Usain Bolt was incomparable at the Olympics
Alicia Lloyd
Online Sports Editor
Summer 2012, the summer of dreams for sports fanatics. We live this sort of sports rich existence only once every four years- a summer when both the Olympic Games and the European Football Championship come to town and consume our every thought. Combine this with the annual Golf and Tennis majors, GAA championships and everything in between and yes we’re living a summer of racing hearts, quickened pulses, glistening eyes, nations united, aspirations and expectations crushed. Here are some of the more stand out moments that surely caused a gasp or two.
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Andy Murray has had quite the season, this month he landed his first Grand Slam victory at flushing meadows, and he has an Olympic gold medal in his back pocket. Though not tennis’ most coveted prize, his medal winning game against Federer is sure to be a defining moment in his career. Who would have thought that just weeks after a trouncing from Federer in the Wimbledon final, he’d win some redemption and earn his place among the top four. Yet it was Murray’s brave performance in that final (a crucial break of serve saw him win the first set), it was his display of emotion at his loss that had most people talking, and is something that stuck in our minds, a demonstration of his resolve (proved further in proceeding weeks when he beat two of the best). There was something about Murray’s emotions, which tugged on the heart-strings of even the most ardent of cynics – as for the Murrayites themselves; it was more than they could bear – that was the perfect glimpse into why sport is so special.
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Little known Czech, Lukas Rosol, knocks out Nadal
The award for most gripping game of tennis this summer and the biggest shock does not go to either Murray or Federer however. It was a match that had even the most casual of tennis supporters talking- Lukas Rosol, an un-seeded player who had won all but 18 matches in his career, beating the next in line to Federer’s throne, the great Rafael Nadal. As a fan of Nadal, my favourite thing about him has always been the way in which he plays every point like it’s a grand slam match point. He is often unbeatable at the baseline and was coming into Wimbledon on the back of victory at the French Open. Yet spectators had never seen his game dismantled in such a way. Rosol’s sheer nerve was awe inspiring. Those nerves of steel and a cool head saw him come back after a 40 minute break to beat the champion under the roof (in which conditions are notably different). It was an epic moment in the game of tennis and who will ever forget Rafa’s face when things started to go wrong.
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A quick look in the golf history books will show some outrageous chokes at the Majors. You need look no further than our own Rory McIlroy and his meltdown at the 2011 Masters. Adam Scott’s collapse at this summer’s British Open however, was nothing short of excruciating to watch. Scott had led at Lytham St Annes for the majority of the weekend after some tremendous putting (albeit with his controversial long putter) and it looked as though he was heading for a fabulous win. What happened on the back nine was the stuff of a golfer’s nightmare. Four successive bogeys and a mammoth miss on the 18th saw him lose out on the Claret Jug to Ernie Els. You might speculate as to whether Adam Scott cried in the wake of his breath-taking choke, I can assure you that I did- his implosion was an ordeal and a half to watch. It’s a cruel game.
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Euro 2012 was a tournament that provided football fans with some gripping games, the high standard on show by most teams (though not, ahem, all) was unquestionable. Yet amid all the memories of epic goals- Ronaldo’s two against the Netherlands, Danny Welbeck’s against Sweden, the antics of Mario Ballotelli or even goal-line arguments- and the little piece of history that was created by Spain, it was the immense display of Irish pride that will be remembered, not just by us but by international fans alike. You never would have guessed that we had just suffered a 4-0 thrashing to Spain when the Fields of Athenry echoed around the PGE Arena in Gdansk and probably in homes all over this little Isle. Our football may need a lot of work (slight understatement I know) but that Irish display of solidarity in Poland proves we have the, now internationally recognised, best fans in the world.
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Mayo are searching for their first All-Ireland since 1951
This summer has thrown up an unlikely GAA football championship final, the product of a thrilling season. Few would have expected Mayo to be fighting Donegal for their first All-Ireland since 1951. Mayo’s semi-final against Dublin must have taken years off the lives of Mayo supporters, as after a strong first half they let things slip and Dublin responded with some of the form expected of defending champions, albeit a little too late. It was a nail-biting final 20 minutes. The defining moment? Four minutes to the final whistle Brogan has a free in front of Hill 16 to potentially clinch a win. The hearts of Mayo supporters, Dublin fans and un-biased spectators alike are in their mouths, it’s one-on-one and David Clarke… well the rest is history, it was an awesome save.
