you had just seen two hugely talented men go to the very edge of their ability and their courage.
It was haunting to see Brazil lose to Italy in the Sarria stadium in Barcelona in the 1982 World Cup and some of the images of the game, you knew, would last for ever, Falcao volleying in for an equaliser and Paolo Rossi, lurking like the assassin he was, scoring three goals, but the contest was flawed because the Brazilians lost their discipline and found instead vanity and, unlike Federer, had too many reasons for regret in a shattering defeat.
Sebastian Coe's 1500 metres gold in the Moscow Olympics will always rank high because that too was the result of an extraordinary recovery of will. When earlier he lost in the 800 metres to his fierce rival Steve Ovett, he was so distressed his father and coach Peter had to hold on to him when he left the stadium. He was, at least psychologically, as ravaged as Tommy Hearns.
Yes, when you think about it, there is no shortage of claimants to the high ground occupied by Nadal and Federer.
There was England winning the World Cup as a team in 1966, and Maradona claiming it virtually on his own 20 years later, and England's cricketers, in one shining, lost summer winning back the Ashes in 2005, and Steven Redgrave making Olympic history on a diamond of a morning in Sydney, and Lester Piggott bringing home The Minstrel at Epsom with such conviction that you had to wonder where he found his hauteur and his resolve. Manchester United winning their European Cups, particularly the one that came a decade after Munich and the other prised out of the ether in Barcelona have a place, obviously, as does Tiger Woods winning his first major at Augusta by a mile and his last one in California last month by an inch despite the acute pain from a wounded knee.
Yet, still, the belief here is that there was something unique about what happened on the Centre Court last Sunday.
A lot of it was to do with the balance of the match and how that was recreated only after Federer, who had come over his years as Wimbledon champion to represent so much more than mere versatility, had to remake himself under the gaze of so many who had arrived convinced that it was to see him crack. Well, he didn't crack; he was broken for a while and it was the sight of him recovering his game and his pride that was the most compelling ingredient of all.
Partly this was because it meant that no one could say Rafael Nadal had merely presided over the disintegration of a great player. No, in the end this ferocious and engaging young sportsman was not pushing aside a parody of possibly the most naturally gifted champion tennis had ever seen. He was engaging him on the highest ground their sport had ever occupied, and he was doing it with phenomenal power and skill and application.
The warming effect will certainly last this one lifetime.
Tuesday, 8 July 2008
Related Articles
Nadal triumph means Federer faces greatest ever challenge
Champion takes a break before setting sights on world No 1 spot
Leading article: Splendour on the grass
Nadal reigns in Spain, despite missing his next tournament
Digg It
del.icio.us
Stumbleupon
Yes, you're right, it could be that the emotion of the moment distorts, and perhaps devalues, the glories of the past. True, also, that all attempts to make some absolute judgement on the superiority of one passage of sport over another are always going to be arbitrary and perhaps easily flawed.
So does this mean we are bound to revisit Wimbledon on Sunday night and concede we might just have got a little carried away when Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer fought out what John McEnroe and Rod Laver believe to be the best Wimbledon final anyone has ever seen?
You may think that it needs to be done, if only as a mark of respect to all those who had gone before, men like Laver and Borg and McEnroe and Sampras and, perhaps not least, Goran Ivanisevic, who came as a wild card after three final defeats and distilled all his passion for the game into an unforgettable victory over the formidable Australian Pat Rafter. But then I don't.
Indeed, the stronger inclination is to return to SW19 and hoist a flag or plant a tree and reaffirm that here, on Sunday 6 July 2008, we not only saw the greatest tennis match ever played, we were also given, cleanly, beautifully, the very essence of all that is best in sport and in a way I had never quite seen before and do not confidently expect ever to see again.
Maybe we should try to define the best of sport. It can come in a variety of forms but always it must be underpinned by a purity of effort, a refusal to hold back on anything of yourself, even in the most discouraging circumstances, and when we see this, as we did on Sunday as the day stretched into the night, we can only hope for one ultimate bonus. It is that the competition is so balanced, and so intense and brilliant, that it is only in the very moment of victory that we can draw a line between the victor and the vanquished and that even when this has happened, we know as surely as we have known anything of what we have seen in any sports arena, that if the prospect of defeat had become unbearable the one who suffers the pain of it is not diminished in any eyes but his own.
Who could not say this of Roger Federer after he brought himself back from the possibility of annihilation so superbly that the obituaries being penned even before he stepped on to the Centre Court against his strong and magnificently competitive young challenger were made to seem premature to the point of bad taste?
No, we do not know how Federer will respond over the months to the loss of his Wimbledon title, but it should not be forgotten that, at the age of 26 and after recovering from a bout of glandular fever, he long ago negotiated the challenge that now faces the precocious boy-man from Majorca. It is the one that comes when you have exceeded all your hopes and then wake up one morning wondering about the health of your appetite – and your eagerness to go on repeating all those days of self-sacrifice, of continuing to see your sport as the core of your life. If Roger Federer proved nothing else on Sunday, he did that, and then when you consider the scale of his recovery and the fineness of his eventual defeat and all the searing virtuosity that had preceded it, is it not fatuous to believe that this was the end of something that for so many years was unique?
You could see on the faces of Nadal and Federer how much this match meant to them, both at the start and the finish. Nadal had ecstasy at the end and Federer, it seemed, the deepest resolution to revisit this place and make a different result. Yet even as you speculated on how they would readjust to their new situations, you could not but return to the astonishing inspiration and facility of the tennis they had produced under pressure that, plainly, neither of them had quite felt before.
Nor, when you left Wimbledon, could you ignore the question that beat in your brain and tugged at your heart: had anything you had ever seen of sport before touched you so deeply, not so much in the spectacle of it – though heaven knows it was breathtaking enough – but in the spirit and the conduct and the ambition of the men who made it?
