Sporting Heroes

In the poems of Homer a hero was a warrior chieftain of special strength, courage or ability.  Today the greats of sport walk among their peers as Homeric heroes, as godlike beings, seemingly unbeatable, and their very greatness transcends, not just their sport, not just sport, but the world as a whole; great sportsmen and athletes like, Jesse Owens, Muhammad Ali, Michael Johnson, Usain Bolt and Roger Federer. These are those who inspire the youth and through their very presence and their own immense achievements leave their sports and the events they touch, a real and lasting legacy. 

For my part, I remember the first time I saw elite men's sabre fencing.  It was at Brentwood School, and I must have been about nine years old.  James Williams, who coached my Prep School class, an Olympian in Barcelona, Atlanta and Sydney, showed us a video of him fencing.  I remember the speed, the aggression, the atmosphere and the intensity.  I was just getting in to fencing at the time and I thought, 'I would like to do that', from then on I was hooked. 

However, it is perhaps sporting greats in other disciplines that inspire me most.  It may sound almost cliched, if that shows the level of unanimous respect these athletes command, but three of my sporting heroes are Redgrave (Sports Personality of the Year 2000), Pinsent (2nd Sports Personality of the Year 2004) and Hoy (Sports Personality of the Year 2008).  Three great British men, who between them have won 13 Olympic Gold Medals and whose career achievements truly are, astounding.  

Simon Barnes, my favourite sportswriter, waxes lyrical about Redgrave in his book 'The Meaning of Sport'.  He says, 'Redgrave is not only a person. Redgrave is also a quality...Redgrave is the ability to go beyond yourself. It is the ability to go the full distance, Johnson-like and more. It is the ability to commit day after day, to the one goal of winning. It is the ability to achieve the ultimate goal: and to be unsatisfied. To want more. To demand more, to seek more and to get more.'    

Barnes was also in Athens and saw Pinsent win his fourth consecutive Olympic Gold.  He describes Pinsent's journey that Olympiad as an echo of the Odyssey, the story of a ship cursed by the gods.  Pinsent's boat had been a pair, which won everything until inexplicably coming fourth at the 2003 World Championships.  The boat was made into a four, which didn't work.  A man was dropped.  Another injured, and eight weeks before the Games, Alex Partridge suffered a collapsed lung and dropped out.  The crew had just seven weeks to prepare as opposed to four years.  The race was neck and neck and was won only in the last ten strokes.  Won by 0.08 seconds.  In the words of Barnes, 'Pinsent took the crew over the line by means of a massive outpouring of the self.  He refused to accept the plain and obvious fact of defeat and remade reality in front of us'.  Pinsent seized the time to succeed and came through, giving everything to the effort.  Pinsent bared his soul and his emotions overcame the body he had moulded as a machine through his years of rowing.  

And then, Chris Hoy, the fastest man over 1000m, winning Olympic Gold in Athens.  He had to deal with adversity a different way.  His event was dropped from the programme in Beijing, forcing him to look elsewhere to satisfy his insatiable hunger for success.  He returned from Beijing with three gold medals.  

These men, heroes to me, perhaps not so much because of their success but because of the quality that Simon Barnes describes as 'Redgrave' alive in them.  The ability to bend events to their will, and the ability to triumph in the battle of wills.  Barnes describes 'Redgrave' as 'not the quintessence of sport, but the quintessence of victory'.

I remember watching BBC Sports Personality of the Year at Christmas and feeling inspired. I felt that I wanted to win, I wanted to prove myself, I wanted to give reign to the 'Redgrave' in me. At the weekend I discovered that I have been nominated for Essex Sports Personality of the Year.  It was a complete surprise and was very touching. I'd like to think that perhaps I too could be a role model for young people finding their way into sport just as Redgrave, Pinsent and Hoy and perhaps one day might be able to join that pantheon of champions.   

On a different note, I would like to mention the news that Beazley, the specialist Lloyd's insurer, have entered into a five year partnership with British Fencing, as principal sponsor.  More details can be found at http://www.beazleybritishfencing.com/   This is great news for the sport in this country and will hopefully make a massive difference, and I just wanted to thank Beazley for their investment in our dreams.   

Away from those lights

"The fight is won or lost far away from witnesses - behind the lines, in the gym, and out there on the road, long before I dance under those lights." Muhammad Ali

Fencing is, just like boxing, a combat sport. The preparation for the big competitions happens in private; behind the closed doors of the fencing salle and the gym in my high street.  It is at this time of year when training should be at its toughest, before easing slightly during the season.  It is at this time of year when you must challenge yourself, to jump further, lift heavier, run faster, be sharper.  It is at this time where techniques can be reconstructed, actions taught afresh and tactics improved.  This is the preparation.  Some days its tough.  Some days can be a struggle, but they will be worth it in the end under those lights.   