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The Olympics- two weeks in which sport dominates the news and every waking minute of the model sports nut’s day. There’s something for everyone and yet one event seems to interest and unite us all. The blue ribbon event and the biggest star of the games, the 100 meters final and its champion, Bolt. 9.63 seconds in which hush descended on estimated two billion people. 9.63 seconds in which two billion people held their breath. 9.63 seconds, in which two billion people came together, united by one great sporting occasion. If those 9.63 seconds didn’t rock your world, I’m not sure what else will.
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Michael Phelps, the most decorated Olympian of all time and the focus of a debate as to whether this accolade qualifies him as the ‘greatest’. He faces stiff competition in Larisa Latynina, Sir Steve Redgrave and most notably Cathy Freeman and Jessie Owens who bore the weight of much greater expectations on their shoulders than that of Michael Phelps. London 2012, however is of a different time, a games in which the drama and entertainment of sport, rather than political pressures were at the forefront, what luxury! Phelps gave us some drama alright, losing the 400m IM to his rival Lochte and missing out on a medal for the first time since Sydney. So he is human after all. Phelps wasn’t going to bow out there though and racked up his medal tally over the coming days. Despite the American’s astounding success, one young swimmer (and his Dad) stole the show. Chad Le Clos (and the manic affection of his Father) gave us our most heart-warming moment in the pool. ‘The most beautiful boy you could ever meet’ beat his hero Phelps in his favourite event the 200m butterfly in a stunning finish, and melted hearts with his ecstasy. In the words of an overjoyed father and legend, “Unbelievable, unbelievable, unbelievable!”
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David Rudisha beats his own world record in London
Of all the tear jerking moments at London 2012, in the midst of an emotionally charged week, one man and his medal stand out. One man and his medal drew more tears, floods to be exact, than most. David Rudisha keeps a low profile; he doesn’t come with any of the theatrics of Bolt or Yohan Blake. He let his running do the talking and with astonishingly fierce pace broke his own 800m world record. It is hard to describe why this was such a special moment, perhaps it was the fact that he was discovered and nurtured by an Irishman, Brother Colm O’Connell; perhaps it was the pleasure of observing this raw and real talent; perhaps we can’t resist a world record; or perhaps it was just the fact that as the sun was setting on the stadium after a glorious day, the sight of this man rounding the final bend so magnificently, epitomised and embodied what had been a most spectacular Olympic Games. There we had it, a defining moment.
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What a story this is. Leave Athens in the past and forget everything you thought you knew about Cian O’Connor. Fate would have it that he wasn’t at the London 2012 Olympics. Fate would have it that he didn’t make it into the individual jumping final. Only picked to go to London as a replacement for Denis Lynch; only qualified for the final as a Swedish horse withdrew, and O’Connor and Blue Loyd have the round of their lives. Those loyal enough to the sport to have tuned in to the show-jumping that afternoon were in for a treat. 0.2 seconds was all that denied him a jump-off for gold, and a clip of the last, a silver medal. Bronze was more than good enough a prize after O’Connor gave it everything in the most exciting 40 seconds for the Irish at the games. Our first medal came from a very different arena than expected.
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Katie Taylor brought home gold for Ireland
No prize for guessing the number one sporting moment of the summer, of the year, of the decade; the number one moment in Irish women’s sporting history. Our golden girl, Katie Taylor, a trail-blazer for women’s boxing, an ambassador for women’s sport and an Irish hero. Katie’s performance and the support she received, Katie as a person, her talent and what it means to this island to have our anthem heard at an Olympic Games (and oh was it heard- the Irish crowd at Excel recorded a higher decibel level than at any other venue or event) is something that transcends sport itself. My own experience of her final I believe is a depiction of this. I was in London, watching it in a bar, an English bar. The fight directly before Katie’s saw Britain’s Nicola Adams take gold. Waitresses were going about their business, people barely noticing. At that moment I knew that when Katie’s time would come, people back home would down tools, all would come to a standstill while the population gathered to witness a little bit of Irish sporting magic. When the time did come an Irish crowd had assembled in the bar as if from nowhere and together we cheered and celebrated that exquisite, cherished moment.
