Image: REUTERS/Robert Pratta.
He had tried to soldier on, but the impact of the recent drugs controversy on Lance Armstrong’s appearance were plain for all to see.
Category: Sport
Lance Armstrong: 50 Shades Of Dismay
Mud does stick, it seems. Image: Getty Images Europe.
I probably would never have followed Lance Armstrong’s career, or at least I would have only taken a vague interest in it, if my Dad hadn’t been diagnosed with cancer in 2004. That was the summer when Armstrong killed it at the Tour De France, winning six stages as well as the whole race, his sixth of seven.
All after recovering from stage three testicular cancer.
Sergio Ramos: The Exception Has Landed
Image via dirtytackle.com.
I’ve gathered a fairly disparate and eclectic group of friends over my life, but when it comes to football, they fall into two very distinct (and alarmingly vociferous) categories. Those who love it and obsess about tactics, players and new boot silos with as much enthusiasm as I do, and those who hate it.
An arbitrary and non-scientific survey of the latter revealed that the money and stupidity involved in football are largely to blame for their inflamed ire and to be honest, it’s difficult to defend my beloved game when players continually feel compelled to demonstrate how utterly witless they are.
Orlando Cruz: Crossing The Line
Amazingly, while several thousand people will be prepared to shout homophobic abuse at Cruz, very few are likely to tell him what they think of his proclivities to his face. Image via abcnews.com.
The macho perception of football and the subsequent attitude of fans was recently cited by The Secret Footballer as the principal reason for there being a grand total of zero ‘out’ gay players in the English Premier League.
Back To School With The Springboks
Image: Gallo Images/Getty Images Europe.
After years of cheating, scamming and lying, I’ve finally found something I have in common with an elite athlete.
Admittedly being forced to do PE in my vest and pants when I was five isn’t quite the same as a full on training session with the Springboks, but it’s probably as traumatic.
Achievement unlocked, I think.
Weekend Highlights: Snark Patrol
If this isn’t a warning to him, nothing will be. Photoshop: Kelly Welles.
Pleasant weekend, peeps?
If not, here are some things that amused/irritated or otherwise grabbed my attention while I was trying to do other things.
Hillsborough: Lies, Damn Lies & Disaster Management Logistics
Image: Jim Dyson/Getty Images Europe.
Perhaps the revelations of the Leveson Enquiry have desensitised us to corruption and collusion between the media, the police and government, but the full impact of the Hillsborough Independent Panel’s report has yet to be felt.
The enquiry found that police statements were systematically altered to support the theory that Liverpool FC fans were responsible for the events that left 96 dead, that that version of events was perpetuated in the public domain by The Sun publishing of unsubstantiated reports as fact and the FA allowed a high profile cup tie to go ahead in a stadium without a safety certificate.
Right now, they’re all hunkered down, waiting to see which direction the shrapnel will fly in and where it will cause the most damage. Only one thing is certain. When the dust clears and those responsible are brought to book, their suffering will be inconsequential compared to that of the families who’ve spent the last 23 years being told that their son, daughter, father, mother, sister or brother was, at least in part, to blame for their own death.
That’s a bloody long time to walk alone.
Andy Murray: A Moment In Time
Image: PacificCoastNews.com.
How serendipitous that we English should throw a massive life-affirming, celebration of sporting and cultural inclusivity, just weeks before a Scotsman wins the first grand slam victory for a British male in 76 years. It would have been a bugger to claim as our own if we hadn’t, wouldn’t it?
Congrats on the win, Andy. And the perfect timing.
Leon Knight: Hashtag Hate Crime
Involuntary writing hiatus over, I return to the internet only to find that yet another misogynist has broken loose from his moorings and started spraying Twitter with his own brand of vigilante DVT. On the plus side, it’s a footballer this time, so there will be no crushing fall from grace and embarrassment at our own misplaced faith.
Alright, maybe a bit.
Schadenfreude Corner: KP ‘The Nuts’ Pietersen
Image: REUTERS/Luke MacGregor.
When you get dropped from the England cricket team for allegedly sending critical text messages about your fellow players to the opposition, it’s fair to say you’re unlikely to receive the biggest welcome when you return to your club.
So congrats to Kevin Pietersen, who generously gave supporters something to get their teeth into at the weekend by getting bowled out first ball and having to do the walk of shame to a veritable chorus of enthusiastic boos and hisses.
Did you really think you could call your captain a ‘doos’ and no-one would figure out what it meant? You’re not the only one with access to electronic communication, Kev.
Kelly Welles 