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Sister act
loses lustre
IN THE NEWS
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The
marathon men
It is the ultimate test of an athlete’s endurance. The marathon, 42.195 km long, separates the leaders from the laggards, the wheat from the chaff. The original marathon man was Pheidippedes, a professional messenger in 490 BC. He ran 40 km without stopping from the battlefield at Marathon to Athens to give the news of the Greek victory over the Persians. On his arrival in the city, he gasped, "Rejoice, we conquer", and then dropped dead, exhausted. Earlier, when the Persian army landed at Marathon, he ran from Athens to Sparta to seek help, covering over 200 km in less than two days. The marathon was included in the 1896 Athens Olympics to pay tribute to this gallant runner. Winning it was a matter of honour for the Greeks. An Athenian millionaire even offered the hand of his daughter to any Greek who would win the race. Spiridon Louis, a shepherd, did not let his countrymen down. However, he turned down all the offers of gifts like free haircuts for life, free clothing, besides saying no to the millionaire, as he was already married. When King George I asked Louis how he would like to be rewarded, he only asked for a horse cart to help him transport water to his village daily. The 1908 London Olympics marathon was won by John Hayes of the USA, but Chaplinesque Dorando Pietri hogged the limelight. The Italian sweet-maker entered the stadium first, but was so exhausted that he collapsed on the track. Doctors and attendants revived him partially. Every few steps he fell down but picked himself up. Ultimately, aided by officials, he managed to cross the finishing line. However, the assistance he received brought about his disqualification. The next day, this plucky but unlucky fellow received a gold cup as consolation from Queen Alexandra. In the 1952 Helsinki games, Emil Zatopek, a Czech army lieutenant, won both the 5,000 metres and 10,000 metres. As if that was not enough for him, he decided to go for the big one. He had never run the marathon before yet he achieved the improbable treble. When he completed the final lap, members of the Jamaican relay team carried him around the field on their shoulders. By the time the next runner arrived, Zatopek was already signing autograph. In the 1960 Rome Olympics, Abebe Bikila, a member of the Ethiopian Imperial Bodyguard, ran barefoot to break the world record and break the world record. He did it again in 1964, this time running in shoes, barely 40 days after undergoing an appendicitis operation. He entered the 1968 marathon also but had to withdraw after 17 km because of a fracture. The following year, his Volkswagen, gifted by the government, met with an accident, leaving him paralysed below the waist. This champion runner remained confined to a wheelchair for the rest of his life. (He died of brain haemorrhage in 1973.) Bikila’s unprecedented success inspired many African long distance runners. After him, the Olympic gold has been won by Mamo Wolde and Gezahgne Abera, both Ethiopians, in 1968 and 2000, respectively, and Josia Thugwane of South Africa (1996), not to forget another Ethiopian, Fatuma Roba, who triumphed in the women’s category in 1996. There have been many surprise winners. East German Waldemar Cierpinski, a steeplechaser, pulled stunned his idol, defending champion Frank Shorter of the USA, in the 1976 Montreal games. Four years later, in Moscow, he astonishingly retained the title. Not many expected Carlos Lopes of Portugal, who finished second behind Lasse Viren in the 10,000 metres at Montreal, to win the marathon in the 1984 Los Angeles games. In the process he set a new Olympic record (2 hours, 9 minutes and 21 seconds), which is still standing. As the games return to their cradle
this August, Greeks will be hoping that one of their own wins the
prestigious race. Considering the track record, one can expect the
unexpected. |
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Sister
