Or the world according to Nige 

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• Sad day as George Best passes on and the full time whistle has blow and he runs onto that geat football pitch in the sky... A great talent sadly missed...

Some still remember what they were doing the moment they heard the news the President Kenedy was shot....I remember the Sunday mornng that Pricess Diana died......But will we remember what we were doing the day when England won the 'Ashes....??' For me probably not - Well it maybe a good guess that it being a Monday and that I had just got home from work. It would be a more likely guess that I was sitting in front of the television watching the closing stage's....Which I was..!!

Many said it would never happen in our lifetime, such was the state of British cricket. But they said that about our football team - Rugby teams - Swimming teams - Athletic squads and subuteo table football team. The Rugby boy's turned the tables and won the rugby world cup. I supose we have to look back at the golden age of underpayed football - Pre Beckham - and to the sixty six world cup. But can we set our sights to another victory..? I can't see it myself unless like the Cricket team we get homegrown talent.....It seems most of the surnames on the team sheets in the premiership would score an average of 52 in scrable.... 

• How many of you marvelled at Paula Radcliffe today in an excellent
  exhibition of marathon running....? A masterclass in the right attitude and
  preparation - If you discount the comments of those comontators who have not
  actually experienced the effects on the body at 20 miles or the effects of
  dehydration which you don't encounter over 110m hurdles and there is no
  simulartiy between landing head first in a pit full of sand and running head
  first into the dreaded 'wall' what Paula did in the world championship marathon
  was virtually text book and something we all can learn from....

• There maybe one thing missing from next years Tour de France. Well for one thing it won’t be the heart stopping breath taking sprints, or the clashes for stage victories. Nor the strength sapping big climbs over the Alps and alike. What might be missing next time around is a British winner, or someone completing ‘Le Tour’ on a Raleigh ’Chopper’. One thing defiantly missing will be a Frenchman wearing his Olympic 2010  T-shirt. A item I believe the French onion sellers now use to clean their bicycle chains, and French car workers use to wax the body work of their Citrons.
  
  The one thing we will not witness in 2006 will be one of the worlds greatest athletes in action, as the 2005 Tour de France will be Lance Armstrong’s last, as he hangs up his bicycle clips. I will confess at first I was not a great fan of Armstrong. He seemed to lack the character of the European riders such as ‘Big Mig’ - Pantani and Chipolini. I also feel this of most American riders too, that they seem to stand aside from the rest of the peloton. Maybe because there are so many of them, and they don’t fear extinction as other countries athletes do. It is much like their sprinters, once one begins to fade, lose their shine the big huge American sports machine churns out a brand new one, and a new brighter star drops off the conveyor belt. This also appears to apply to the cycling world too, as Armstrong as slotted into the shadow of Greg Lemond.
  
  This was my initial impression, but looking at the whole Armstrong story, it is truly the stuff Hollywood blockbusters are made of…and who knows in his retirement a Hollywood blockbuster maybe made of his incredible story…? Well there are two autobiographies about the bloke already. Armstrong has earned my respect, not only as a tremendous athlete, but through his dedication and determination, and also through his bravery. So what does constitute, and what are the ingredients of a world class athlete….?

• Strength - Speed - Stamina - Endurance and lets not forget the words Dedication and Determination….! A sprinter has an explosive burst that propels them down the track in nine point something seconds…..and they are usually American. A marathon runner has the endurance and stamina to cover 26 miles 385 yards in a time of around of just over two hours….and they are usually either Ethiopian or Kenyan. A tennis player can hit a ball at over a hundred miles an hour, but stumbles in the early rounds of Wimbledon….and they are usually English. Well there has to be one exception to the rule…! In comparison some may say that cyclists have it easy, and the bike propels the rider….not forgetting that they can even freewheel downhill, now what’s athletic about that…? No, that is a Formula One racing. Formula One racing drivers lounge with a whacking huge powerful engines behind them, pampered by a pit crew and a cast of thousands, plus a dolly bird, occasionally nodding their heads from side to side for effect….and they are usually German.
  
  On a bike it is the rider who is the powerhouse, and to tackle one of the worlds greatest race’s - Le Tour de France - you need the components of a world class sprinter and the endurance and stamina of a world class distance runner to survive. That is what constitutes a great athlete, be it on the track or on a bike, if you have those elements, not forgetting our old friends dedication and determination you have made it.
  
