LONDON CALLING:A Games miscellany
PACKING A PUNCHDavid Beckham may have missed out on an Olympic call-up but he is still the man most Frenchmen and women want to light the Olympic cauldron tomorrow.
A poll on the website of French sports daily L’Equipe had the Los Angeles Galaxy man ahead of the opposition for the accolade.
Thirty six per cent of voters backed Beckham to ignite the fire ahead of multiple gold-medal winning rower Steven Redgrave with 19 per cent, while Muhammad Ali, who famously lit the torch in Atlanta in 1996 despite being stricken by Parkinson’s disease, received 12 per cent.
Steve Ovett, with eight per cent, pipped fellow Moscow gold medallist Daley Thompson who had seven per cent while Roger Bannister, the first man to break the four-minute mile barrier, received two per cent.
With the start of the 2012 Olympics Games in London almost upon us, nearly three-quarters of people around the globe plan to watch at least some of the event, according to a new poll released yesterday.
Seventy two per cent of more than 18,000 adults questioned in 24 countries said they will tune in to the Olympics, which begins on Friday and runs until August 12th, and 20 per cent said they would follow track and field and soccer most closely.
At least half of residents in each country polled plan to watch some of it. Only 15 per cent said they would not tune in at all. In China, which hosted the last summer Olympics in Beijing in 2008, 92 per cent will be viewing.
Henman's little dig: Tim upstages current team
LOOKS CAN LIETim Henman managed to upstage Britain's current Olympic tennis team at a press conference on Tuesday evening with a dig at old rival Greg Rusedski.The pair battled over the British number one spot for more than a decade and played together in Davis Cup for much of that time, but were never the best of friends.
Old history perhaps but Henman could not resist chipping in when current British doubles partners Colin Fleming and Ross Hutchins were asked how important it was to get along well off the court.
Henman, who had earlier talked about winning an Olympic silver medal with Neil Broad in Athens in 1996, said: "I played with Greg Rusedski for 10 years so the relationship isn't that important."
Cue laughter all round and assurances from Fleming and Hutchins that they are indeed very good friends.
Torch: Unions vent anger
Belgian metal workers have written to IOC president Jacques Rogge to complain about the decision to allow Indian steel magnate Lakshmi Mittal to carry the Olympic torch.
Mittal, whose company ArcelorMittal has helped fund the Orbit sculpture at the Olympic Park, is expected to carry the torch today during its journey through Kensington and Chelsea.
Four trade unions wrote to Rogge to complain after ArcelorMittal decided to cut operations in Liege. It read: "Since Mr Mittal became the number one in the steel business, he has shed more than 70,000 workers. Believe, Mr President in our most deep broken-heartedness."
Lovers, and fighters
TAEKWONDO FIGHTERS Carmen Marton and Safwan Khalil are planning to cap their Olympic year by getting married after the Games – if their relationship survives sometimes intense sparring in the run-up to London.
Marton, a second time Olympian who will fight in the welterweight category, and Khalil, who will compete in the flyweight class, comprise Australias team for the Games.
"We do spar each other and it does get quite competitive, especially if I land a head kick or two on Saff, he's not too happy about that," said Marton. "We do push each other but we do look after each other at the same time, we don't want any injuries and we want to stay happy, especially when we get married."
