As Beijing empties, those of us left behind have time to dwell on some of the great moments in sporting history that we have witnessed.
Last weekend, in anticipation of an unfavourable result against my beloved red and whites at St James’s Park, I took the tried-and-tested ostrich method of arranging to be out of range of TV or radio. Instead I was cycling across England from Whitehaven on the west coast, arriving in a desolate Sunderland about one hour after the final whistle.
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/ 22 February 2008
COUNTERPOINT: When the Olympic Games were held in Moscow in 1980, the British team did not take part in the opening ceremony. As a first-time Olympian I was mildly disappointed, perhaps more so because it hadn’t been orchestrated by Steven Spielberg. That is now also true of Beijing and I doubt whether many Olympians lost much sleep over his decision.
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/ 12 October 2007
The women’s 100m in Sydney was the first Olympic final I commentated on for the BBC. Marion Jones streaked to a victory so emphatic that the words that came out were an athlete’s reaction to what I’d witnessed: ”Wow! This is the Olympic Games. You’re not supposed to win by that much.”
Ten seconds should not be long enough to change the course of a lifetime, but for 100m athletes that is all it takes. Tyson Gay is now a world champion — a man of stature assured of his place in sporting history, with a reputation enhanced by his generous nature.