BBC Blog Network

User Profile

Baron_Daguerre

Listed below are comments made by Baron_Daguerre between Friday, 22nd August 2008 and Saturday, 23rd August 2008.

«Newer
Older»

Is it time for a really modern pentathlon? 10:38am on 23 Aug 2008 For 2012, I'd suggest a pentathlon of traditional British events:

Gurning,
Gut-barging,
Shin-kicking,
Cheese-rolling,
and Synchronised Bog-snorkelling.

All shamefully neglected by the BBC.
Shanaze's golden gamble ends in blood and bruises 11:54pm on 22 Aug 2008 #146 - yes; Please Don't Feed The Trolls

Also, I'd agree that squash should definitely be in the Olympics, and probably rugby 7's too, but not at the expense of BMX - there are a lot of sports that I'd drop before cutting BMX.
Gradually putting silver in perspective 11:28pm on 22 Aug 2008 Frances, there's a big paradox at the heart of sport (and much else in life): on the one hand, to compete with or compare yourself to others ultimately weakens and defeats you, the only competition that really matters is the competition with yourself, to be the very best that you can be - but on the other hand the only context in which you can become that, the only way to test yourself, is to test yourself against others.

That probably doesn't make a lot of sense, it's a lot to try and express in a few words, but what I'm trying to say is that the most important thing is what you wrote in your fourth paragraph:

"I wouldn't change what we did; physically and tactically we put together the best race we ever have; we went as fast as we possibly could on the day. And as an athlete this is the most I have ever asked of myself."

Few people will ever be able to look themselves in the mirror and say that with absolute honesty. If you're one of them, then I hope you come to understand that beside this everything else is dross.
Shanaze's golden gamble ends in blood and bruises 10:54pm on 22 Aug 2008 Quijote at #136: I really don't think many people here, if any, disrespect the silver medals or the silver medallists. If I had an Olympic silver medal hanging on my wall I'd be very proud indeed.

But I also believe that the 'second is first loser' attitude is in many cases part of what actually gets athletes to the Olympics and in contention for gold; and that many of the athletes from around the world that we've had the privilege to watch these last two weeks simply wouldn't be there if they weren't obsessed with being the winner. I mean if you're prepared to settle for silver then you'll never get the chance to settle for Olympic silver, you get to settle for second place in your local league.

MartinTennis: chill out - your girl won.
Shanaze's golden gamble ends in blood and bruises 8:38pm on 22 Aug 2008 "This girl should be the poster girl for 2112"

I'm sure she do just fine in 2012, but 2112? might be a bit wrinkly by then.
Shanaze's golden gamble ends in blood and bruises 6:45pm on 22 Aug 2008 Wingcommanderthrush, somewhere on this website it's recorded that while Keen was still performance director at the cycling squad, he made the decision to focus resources only on those athletes who were "obsessed with winning" Reade clearly has that obsession - without it she would have been at home watching the race on television like the rest of us. I suspect that all that was going through her mind was that silver just wasn't good enough for the world number 1. You may have seen a few very unhappy looking individuals standing on the second step at some of the medals ceremonies - and that's the attitude that gives them a chance of standing at the top.

But even if the medals table was her sole concern, it should be pretty obvious that a slim chance of a gold is worth far more than a certain silver, so she wouldn't have done anything differently, would she?

Killeenster: are you anything to do with Liam?
China for gold, Britain for bronze? 2:30pm on 22 Aug 2008 Given that the marathon (and ultra-marathon) races remain pretty wide open, I find it hard to believe that there's some intrinsic, physiological reason why Africans should have an advantage at 10,000m. But even if they do, that's no reason to write off GB's future prospects - there are a few British nationals of African descent.
Shanaze's golden gamble ends in blood and bruises 1:54pm on 22 Aug 2008 Wingcommanderthrush: "May I remind you that she is part of a team ... and realising she could not win she should have bagged a silver medal for the team in their efforts to finish as far up the leader board as possible."

That 'leader board' would be the medal table where one gold counts for more than a hundred silvers?
Shanaze's golden gamble ends in blood and bruises 12:37pm on 22 Aug 2008 #54 That's appalling! Do we not need facilities to train for 2012? and don't we need to get our increasingly obese youth out and exercising? Manchester City Council should be jumping at the chance to make the BMX track a public amenity. Start a petition Brailsford!

Iwelshbloke - that should have been 'as well as XC' not 'and XC' - it seems to be my day for gremlins. How good are Beckingsale and Kileen?
Shanaze's golden gamble ends in blood and bruises 12:11pm on 22 Aug 2008 I've never watched BMX before this Olympics, but I definitely wouldn't count it among the events that should be culled - exciting to watch, highly skilled, requiring physical effort as intense as any short race on land or water, and with a degree of risk - what more could you want?

I do think it's a great shame we had to lose a velodrome event (one of Hoy's!) to get the BMX, but I wouldn't swap them back. Let's bring in MTB downhill and XC for future games, but if other events have to be sacrificed to do it, let's cull some of the more absurd ones from other disciplines this time - something 'synchronised' perhaps, the ridiculous walking races, or the unfathomable triplejump.

«Newer
Older»

^ Back to top

BBC MMVI

The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites

BBC.co.uk

BBC Blog Network

Find and talk to the BBC's bloggers.

User Profile

Baron_Daguerre