basclublog

Shock! Horror! I had a text mid afternoon today (timed 2.45am Oz time) saying "Mark and Colin have split up. Mark is very drunk and making no sense"
Basclub buddy Ali was probably pretty drunk herself at the end of swim party; but that is quite a shock. Mark Foster and Colin Jackson have allegedly been a couple for many years and a good few hours after the text Sharon Davis was discussing Mark's training on the Clare Baldwin/Steve Ovett evening review saying "Mark is trained a lot by Colin Jackson and that is all gym-based training." Well, I guess she couldn't say "Coo guess what" to all the world watching BBC2 at peak viewing time!
But back to the real action: so England got three golds today, two largely unexpected; a silver and four bronzes, two of these unexpected as well.
I was SO impressed by Mara Yamauchi. It just shows that having a brain can actually be an asset. She worked out months ago that she stood a better chance in the 10,000 than in the marathon, checked up on her rivals and did speed-training specifically for the "new " event. Well, blow me down, it paid off--her first major track race and she got a massive pb and a bronze medal!
And good for the young triple-jumper,too. Never heard of her before, but Nadia Williams shares a coach with the champion Trecia Smith and says there is much more to come from her.
I was so delighted for Chris Baillie who has lived in the shadow of his dead brother Ross for so long. His Scottish record and silver medal was utterly deserved. I'm not so sure about Andy Turner's bronze. He has so much natural speed and obviously zero application. With some of Chris Baillie's technique and hard work he could really advance. But he's just so unreliable it seems unfair he should even have won the medal, somehow.
Isn't the heptathlon fun? That young Jessica Ennis has promised much for a couple of years now and she is delivering immediately. And Kelly Sotherton is doing good, too; as is Julie Holman. So we've three Englishwomen in the top five at the end of day one.
I'm really sad that Beatrice Faumouina's reign as Commonwealth discus champ is over. I was in New Zealand just after she won her first bold and there she was on telly dancing traditional dances and enjoying every minute of her celebrity. Such a sunny lady!
And those two women's gold's: hoorah for the next generation! Both Christine and Lisa ran such great races, brilliant. And Lisa's open and delighted grin and her happy chatter threatened, well, not really, to outdo Deano...all the world must be happy for him, after all his injuries.
And more of the next generation: Martin Rooney's through to the final of the 400m, pity about Rob Tobin, it's that haircut. Someone tell him, it's really holding him back.
I hope I stay awake tonight, I haven't managed to grab any zizztime today.

...in more ways than two. That women's marathon was so exciting and it was such a thrill to see a 38-year-old racing round the track after running 26 plus miles to win. I always get a thrill when I see older athletes come through.

So brillo for Liz Yelling and Dan the man Robinson. They so deserve an international medal and they both played it absolutely right to win their bronzes.

I can't get over how disappointed I was with Goldie. She so had an off day. And it was the wrong day for that. Did she feel the pressure of expectation?

And seeing Jason limp through that second round heat, and fail, after everything he had put into these Games broke my heart. Christian, well, he just doesn't have the luck these days.

Michael Johnson was quite right to say that MLF shouldn't be "surprised" at a start in an international competition. Particularly from the world record holder in his event!!! Still at least he got himself together in time to qualify for the semis. Let's see if he can get his brain cells to concentrate for the semis.

Marlon looked great--so did Christine Oruruogu. Thank God we have a couple of track athlets who look as if they are in the right place at the right time. I'm amazed that Catherine Murphy got through to the next round--she ran like a drain, but she has been on a plateau now for a couple of seasons--to put it kindly.

But I dozed through the women's 400m heats--my marthon for yesterday was over by then! Now I'm up for the swimming at crack of dawn and off to be a normal human being for the day.

Ali texted from MGC arena, too high up to wave to the camera, she said. But she's had her photo taken with Mark Foster, lucky bitch!

So this evening (my sofa's time) is when it starts. I've been practising intermittent sleeping on the swimming and it seems to be working. It's pretty antisocial, of course, but friends have come to realise that that is exactly what I am during a major champs.
Poor Jo Fenn! She's still talking upbeat, but after nearly three seasons out, can she really come back at 31. Still I'm glad that the two 800m women youngsters now get a chance to be the focus of attention.
Jason Gardener hs defended the choice of older athletes over youngsters--and in his case that is fair enough. My quibble is when there is a continuing choice of underperforming oldies, like Joyce Maduaka for Moscow, and those other events over the past couple of years when she is plainly just coasting to the end of her career.
So Jason and MLF fair enough--MLF has to be allowed to demonstrate that his change of home and coaching team can bring out the best in him once more. I'm less sure about Darren Campbell--he's been far more prominent in fast-food "healthy" ads than on the track for a couple of seasons. Maybe Harry A-A should have had his place in the England team.
Basclub buddy Ali, who's volunteering in Melbourne, is having a blast at the pool, her workplace for the duration, and was even chosen
to meet the Queen the other day. She's done well schmoozing swim celebs; let's hope she gets to meet some of the athletes this week--as she's a media liaison volunteer she get's to take people to press conferences so let's hope we get some goss from her.