Of course, there are more than a few contenders and perhaps the one which is closest in the intensity of the head-to-head competition, and the profundity of the commitment of both men, is the great world welterweight title fight between Sugar Ray Leonard and Tommy Hearns in Las Vegas in 1981. It ended in the 14th round and it was titanic. It shifted in turns subtly and violently and you could never be sure of the outcome until Leonard, whose wife Juanita had been crying from ringside, "No more, baby, no more," finished it in the fashion of the street fighter he really was beneath the glitter of dazzling skills.
That fight was great in the way Nadal-Federer was great because when Hearns was taken out of the ring, hanging on the shoulders of two beefy security men and his feet trailing in the dust, you knew that you had just seen two hugely talented men go to the very edge of their ability and their courage.
It was haunting to see Brazil lose to Italy in the Sarria stadium in Barcelona in the 1982 World Cup and some of the images of the game, you knew, would last for ever, Falcao volleying in for an equaliser and Paolo Rossi, lurking like the assassin he was, scoring three goals, but the contest was flawed because the Brazilians lost their discipline and found instead vanity and, unlike Federer, had too many reasons for regret in a shattering defeat.
Sebastian Coe's 1500 metres gold in the Moscow Olympics will always rank high because that too was the result of an extraordinary recovery of will. When earlier he lost in the 800 metres to his fierce rival Steve Ovett, he was so distressed his father and coach Peter had to hold on to him when he left the stadium. He was, at least psychologically, as ravaged as Tommy Hearns.
Yes, when you think about it, there is no shortage of claimants to the high ground occupied by Nadal and Federer.
There was England winning the World Cup as a team in 1966, and Maradona claiming it virtually on his own 20 years later, and England's cricketers, in one shining, lost summer winning back the Ashes in 2005, and Steven Redgrave making Olympic history on a diamond of a morning in Sydney, and Lester Piggott bringing home The Minstrel at Epsom with such conviction that you had to wonder where he found his hauteur and his resolve. Manchester United winning their European Cups, particularly the one that came a decade after Munich and the other prised out of the ether in Barcelona have a place, obviously, as does Tiger Woods winning his first major at Augusta by a mile and his last one in California last month by an inch despite the acute pain from a wounded knee.
Yet, still, the belief here is that there was something unique about what happened on the Centre Court last Sunday.
A lot of it was to do with the balance of the match and how that was recreated only after Federer, who had come over his years as Wimbledon champion to represent so much more than mere versatility, had to remake himself under the gaze of so many who had arrived convinced that it was to see him crack. Well, he didn't crack; he was broken for a while and it was the sight of him recovering his game and his pride that was the most compelling ingredient of all.
Partly this was because it meant that no one could say Rafael Nadal had merely presided over the disintegration of a great player. No, in the end this ferocious and engaging young sportsman was not pushing aside a parody of possibly the most naturally gifted champion tennis had ever seen. He was engaging him on the highest ground their sport had ever occupied, and he was doing it with phenomenal power and skill and application.
The warming effect will certainly last this one lifetime.
Monday, July 7, 2008
Sunday, June 22, 2008
Name & Shame
Should England Rugby Management name the players who have been involved in various sexual incidents whilst in NZ recently?
Yes ~ for the sake of all team members! At the present time all of the players are under scrutiny for the wrongdoings of a minority.
NAME & SHAME the few , I say!! For the sake of the good names of the majority.
Yes ~ for the sake of all team members! At the present time all of the players are under scrutiny for the wrongdoings of a minority.
NAME & SHAME the few , I say!! For the sake of the good names of the majority.
Rob Andrews in the spotlight
Rob Andrews has been accused by his own players of being a little too lax in discipline on the recent shameful tour of New Zealand.
The suggestion is that " The players call the shots".
And they certainly drink them.........according to my sources in certain Auckland bars.
The suggestion is that " The players call the shots".
And they certainly drink them.........according to my sources in certain Auckland bars.
Rugby Players could be named!
England tour of New Zealand: Implicated players could be named as gloom deepensBy Paul Ackford
Last Updated: 10:06am BST 22/06/2008
The identities of four England rugby union players alleged to have had some involvement in a serious sexual assault in the Hilton Hotel, Auckland, could be disclosed on their return home.
Match report: Battered England in freefall
In pics: England suffer Player ratings
Paul Ackford: England's reputation has been hammered
Senior Rugby Football Union figures, concerned at the damage done to the reputation of individuals not implicated in the incident, are considering setting up an internal disciplinary investigation and are prepared to name names.
Under fire: Rob Andrew's ability to maintain discipline on the England tour is under the spotlight
The matter will be decided by Jeff Blackett, the RFU's disciplinary officer and the Judge Advocate General. "Clearly we have to do something," Blackett said. "The team can't come back and nothing happens. Something's got to happen and something has to be made public. The consideration that there are a number of entirely uninvolved players, and that unless others are named those innocent players may be tainted by association, is a consideration we have to think about."
To deepen England's gloom, they suffered their second-worst margin of defeat against the All Blacks when they went down 44-12 in Christchurch yesterday, and in doing so lost the Test series 2-0.
Speculation has been intense around England's Christchurch hotel as to which of the squad may have been party to the alleged assault. Fourteen names have been mentioned, and several players are aggrieved that no one is above suspicion.
On Friday, RFU chief executive Francis Baron said he expected internal disciplinary procedures to begin once the police investigation had run its course. However, on legal advice, England players refused to talk to members of the Auckland police who flew to Christchurch on Thursday, and there is still no indication as to when, or if, a formal complaint will be made.
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The matter is further complicated in that there are a number of incidents alleged to have taken place at the team hotel on the morning after that first Test. "There are bound to be internal disciplinary issues," Blackett said. "It wouldn't be a question of did X have sex with Y? It would be more a matter of did anyone put themselves in a situation by breaking team rules where those allegations could be made?"
At present there are no specific regulations in England's disciplinary protocol which refer to female company. However, on July 1, when Martin Johnson officially takes over as manager and the new agreement governing England's top 32 players begins, players will have to sign a code of conduct which is considerably more detailed.
