The summer of lov… SPORT?

Whether your the kind person who can just about run a bath – never mind a marathon – or your a grumbling old person who refuses every British past time except for the one that means you can complain about everything, it does not matter. As even the very un-enthused among us cannot deny that this summer, the summer of 2012 – is all about sport. Now I know many of you will already have you suitcases packed, determined to miss all this summer ‘fun’ – especially those of you in London, but let me persuade you…

I love sport. Not playing it – on that front I’m about as sporty and athletic as supersized big mac. But, I do love to watch it. Now I don’t mean the pretend sports – I’m talking to you Formula 1, Snooker and Darts – I mean the getting hot and sweaty, euphoric, exciting and excruciatingly painful sports like football, athletics and tennis. Those are sports.

And if ever I was in danger of thinking sport had lost its sheen, my faith was restored to me on Sunday when I watched Sergio Aguero’s shot hit the back of the net in the 94th minute to take the Premiership title. Really, I can assure you, it doesn’t get better than that. You know you are watching sporting history when a team who you have no allegiance to what-so-ever has you jumping up and down in glee.

After the dust had settled at least a little bit on that sporting miracle, and my heart rate had gone back to its steady thud, I could hear my other half mumbling on about how upset he was that this was the end of the season. The end of football for another year. And I remember staring at him in utter disbelief that he was in fact so downhearted. Why? Well because this summer is going to be the biggest British sporting summer in our short lives. Another summer like this will not happen again. It is history in the making. London 2012 will disrupt our lives, yes, but the utter excitement of hosting the world as the best of the best compete against each other is a notion that gives me chills.

Even if you ignore the fact that London is hosting the Olympic games in just a few weeks time, you still have the second best football tournament in the world – the Euros. And yes, we probably won’t get out of our group, and yes we definitely won’t win anything, but that is the passion of football. It really is about the journey. When the whole nation comes together and wills those 12 lads on (I say 12 as I am counting good ol’ Roy), there is no feeling like it. Other sports come and go, but there is no sport greater loved in this country than football. And that’s a fact I’d stake my life on.

And so, when you grumble about the delays on the tubes, the tourists wandering around getting in you way, or the huge rise in prices in all the London shops, remember this – this event is something your children, and your children’s children will ask you about, it is something that historians will talk about in 200 years time and say what an achievement it was, and it is in itself, a little piece of history. So, stop complaining, turn that frown upside down and get into the spirit of this great sporting summer!

Disclaimer: I should just mention that I in no way condone the use of the London 2012 mascots. I think they are a scourge on the earth and that I could have come up with a better bunch with five minutes and an etch-a-sketch. That goes for the logo too. Shoddy work.

Channel 4 – proud to be ruining Athletics since August 2011.

Hello there friends, colleagues, randoms. It is me, Hannah, here again to complain to you all about the little things. Yes, I did not start my blog with the intention of doing this, but I am going to do it anyway.

I’m a little slow on the uptake of this one, but I thought I’d vent my frustrations anyway. So what is it this week? Well I like sport – I know, I’m a girl – what is wrong with me?! Right TalkSport? And so as usual, when the World Athletics Championship was getting closer, I was wee’ing in excitement at the thought of watching Bolt go up against Powell, of seeing Ennis giving the proverbial middle finger to Sports Personality of the Year once again by taking home the gold. And so, the days leading up to it arrived, when the god awful truth hit me. It’s on Channel 4. I know right? Call me old fashioned (Do it, I dare you!) but the athletics is one of those wonderfully sacred sports, that has its coverage, and I mean all it’s coverage, on BBC. This isn’t the Grand National people, it shouldn’t be relegated to the none sporting channel that is Channel 4!? It belongs in its rightful place, square in the timeslot, no adverts, and the wonderful sound that is Sue Barker laughing at another of Michaels terrible jabs at himself after Bolt’s broken another of his records. It’s just gospel. 

But no, the best of all the athletics – even better than that little even we call the Olympics – the world championships was being aired on FOUR?! So, I dispensed with my disbelief and realised, it’s just a channel – surely it can’t be that much worse can it? Ohhhhh past Hannah, how fucking wrong you are. And I’m not just referring to Ortis’ now nationally famous gaffe video (although he was painful to watch) but the whole thing was criminal. To begin with, no one even wanted to talk to channel 4.  The track side interviews were unbearable at times, Alison Felix in particular looked very uncomfortable when Channel 4’s correspondent practically had to restrain her to get her to talk. But that’s not all – there was… ADVERTS. I’m 21 years of age, I’ve never known a world where something wasn’t being advertised in my face 24/7. But when it comes to sport – no, just NO. It would be like ITV putting an advert right at the last 10 minutes in extra time in a FA Cup replay between Everton and Liverpool, right before a goal. Hmmm… oh wait… My point is, if it’s ongoing sport, you don’t have adverts until there is some sort of intermission in play. On BBC you had no adverts what so ever, so for Channel 4 to think it is okay to put adverts on every 5 minutes (and I’m not exaggerating here) is terrible! You’d have thought they would have been smart enough to tone it down a bit.

But alas, I grinned and bared the track side nonsense, I tried to keep myself busy when the adverts came on, again and the stupid ringtone-like noise sounded to mark that. But then there was the moment that it physically stopped my enjoyment of the Championships. And that was not on. Jess Ennis is a human being. She is not infallible. Bolts dejection from the 100 metre final proved no athlete is. But for her to very proudly, and positively speak about her joy (not her disappointment) and getting the silver at Daegu not the gold was very noble and brave of her. So, for fucking Rick Edwards to then, on the voice over say, “Ohhh she’s disappointed, and let down, us all…” etc was a disgrace! We as a nation, on that moment needed the positive. Jess needed that moment to be a positive. For the sake of her mentality and future training. How dare he say that! And it didn’t stop at a line or one turn of phrase. Every time she was mentioned, he slapped on the negative, nice and thick. I could deal with the unprofessionalism, I could deal with the sloppy programming, and I could even deal with watching a sport show be presented by someone who knows nothing about sport (although that in itself was insulting…) but I could not deal with him making her feel small. I just hope that Jess didn’t watch it back. And that she never knows what he said for fear that she thinks the whole nation see’s her as a ‘big disappointment’. Because I think I speak for the majority of us when I say – we don’t. And Jess Ennis is a fantastic athlete who had a slight hiccup, but who also achieved a massive thing when she got that silver. So Rick – when you win a gold fucking medal, or even become an athlete who trains incessantly for years,  you can call her what ever you want. But until that moment, keep your negative opinions to yourself! Oh and Channel 4, GIVE THE ATHLETICS BACK TO THE BBC, WHERE THEY BELONG! 

Check out some of Ortis’ presenting gaffes. PAINFUL!

**oh and fyi, I complained to Channel 4 about all of this. They basically said I was entitled to my opinion, but I was wrong lol. And kudos to Michael Johnson for holding the whole thing together!