With the Closing Ceremony finally
over – and without sounding too churlish, can anyone explain why George Michael
wasn’t quietly told that one song was quite enough, thanks – the rugby world
can look forward to cheering our own Olympians next time round. Rio will have a
sevens tournament, as well as a golf championship.
I feel torn on this, and must
confess to a feeling of some relief when Chelsea’s Daniel Sturridge missed his
penalty, having feared that the national obsession with football would
overshadow the genuine Olympian feats that we have witnessed during the past
fortnight. The sight of those ridiculously wealthy young men alongside people
who have struggled to get any funding at all would have made me gag. I have
sympathy for Sturridge in having to live with his miss – but only up to a point.
He gets more money in a month than our entire swim team would get in a year.
The highly paid pros going out against either completely amateur, or lowly paid
part time professionals can be distinctly unedifying. The US “Dream Team” may
be great for the sponsors back in the States, but it’s a bit like Tiger Woods
sweeping the monthly medals at your local golf club.
Similarly, I was delighted to see
Andy Murray produce the goods. (It would have been brilliant to hear a piper
knock out “Flower of Scotland” there too. How long before we ditch that
dreadful dirge of a “National Anthem” ?) But does the highly professional,
highly televised world of tennis need Olympic status ? Do we NEED another
golfing tournament ?
Sevens rugby will, as ever, be
great fun, but let’s produce a GB team of our existing sevens players, rather
than trying to put together our own “Dream Team”. And even as a Welshman – can we not sing “Jerusalem”
at the medal ceremony ???????
