true olympians to the fore in cycling events

lizzie armitstead with silver

I watched both the female and the male cycle road races last weekend. I found both absorbing and thrilling. For anyone the least interested in sporting tactics such races are a must.

In terms of the cyclists representing the United Kingdoms of Great Britain and Northern Ireland I was so impressed and although neither race provided a winner, both races provided sheer raw courage, drama and sportsmanship of the highest order. I suppose I was a wee bit disappointed, but not for long. Both in the men's and women's races the GB and NI racers gave all they had. One cannot ask for more.

Lizzie Armitstead was absolutely brilliant and I take my hat off to her. I was standing in front of television shouting my encouragement. The Netherlands rider was just that smidgen better on the day and well done to her.

In the men's race the GB and NI riders, remember they are not a team, were again magnificent. Perhaps in the private of their base they might discuss how their tactics played out, so what? To repeat myself, they were magnificent. Four riders, Wiggins, Froome, Millar and Stannard gave everything they had and drove the main group for the majority of the 255 kilometre race all to get Mark Cavandish into contention in the final kilometre or two, from where he would have blasted all other riders away. But some of the other world class riders were perfectly aware of that and formed an alliance designed to negate the Cavandish threat. As it turned out, a successful alliance. Good for them, because this is a sporting competition with more than one set of tactics available to the players and that is part of the fascination.

mark cavandish

Wiggins, Froome, Millar and Stannard are true Olympians. Last Saturday these four riders gave every thing they had in the pursuit of an Olympic Gold Medal. And so they should. However they did not do it for themselves. They rode the equivalent of Inverness to Stirling, a distance that some people think twice about driving or even travelling in a train to complete, to try and get the medal for another cyclist. This was not a team race, there was to be no team prize, not shared medals, nothing. Yet despite that knowledge these guys willingly and courageously rode themselves to a standstill for someone else.

I cannot praise them highly enough, magnificent is only a word, it does not seem enough.

I think however that the Olympics hierarchy need to rethink these events. If they allow a country to have a maximum number  of riders, then they should consider that to be a team and award medals accordingly. If not, then only allow one person from each country should compete.

Consider football, or soccer to some. A medal winning team may well have a player, or more,  sit in reserve on the bench during the whole competition and not put one foot over the white line, yet still be awarded a medal.

Then we have the Chinese and South Korean Badminton players. What was Olympian about their performance?