BBC Blog Network

User Profile

paul_f_graham

Listed below are comments made by paul_f_graham between Sunday, 8th March 2009 and Monday, 9th March 2009.

«Newer
Older»

The jeers and not enough cheers in Turin 2:11pm on 09 Mar 2009 There are a few points I'd like to pick up on here:

1. Impartiality
The BBC is a publically-funded organisation and, as such, has an obligation to remain impartial as far as possible.

That doesn't mean that individual commentators have to be impartial - far from it, in fact - but that the commentary team as a whole ought to present a balanced opinion.

We had 3 commentators who used every opportunity to denigrate Dwayne Chambers and they ganged up every time. At times, it was like watching a bunch of playground bullies trying to convince all the other kids that Little Dwayne still wets his bed and that they shouldn't be his friends.

If the BBC had included someone in their commentary team who could have at least put forward a lot of the arguments that have been expressed in these comments - not necessarily a big Dwayne fan but at least a devil's advocate with a sense of fairness - it would have very quickly become apparent that the three stooges didn't have absolute authority on the matter.

For us as viewers, we could have been spared the snide comments and attempts at getting Dwayne banned for the content of his book. If you want to pass comment on him publically, at least be prepared to defend your position.

On the subject of which, I notice that Steve Cram hasn't responded to anything that's been said in these comments.

2. The British
The Oracle wrote: "... we're British and have a good sense of whats fair and right ? LOL...This is why the British LOVE their real Champions - recognition of the sacrifices and efforts they make every day to reach the top"

I couldn't disagree with you more and my prior comment about Steve Cram's opinion of Greg Rutherford is a perfect example.

I have little doubt that Greg Rutherford has worked his socks off since he's been involved with athletics. He's had all sorts of injury troubles but he comes to the European Indoor Championships and jumps a personal best. How is that a recognition of the sacrifices and efforts he's made every day?

Oh, but he didn't "reach the top" so that makes it alright, doesn't it? He's the best in Britain but because he finished 5 steps from the summit of the tallest mountain in Europe, it's okay to say he didn't do well enough.

Marilyn Okoro made a mistake with her tactics and finished outside of the medals. And people thought she might do better so it's fine to have a go at her. And the same for Sarah Claxton, who, lest we forget, equalled her own British record in the semi finals. And others.

All of these people gave their all in the pursuit of getting a medal at the Championships. It's pathetic that some are condemned for falling short, some are praised for doing better than expected (despite not getting a personal best in some cases), and one is condemned even when he brings home the gold.

In fairness to the British public, the comments on this blog do suggest that at least some have a "sense of whats [sic] fair and right" but all too often people either believe the media's representation of things or are unwilling to admit that they're unwilling to forgive, claiming that whilst two wrongs don't make a right, he shouldn't have done wrong in the first place.

Everyone makes mistakes, people; everyone does things they regret; and everyone deserves the opportunity to atone for those mistakes and misdemeanours.

Imagine the education system treated people the same way. We all either had a sneaky look at the paper of the person next to us, copied someone's homework when we'd forgotten or been too lazy to do it, or got a little bit of help from mum and dad when we didn't know something.

If schools treated pupils the way the media continues to treat Dwayne, the streets would be filled with expelled children without a hope of a career because of a lack of education and a tarnished reputation for being a cheat.

Dwayne, I hope you're reading the comments people have made on here too and that they give you some small comfort in what has become a constant barrage of bitterness aimed at you.

For my part, I wish you the best of luck with the rest of your career and I'll be watching whenever you get the chance to compete, supporting you along with the other British athletes.
The jeers and not enough cheers in Turin 11:25pm on 08 Mar 2009 I was once again very disappointed with the treatment Dwain Chambers received at the hands of the BBC commentators during the European Indoor Championships.

Look, the guy cheated, was banned, and served his time. I won't say he made a mistake or throw any other platitudes in there because he knew what he was doing and hoped he wouldn't get caught - he did and he's paid for it.

He's now back in the sport running faster than ever and it's about time everyone stopped whinging about him.

During the BBC coverage, Colin Jackson, Jonathan Edwards, and you, Steve - all of whom I have a great deal of respect for - could barely hide you contempt for him. It was difficult to watch at times.

The thing that seems to be upsetting people more than anything else is that he's an exceptional athlete and he continues to show it. Moreover, he's now showing what an exceptional competitor he is. He's not allowed to compete on the circuit, he's had almost no races, and yet he still comes out and smashes the European record.

As a nation, we seem bent on taking everyone down a peg or two - especially our sports people. Why?

We have someone who is genuinely world-class and winning medals and all anyone can talk about is how he USED to use banned substances. I don't think anyone could possibly suggest he's on anything now - Van Commenee himself said Dwain's tested almost every day - so why are we not celebrating the fact that we have such a talent to call our own?

If the crowd in Turin wants to boo (why was it "interesting", by the way?) Dwain then that's up to them - he's not an Italian after all - but we should be supporting him as he now is, not trying to destroy him for past failings.

A classic example of this apparent desire to undermine performances is in this very article, Steve: "Greg Rutherford didn't perform that well in the long jump either. He was sixth, despite a personal best."

How can anyone getting a personal best in the final of an international event be said to have not performed very well? If you ran your fastest ever 1,500m in a championship final and finished sixth, would you not be at least a bit disappointed to read that your performance was considered to be not very good?

If he'd been up against a weaker field and finished in the medals, would the same have been said? I doubt it very much.

«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

paul_f_graham