Cricket has always been known as the game of gentlemen. When in 1994 Brian Lara broke Garfield Sober’s world record for the highest no. of runs scored in an inning of a test match, Sobers was among the first unto the field to embrace and congratulate him. When in 2003 Matthew Hayden broke Lara’s record, Lara was quick to congratulate him It is not difficult to understand that when Brian Lara broke Matthew Hayden’s record in 2004 he was heartily congratulated by Mr. Hayden.
These great cricketers all know what it takes to perform at the highest level! They understand the hard work and determination required to set them apart from mere mortals!
Does the same principle hold true in Track and Field? Well lets look back at the beijing olympics where Usain Bolt shattered several records. He broke Michael Johnson’s 200m world record and was promptly congratulated by Mr. Johnson. Bolt was on the Jamaican sprint team that broke the sprint relay record held by the great US team which included Carl Lewis. Like Carl Lewis he won the sprint double and relay in the same olympics, but all in world record times. You would expect congrats to flow from Mr. Lewis to Usain, instead Carl questioned the fairness of his performance and went on griping about doping and drug testing.
These great athletes should know what it takes to perform at the highest level! They ought to understand the hard work and determination required to set them apart from mere mortals!
Does Carl Lewis know? He once said “I could run 9.8 or faster in the 100 if I could jump into drugs right away.“ That was more than 20 years ago when the anti-doping programmes were not as rigorous as they are now. So maybe that is the only way he knows how, after all he admitted to having failed three drugs tests. Shame on you Carl.
Alwin Hales' Weblog 