act loses lustre THERE was a time, not long ago, when the defeat of a Williams sister at a Grand Slam tournament was big news. To lose Venus and Serena, on the same day, before the semifinals would have caused shockwaves in the players' locker room. However, their veneer of invincibility has been eroded to such an extent that twin defeats at the French Open caused merely a ripple of surprise among their contemporaries. The sister act which contested four straight Grand Slam finals between the 2002 French Open and the 2003 Australian Open has lost its lustre over the past year. Prone to injury and susceptible to nerves, Venus and Serena are shadows of the players who dominated women's tennis so completely. ''I mean, these days it's not really shocking, you know,'' Jennifer Capriati said after eliminating Serena from the Roland Garros quarterfinals. ''It's not that surprising. There's a lot of girls that have been playing a lot more tennis than they have,'' she added, highlighting one of the problems faced by the sisters. Injuries sidelined both of them from the all-Williams Wimbledon final last year until the end of the season. Venus returned to the tour in January, Serena in March, but they are desperately short of match play and, crucially, confidence. Venus's conqueror Anastasia Myskina nodded when asked if their mystique had gone. ''Oh, definitely, right now, yes, because they have just come back. Venus owns a design
company and Serena is embarking on an acting career. — Reuters |
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IN
THE NEWS WISPY Anastasia Myskina and unseeded Gaston Gaudio, with shock Grand Slam breakthrough in Paris, took the Roland Garros crowns to signal the arrival of new forces on the red Parisian clay. In the all-Russian final, Myskina whipped her friend Elena Dementieva to become the first woman from her country to win a Grand Slam title. Myskina, on her way to the final, had overcome the power of Amazon-builds of Americans Venus Williams and Jennifer Capriati. The slender Dementieva had defeated the equally strong Lindsay Davenport and Amelie Mauresmo. Firebrand Myskina was till now more known for her on-the-court spats with her former boyfriend and coach Jens Gerlach. The spotlight was more on other Russians, Maria Sharapova and Dementieva but Myskina, not in the title calculations and not anywhere near the favourites, stole a march over her favoured rivals to be crowned the queen. Unseeded Gaudio had to account for two of his countrymen in the last stages of the tournament to become the first man from Argentina to take the French Open title since Guillermo Vilas in 1977. The unheralded Argentine defeated fellow countryman David Nalbandian in the semifinal and then stunned the world and Guillermo Coria to be become the king of clay in over three hours of final play. Pre-tournament favourite Coria, who had a tremendous run before the French Open, held match points and yet ended as the second best. Coria, named after Vilas, could not emulate him but it was enough for Argentines to cheer about in times of adversity. In fact, economic hardships seem to have no effect on their sports as three of the men's semifinalists were Argentines while losing semifinalist Paula Suarez led the challenge in the women's section. Russia and Argentina have surely and
firmly made great ground. Future forces, it seems more and more of them
are set to bring glory for their country. |
sm
Importance of fielding BESIDES good batting and bowling, good fielding also plays a vital role in deciding the fate of a cricket match. In extreme circumstances, it can even change the entire complexion of the game. Eknath Solkar was adjudged the best fielder in the world. In fact, the victory in the 1983 World Cup and in the Bensen and Hedges Cup in 1984 was largely attributed to fine fielding by the Indian players. Not even a single chance of taking catch, stumping or a run-out was missed. Srikkant in his comments on the historic win of 1983 termed Vivian Richards as the greatest batsman whose shots were piercing the hands of fielders like bullets. But superb fielding by the Indians got him out on an individual score of 33 and that was the turning point of the game. But observers of that match forgot to applaud the role of Yash Pal Sharma who saved the Indian innings from the deadly spell of Andy Roberts and Marshall. The aspect of fielding must be taken into consideration by statisticians and selectors while determining the overall rating of an individual player. This will help in inducing the players to remain agile throughout the game. NIRMAL KUMAR, Panchkula HP cricket It was a delight to read "Cricket in the lap of Dhauladhars" by Gopal Sharma. The writer gave a beautiful description of the scenic beauty of the stadium under construction and quoted a number of national players and selectors who praised the stadium. However, it needs to be mentioned that the efforts of the president of the HP Cricket Association, Mr Anurag Thakur, and his team, were also appreciated by Kirmani and More. SURESH KUMAR, Una |
