If the death of a racehorse is a sad event, then the death of a racehorse on live television is an obvious starting point for national catharsis. So it has been in the United States in the past few days after the collapse and ultimate euthanasia of the filly Eight Belles at the end of last weekend’s Kentucky Derby.
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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/ 4 February 2008
Former Olympic and world champion sprinter Maurice Greene announced his retirement on Monday, citing nagging injuries. Greene (33) said he planned to pursue coaching and business interests in the United States and had no regrets about his athletic career.
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/ 2 September 2007
Tyson Gay joined an exclusive club on Saturday in Osaka, Japan, by becoming only the third man ever to win three gold medals at a single world championships, overshadowing Meseret Defar’s 5 000m victory. Only fellow Americans Carl Lewis (1983 and 1987) and Maurice Greene (1999) have achieved the feat before.
Tyson Gay romped to the 200m world title on Thursday, giving him a rare sprint double at the World Athletics Championships. He joined an exclusive club that includes fellow Americans Maurice Greene and the disgraced Justin Gatlin as the only men to win both the 100m and 200m crowns.