Did that all really happen?
Now that the summer has disappeared, I've been thinking about all the amazing stuff we've seen over the past few months. It really has been a summer of sport. It's been pretty darn amazing to be honest. I can't remember a summer that's been so enjoyable as far as sport goes. It's all been so inspirating. Some of it moved me to tears, some of it still does. I cannot stop smiling when I think about it and I'm so grateful for all the fun and frolics I've had watching the sport, live and on TV.
For me, Andy Murray winning an Olympic Gold Medal for tennis in the Men's Singles and then winning his first major tournament, the American Open, was a stand-out. Us Brits have waited an extremely long time for a British player to win a major and finally, after years of people saying he couldn't handle the pressure of a final - he's lost quite a few - he did it. It must be a weight off his shoulders. Of course, now the critics will harp on that he'll never win Wimbledon. But that's still ahead of him, and he's got an Olympic Gold Medal, something that Roger Federer hasn't achieved :)
Also the Paralympics will be forever burned into my memory. Seeing Johnny Peacock win the 100m sprint, beating the most famous paralympion Oscar Pistorius, was an incredible thing. The huge grin on his face afterwards was just wonderful. And I was uber impressed with wheelchair racer David Weir winning four Gold Medals at one Games, in four very different kinds of races - including a sprint and a marathon. What an athlete. His fellow athletes say that he's been the most impressive of the Games.
I've already said how much I loved the Olympics so I'll skip that for now. What I will say is Mo Farrah was an astonishing athlete and man, I cheered loudly in the Olympic Park watching him win his second race on the big screen. What an atmosphere, all of us there screaming him on. I won't forget that in a hurry.
My Mum found this great quote about it all, published very soon after Europe struck an astonishingly unbelievable comeback and won the Ryder Cup for the second year in a row.
So that was our summer of 2012. An Englishman won the Tour de France. A Scot won the US Open. In between, Britons won gold after gold at a home Olympics and won even more in the Paralympics that followed. And so, after a sporting summer that has defied belief, the final miracle came to pass at the Ryder Cup .It was also, in a year when the extraordinary became commonplace, perhaps the most remarkable afternoon of all.
For me, Andy Murray winning an Olympic Gold Medal for tennis in the Men's Singles and then winning his first major tournament, the American Open, was a stand-out. Us Brits have waited an extremely long time for a British player to win a major and finally, after years of people saying he couldn't handle the pressure of a final - he's lost quite a few - he did it. It must be a weight off his shoulders. Of course, now the critics will harp on that he'll never win Wimbledon. But that's still ahead of him, and he's got an Olympic Gold Medal, something that Roger Federer hasn't achieved :)
Also the Paralympics will be forever burned into my memory. Seeing Johnny Peacock win the 100m sprint, beating the most famous paralympion Oscar Pistorius, was an incredible thing. The huge grin on his face afterwards was just wonderful. And I was uber impressed with wheelchair racer David Weir winning four Gold Medals at one Games, in four very different kinds of races - including a sprint and a marathon. What an athlete. His fellow athletes say that he's been the most impressive of the Games.
I've already said how much I loved the Olympics so I'll skip that for now. What I will say is Mo Farrah was an astonishing athlete and man, I cheered loudly in the Olympic Park watching him win his second race on the big screen. What an atmosphere, all of us there screaming him on. I won't forget that in a hurry.
My Mum found this great quote about it all, published very soon after Europe struck an astonishingly unbelievable comeback and won the Ryder Cup for the second year in a row.
So that was our summer of 2012. An Englishman won the Tour de France. A Scot won the US Open. In between, Britons won gold after gold at a home Olympics and won even more in the Paralympics that followed. And so, after a sporting summer that has defied belief, the final miracle came to pass at the Ryder Cup .It was also, in a year when the extraordinary became commonplace, perhaps the most remarkable afternoon of all.