Pages

Labels

Selasa, 31 Juli 2012

Olympics live

07:17 One of the morning's main attractions, the rowing, gets up and running from a British perspective - I believe - at the unsociably early time of 9.50am when Zac Purchase and Mark Hunter look to retain their golds in the men's lightweight double sculls semi-final.

The thought of being on a river at 9.50am, regardless of whether it is warm, cold, wet or dry, does strange things to my innards. I lived with the rowing captain of my university college. A lovely girl until she had to get on the river at 6am. Then she threw peanut butter and toast at me.

But good luck nevertheless to the duo and may their crusts remain unflung.

07:08 Georgina Geikie kicks things off for Britain this morning in the women's 25m pistol shooting. It's a bit of a hidden gem of a sport, this, as The Telegraph's Jonathan Liew found out when he attended the men's 10m air rifle final.

One would suspect so few care because we're not very good at it, but that doesn't stop football being a national sport.

06:59 Speaking of the unspeakable pressure on Great Britain's athletes, Ellen Gandy has shared a pretty heartwrenching account of not qualifying for the women's 200m butterfly final - despite winning silver in the event at last year's World Championships.

06:57 And so to today: day five of what's been a fantastic Olympic Games so far. Maybe we're biased. But it's pretty much had everything already; everything, that is, except a Britain standing on top of the podium, gold medal around their neck, with God Save The Queen playing in the background.

But perhaps that's the problem. Just four days in and the expectations towards British athletes is high; unfairly high. Cavendish's 'failure' in the cycling road race came in one of the most unpredictable events in the entire schedule; yesterday's equestrian was simply a case of the German squad being that good.

As Brits descend upon Eton Dorney and Hampton Court to watch today's rowing and cycling, they do so in the hope of seeing Britain's first gold medal at Britain's Games. Helen Glover and Heather Stanning in the women's pair; the men's eights; Bradley Wiggins and Lizzie Armitstead in the time trials. All will feel the expectation, but all must ignore it. Go out there and enjoy yourselves, would be my hugely underqualified advice.

And let's just celebrate everything whatever happens. The reach of London 2012 goes far beyond medals.

06:36 Michael Phelps: the greatest ever Olympian. That is the headline that adorns news stands at tube stations all across the country. With victory in the 4x200m relay alongside his American team-mates, Phelps took his 19th Olympic medal. 15 of them have been gold.

If the feat of eight golds at Beijing 2008 did not confirm it already, perhaps this does. There will be arguments that swimming is a different discipline to the track and field; that the two are incomparable. But to do what he has for 12 years is the optimum example of physical and mental strength.

Plus, he's a blooming lovely lad, isn't he? Loves his mum. Nice guys don't always finish last you see (though sometimes do come second to a South African).

Is he the greatest Olympian of all time? Email or tweet with your views.

0 komentar:

Posting Komentar