...I did a complete doubletake when I read the healdline on the BBC athletics website announcing "Veteran Bannister wins GB place". I knew it couldn't really mean Roger, but the only other Bannister I could think of was the tubby bloke who works for Radio 5 Live...
I'd completely forgotten Dominic, who to me is a mere stripling; but veteran status comes at 35, and he's 37.
I love it when the "oldies" do well, and he won the Inter-Counties cross 12k last weekend in Nottingham,s o he's qualified for the World cross Country Team to go to Japan. Brillo!

I noticed on Saturday on the website of the French sports daily L'Equipe that they didn't even mention Christine Arron after the women's 60m final (fastest over the distance so far this winter and a flash in the semis, she only made fourth). Every time it's a big event she fails to take her opportunity. So they didn't even print her name!
The French came away with nothing from Moscow, too. The piece on the website today just said that when the leading athletes are under-performing (Arron, and hurdler Roland Pongnon came 6th), or simply not there--it cited four or five internationals--France has no "reserves".
So GB is not alone.
It's the same in Germany, now, too. Their new guy won the heptathlon, but no-one else showed.
So let's put a bomb behind our second rung athletes!!!

Golly, I'm not very good at this late-night viewing. Fell asleep in the middle of second night from Moscow, so missed the GB girls running in the 400m relay final. Came last, but they were the only female finalists from these shores.
I've been very impressed with Jimmy Watkins: I knowhe faded in the 800m final, but he'd bettered his PB twice getting there and he FRONTRAN in both his semi and the final--we haven't had a middle-distance man who did that for a decade or two. And Jenny Meadows did well, too. Needs to find some speed and strength for the last lap, but she's plucky, too.
I thought both men's and women's 800m finals were soooooo exciting, as was the men's 400m final. Mutola just was so over the moon that she won again. Amazing, isn't it? She's won so many many titles and yet this was obviously just as vital to her as the first.
She's off to Melbourne now. And in this form I wouldn't give anyone else a prayer. I still don't understand about Mozambique being in the Commonwealth--it was a Portuguese colony, not part of the British Empire. How did that happen, then?
And Bungei and Mulaudzi didn't let Yuri Borsakovski do on home territory. He came third. Good thing this happened in post-glasnost Muscow or he'd be gulag'd by now!
And there's a new young German multi-eventer who pipped the others by 5 points! I love it when fresh faces do the bizz.
Star of the Indoors is Dervla O'Rourke.

ends

My original mole in Melbourne said the local press beefing at the start of the year that the Commonwealths would be a disaster for the city as it is gridlocked anyway; all the additional traffic, not to mention that for the U2 concert happening coincidentally (not?)on the last night but one of the Games, would mean that Melbourne will be at a standstill and normal folk will be unable to live their lives!!!

Sounds like local press anywhere in the world before a big event. Here in London they are already saying that about 2012!

My new mole downumder (another BASC member) has
started forwarding the goss about the Games and athletes as she burrows her way into the field!

Apparently Jana Pitman, Oz 400m hurdler, and Tamsin Lewis, 400 flat, are spatting like Jade and Kelly were at Sheffield. Jana says she's coming to live in England now she's marrying Chris Rawlinson and she may run for England, too, she's so Td off with the way the nedia treat her out there...

Great! is all I can say. We need someone with a bit of bemedalled cred to give our women sprinters a boot up the booty.

Anything else from anyone else?

I've had terrible trouble getting access to my blog--which is why I haven't posted for so long. Now you may watch this space!!!

Thanks for your posts, folks. I was looking forward to a trip to Oz for the Commonwealths, but can't afford it either now, so shall be joining Odette bellowing from my sofa!
But before that I'm going to enjoy the start of the season at home. There'll be the world trials and 3As in Sheffield in Feb, followed by the indoor grandprix in Birmingham the next weekend. I've just really enjoyed the Sheffield weekend the last couple of years. The EIS facility where they are held is great and so much more intimate than any of the "real" venues.
And what about Dwain's return? I have very mixed feelings about this. I know he's done his time,so I guess he should be welcomed back, but I'm still shocked at the damage he did to his relay teammates, whose medals he has lost. And the whole Euro Cup team from Nancy that year, whose cup is likely to go now.
Maybe the whole sorry story will put others off if they realise that cheating affects more people than themselves. But they never think they are going to get caught do they?
I'll try and give him a clap when he appears on the track in Sheffield, I suppose...

Hallo to all athletics fans! And a special hallo to all members of the British Athletics Supporters'
Club.
This is our blog on which to post info and all the goss about events, athletes, changes in track and field--well, about any topic you like, really, related to our favourite sport.
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