One of my new year's resolutions which I've pinned to the wall, as one of my most organised friend's did last year achieving a considerable amount of success, is to learn how to skip.  Skipping has been proven to enhance coordination and rhythm between hand and foot movements and also increase stamina and endurance.  It is actually good preparation for fencing.  Skipping should be fast and explosive, and so are the movements required for fencing as one moves up and down the piste.  Improving coordination between hand and foot is also important as while your feet are the vehicle allowing you to pursue an opponent, the final action and the landing of an attack occurs with the hand.  So skipping will hopefully make me more agile and improve the co-ordination of my attacks.  Right now my training partner laughs at my frustration, although he did also admit that my skipping has improved ten fold over the last week. 

However, perhaps the most important reward I currently acquire from skipping is the absolute concentration required to succeed.  Certainly at my level of skipping, if my mind starts to wander I make a mistake, the rope stops.  Total concentration is required.  And total concentration is what is required once I am on the piste.  One lapse could mean a hit against.  One hit the difference between winning and losing. One hit the difference between qualification and watching on TV.  None of the top fencers give away hits and so with stronger powers of concentration I hope to make the transition this season and not allow my opponents the chance to get ahead or beat me, through such lapses.

Muhammad Ali is one of the greatest sportsmen to have walked the earth. His name one of the most famous in the world.  Nicknamed 'The Greatest' and referred to as 'The Champ' he made a mockery of his opponents with his trash talking.  But under those lights the truth is that not many were better than he.  That fact is testament to the hard work he put in behind the lines, in the gym and out there on the road, away from witnesses and before he danced under those lights.  He possessed drive and determination, just as I, and I hope that soon, I'll be ready.  

Setting out for Ithaca

Welcome to this, my first entry of my new blog. Thank you for reading and I hope you will keep following me through the duration of my journey.  I will attempt to keep you updated with my progress towards London 2012 and offer a snapshot in the life of an aspiring Olympian; in as informative and entertaining way as possible.  One thing is certain though, the next 571 days are going to be some of the best and most exciting days of my life as the anticipation builds and the preparation climaxes ahead of the lighting of the Olympic Flame on 27th July 2012. 

So why have I titled this blog 'My Journey to Ithaca'?  The reference is of course Classical, and I myself studied Classics at Downing College, University of Cambridge, between October 2006 and June 2009.  But you do not need to be a Classicist to have heard the story of Odysseus, the eponymous hero of Homer's Odyssey.  A Greek warrior king, who having fought for 10 long years at the Trojan War, journeyed for a further 10 years to reach his wife and son and reclaim his rightful rule of the island, Ithaca.  Thus Ithaca is the destination point, the goal, the ultimate aim.  My Ithaca is the Olympic Games in London a year and a half from now.  The time in between, what remains of my journey.

Constantine Cavafy starts in his superb poem, 'Ithaca': "When you set out for Ithaka ask that your way be long, full of adventure, full of instruction".  My odyssey started at Brentwood School, aged just 8 when, encouraged by my mother, I picked up a sword for the first time.  The sword was a foil, and I did not think I was very good.  After a year I switched to sabre, only because the rest of my class did and since then I have not looked back.  I first competed for Great Britain at age group level when I was 11, heading to France for a competition and before long had found myself in the U17 and U20 GB squads as well as the England Youth set up.  By the time I left school I had become a multiple international medallist, won the U20 Commonwealth Games and competed in three U17 and U20 World Championships.  Little did I know at that point that a few years later I would have competed as part of the GB team at the World University Games in Bangkok, been a member of the Team GB support team for the Beijing Olympic Games and won double gold at the Commonwealth Games. 

A good friend of mine once told me "Shoot for the moon, even if you miss you'll land among the stars".  I am doing just that. This blog will chronicle what remains of my odyssey and the experiences that will no doubt give me a wealth of enjoyment, thrill and delight.  While all the time I am aware that despite all the hard work and effort I am putting in, I might not ultimately succeed.  But not for one minute do I wish I had taken a different path and missed out on one single step of the way, not for one minute...

   

 Have Ithaka always in your mind.
Your arrival there is what you are destined for.
But don't in the least hurry the journey.
Better it last for years,
so that when you reach the island you are old,
rich with all you have gained on the way,
not expecting Ithaka to give you wealth.
Ithaka gave you a splendid journey.
Without her you would not have set out.
She hasn't anything else to give you.

And if you find her poor, Ithaka hasn't deceived you.
So wise you have become, of such experience,
that already you'll have understood what these Ithakas mean.