  Without that dedication and determination, Armstrong wouldn’t have a record breaking seventh ‘Tour’ win to his name, and even not have been riding at all. Being diagnosed with cancer can be a shattering experience for anyone, but for Armstrong it just wasn’t another obstacle, but another mountain stage to climb, as in true ‘L Alp D’huez’’ style he fought and conquered it to win another epic battle over his illness. Armstrong was soon back on his bike again to prove what a great athlete he is. To show a great depth and strength of his character. Also demonstrating whatever blows or hardships that life throws at you, through dedication - determination and a faith in your own abilities by focusing on these strengths they will see you through the dark and hard times. With that belief in yourself, and of those around you can but only succeed. This is the quality that Armstrong has, and in my mind this gained my respect for him as person and a awesome bike rider. This makes Armstrong in my book one of the worlds greatest athletes of the modern age…..Well done Lance…!!

• To conclude as a avid arm chair Tour de France cyclist, what will we witness next year…? Who will step into Lance Armstrong’s cycling shoes…? Is there another formidable athlete to drop off the conveyor belt of champions, and if so from who’s mighty sporting machine will they emerge from…? Will it be from the American conveyor belt...or off a European conveyor belt…? I eagerly await the 2006 edition of the ‘Tour’ were the door to a true champion has now once again swung open……and we await a new champion to take the crown…..!!

• A crash helmet..... That is what I am wearing from now on, a crash helmet whether Trinny and Susannah like it or not. If they want to stamp their pretty petit manicured feet about this fashion eyesore so be it, but I want to feel safe as I am beginning to feel scared to leave home without one......

• It's not that I am bothered with banging my head on the roof of the bus when I stand up to let a little old lady take my seat. Nor at a towering six foot four, does it bother me that I may get hit on the head by a low flying Jumbo jet....It's just the fear of memory loss. I am scared that one day I could leave my house and have a knock on the head and I would lose my memory. Thinking about this a little bit more, memory loss could even be fatal....!!

• Today at work I have been given a new password for my computer, yet another 'bloody' password for my computer. This new password is as magical as a Harry Potter spell. It unlocks a new area which reveals another programme to make ease of my daily chore, allowing me more time to put my feet up on my desk and allowing me to take a longer 'executive' afternoon nap....as if...!! But before I can launch myself into this wondrous world I am faced with one more obstacle....Yet another ‘bloody ‘ password....!! My life seems to be controlled by passwords - I can't live without a password and without a password would I even exist...? This is what scares me. If I ever lost my memory it could prove to be fatal...!!

• For example, I am walking down the road minding my own business and I am suddenly struck on the head by a cricket ball hooked off Andrew Flintoff's cricket bat, as he hits another six helping England onto an 'Ashes' victory over Australia.....Ok let's be more realistic....I am struck on the head by a golf ball sliced from Tiger Woods seven iron.....As a result I lose my memory and my life ends. Not because of a fatal blow on the temple, but by password...??Firstly I wouldn't be able ring for help because I would have forgotten the password to unlock my mobile phone. I couldn't go to work, as to enter the building I require a password. There again I would have forgotten were I worked and what I did for a living... (Note to memory a handy excuse to skive a day off...Maybe all not gloom and doom then after all....Hang on, remember what...??) But if I didn't work, I wouldn't earn any money. There again I wouldn't be able to get any money out of my bank account because I would have no memory of my cash point pin number. Also I wouldn't be able to buy food with my visa card either, as I wouldn't have memory of that pin number either...Therefore I would be homeless - unemployed and would become extinct due to starvation all because I have forgotten my passwords. Though if I did wear a crash helmet I wouldn’t find myself in that predicament. I may look a prat with my crash helmet on walking down the street but at least I would forget my passwords….

• So there maybe something in this theory after all, which makes me think about one of the great mysteries of all time…Where did all the dinosaurs go..? Maybe unbeknown to us their world was ruled by passwords, and as dinosaurs only have brains the size of a tennis ball and the attention span of a gold fish…Prehistoric version of course. A blow on the head for your later day hairy caveman with his wooden club and Mr Dinosaur suffers memory loss, forgets its passwords, doesn’t eat and becomes extinct. Maybe this is a warning to mankind…? How do I know all this is true…? Seen it in the Flintstones…Yab-a dab-a-doooooooo!!

• Why is it that Hogwarts and all the Wizzardary within it, is such a magical place were things that seem to be broken and need to be repaired can be easily undertaken with a quick spell and the flick of the wrist...? But no one can fix the wobbly wheel on my shopping trolley that is broken, as I fight and stuggle to negociate with it, narrowly missing a tower of Sainsburys own brand baked beans..! I maybe just a mere muggle, but this is the thought I had as I entered my local Sainsbury's.