Blackett may also come under pressure to examine the leadership of Baron and Rob Andrew, the RFU's elite director of rugby and the team's temporary manager. On Thursday, one of the England coaches let slip that tour discipline had been lax, that players were effectively calling the shots and that this had been the case for a long while.
Baron and Andrew have already attracted adverse comment. Before England left for New Zealand, at a RFU council meeting, both were criticised for their handling of the appointment of Johnson as England's new team manager and the demotion of head coach Brian Ashton. Council members expressed disquiet at Baron's style of management, which was described as "unnecessarily confrontational".
Allegations were also made that Baron had unilaterally sold 1,000 debentures in Twickenham's new South Stand to commercial operations, raising around £6 million. Under RFU regulations, most matters relating to ticketing come under the remit of the Council. Some Council members are so incensed at the way they have been treated that they are determined to get rid of Baron within 15 months.
Calendar: Full list of rugby union fixtures
David Kirk: All Black side built on twin axis
Matt Stevens: We're bitter about what happened
Yesterday, Andrew was back in the hot seat and at pains to play down suggestions that England had been on another 'tour from hell'. The original 'tour from hell' was in 1998, when Clive Woodward's under-strength England suffered two hammerings at the hands of the All Blacks and heavy defeats to both Australia and South Africa.
"This was certainly not a tour from hell, by any stretch of the imagination," Andrew said. "We wanted to learn about our younger players, and we have learned some really good things."
Read the latest from Paul Ackford
Last Updated: 10:06am BST 22/06/2008
The identities of four England rugby union players alleged to have had some involvement in a serious sexual assault in the Hilton Hotel, Auckland, could be disclosed on their return home.
Match report: Battered England in freefall
In pics: England suffer Player ratings
Paul Ackford: England's reputation has been hammered
Senior Rugby Football Union figures, concerned at the damage done to the reputation of individuals not implicated in the incident, are considering setting up an internal disciplinary investigation and are prepared to name names.
Under fire: Rob Andrew's ability to maintain discipline on the England tour is under the spotlight
The matter will be decided by Jeff Blackett, the RFU's disciplinary officer and the Judge Advocate General. "Clearly we have to do something," Blackett said. "The team can't come back and nothing happens. Something's got to happen and something has to be made public. The consideration that there are a number of entirely uninvolved players, and that unless others are named those innocent players may be tainted by association, is a consideration we have to think about."
To deepen England's gloom, they suffered their second-worst margin of defeat against the All Blacks when they went down 44-12 in Christchurch yesterday, and in doing so lost the Test series 2-0.
Speculation has been intense around England's Christchurch hotel as to which of the squad may have been party to the alleged assault. Fourteen names have been mentioned, and several players are aggrieved that no one is above suspicion.
On Friday, RFU chief executive Francis Baron said he expected internal disciplinary procedures to begin once the police investigation had run its course. However, on legal advice, England players refused to talk to members of the Auckland police who flew to Christchurch on Thursday, and there is still no indication as to when, or if, a formal complaint will be made.
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The matter is further complicated in that there are a number of incidents alleged to have taken place at the team hotel on the morning after that first Test. "There are bound to be internal disciplinary issues," Blackett said. "It wouldn't be a question of did X have sex with Y? It would be more a matter of did anyone put themselves in a situation by breaking team rules where those allegations could be made?"
At present there are no specific regulations in England's disciplinary protocol which refer to female company. However, on July 1, when Martin Johnson officially takes over as manager and the new agreement governing England's top 32 players begins, players will have to sign a code of conduct which is considerably more detailed.
Blackett may also come under pressure to examine the leadership of Baron and Rob Andrew, the RFU's elite director of rugby and the team's temporary manager. On Thursday, one of the England coaches let slip that tour discipline had been lax, that players were effectively calling the shots and that this had been the case for a long while.
Baron and Andrew have already attracted adverse comment. Before England left for New Zealand, at a RFU council meeting, both were criticised for their handling of the appointment of Johnson as England's new team manager and the demotion of head coach Brian Ashton. Council members expressed disquiet at Baron's style of management, which was described as "unnecessarily confrontational".
Allegations were also made that Baron had unilaterally sold 1,000 debentures in Twickenham's new South Stand to commercial operations, raising around £6 million. Under RFU regulations, most matters relating to ticketing come under the remit of the Council. Some Council members are so incensed at the way they have been treated that they are determined to get rid of Baron within 15 months.
Calendar: Full list of rugby union fixtures
David Kirk: All Black side built on twin axis
Matt Stevens: We're bitter about what happened
Yesterday, Andrew was back in the hot seat and at pains to play down suggestions that England had been on another 'tour from hell'. The original 'tour from hell' was in 1998, when Clive Woodward's under-strength England suffered two hammerings at the hands of the All Blacks and heavy defeats to both Australia and South Africa.
"This was certainly not a tour from hell, by any stretch of the imagination," Andrew said. "We wanted to learn about our younger players, and we have learned some really good things."
Read the latest from Paul Ackford
Shame on you England rugby players
Have you heard that England players score more off the field than on. But it still takes 4 of them to do it!
Tuesday, June 10, 2008
Pikeys in the news....at the F1
In view of ITVs recent commentator's......comments, I think we need a few Pikey jokes............
A group of pikeys arrive at Heaven, and St. Peter is waiting at the Pearl Gates. "We want to come in." One of them says.
St. Peter replies, "One moment please. God has a thing about pikeys coming in to Heaven.
"He visits God and tells him about the pikeys. "No way!" God shouts. "Go back to the Pearl Gates and tell them to piss off!
"St. Peter goes back to the Gates and then back to God.
"They're gone." He says.
"The pikeys?" God asks.
"No," St. Peter replies, "The Gates."
A group of pikeys arrive at Heaven, and St. Peter is waiting at the Pearl Gates. "We want to come in." One of them says.
St. Peter replies, "One moment please. God has a thing about pikeys coming in to Heaven.
"He visits God and tells him about the pikeys. "No way!" God shouts. "Go back to the Pearl Gates and tell them to piss off!
"St. Peter goes back to the Gates and then back to God.
