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Manuela's picture

London Marathon 2013: ‘The Calm after the Boston Storm’

London Marathon chief executive Nick Bitel said in a statement: "We are deeply saddened and shocked by the news from Boston". After the tragedy at the Boston Marathon, were you present at the London marathon to show your support or were you concerned about your own safety?

The media have concentrated their focus on the Boston Marathon in the last week. The news came to me on the many social networks. The web community seemed really affected, and has sent their prayers to the family and friends of the victims and injured.

Were the runners of the London Marathon scared? What about the hundreds of thousands of spectators? I do not know. One sure thing is that the Marathon did not get cancelled. The race from Greenwich Park to the mall (a 26 mile run) is a celebration for all running amateurs, passionate sportspeople and talents who take part in the event. It is a day of enjoyment planned every year.

Security was rearranged for the event as London mayor Boris Johnson had spoken to police Commissioner Sir Bernard Hogan-Howe "about the possibility of extra security for the London Marathon" for prudence. No less than 36,000 runners participated in the event.

Erik's picture

Sporting Spirit vs Commercial Culture

In my country, rugby has no tradition at all, which is pity, because I think it is one of the best games in the world. I like it, although I have never actually played it.

Recently, during my Cambridge visit, I saw a bunch of guys playing rugby in a park. They reminded my of my high school P.E. lessons, when we would play football outside regardless of the harsh conditions. Although rugby does not have any tradition in Slovakia, in passion we matched the guys from Cambridge. And that matters. Such sports should teach young men fair play, build fortitude and improve physique. They are part of the curriculum of most of the schools in England. In Slovakia, the most popular school game is football (soccer).

There are only a few American Football teams in Slovakia. Actually, many people back there do not differentiate between Rugby and its "commercial" brother - American Football. Once someone allowed the players to pass the ball forward, dressed them in protective gear so that they look like Darth Vader and filled their heads with pre-learned tactics. And this is how American Football was born. I can not help, but to me it comes across as a game more connected with the commercial culture of eating up hamburgers than the original spirit of sport.

Foreign Students's picture

Top Six Most Memorable Moments of London 2012

Although the London 2012 Olympic Games have now finished, there are certain moments that people will never forget. Here we pick our six most memorable moments of the Games (with a slight British bias of course!). Click on the titles of each moment to watch them:
 

Foreign Students's picture

Closing Ceremony Draws Curtain on London 2012

After two weeks of glorious, unforgettable sporting action, London 2012 came to an end last night with a Closing Ceremony at the Olympic Stadium. Some of the biggest musicians in the world joined together to present a collection of some of the best-known British music, as the athletes danced in the stadium and the responsibility was passed on to Brazil for the 2016 Olympic Games.

Last Weekend of Sport

However, before all the closing party, there was one last weekend of Olympic sport to enjoy. Team GB made sure they went out with a bang, claiming another four gold medals over the weekend. Luke Campbell and Anthony Joshua both took boxing golds, whilst Ed McKeever won the kayak 200m sprint. However, it was Mo Farah who grabbed most of the headlines, adding the 5,000m gold to the one he won for the 10,000m. It was the first time a Brit had ever completed this unique Olympic double, and firmly placed Farah as one of the stand out performers for Britain at the Games.

All this was amongst Usain Bolt taking another gold medal and setting another world record, as his Jamaican team strolled to the men's 4x100m relay. Bolt celebrated with Mo Farah afterwards, both copying the other's famous celebratory pose:

Foreign Students's picture

The Runner Who Finished his Race With a Broken Leg

Whilst Usain Bolt was getting all the plaudits last night after his second gold medal of the Olympics, perhaps there was a runner more deserving of credit who ran earlier in the day.

Manteo Mitchell from the United Sates was half way though his leg of the men's 4x400m relay heats when he felt a snap in his leg. As Mitchell himself explains:

"As soon as I took the first step past the 200m mark, I felt it break. I heard it. I even put out a little war cry but the crowd was so loud you couldn't hear it. I wanted to just lie down. It felt like somebody literally just snapped my leg in half."

However, instead of pulling up injured and not finishing the race (something I don't think anyone could have blamed him for), he decided to carry on:

"I didn't want to let the three guys or the team down, so I just ran on it. It hurt so bad. I'm pretty amazed that I still split close to 45 seconds on a broken leg."

So, not only did Mitchell finish his lap, he finished it in a quick time, and amazingly the US went on to qualify for the final as the second fastest team at London 2012. An x-ray after the race revealed that he had indeed broken the fibula bone in his left leg.

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