• What prompts me to thinking this is the figure standing in the doorway. A tall slight figure with a long white beard, long white hair dressed in a long blue velvet robe and pointy hat. This throw back form the early seventies and the days of progrock and twenty minute guitar solo's could easily pass for a contestant on 'Stars in there eyes' - "Tonight Mathew I am going to be Roy Wood..!!"....I must admit that he looked a little up market from your bog standard every day hippy type, and one who failed misriably in acting a 1000 years old. So maybe he could answer my wobbly wheel question..? But as I open my mouth the great old wise one spoke to me, and was about to utter a great spell......"Have you got your copy of the new Harry Potter book....it's only £8.69...!!"

• At Midnight the latest chapter in the Potter stories was launched as 'H' and his buddies would undertake a further crusade on the powers of evil and one step closer to a ASBO for Harry. I must it was good to see something magical happen at witching hour and the full extent of Harry Potters power, were at the flick of Harrys wand and J K Rowlings bank account doubles and the Harry Potter franchise breathes new life....In the words of the worlds greatest wizzard Paul Danials "Now that's what I call magic...!!"   

• So there I am sitting at my cluttered desk staring at the computer screen watching the minutes and seconds countdown to zero and that moment at 12.45pm that really would make history.....3 seconds...2 seconds.....1 second....Zero.....!!! Nothing....No fireworks, no marching bands, not even a national holiday. If anything the website I was staring at dedicated to the 2012 London Olympic bid had crashed..!! So was London successful in its bid to host the 2012 Olympic games...I don't know....?

• Watching in amazement I thought what a great start as the website crashed and I was left sitting in the office in this silence and a white blank screen in front of me, as bright as the sunlight that shines between David Beckhams ears. Was this a bad omen, or an act of the acient Greek Gods as they argued at the dession and prospect on having to wear stripy shirts and berries, while cycling around with a string of onions drapped around their necks. Or do they adopt a cockney acsent reciting the words of that legendary 'Londoner' Dick Van Dyke..."Cor bly'me Mary Poppins" and eat jellied eels and pie and mash....?

• Alass the dession didn't lie in the hands of the Greek Gods and London was sucessful and personally I feel the 2012 Olympics will restore great pride something I feel is sadly lacking inour lives at the moment.....Well Done London...!!!   

• Travelling into work this morning I noticed an article on the front page of the Metro regarding the G8 summit. It read 'While the 8 world leaders would meet and have a banquet with the Queen - 5,000 starving people in Africa would die....' I actually went without my lunch to day....And hey no one even bated a eye lid.....Maybe the media should go and prick some else's conscious

• It is Saturday morning of July 13th and the sun is shining. I am fighting my way through a huge crowd. following a battered white fiat van slowly edging its way through the masses also. The van ideally disguised as a bog standard delivery vehicle suddenly draws to a stand still in front of me. The back doors fling open and out falls a right scruffy bunch of reprobates. The leader gets up off the floor and has a remarkable gaunt and lanky resemblance to Bob Geldorf, which is a very good observation by me because these throw backs from the punk era are Bob Geldorf and his Boomtown Rats. There is a sudden realisation from the surrounding throng and a huge cheer as the hero of the hour Bob Geldorf and his fellow Rats are hurried away and fed into the slot of the ‘Global Jukebox‘ that was Wembley stadium ….
  
  This is the day, well in my book it is, that made history. This would be my Woodstock…‘Live Aid‘, an event that defied the imagination, an event were inflated ego’s were left at the front gate, an event that would bring the giants of rock’n’roll to one stage for just one cause…..and an event that would prick our conscience’s and an event that brought the plight of many to all…..
  
  Twenty years on and another day that would make history…..But would it..? Would ‘Live 8’ upstage ’Live Aid’ - Would it even have the same impact…? It would certainly contain the same old faces as Sting and Macca. The dust and cobwebs would be blown off The Who and Elton’s syrup would remain the same as that Saturday afternoon back in 85. There would be no Freddie to lead the great unwashed and young bucks would make their presence known, but would they have the staying power of the snoozing dinosaur that is the mighty Floyd…..?
  
  Maybe it’s my age or my beliefs, but I don’t have the same buzz of expectation as I did standing in the terraces of Wembley twenty years ago. Has it all gone too political and above my head….The old hippy still lurks within telling me “like oil and water - politics and rock’n’roll don’t mix…!! And keep the politics out of rock’n’roll and the rock’n’roll out of politics….!!” Maybe this is the day that these boundaries were crossed and that’s one of the reasons ’Live 8’ doesn’t rest easy with me and not old age at all…..??
  
