GAMES

Just as there is nothing more satisfying for an athlete – to use the term in its broadest sense – than to win an Olympic gold medal, there is nothing more satisfying for a journalist – ditto – than to document the career of that athlete.

It's a ludicrous premise in a way. When the winning blow is struck, or the line crossed, the victory belongs to the protagonist, with lessening versions of credit accruing to their coach, psychologist, nutritionist, pharmacist – sorry, forget that last one.

But there is no getting away from it – in the moment of victory, one cannot help but rejoice the more if one has invested hours in speaking to the eventual winner and writing about them.

At the London 2012 Olympics that – thank the Lord – have just concluded with such success (the event which the Evening Standard gloomily warned on its front page would be the "Wettest Games on record" took place for the most part in glorious sunshine), there were clear examples of this truth.

Speaking personally, the second Saturday of the Games is still something I have to remind myself actually happened, rather than being something from a kind of hometown reverie.

Before spending the evening in dizzy contemplation of three home athletics golds in the space of an hour – pinch me someone – I had taken the trip down to Eton Dorney.

At the rowing venue since re-named Eton Adorney following the home successes there during the Games – not really – I watched the home team double its number of golds to four as the men's coxless four and the lightweight women's double scull of Katherine Copeland and Sophie Hosking crossed the line of foaming bubbles ahead of all opposition between two mountains of patriotic fervour.

It was stirring to witness the relatively new pairing win their title. But the victory which reverberated most was the one earned by the four which had been put together earlier in the year by the men's head coach, Jürgen Gröbler, after it became clear that Andy Triggs Hodge and Pete Reed, both Olympic champions in the 2008 four, were not going to find a way to get past the New Zealand pair who eventually won the 2012 Olympic title, Hamish Bond and Eric Murray.

In the course of the previous four years I had seen and spoken to the British pair and charted – along with many others – an emotional graph that had begun with soaring hope, then dipped to despair and frustration before rising to joy.

Early in 2009, Reed had announced at a press event next to the Tower of London that he would definitely be seeking a second Olympic gold, and had spoken in confident tones about what he and his mate from Molesey might be able to accomplish at the coming home Games.

Two years – and successive defeats going into double figures – later, Reed and Triggs Hodge spoke about having "a mountain to climb" in London after enduring yet another demoralising defeat by the Kiwi pair at the world championships.

In the event, Gröbler switched the party from one mountain to another, and roped the increasingly despondent pair up with their old team mate from Beijing, Tom James, and Alex Gregory, who could be viewed either as the newcomer in the boat, or the only remaining inhabitant remaining from the crew which had won the world title in 2011.

Before the British trials, where everything was about to be thrown into the pot as far as the men's four was concerned, Gregory has spoken with cautious optimism about his hopes of getting a place in the newly-minted "flagship" crew that would receive Gröbler's particular personal attention for the home Games.

"He has got a huge history of success with his methods, he's proved his coaching ability over so many years now, and I want to be coached by him in an Olympic year," Gregory said.

"It is also a boat with a glorious history for Britain – the coxless four has taken three successive Olympic golds, so to be in the crew that earned a fourth gold would be really exciting, and to do that on a home course would be even more incredible."

Gregory had narrowly missed out on Olympic selection in 2008 but went to Beijing as a reserve and watched all the action from the stands.

He described that experience as "a turning point" in his rowing career.

"In many ways it was a frustrating experience, and it came after a long run of injuries and disappointments for me," he said. "But sitting on the sidelines and watching the guys I had trained and raced with collecting their medals made me feel even more committed to the sport.

"When I used to be asked about my ambition, I always used to say it was to win an Olympic gold medal. That's what you say, isn't it? But I know now what the Games feel like, and I have experienced that atmosphere and emotion.

"When Mark Hunter won the lightweight double scull gold with Zac Purchase, I was sitting right behind his brother and his dad and I saw how much it meant to them. They had tears streaming down their faces and they were hugging each other – I can feel myself welling up right now just thinking about it.

"That made me realise what it would mean to my family and friends if I could win an Olympic gold."

And so to see Gregory win his own gold was a rich experience. As he afterwards admitted with a rueful smile, he had suffered feelings of extreme nervousness ahead of the final, rooted in the conviction that if three gold medallists and a "newcomer" failed to retain the fours title, the difference would be perceived as the "newcomer".

As for Triggs Hodge and Reed, they had a golden feeling after four years in which it seemed increasingly likely they would reach this point with only grim smiles on their faces.

"I can only feel happy right now," said Reed. "Andy and I have had a tough Olympiad – it was a silver Olympiad, to be honest – and we had many trials and dark times."

To witness such sporting confirmations feels like a rare privilege.

By Mike Rowbottom

Source: www.insidethegames.biz

Coca-Cola, the Olympics longest-standing sponsor, was tonight forced to issue a grovelling apology after it deleted the birthplace of the Games, Greece, from a map displayed at the Olympic Park during London 2012.

The omission has caused fury in Greece with hundreds of messageboards condemning Coca-Cola, which has been associated with the Olympics since Amsterdam in 1928 and been a TOP sponsor since the programme was launched in 1986.

Coca-Cola has been the Presenting Partner of the official Olympic and Paralympic Pin Trading Centres since 1988 and it was in this role that it produced the map. 

The map, displayed at Pin Trading Centres on the Olympic Park and Hyde Park, did not show several countries, including Turkey, which is particularly embarrassing for a company whose chief executive, Muhtar Kent, is Turkish. 