"They're gone." He says.
"The pikeys?" God asks.
"No," St. Peter replies, "The Gates."
Sunday, June 8, 2008
Bitter Pill for Wales to swallow......
Ieuan Evans: Warren Gatland's quest for Wales skills to reach new peak
By Ieuan Evans
Last Updated: 1:33am BST 08/06/2008
Have your say Read comments
The stony face of Warren Gatland told the story of Wales's afternoon in Bloemfontein. It was disappointing for the players and supporters and shows how far the team has to travel to produce consistent performances. It was pretty ominous at times.
Wales reduced to tatters by Springbok blitz
In pics: Ireland edged out by All Blacks, Springboks hammer Wales
Stats: Summer Test teams and stats
The fact remains - despite Wales having won the Six Nations Championship - that the skill levels of the players are still not good enough to compete fully against the bigger and better southern hemisphere players.
It's good to talk: Warren Gatland gives out instructions ahead of Wales' defeat in Bloemfontein
Gatland knows this and has talked often about the subject. He unexpectedly engineered instant success this season but he is aware the team are far from the finished article.
It may be a case of one step forward and two steps back. It was always going to be a fierce examination in a city where South Africa rarely lose. The odds were against the visitors because of the conditions and the altitude.
Gatland knows that to improve Wales he must challenge the players and this Test series is expected to stretch everyone.
Wales have improved but the Springboks remain too powerful. Their bigger men like John Smit, Bakkies Botha and Pierre Spies have excellent, all-round skills.
At least Wales showed they have the capability of scoring. They produced two well-worked tries where they held on to the ball and showed the breathtaking ability we know they have. But overall they were well beaten.
Wales must realise that they cannot harness the talent of Shane Williams and co until they can hold on to possession for sustained periods in which they make no errors. Against the Springboks yesterday, they just made too many mistakes.
In the first half, Wales committed 10 unforced errors and no coach can plan for that. They simply did not do this in the Six Nations. Against the aggressive defence of South Africa, Wales struggled. A lot has been said about the Springboks, but when it came time to find the top gear they really put the pedal to the floor. For Wales, William's try was a stand-out moment, but before then the Springboks had won the contest in an area where Gatland's team often excel. They have made the offload one of their best aspects but the likes of centre Jean de Villiers and Juan Smith, the flanker, were too good. In fact, they were brilliant in helping to make the four tries for South Africa.
Wales will ponder their preparations. They had taken medical advice and trained in Cape Town until a day before the match. The idea was that by remaining at sea level until the last moment, the affects of the high altitude in Bloemfontein would be negated. The All Blacks and Wallabies have followed this pattern and won games.
Mick Cleary: NZ's pros and cons
One aspect they might question, however, is the lack of a warm-up match. Wales have not played competitively for three weeks. Gatland has talked about going back to introducing traditional tour games but this is a tricky decision that depends on the availability of players.
South Africa produced a professional performance. If you consider all the changes from the World Cup then it was impressive.
Wales must consider making changes, but there is little time to turn things round. Gatland must look at the scrum-half situation and consider giving Warren Fury a full debut. Some people have suggested playing Williams at No?9 but he is a world-class wing. I'm loathed to move players from their best positions.
By Ieuan Evans
Last Updated: 1:33am BST 08/06/2008
Have your say Read comments
The stony face of Warren Gatland told the story of Wales's afternoon in Bloemfontein. It was disappointing for the players and supporters and shows how far the team has to travel to produce consistent performances. It was pretty ominous at times.
Wales reduced to tatters by Springbok blitz
In pics: Ireland edged out by All Blacks, Springboks hammer Wales
Stats: Summer Test teams and stats
The fact remains - despite Wales having won the Six Nations Championship - that the skill levels of the players are still not good enough to compete fully against the bigger and better southern hemisphere players.
It's good to talk: Warren Gatland gives out instructions ahead of Wales' defeat in Bloemfontein
Gatland knows this and has talked often about the subject. He unexpectedly engineered instant success this season but he is aware the team are far from the finished article.
It may be a case of one step forward and two steps back. It was always going to be a fierce examination in a city where South Africa rarely lose. The odds were against the visitors because of the conditions and the altitude.
Gatland knows that to improve Wales he must challenge the players and this Test series is expected to stretch everyone.
Wales have improved but the Springboks remain too powerful. Their bigger men like John Smit, Bakkies Botha and Pierre Spies have excellent, all-round skills.
At least Wales showed they have the capability of scoring. They produced two well-worked tries where they held on to the ball and showed the breathtaking ability we know they have. But overall they were well beaten.
Wales must realise that they cannot harness the talent of Shane Williams and co until they can hold on to possession for sustained periods in which they make no errors. Against the Springboks yesterday, they just made too many mistakes.
In the first half, Wales committed 10 unforced errors and no coach can plan for that. They simply did not do this in the Six Nations. Against the aggressive defence of South Africa, Wales struggled. A lot has been said about the Springboks, but when it came time to find the top gear they really put the pedal to the floor. For Wales, William's try was a stand-out moment, but before then the Springboks had won the contest in an area where Gatland's team often excel. They have made the offload one of their best aspects but the likes of centre Jean de Villiers and Juan Smith, the flanker, were too good. In fact, they were brilliant in helping to make the four tries for South Africa.
Wales will ponder their preparations. They had taken medical advice and trained in Cape Town until a day before the match. The idea was that by remaining at sea level until the last moment, the affects of the high altitude in Bloemfontein would be negated. The All Blacks and Wallabies have followed this pattern and won games.
Mick Cleary: NZ's pros and cons
One aspect they might question, however, is the lack of a warm-up match. Wales have not played competitively for three weeks. Gatland has talked about going back to introducing traditional tour games but this is a tricky decision that depends on the availability of players.
South Africa produced a professional performance. If you consider all the changes from the World Cup then it was impressive.
Wales must consider making changes, but there is little time to turn things round. Gatland must look at the scrum-half situation and consider giving Warren Fury a full debut. Some people have suggested playing Williams at No?9 but he is a world-class wing. I'm loathed to move players from their best positions.