  My beliefs have moved on along with my musical tastes. Do I still have the stamina to survive the Velvet Revolvers mosh pit…? (Of course I have….!!) I now fight other cause’s in our own back yard, and one that raise’s a question within me….One of the ‘Live8’ slogans read ‘8 men in one room can change the world’ If that’s so why can’t 1 man in one room help improve the quality of life of the seventy thousand plus disabled kidz in the UK…?
  
  Now maybe that would be history in the making…..

• Not got a ticket to the Glastonbury Festival...? No fear this is my guide to your very own Glastonbury without leaving your back garden.... I always knew that my mispent youth watching Valerie Singleton on Blue Peter would pay off one day.....
• So your very own Glastonbury Festival in your own back garden....Place a television right at the top of your garden and tune into BBC2 - Turn the volume up and retreat to the tent you have pitched in your lounge.....From from the comfort of your tent you can view the television at the top of the garden as the distant stage while down vast quanties of beer amoungst smoking josh sticks for added effect. This may sound very snobish but at least you are not amoungst the great unwashed and ankle deep in mud  - You are safe in the comfort of your own home and your tent has not turned into a life raft in the meantime.....

• Every so often you get a thank you and I would like to share this one with you all.....

Dear Nigel

Thank you for being a vital part of Birmingham’s Race for Life on Wednesday 15th June. Cancer Research UK is a volunteer led organisation so thank you for being one of the 30,000 volunteers who work with us for the aim - to help cure cancer faster.

The day was a great success and we have had some fantastic feedback from the participants and we hope that the 2,500 women who took part will raise over £125,000. This money will go directly to the doctors, nurse’s and scientists who are working to find ways of preventing, treating and curing cancer.

Thank you very much for coming along on the day, and taking the afternoon off work, your help and experience was invaluable on the day - thanks for setting up the course and looking after all of the marshals.

Good luck with all your exploits in the running world and with Whizz Kidz.

Thanks again and all the best, look forward to seeing you in 2006!

Clare Hartley

National Events Executive

Cancer Research UK

• ….Or is it..? That’s what I would of thought, but there is not a tremor and the day ticks by in its own sweet pace. I woke this morning the birds are singing, the sun is shining…..but how can this be so…?
  
  Tiger Tim has headed to the Wimbledon locker rooms for an early shower last night, so I braced myself for the profits of doom and gloom - the media to gather around the caldron and rattle their chains of despair…But nothing…!! It seems this was expected, predicted more like. So have we now after 10years of hope become accustomed to this from Tim Henman…? There again if Tiger Tim had made all the way to the Wimbledon final, could we honesty handled that success…let alone the shock…?
  
  So is this the way it is..? Maybe if the Wimbledon lawn tennis championships were like a reality show and players were voted off in stead of spending hours of strength sapping grunting and groaning chasing a little yellow ball to and throw, I am sure Henman’s Mr nice squeaky clean image would see him a contender especially with the blue rinse brigade. As my own mother pointed out, even though not a winner Tim has brought a popularity to a starchy championship. He has performed drama, created atmosphere, he has brought colour to the game. Tim has made us gasp, made us sigh, made our hearts stop, made us cry. Tim has made tennis accessible, promoted the sport in his 10 years of competing at Queens club…and how many little Tigers has he inspired to become bigger and greater Tigers in the future….?
  
  There will always be a part of Wimbledon that will be Tim’s….call it his legacy….? ‘Henman Hill’ - Not named after any other former star, heaven forbid, can you imagine ‘McEnroe Mound’ - ‘Agassi Alps’ or ‘Hingess Heights’ - and were would it stop….? ‘Becker’s Broom Cupboard’ and Navratalova’s Dyke’…..!!
  
  So I say good one Tim, ever the committed, and dedicated sportsman…Though you have yet to answer me one question….Will I ever see a English male Wimbledon Champion in my own life time…?

• For a longtime I have heard the summer solstice mentioned but never really took note or really understood what it meant....Something about druids and stuff...The thing that Tolken probaly based his trilogy around. What I can make out is you get up very early in the morning...Don your best Gandolf outfit and go out and sacrifice a few virgins just as the sun rises. Though to be frankly honest if you do manage to find any virgins in Birmingham before sun rise you are very lucky indeed....Bill Bo Baggins may have already beat you to it....

