Monday, August 29, 2011

GB Athletics - Heads simply must roll

Halfway through the world championships, and what a thoroughly disgraceful performance by the lamentable british contingent.

There is a cultural problem with GB athletes, which for me at least, is symptomatic (and symbolic) of a much wider british cultural malaise. The performances of the British athletes at these championships has been an utter disgrace. They should have funding pulled and given to those who do give a monkeys.

Let me start with that lanky weed Martyn Rooney. This is the idiot who refuses to take off those ridiculous shades every time he runs, no matter how stupid it makes him look. A runner who at his best is good at European level and can get under 45 seconds. Well last night, he jogged over the line in over 46. He GAVE UP. That is club level. It is a disgrace he is paid for this dirge. He was flown, at MY expense to Korea only to serve up that. A shambolic, careless performance. Cut him.

But this is really just scratching the surface. Poor old Dwain Chambers falls victim to the ridiculous one strike and you are out rule. Lisa Dobriskey fails dismally. Mo Farah, for whom I have a lot of time as he has clearly improved dramatically in the past year, sadly showed why he will never, ever win a global gold medal. There will always, always, be someone with a faster kick than him.

I can go on. The utterly ridiculous Christine Ohurougu. Save us the waterworks Christine. You are a disgrace. That false start was pathetic, and possibly planned. Ohurougu's 2007-8 performances are starting to look very, very shady indeed. She cannot now even break 53 seconds. She has no place on an international running track. I am sick of the sight of her frankly, dragging her heavy legs around the track and almost coming to a standstill at 350 metres. Jesus - I assume she manages to complete the odd 400m in training? There is always, always an excuse. Some random "injury" or other. She should be put out to graze as there is no way, NO WAY, she will get into an Olympic final. Cut her.

Its not that these athletes do not win gold medals. That really would be harsh. Its that they have failed to get even close to their PBs. At a major championship, there is simply no excuse for that. These people should go out and get a proper job and stop scrounging off the national lottery. If they are unable to show improvement or potential, then why should they receive funding of any sort? The list of national lottery scroungers in the GB team is vast, and captained by Ohurougu.

Marlon Devonsih will never, ever be able to reach a world final. He is not even close to breaking 10 seconds. So get rid of him. Holly Bleasdale didnt even record a height in the pole vault. And then we have Lee Connell, that weirdo Scotch woman, who lollops around the track like a shire horse. Sorry, but she is plain rubbish.

Like so many of the ageing GB team, she is going through the motions. Enjoying the life of the athlete, with foreign training camps, glamorous venues and the fact they dont need to go to an office every day, but failing to meet their side of the bargain - improve. Connell is using her funding as a get out clause from real life and it simply must stop. We all know, she will never, ever make a global final. In fact, Connell wont even make a euro/commonwealth final. Yet there she is in a GB tracksuit having a wail of a time and no doubt looking forward to getting pissed in the Olympic village next year.

GB athletics needs a top to bottom overhaul. The huge acerage of deadwood needs to be chopped, so funding and training facilities can be focused on those with the will and talent not to abuse it. Step forward the wonderful Jessica Ennis.

An absolute disgrace.

UPDATE: Oh no. Now Ennis has caught the bug. A shambolic performance in the javelin. I am crushed.

5 comments:

  1. Er..I think you'll find Mo Farah won a gold medal in the 5000m. Dai Greene. Hannah England. No mention of their achievements.

    I do agree that some of our competitors are massively under achieving.

    Oh and finally, Scotch is a Whisky from Scotland. A female from Scotland is a Scot, a Scotswoman or simply Scottish. Scotch is considered rather offensive.

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  2. All fair enough Rusty.

    My wider point is that scratch the surface of GB athletics and we are in real trouble. Not helped by the apparent rewards for rank mediocrity.

    Why, for example, does Kelly Sotherton, receive any form of funding? I fear England's medal was a one off for a bizarre race, while I have huge repect for Dai Greene, but mainly because he appears to represent everything that so many other GB athletes don't - a huge work ethic, a refusal to accept failure etc.

    My tweets to Christine Ohurougu were also revealing. She seems not to care less about her disgraceful form for the past 3 years, nor that her 2007-8 results are looking increasingly dodgy. I resent this attitude as much as I resent having to watch Marlon Devonish run 10.4 in a men's 100m race.

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  3. PS Rusty. You might have noticed this blog was posted before any of those medals were won. While the Chairman knows best, he is not able to predict the future. I certainly offered all those athletes congratulations via twitter. But work has been busy.

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  4. PPS. Ahem. Given the grotesque racism suffered by the English at the hands of Scots which manifests itself in regular and relentless attacks, both verbal and physical, rarely reported by the media in the UK, the Scotch will just have to live with a bit of mild ribbing. Sorry.

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