The Gay world Cup in Ireland
Top gay rugby team's world cup battle
Jun 8 2008 by Sarah Miloudi, Wales On Sunday
TRY GUYS!
WHILE Wales’ rugby stars fight it out in South Africa this summer, another Welsh squad jets off to Ireland this week for a very different tour – the gay world cup.
Kicking off on Friday, the contest will play host to more than 30 sides from around the globe.
Some will have travelled as far as Australia to take part in the contest, which will be preceded by a lavish opening party on Thursday.
And just eight months after the real Rugby World Cup, the Welsh squad is hoping they won’t repeat Wales’ dismal performance last Autumn, when the side was knocked out in the pool stages after losing to Fiji.
The Cardiff Lions last year came fourth and this year are hoping to lift the Bingham Bowl.
Fly-half and former captain of the squad Justin Gyphion, of Llandaff, Cardiff, said: “The tournament kicks off on Friday and the finals will be held a couple of days later.
“We are hoping to do better than last year when we finished up in the top third of the teams in our level.”
According to the 27-year-old recruitment consultant, there is no difference in standards between gay and straight rugby teams.
He said: “In terms of the game and the rules, there is absolutely nothing different between the rugby teams, and in terms of the standards of the sides, these can be very high in teams playing in the upper leagues.
“Certain people just feel happier playing in circumstances where they won’t be discriminated against.”
Currently Nigel Owens is the only gay official working in the sport’s highest ranks.
In 2007, the 35-year-old referee from Pontyberem, West Wales, spoke of his mental struggle before admitting publicly he was gay.
The Bingham Cup will run from Friday June 13 until Sunday June 15 at Dublin University. A total of 34 teams from America, Australia, Ireland and Wales will compete in the tournament.
sarah.miloudi@mediawales.co.uk
Jun 8 2008 by Sarah Miloudi, Wales On Sunday
TRY GUYS!
WHILE Wales’ rugby stars fight it out in South Africa this summer, another Welsh squad jets off to Ireland this week for a very different tour – the gay world cup.
Kicking off on Friday, the contest will play host to more than 30 sides from around the globe.
Some will have travelled as far as Australia to take part in the contest, which will be preceded by a lavish opening party on Thursday.
And just eight months after the real Rugby World Cup, the Welsh squad is hoping they won’t repeat Wales’ dismal performance last Autumn, when the side was knocked out in the pool stages after losing to Fiji.
The Cardiff Lions last year came fourth and this year are hoping to lift the Bingham Bowl.
Fly-half and former captain of the squad Justin Gyphion, of Llandaff, Cardiff, said: “The tournament kicks off on Friday and the finals will be held a couple of days later.
“We are hoping to do better than last year when we finished up in the top third of the teams in our level.”
According to the 27-year-old recruitment consultant, there is no difference in standards between gay and straight rugby teams.
He said: “In terms of the game and the rules, there is absolutely nothing different between the rugby teams, and in terms of the standards of the sides, these can be very high in teams playing in the upper leagues.
“Certain people just feel happier playing in circumstances where they won’t be discriminated against.”
Currently Nigel Owens is the only gay official working in the sport’s highest ranks.
In 2007, the 35-year-old referee from Pontyberem, West Wales, spoke of his mental struggle before admitting publicly he was gay.
The Bingham Cup will run from Friday June 13 until Sunday June 15 at Dublin University. A total of 34 teams from America, Australia, Ireland and Wales will compete in the tournament.
sarah.miloudi@mediawales.co.uk
G.Henry can do no Right!!!
Henry can do no right
By MICHAEL LAWS
Sunday Star Times Sunday, 08 June 2008
Last night the All Blacks played their first test of 2008. I doubt that, in the history of New Zealand rugby, so many rugby supporters have actually supported the opposite team. For there is an insurrection under way in the rugby heartland that no onfield success will quell.
But then New Zealanders are an odd people. We're not really happy unless we're miserable.
We eschew colour in our dress and our outlook: we are our ancestors, brown or white.
Let's be honest, neither's antecedents were anything wonderful. The Maori got lost and have their civilisation carbon-dated by rats. And the Europeans were very much the fag-end of their generation: if they had been any good, they would have stayed at home.
We are a nation composed of the eject of others.
Maybe that's why we really don't like ourselves. After all, we've always looked elsewhere for inspiration and affirmation whether from the Home Country, Hawaiki or Hollywood. And it's still true Scott Dixon and the Conchords were nobody until they did something overseas. We are now obsequious in our deference.
So is that why Graham Henry is the most reviled man in New Zealand? He lost us the 2007 world cup our collective statement to the world and, short of winning the 2011 contest, he remains the OJ Simpson of the oval world to a good proportion of rugby fans. Their blame remains the guy took our best chance, blew it, and now we have neither the pity nor the compassion to forgive.
And let's make no mistake here: we are still bloody serious about our rugby. It remains the most tangible expression of our nationhood. Sure, Hillary climbed Everest and Jackson won an Oscar, but that's peripheral stuff. Our identity rises and falls on the backs of our All Blacks.
Then there is Robbie Deans. St Robbie. Always smiling like some village idiot who strayed too near the transformers. Who never says anything remotely inspirational or insightful and perhaps because of that, has been elevated to the pantheon. Again, it took the interest of another nation for him to be properly valued.
Yes, you could buy into the nonsense that he is the best coach ever, of any sport in any generation. Or you could be a tad more realistic and say that your dead great-aunt could have coached the Crusaders, such is their talent and esprit de corps.
None of this vaguely excuses, though, the sedition of this past week. It ostensibly began with a treasonous column by the New Zealand Herald's sports writer Chris Rattue, declaring that he would neither watch nor support the All Blacks while Graham Henry remained at the helm. It was the literary equivalent of booing John Hart's horse at the Addington raceway after the metro gnome had blown New Zealand's other best chance in 1999.
