Read all posts for ‘london 2012’

Nepal – the name conjures up images of mountains, rivers, temples and chaotic urban centers. Sporting strength is not something usually associated with the country. Indeed, the recent London Olympics 2012 were yet another missed opportunity in the long list of disappointments for Nepal. No, we are not counting our […]

  The mirage of unexpected excellence is something that has been animating the Olympic Games ever since their inception in the 1890s. As the chances of an amateur surpassing the reliable performance of a professionally groomed athlete grow slimmer and slimmer, this mirage becomes more potent than ever. But is […]

The International Olympic Committee is certainly not bashful about proclaiming its lofty ideals. The Olympics, it says, is about placing sport – silver platter style – at the “service of humanity and to thereby promote peace”. The iconic Olympic rings themselves signify a kind of brotherhood or “union between men”. […]

The Australian sporting psyche was established in the 1950’s and 60’s when the country produced an abundance of international sporting heroes. Dominating the pool, tennis courts and cricket fields, we quickly became used to the drug of victory.

On April 30, 2012 Norway lost one of its best swimmers when 26 year old Alexander Dale Oen died of cardiac arrest. During the London Olympics more fellow swimmers remembered him. It was a shock for the Norwegian nation. Oen was one of their favourites, a very successful and much-loved […]