English 4x1 Generates Quite The Headlines

[gh]

See collection of stories from rabid UK press in a bunch on our front page.

[George Matthews]

Hell hath no fury like a desk-bound, portly british tabloid scribe dragooned into covering his seventh favourite sport in March away from the football even if it does involve an all expenses jamboree in Melbourne.
To read the comments about wasted money spent on such feckless egomaniacs you would think that the 4 x 1 boys had broken into their hotels and lifted the contents of their wallets to allow them to further facilitate their spoiled,self indulgent lifestyles. But.............
Besides the tabloid crap though there has been some good, acerbic comment passed on through the fourth estate. British sprinting has lived under a delusion for several years now and this was fostered by [yes, them again] a tabloid press in the UK eager to assign iconic status to 4 guys who got extremely fortunate one August night in Athens a couple of years ago. So now, even modest and affable souls like Jason Gardener have developed a wearisome tone in their interviews, Mark Lewis-Francis continues to give pre season interviews which boldly claim that 'this is my year' and Darren Campbell now refers to himself in the third person in saccharine, moody personality pieces for the BBC.
Michael Johnson has again performed a public service on the BBC with his neatly aimed verbal arrows which have hopefully once and for all punctured the inflated opinions these guys have of themselves and, hopefully, the british public [who, on the whole do like their T and F when our brave lads and lasses are winning] have of them too. The facts are that these guys have a lifestyle and an income out of proportion towards their personal achievements and in the wake of a new generation of foreign sprinters and upcoming UK talent [Ennis and Martin Rooney in particular] they now resemble nothing more than the last remnants of an over indulgent era in the sport in Britain.

[tafnut]

the sprinters compounded their ineptitude by admitting that they had not even practised during the weeks they have spent in Australia supposedly preparing for these Games.

ops:

[pauluk63]

I agree with most of what is being said about the England sprint team, over the years Campbell has come out with some crazy crazy stuff about his success and been angry when people like Michael Johnson and Colin Jackson have questioned it.

He believes himself to be Olympic champion which is fair they won the 4x100m, but like Johnson said Linford Christie and John Regis would never have been happy with 4x100m gold had they left their individuals at semi and quater finals.

Some quotes from Campbell

Re Olympics "To go to Athens and finally get the gold I've been trying to get for 24 years was a big relief, It was a chance for me to prove that if I'd been fit I would have been challenging for the (individual) medals."

Re Johnson I didn't deserve that criticism, especially from someone who doesn't pay taxes in our country. " all Johnson had said was "Darren said he'd pulled his hamstring, then said he's in the best shape of his life,"

Re Colin Jackson (who has never won Olympic individual gold like Campbell, but won world titles and set world records he said "There is something I'd like to say to Colin Jackson... I've got a gold medal,"

I listen to Michael and I agree with all he says, he is simply saying that to aim for a relay gold should not be the drive of these sprinters careers I believe the English team sent to Melbourne was selected based on experience and so missed out on giving some young athletes an opportunity to gain experience ahead of 2012, not limp out in early rounds then drop the battern.

Campbell set his 100m personal best of 10.04secs when he won the European title in Budapest in 1998.

And he ran 20.13secs in the quarter-finals of the 200m in Sydney on the way to Olympic silver.

English Rankings in 2005 suggested the best team was sent:
100m:
1 Gardner 10.08
2 Lewis-Francis 10.13
3 Devonish 10.13
4 Pickering 10.22
5 Williamson 10.24

it would have been nice to see what Pickering and Williamson would have done for experience (though Pickering is consentarting on studies)

200m:
1 devonish 20.41
2 Nelson 20.69
3 Fifton 20.73
4 Lambert 20.79
5 Findlay 20.83
7 Campbell 20.90

How can Campbell be justified his 200m slot ahead of youth, and Lambert not even starting his second round?

Anyway thats my views....

[Andrea_T]

The BBC are largely blame for this. In fairness to the tabloids they only cover athletics when there's a major or national championship coming up. Most paper press reporters have no real detailed knowledge of athletics. It is the BBC that spotlights our mediocre sprinters and raises expectations, I couldnt believe the slot on Darren Campbell, he's not done anything decent for an age, and the slot largely relied on his Sydney exploits - jaysus, that was 6 years ago! He should never have been in the team for Melbourne.

In addition to the above I agree our male sprinters take the p*ss with their conduct. They are simply not as committed and professional as they could be. It was funny reading about the British swimming team who felt the sprinters strutted around the village disrespectfully, not wearing the team kit either. They need to buck their ideas up. MLF has just reaffirmed my belief he's never going to make it big individually

[pauluk63]

God it is poor

100m
Jason Gardner- QF
Mark lewis-Francis- SF DQ
Devonish 8th

200M
Lambert QF DNS
Cambell QF DQ
Devonish SF

How can we explain L-Francis and Campbell Disqualified and Gardner and Lambert turning up injured and not given a young athlete a chance in a major champs!?!?

I feel at least Devonish looked like he gave all he could, and was pleased he'd ran the 4x400 for us (though his split was a tired 46.7)