Of course, Rattue could have just been stirring. It is not that unusual for some columnists to take an antsy angle just to gee up their readers. (Fortunately, I am not one of those. My prose is measured and moderate and it is my mission to be optimistic and complimentary about the human condition.)
But the reaction to Rattue has been interesting. A sizeable chunk of the New Zealand sporting populaton agrees that the All Blacks versus Wallabies epic this year, which includes four tests, is actually a contest between Graham Henry and St Robbie, and only one of them has horns and a swishy tail.
Even television newsreaders are opining "Go Robbie" in much the same asinine way that Americans think they have found a black Kennedy in Barack Obama. Indeed that is the analogy the ABs are coached by George W and the Wallabies by the junior senator from Illinois.
This level of fan antipathy is not necessarily a unique thing in the history of New Zealand sport. Rugby has seen darker days and the Springbok Tour of 1981 was an instance. We have also had our coaching feuds John Hart versus Grizz Wyllie and John Hart versus Laurie Mains. But this is the first time, surely, where a coach's opprobrium has spilled over and affected support for an entire national team.
But then one might argue that this is the Henry way. He has an unfortunate demeanour with a half smile that suggests the questioner is a loon. His offsiders aren't from the Carnegie charm school either "Shag" Hansen a gruff Cantabrian and Wayne Smith exuding an unsettling evangelism about quite ordinary players. The three horsemen of the apocalypse Pestilence being detained somewhere in Albanian soccer.
In many ways, they are your typical All Black coaches. If they were fully rounded individuals, they would be doing something else, but this is sport. It has always been completely mad. Elevating a recreational pastime to the moral equivalent of war does addle one's sensibilities.
But that New Zealand's national sport is inciting so many to insurrection so insidious that we would rather the Wallabies won than our national representatives that is more than madness. That it is fanned by the rugby media is also bizarre.
But then these are many of the same sports journalists who declared that Henry must go in the wake of the Rugby World Cup thinking that he would. It did not enter their minds that his services would be retained. Now that he has been reappointed, they have nowhere else to go. Henry must start the 2008 international season as their villain.
So if the All Blacks do lose this year, it will not be because of bum refereeing decisions, players dropping their bundles or because many of our best players are off chasing skirt and the euro on the Riviera. It will be Henry's fault. Pure and simple. Except if they win. Then it will be despite the former headmaster's leadership.
For the first time in my life, I feel genuine pity for a guy earning 10 times the average salary. The man who can do no right.
By MICHAEL LAWS
Sunday Star Times Sunday, 08 June 2008
Last night the All Blacks played their first test of 2008. I doubt that, in the history of New Zealand rugby, so many rugby supporters have actually supported the opposite team. For there is an insurrection under way in the rugby heartland that no onfield success will quell.
But then New Zealanders are an odd people. We're not really happy unless we're miserable.
We eschew colour in our dress and our outlook: we are our ancestors, brown or white.
Let's be honest, neither's antecedents were anything wonderful. The Maori got lost and have their civilisation carbon-dated by rats. And the Europeans were very much the fag-end of their generation: if they had been any good, they would have stayed at home.
We are a nation composed of the eject of others.
Maybe that's why we really don't like ourselves. After all, we've always looked elsewhere for inspiration and affirmation whether from the Home Country, Hawaiki or Hollywood. And it's still true Scott Dixon and the Conchords were nobody until they did something overseas. We are now obsequious in our deference.
So is that why Graham Henry is the most reviled man in New Zealand? He lost us the 2007 world cup our collective statement to the world and, short of winning the 2011 contest, he remains the OJ Simpson of the oval world to a good proportion of rugby fans. Their blame remains the guy took our best chance, blew it, and now we have neither the pity nor the compassion to forgive.
And let's make no mistake here: we are still bloody serious about our rugby. It remains the most tangible expression of our nationhood. Sure, Hillary climbed Everest and Jackson won an Oscar, but that's peripheral stuff. Our identity rises and falls on the backs of our All Blacks.
Then there is Robbie Deans. St Robbie. Always smiling like some village idiot who strayed too near the transformers. Who never says anything remotely inspirational or insightful and perhaps because of that, has been elevated to the pantheon. Again, it took the interest of another nation for him to be properly valued.
Yes, you could buy into the nonsense that he is the best coach ever, of any sport in any generation. Or you could be a tad more realistic and say that your dead great-aunt could have coached the Crusaders, such is their talent and esprit de corps.
None of this vaguely excuses, though, the sedition of this past week. It ostensibly began with a treasonous column by the New Zealand Herald's sports writer Chris Rattue, declaring that he would neither watch nor support the All Blacks while Graham Henry remained at the helm. It was the literary equivalent of booing John Hart's horse at the Addington raceway after the metro gnome had blown New Zealand's other best chance in 1999.
Of course, Rattue could have just been stirring. It is not that unusual for some columnists to take an antsy angle just to gee up their readers. (Fortunately, I am not one of those. My prose is measured and moderate and it is my mission to be optimistic and complimentary about the human condition.)
But the reaction to Rattue has been interesting. A sizeable chunk of the New Zealand sporting populaton agrees that the All Blacks versus Wallabies epic this year, which includes four tests, is actually a contest between Graham Henry and St Robbie, and only one of them has horns and a swishy tail.
Even television newsreaders are opining "Go Robbie" in much the same asinine way that Americans think they have found a black Kennedy in Barack Obama. Indeed that is the analogy the ABs are coached by George W and the Wallabies by the junior senator from Illinois.
This level of fan antipathy is not necessarily a unique thing in the history of New Zealand sport. Rugby has seen darker days and the Springbok Tour of 1981 was an instance. We have also had our coaching feuds John Hart versus Grizz Wyllie and John Hart versus Laurie Mains. But this is the first time, surely, where a coach's opprobrium has spilled over and affected support for an entire national team.
But then one might argue that this is the Henry way. He has an unfortunate demeanour with a half smile that suggests the questioner is a loon. His offsiders aren't from the Carnegie charm school either "Shag" Hansen a gruff Cantabrian and Wayne Smith exuding an unsettling evangelism about quite ordinary players. The three horsemen of the apocalypse Pestilence being detained somewhere in Albanian soccer.