• As for it being tied in with the longest day. Did the said Druids mulling around deciding what to do with themselves for the rest of the day, after a early mornings shindig at the local accient ruin...Invent tennis...?  Even more than that, did they build an either bigger temple to worship the sun king and call it Wimbledon...?

• It is funny in a way that it always seems the longest day when 'Tiger' Tim (Henman) is holding court...Well it always seems that way as you agonize watching him drag the game out....Pass the traquilizers NOW PLEASE.....!!! And we are only into the second days play.....!! Whats even more worse is it still could rain and Cliff Richard could sing again....!!! If only I was still a virgin I could of sacrified myself this morning..........  

• Here we go again..it's the end of the world as we know it.....Paula Radcliffe finished second in the Europa Cup 5000m....Oh the pain of it....!!! For former proffesional sports people and commentators don't they examin the facts before engaging mouths in gear....and unleashing a tyraid of negativity against one of our top female athletes...? But there again is this not what the British media do best..If it were an Olympic sport we would be top class gold medal winners..But there again who is to critsize them when they didn't perform on the day...?
  
  Many of us have trained for marathon and the way that Paula trains is legendary...So here she is mid way through marathon training with the aim of World Championship glory and even a championship gold medal on the track so a certain amount of commitment and a deeper commitment that we put into our training. She maybe in a phase of training which is stamina based and very little speed work involved. In the world of Paula all would be calculated and planned...So hey why not throw a spanner into the works...!!
  
  Pick her to run the Europa Cup and for good measure make her team captain. When you are putting in high milage not matter who you are there are times when the body says hang on I need a rest...There are times when we are run down and vunerable to the odd bug or cold. In Paula's own admitance she said she felt flat comming into the weekend and her white blood cell count was high so the body was fighting some virus which can result in a lack luster performance.....unfortunatly this happened this weekend.
  
  Paula is mortal like the rest of us she proved that in Athens and got a brusing for it and hey....here we go again....!!!  So does the following sum add up..? Heavy milage + Europa Cup + Captains role motivating the troops and the preasure of gaining promotion + Not up to par + 3000m in the heat + standing in for a 5000m the following day = Huge success...? Somehow I think not......
  
  So come on guys how are our sports people, not only in athletic but other sports too, going to succed on the world stage when the media keep knocking them off the purch. I know if I was in their shoes I would'nt put in 100% commitment and maybe that is showing in sport at the moment...not in it for the true satisfaction of achievement but more for notarity and great wealth....
  
  I can only agree with Jonathan Edwards comments this afternoon....

(This appeared in  the runnersworld.co.uk forum)

• Is there any justice..? Was it a fair trial...? But Michael Jackson was cleared of all 10 charges...So what now..? Does he still have a career...does he still even have a fan base or will we now see him headlining his UK tour at venues like the Robin Hood Bilston - The Rock Cafe Stourbridge or JD's Dudley..? What are the chances he will appear on the next series of "Hit me one more time" or even turn up at the auditions for one of Simon Cowells next talentless....whoops talent shows. Imagine it as not to give away his identity Jacko would have to appear wearing a big hat dark glasses and a mask....!!

• One final question now that Jacko is virtually broke will Buddles the chimp be made redundent and now reside at Dudley Zoo...?

• Turned the tele over to BBC2 this evening and the footie was on...England v Finland. It looked if Beckham had yet again changed his hair style. Well he has had everything except a blue rince.... As usual England were playing like a bunch of women, and to come to think Roony was looking rather fetching this evening. Hang on...!! This was different Erikson has two boobs....instead of the normal eleven...!! Wait a minute Women playing football....?? Since has womens football become a prime time popular spectator sport or unless your like me awaiting the final whistle when they swop shirts.....Sorry I just couldn't steer away from that old chestnut...!! If I ever get reincarnated I have made my mind up to come back as the bar of soap that sits in the soap dish on the side of the communial bath in the womens football world cup winners changing room...Now is that too much aspire too...?? 

On Paula Radcliffe -

• It's Friday 15th at the 2005 London Marathon Expo and Paula Radcliffe makes an apperence at the expo - Having heard my reputation thoughtfully she asks my opinion of what to do in Sundays race..? Rubbing my chin I advised her to go out hard and stamp here authority on the race in the early stages. Then as you approach the final few miles slow down and stop. And then as the press get all excited and your critics begin to say "We told you so...!!" Start running again and stick your two fingers up at the whole lot of them...."Go out and take the piss...!!" Mmmmm though, I think she took me a little to literaly when I said take the piss...!!!