August 7th
”Sport does offer an escape, but it is not a vacation from critical thought. This endless Olympic boosterism is oppressive.” Quote from typical Guardian gobbledygook.
T is about the team, it is about the technology, it is about the wheels, the preparation, the numbers, and the thousand tiny pieces of analysis and insight that go to make an Olympic champion. Yet, every now and then, it is really just about the man. One incredible man; one man and his unending thirst for success; one man who simply refuses to be beaten; a six-time Olympic gold medalist called Christopher Andrew Hoy.
Alistair Brown won the gold medal but his brother Jonny highlighted the brutality of the triathlon when he collapsed in exhaustion after winning a bronze medal. Medics summoned ice, wrapped it in a towel and stuffed it up his shirt. A black cloth was held up to protect him from the photographers’ lenses before he was taken away in a wheelchair to the privacy of a tent.
Great Britain’s dressage riders won gold and landed their first title in Olympic history. The trio of Carl Hester, Laura Bechtolsheimer and Charlotte Dujardin triumphed.
British success loosens London’s stiff upper lip: stereotype headline from USA Today.
August 8th
Italian race walker Alex Schwazer broke down in tears as he admitted buying banned substance EPO and even lying about it to his fiancée as he stored it in their fridge.
Despite the lessons of history, it became clear yesterday that a British team can win a sudden-death sporting shoot-out after all. Provided, that is, horses are involved.
Also: Gregory Bauge could not beat Jason Kenny in the sprint so he tried to defeat him in the press conference, turning journalist to demand why Britain are so indomitable in the Olympic Velodrome.
Is that an oar in your pocket, or are you just happy to win the bronze? U.S. rower denies he had erection during medal ceremony. Of course not; he was a member of the coxless fours!
August 9th
American Manteo Mitchell brought new meaning to the phrase ‘carrying an injury’ when it was revealed he ran the 4x400m relay with a broken leg.
History belongs to bonny little lass from Leeds with a smile like sunshine and a punch like thunder. Nicola Adams won the first gold medal achieved by a female boxer.
Kenya’s David Rudisha romps to 800m gold and sets first new track world record of London Games, breaking his own world record in the process.
Jade Jones won Britain’s first ever taekwondo gold when she beat Yuzhuo Hou of China in the women’s under-57kgs final.
“This is for Pearl Harbor:” racist tweets after U.S. women’s football team beats Japan for Olympic Gold.
Bonkers but beautiful: Lightning Bolt strikes twice to take these Games to a new high.
Track cyclist Gijs Van Hoecke was sent home from the Games after he was pictured looking drunk and being carried into a taxi after a night out. Can’t a man be allowed to drown his sorrows?
More water torture sees Team GB women take home wooden spoon in water polo competition.
I think it should be noted that had Wales entered as an independent nation their medal tally would have put them above many other bigger nations. But so for that matter would the County of Yorkshire.. Well done TeamGB and thanks to the blog for some different insights.