In many ways, they are your typical All Black coaches. If they were fully rounded individuals, they would be doing something else, but this is sport. It has always been completely mad. Elevating a recreational pastime to the moral equivalent of war does addle one's sensibilities.
But that New Zealand's national sport is inciting so many to insurrection so insidious that we would rather the Wallabies won than our national representatives that is more than madness. That it is fanned by the rugby media is also bizarre.
But then these are many of the same sports journalists who declared that Henry must go in the wake of the Rugby World Cup thinking that he would. It did not enter their minds that his services would be retained. Now that he has been reappointed, they have nowhere else to go. Henry must start the 2008 international season as their villain.
So if the All Blacks do lose this year, it will not be because of bum refereeing decisions, players dropping their bundles or because many of our best players are off chasing skirt and the euro on the Riviera. It will be Henry's fault. Pure and simple. Except if they win. Then it will be despite the former headmaster's leadership.
For the first time in my life, I feel genuine pity for a guy earning 10 times the average salary. The man who can do no right.
Stagnation in Rugby Union........
By Peter Bills
The stagnation of world rugby, a reality confirmed by the recent World Cup and the Six Nations tournaments in the northern hemisphere, could be resolved in 2008's Tri-Nations
Championship.
The arrival of Robbie Deans as the new coach of Australia this week and Peter de Villiers's innovative hand on the controls in South African rugby, offers the game the opportunity to make overdue progress.Deans can lead the way in kick-starting international rugby in his first job as a national coach. Of the other countries in world rugby, only South Africa under Peter de Villiers looks to have much of a chance of matching Deans' likely progress, perhaps kicking off on Saturday against Wales in Bloemfontein.
DisplayAds('SquarLAV',12,18);
Like Deans, De Villiers understands the need to broaden his country's game, to expand players' personal horizons. The Springboks won the 2007 World Cup with blinkers on, playing a rigidly constructed game that had little vision or intuitive skill attached to it. It seems to me that one man can lead a much needed campaign to take rugby union on to a brighter, better plateau. That man is Robbie Deans. True, his Crusaders team won last weekend's Super 14 final through a watertight defence. But Deans has the vision, the capacity in his embrace of the game to play another way, in another style.The Crusaders' success has been hallmarked by the players' phenomenal support for the ball carrier. Options are myriad for the man in possession; to his left, his right or behind. Passes are given in the secure knowledge that a colleague will take the ball and make further progress.Under Deans, the Crusaders understand the great value of off-loading in the tackle, of extending the movement by seeking width and ensuring continuity through a pass. Support is axiomatic and this continuity is the key to breaking down modern day tight defences. Deans will bring a vibrant, challenging mind to the job of coaching the Wallabies. He will ask questions of players, demand they accept greater responsibility and make their own decisions on the field. All of which De Villiers is already demanding of the Springboks. He is right to do so for this is surely the way forward.Ironically, it could be New Zealand who will lag behind this year, as their southern hemisphere rivals seek to broaden their horizons. New Zealand has lost some talented players of the highest calibre and the loss will be keenly felt, not least during this Tri-Nations campaign.
If ever South Africa had an opportunity to win in the All Blacks' backyard it is surely next month.
I fear we will look in vain to the northern hemisphere to lead the game out of this current pit of mediocrity.
France are all over the place, a disparate group of players under a new coach.
Wales are Six Nations Champions but their pragmatic coach Warren Gatland admits he still does not yet know the extent of their capabilities, despite a Grand Slam in his first season in charge.
Ireland, too, has a new coach, or will have in September. Declan Kidney has replaced Eddie O'Sullivan but he isn't on the end-of-season tour to New Zealand and Australia. How wonderfully Irish is that? Wouldn't he have learned something about some players had he made the trip?
England remains an enigma, driven by internal strife. Like Kidney, Martin Johnson is not touring to New Zealand this summer; hence, his future impact remains unknown.
None of these nations is equipped to forge a new path for the game worldwide.
For that, we must look to innovative coaches, men of proper vision steeped in rugby knowledge. The rugby played by Graham Henry's teams in the past would suit but elsewhere, only Deans and De Villiers look remotely qualified on that front.
We must hope that the intrinsic pressures of their respective posts does not inhibit them in this task.World rugby urgently needs a new order, a new way. Australia and South Africa could lead that charge by the excellence and innovation of their play in 2008. Whether New Zealand can join them, given such significant changes in playing personnel, will be fascinating to discover, maybe starting on Saturday morning against Ireland in Wellington.
The stagnation of world rugby, a reality confirmed by the recent World Cup and the Six Nations tournaments in the northern hemisphere, could be resolved in 2008's Tri-Nations
Championship.
The arrival of Robbie Deans as the new coach of Australia this week and Peter de Villiers's innovative hand on the controls in South African rugby, offers the game the opportunity to make overdue progress.Deans can lead the way in kick-starting international rugby in his first job as a national coach. Of the other countries in world rugby, only South Africa under Peter de Villiers looks to have much of a chance of matching Deans' likely progress, perhaps kicking off on Saturday against Wales in Bloemfontein.
DisplayAds('SquarLAV',12,18);
Like Deans, De Villiers understands the need to broaden his country's game, to expand players' personal horizons. The Springboks won the 2007 World Cup with blinkers on, playing a rigidly constructed game that had little vision or intuitive skill attached to it. It seems to me that one man can lead a much needed campaign to take rugby union on to a brighter, better plateau. That man is Robbie Deans. True, his Crusaders team won last weekend's Super 14 final through a watertight defence. But Deans has the vision, the capacity in his embrace of the game to play another way, in another style.The Crusaders' success has been hallmarked by the players' phenomenal support for the ball carrier. Options are myriad for the man in possession; to his left, his right or behind. Passes are given in the secure knowledge that a colleague will take the ball and make further progress.Under Deans, the Crusaders understand the great value of off-loading in the tackle, of extending the movement by seeking width and ensuring continuity through a pass. Support is axiomatic and this continuity is the key to breaking down modern day tight defences. Deans will bring a vibrant, challenging mind to the job of coaching the Wallabies. He will ask questions of players, demand they accept greater responsibility and make their own decisions on the field. All of which De Villiers is already demanding of the Springboks. He is right to do so for this is surely the way forward.Ironically, it could be New Zealand who will lag behind this year, as their southern hemisphere rivals seek to broaden their horizons. New Zealand has lost some talented players of the highest calibre and the loss will be keenly felt, not least during this Tri-Nations campaign.
