BUMPER SUMMER QUIZ UPDATE
Time for some housekeeping before Quiz HQ decamps to Tokyo(maybe not, given the absence of crowds)Are you looking forward to the Olympics? Maybe not. I fear the main stories will be a Covid count and an asterisk by each gold medal. How have the Japanese government and people been bullied and browbeaten into hosting the Games so reluctantly.?
The Tour has finished, the F1 circus has left Silverstone and the Euros finished in front of a TV audience of 31 million and, after the thuggees’ invasion, who knows how many in the stadium.
Nigel Anderton watched every kick, apart from happy moments keeping up with a Blackburn player in Chilean colours in the Copa America.
18) “The 2020 UEFA European Football Championship, originally scheduled to begin on 12 June 2020 at the Stadio Olimpico in Rome, finally concluded at Wembley Stadium, London on 11 July 2021. Italy won, beating England 3-2 on penalties after extra time was played. This was the 16th Euros competition and was planned to be different even before it had to be delayed a year due to the Co-vid 19 pandemic. It was suggested in 2012, by the later banned, corrupt UEFA President Michel Platini, that as a ‘romantic gesture’ to mark the 60th anniversary of the competition 11 different venues be used in 11 different UEFA countries. The footballers of Wales I’m sure were delighted with the romance of playing matches in Baku, Rome and Amsterdam before staggering jet lagged out in the Round of 16 to Denmark.
By the end of June, Cristiano Ronaldo and his Portuguese team mates had been knocked out by Belgium, though already Ronaldo had scored the 5 goals needed to secure the Golden Boot. The biggest shock so far, other than England easing past Germany, came when France surrendered a 3-1 lead against Switzerland before going out on penalties. The lack of French effort on the pitch fired up Adrien Rabiot’s mother to issue a Gallic ‘Let’s be having you’ invitation to members of the Pogba and M’bappe families, apparently ignoring Pogba’s wonder strike and her own garcon’s nightmare performance. Italy meanwhile moved menacingly on, bamboozling opponents with pace and artistry, even playing their 2nd X1 against the exhausted Welsh, indicating their strength in depth.
Back in England, strange days indeed. The national team was playing attractive, winning football under the intelligent Gareth Southgate. The players were regarded with admiration as positive, socially responsible role models and their coach, a rare example of what Gary Neville declared ‘everything a leader should be: respectful, humble, tells the truth, genuine.’ After a ponderous performance against a spiky Scotland, England had disposed of Germany and Ukraine. In tense Semi-finals, which both went to extra time, Italy, having earlier defeated favourites Belgium, overcame Spain and their prodigy, Pedri, while England struggled past Denmark who had overcome the shock of Christian Eriksen’s cardiac arrest in their opening match to make progress for their stricken star.
And so to the final. Played between what many believed to be the two best sides in the tournament. In front of a 65,000 crowd. The growing belief was that football ‘was coming home’, beers would be drunk and celebratory choruses of “Sweet Caroline” would resound across the land. The game began with an excellent goal scored by the deceptive Shaw, an extremely swift and skilful full back . After starting the move that switched to the opposite wing, he then appeared in the penalty area with perfect timing to drive Trippier’s cross into the net. Donnarumma in the Italian goal stood disbelieving, as though finding his car had been stolen. Southgate stood expressionless on the touchline while Mancini began to reorganise and break the English stranglehold in midfield. By the second half England had retreated and Italy were in the ascendancy. The pressure told when Bonucci, one half of the venerable pair of hard Italian centre backs, popped up in the six yard box to force the ball home from a corner. Neither side could find a winner and so after 120 minutes it was decided on penalties.
Italy’s win was a surprise to all but NINE quizzers.
(TONY FAUNCH,IMOGEN HARVEY,ANN KENT,JUDITH KNIGHT,JAMES NEWALL,ALEX SALTER,DAVID AND PAUL WEARMOUTH,BRENDA WOOLF)
Despite the absurd decision to scatter the tournament around Europe – is Baku really in Europe? – there were some tremendous games of football played. The Euros of 2020 ie 2021 surely can be judged a great success. After the terrible months of pandemic it gave people an escape, dreams, something to enjoy. It reminded us of why we love football.”
21)TWO Mercedes drivers on the podium for the British Grand Prix and Lewis Hamilton spraying the champagne. No surprise then since Mercedes have won the last seven World Championships with Hamilton at the wheel for six. But it was a surprise after the last three months when Red Bull’s new engine had seen the Mercedes far off Verstappen pace. Lewis had lost the inaugural sprint race to decide grid position, he seemed to have accepted his role as 2021 runner up. Here,in his home Grand Prix, he did not back off the inside line as he had done in recent races. The cars touched; Verstappen hurtled into a wall. The stewards thought Hamilton at enough fault for a ten second penalty. Verstappen was aggrieved at the Hamilton celebration and for the second time in a week, the sewer doors of racism creaked open. At Wembley, the blokes had been too timid; at Silverstone ,they had been too bold. No right way for the racists.
