As London 2012 draws to a close we celebrate success and commiserate with those competitors who didn’t perform to the level they would have wished. There are many instances of excellence, Bradley Wiggins, Usain Bolt, Michael Phelps, Jess Ennis, Mo Farrah, Ben Ainslie, Chris Hoy to name but a few. Excellence doesn’t always mean winning gold. Securing a personal best or getting to an Olympic final is also worth celebrating.
I'm saddened by the reaction of French team director Isabelle Gautheron who hinted that Britain’s success is down to illegal technology rather than the dominance of the riders. L’Equipe ran a poll asking the same question with 70% of the respondees agreeing that GB success was down to cheating. You can see the poll and responses here.
I'm saddened by the reaction of French team director Isabelle Gautheron who hinted that Britain’s success is down to illegal technology rather than the dominance of the riders. L’Equipe ran a poll asking the same question with 70% of the respondees agreeing that GB success was down to cheating. You can see the poll and responses here.
GB performance director Dave Brailsford wound up a gullible French interviewer by joking that “specially round wheels” were the key to Britain’s gold rush in the Velodrome! Incidentally the wheels are made by Mavic, a French company. The Mavic website details the success of their technology which is also available to other countries.
I wondered whether to question if Renaud Lavillenie, the brilliant French pole vaulter who so deservedly won gold on Friday, perhaps had springs in a ‘magic pole’. However, I thought this might smack of sour grapes and detract from what had been a magnificent performance.
Methinks that a country with a reputation, par excellence, for doing such wonderful things with grapes should know that sour grapes doth not the best wine make…
Gaynor x (glass in hand and tongue in cheek ;o)
Gaynor x (glass in hand and tongue in cheek ;o)