But it was the fact that it did not include Greece, the birthplace of the Olympics, which has proved the most controversial with insidethegames receiving several hundred comments today alone on the topic.

Coca-Cola, whose strapline for its Hellenic division is "passion for excellence", today issued an apology for the mistake after being contacted by insidethegames.

"Coca-Cola recognises and appreciates the importance, influence and contribution of Greece to the Olympics," a spokesman told insidethegames. 

"We regret any misrepresentation of Greece on the world maps that were displayed inside the Pin Trading Centres at Hyde Park and the Olympic Park. 

"The original maps were designed as simplified geographical renderings of countries and continents of the world and were not drawn to scale.

"As a result, several countries, including Greece, were inaccurately represented. 

"Coca-Cola has taken the matter very seriously and, once the situation was brought to our attention, as a matter of urgency, a new, more accurate design was put into production. 

"When the Pin Trading Centre on the Olympic Park reopens we will ensure it features the new map. 

"Although there is a now a lower level of pin trading at the Hyde Park Pin Trading Centre, we will ensure a new map is installed there tomorrow, August 18."

By Duncan Mackay in London

Source: www.insidethegames.biz

The Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC), the former governors of the sport, is launching a campaign to get cricket restored to the Olympic programme because they believe it would help it develop around the world.

Cricket has only ever appeared once at the Olympics, in Paris in 1900, when teams representing Great Britain and France played each other, and was won by 158 runs by Britain.

But neither team was nationally selected with the British side being a touring club, the Devon and Somerset Wanderers, while the French team, the French Athletic Club Union, comprising mainly British expatriates living in Paris.

But now the MCC's World Cricket Committee, which includes former England captain Michael Vaughan and ex-Australia skipper Steve Waugh, has urged the International Cricket Council (ICC) to make getting the Twenty20 form of the sport into the Olympics a priority.

"The Committee subsequently discussed the possibilities of cricket becoming an Olympic sport and believes this may be an important route for developing the game around the world and particularly in China," an MCC statement read.

The sport made its debut at the Asian Games in Guangzhou, China, in 2010 when Bangladesh won the men's event and Pakistan the women's.

But, perhaps most significantly for the future development of the sport, Japan beat China in the bronze medal playoff in the women's tournament.

Rodney Miles, the former chairman of the Hong Kong Cricket Club (HKCC) who addressed the MCC on the topic at their meeting at Lord's believes the sport has a future in China if it can get into the Olympics.

"In China cricket is seen by many as a minority sport, which is what you have to overcome, hence the Olympics," he told the BBC.

"That's the issue, to get more people to watch and understand the game."

"Why are they not in the World Cup or the Olympics?

"They should be there.

"That's what life's about for sportspeople."

But the earliest cricket can be included on the programme for the Olympics is 2024 as the process for 2020 is already well underway.

Seven sports are bidding.

Baseball and softball have put in joint bid while climbing, karate, roller sports, squash, wakeboard and wushu are also hoping for inclusion.

The International Olympic Committee (IOC) is due to make a decision on which sport to include at its Session in Buenos Aires on September 7, 2013.

By Duncan Mackay in London

Source: www.insidethegames.biz

AS at 4 p.m. yesterday, Chief Secretary of the Tobago House of Assembly, Orville London, had not yet received an invitation to join in today's motorcade organised by several Government ministries to celebrate the achievements of local athletes who competed in the 2012 London Olympics.

However, London does not see this as an issue.

In a telephone interview yesterday, London told the Express what he did receive was correspondence from Minister of National Security Jack Warner about a courtesy call to the Chief Secretary before the start of the motorcade which is scheduled to begin at the ANR Robinson International Airport at 10 a.m.

London said he was in discussions with Minister of Tobago Development Dr Delmon Baker and the courtesy call by Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar, was being finalised.

"I am willing to participate in the courtesy call," London said.

"I don't think we should do anything to sour the celebrations. However, the Tobago House of Assembly will be represented on the motorcade. We are going to ensure that. Maybe at the courtesy call that invitation will be extended (to me personally).

The athletes listed to be part of the motorcade are gold medallist Keshorn Walcott who topped the field in the javelin event, cyclist Njisane Phillip, quarter-miler Lalonde Gordon, men's 50 metres finalist Roger Daniel, quarter-miler Machel Cedenio, sprint hurdler Mikel Thomas and sprinter Michelle-Lee Ahye.

London said the THA has also planned a function to honour the athletes scheduled to begin at 7 p.m. today at Coco Cafe, Crown Point, Tobago.

"Our intention is to do everything possible to ensure that there are no hitches and that we can synchronise the activities so that the motorcade can happen and at least Lalonde (Gordon) would be available at the function," he said.

Gordon, who was born in Tobago 23 years ago, secured two bronze medals having participated in the men's 400 metres race and the men's 4x400 metres relay. He left Tobago at the age of two, and resides in Queens, New York, United States where he is pursuing an athletic scholarship. Gordon arrived in Trinidad and Tobago last Saturday.

London said the THA wants to pay special honour to every Tobago-born athlete who was selected to be part of the 2012 Olympic team, not just those who participated. He said these included Gordon, Rennie Quow, Josanne Lucas, Kelly-Ann Baptiste and Semoy Hackett.

"A lot of them are not going to be here but their parents are being invited to participate and to accept, on behalf of the athletes, whatever is being offered to them.

By Keino Swamber

Source: www.trinidadexpress.com