If ever South Africa had an opportunity to win in the All Blacks' backyard it is surely next month.
I fear we will look in vain to the northern hemisphere to lead the game out of this current pit of mediocrity.
France are all over the place, a disparate group of players under a new coach.
Wales are Six Nations Champions but their pragmatic coach Warren Gatland admits he still does not yet know the extent of their capabilities, despite a Grand Slam in his first season in charge.
Ireland, too, has a new coach, or will have in September. Declan Kidney has replaced Eddie O'Sullivan but he isn't on the end-of-season tour to New Zealand and Australia. How wonderfully Irish is that? Wouldn't he have learned something about some players had he made the trip?
England remains an enigma, driven by internal strife. Like Kidney, Martin Johnson is not touring to New Zealand this summer; hence, his future impact remains unknown.
None of these nations is equipped to forge a new path for the game worldwide.
For that, we must look to innovative coaches, men of proper vision steeped in rugby knowledge. The rugby played by Graham Henry's teams in the past would suit but elsewhere, only Deans and De Villiers look remotely qualified on that front.
We must hope that the intrinsic pressures of their respective posts does not inhibit them in this task.World rugby urgently needs a new order, a new way. Australia and South Africa could lead that charge by the excellence and innovation of their play in 2008. Whether New Zealand can join them, given such significant changes in playing personnel, will be fascinating to discover, maybe starting on Saturday morning against Ireland in Wellington.
When North meets South ~ South will win!!!!!!!
South Africa Defeats Wales in Rugby Test; N.Z. Wins (Update1)
By James Cone
June 7 (Bloomberg) -- World champion South Africa crossed for four tries in a 43-17 rugby Test victory today against Six Nations winner Wales.
New Zealand defeated Ireland 21-11.
Conrad Jantjes, Jean de Villers, Pierre Spies and second- half replacement Percy Montgomery touched down in Bloemfontein in coach Peter de Villiers's first match in charge.
De Villiers was named as the first black coach of the Springboks in January following the exit of Jake White, who last year led South Africa to its second World Cup title.
Butch James put the Springboks ahead after six minutes with the first of his five penalties today, and doubled the home team's lead two minutes later. He also converted all four tries.
Stephen Jones replied for Wales soon after before two more successful kicks for James put South Africa ahead 12-3. Fullback Jantjes got the opening try in the 30th minute, collecting a pass from Adrian Jacobs before touching down under the posts.
A Jamie Roberts try, converted by Jones, kept Wales in contention, but another penalty from James gave the Springboks a 12-point advantage at halftime.
De Villiers and Spies got tries as South Africa took control in the second half, though Shane Williams broke through to touch down for Wales. Montgomery's try, converted by James, completed the scoring after 70 minutes.
Both teams ended the match with 14 men after CJ van der Linde and Richard Hibbard exchanged punches.
Sitiveni Sivivatu, with his 22nd try in 22 Tests, and Ma'a Nonu touched down in Wellington for New Zealand against Ireland, which was aiming for its first win against the All Blacks in 103 years.
Fly-half Daniel Carter added a conversion and three penalties for New Zealand in its first Test since a quarterfinal defeat at the World Cup.
Paddy Wallace got a try for Ireland, which was tied at 11- 11 with 20 minutes remaining at the Westpac Stadium. Ronan O'Gara scored two penalties.
Elsewhere, Argentina beat Scotland 21-15 in Rosario. Chris Paterson, who tied Scott Murray's record of 87 Test appearances for Scotland, kicked all the visiting team's points.
By James Cone
June 7 (Bloomberg) -- World champion South Africa crossed for four tries in a 43-17 rugby Test victory today against Six Nations winner Wales.
New Zealand defeated Ireland 21-11.
Conrad Jantjes, Jean de Villers, Pierre Spies and second- half replacement Percy Montgomery touched down in Bloemfontein in coach Peter de Villiers's first match in charge.
De Villiers was named as the first black coach of the Springboks in January following the exit of Jake White, who last year led South Africa to its second World Cup title.
Butch James put the Springboks ahead after six minutes with the first of his five penalties today, and doubled the home team's lead two minutes later. He also converted all four tries.
Stephen Jones replied for Wales soon after before two more successful kicks for James put South Africa ahead 12-3. Fullback Jantjes got the opening try in the 30th minute, collecting a pass from Adrian Jacobs before touching down under the posts.
A Jamie Roberts try, converted by Jones, kept Wales in contention, but another penalty from James gave the Springboks a 12-point advantage at halftime.
De Villiers and Spies got tries as South Africa took control in the second half, though Shane Williams broke through to touch down for Wales. Montgomery's try, converted by James, completed the scoring after 70 minutes.
Both teams ended the match with 14 men after CJ van der Linde and Richard Hibbard exchanged punches.
Sitiveni Sivivatu, with his 22nd try in 22 Tests, and Ma'a Nonu touched down in Wellington for New Zealand against Ireland, which was aiming for its first win against the All Blacks in 103 years.
Fly-half Daniel Carter added a conversion and three penalties for New Zealand in its first Test since a quarterfinal defeat at the World Cup.
Paddy Wallace got a try for Ireland, which was tied at 11- 11 with 20 minutes remaining at the Westpac Stadium. Ronan O'Gara scored two penalties.
Elsewhere, Argentina beat Scotland 21-15 in Rosario. Chris Paterson, who tied Scott Murray's record of 87 Test appearances for Scotland, kicked all the visiting team's points.
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