16)Roger Federer won his first Grand Slam in 2003,Rafa Nadal his first in 2005 and Novak Djokovic his in 2008.Sixty slams shared equally between the three, leaving slim pickings for others. Andy Murray and Stan Wawrinka, three slams each, briefly threatened the triumvirate. We’ve seen a succession of pretenders from around the globe and hoped this or that dazzling youth might herald the arrival of the next generation. The latest in that long line is Matteo Berrettini. Matteo roared to the Queen’s title and six rounds at Wimbledon with thunderous 140mph serving. He ran round the returns and hit clean forehand winners by the score. Daughter Emma believes I have a crush as I scurried to look up Titian’s portrait of “Man with a quilted sleeve.”(In contrast, the Italian footballers looked more like a Caravaggio street scene.)
Berrettini won the first set in a tie break. Novak looked flustered, aggrieved as ever that we do not love him despite his talent, odd choice of shots, unforced errors. Hope blossomed. After all, despite untroubled progress through the tournament, Novak had not looked at the peak of his powers. Hope soon withered. Italian forehands sailed long, cross court dinks drifted into the tramlines in ways we hoped the Azzurri would copy in the evening.. Djok won his 20th slam in FOUR SETS.
Whoever turns up in New York in August, it’s not hard to forecast a record breaking fortnight for Djokovic with the first calendar year Grand Slam since 1968.“It’s not a popularity contest,”said John McEnroe in the build up. Good job for Djok; it’s so hard to warm to him.
Just as Nigel kicked every ball in the Euros, Edward Gilder climbed every category summit, barged his way into every bunch sprint on the Tour.
19/20)“So where do we start with this year’s tour report. After just a few hours of the race it was evident that a return to the class room was necessary. Unlearn the names of last year’s teams and riders, a number of whom had been around for a few years and quickly learn the names of the up and coming ones. Without this information and lacking my trusty Cycling Weekly Tour Guide, I was a bit lost.
There were new teams and many new riders at the front, although I was pleased to see that Deceuninck Quickstep were racing in familiar kit, with the reassuring Lidl emblem on their sleeves, so there was at least one team I recognised. The ever-reliable Ag2r, reliable that is as wearers of the ugliest kit on the tour, had even had a makeover with Citroen emblazoned diagonally across their jerseys above the ever present brown shorts.
When the quiz dropped into my inbox back in February I was pleased to see that there was no green jersey question. So, no toss up between Quickstep’s Sam Bennett and Peter Sagan. Bennett was injured and Sagan it seems has lost his winning ways. But hey there was a new guy on the block some wizened, sweary old bloke from the Isle of Man, who in the words of Geraint Thomas, “wished he came from Liverpool.” We will get to the polka dot jersey shortly but I have to type this – Cav was back! No this is not a rehash of a report from a few seasons ago, badly edited. The Manx Missile was drafted in at the last minute to replace an injured Bennett and rewarded his team and Britain with FOUR STAGE WINS and equalled Merckx’s record of 34 tour stage wins, winning the green jersey in the process. Just brilliant. Sorry John but I just had to write that.
Back to the quiz. What about the King of the Mountains – well it seems that we now have climbers who can sprint, sprinters who can climb and GC contenders who can do both and win Time Trials. Belgian Wout Van Aert won on Ventoux and the Champs Elysee with victory in the last time trial in between, an unbelievable triple. There were at least four holders of the polka dot jersey. Niro Quinta had it for five days, along with the Canadian Michael Woods and Wout Poels. Grasping it on the last but one stage of the race, the overall winner Tadej Pogacar from SLOVENIA riding for UAE Emirates stood on the podium three times, once in yellow and once in the red and white jersey of the King of the Mountains. His third visit was for best young rider so I don’t think Pogacar is a name I will need to unlearn for a few years yet.
Jumbo Visma put in an epic performance getting three stage wins and with just four riders left towards the end of the race, put Jonas Vingegaard on the podium in second place. Inos Grenadiers (previously Sky) have been winning all season and managed to get Richard Carapaz in to third. By their standards a failure. Geraint Thomas had a bad crash early in the race, (I think I might have typed that in previous years) and limped on to finish 41st. Chris Froome, riding for Israel Start Up Nation crashed heavily on Stage 1 and never recovered. Two names I think we may no longer need to remember for next year’s quiz.
Another epic tour, just as engrossing as all the others I have watched. The bunting is packed away for another year and now we have Olympic cycling to look forward to. As that annoying Zwift advert during the breaks on the Tour highlights says, “No time to Rest”.
Three long time quizzers, three enthusiastic quiz recruiters battle it out for the Annual Prize.
Way down in 255th place ,I grasp the consolation that there is a special prize for top scorer at the Olympics where for the moment we are all on zero. Surely for someone as wise, knowledgeable and modest as myself, Tokyo will see a change of luck.
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