It’s been quite a week for British sporting heroes rolling back the years.
Over the last few years we’ve almost forgotten how much of an ordeal it is to watch an Andy Murray Centre Court match that delays the 10 o’clock news.
The only time you can actually relax and enjoy it is when the final point is won.
His first round game was unbelievable.
To be so far in front in the third set and then be dragged back into a five-setter made it behind-the-sofa viewing.
But his two games so far have been a wonderful reminder of what we used to take for granted – albeit we became accustomed to the torture beginning in the second week of Wimbledon rather than the first!
Muscle memory 🚀#Wimbledon pic.twitter.com/aRcmlAIF4e
— Wimbledon (@Wimbledon) June 30, 2021
Realistically, we know that it’s going to come to an end soon – probably against the number 10 seed in the next round.
Recovering from two longer matches to then taken on a guy who got a walkover in his second round is a mountain to climb.
But, make no mistake, he’ll think he’s going to win. And that will be true as long as he’s in the tournament.
Even if Murray was stepping on to court against Novak Djokovic he would back himself.
You can understand why people keep asking him about how long he’s got left but I’m sure he won’t be thinking like that.
You don’t put yourself through all the rehab and aborted comebacks he’s had if you’re just on a farewell tour.
The athletes who have got to the very top will never stop aiming as high as they can.
I must admit, the Tour de France is not an event I will ever get wrapped up in.
But I can understand why plenty of people I know get consumed by it.
The cyclists are incredible athletes.
To see another guy written off, Mark Cavendish, win a stage earlier this week would have been as big a deal for Tour addicts as Wednesday night was to Scots who have gone all-in with Andy for over a decade.
WOWWWW! 😲
An absolutely 𝗦𝗘𝗡𝗦𝗔𝗧𝗜𝗢𝗡𝗔𝗟 win for Mark Cavendish at #TDF2021! pic.twitter.com/L3EK4gUZTW
— Eurosport UK (@Eurosport_UK) June 29, 2021
Cavendish knows he can’t actually win the whole thing and in many ways being a sprint specialist is unique in sport.
There are plenty of sportsmen and women who will get out when they are past their peak for whatever reason.
So when you get ones like Murray and Cavendish who give us throwbacks to their glory years you have to be truly grateful for what you’re watching.
And it all adds to their legend.
Michael Goodfellow’s retirement from competitive curling marks the end of an era in Scotland.
He’s the last of the 2014 Olympic silver-medal winning team to call it a day.
We’re similar ages and have come up though the juniors all the way to those Sochi Games.
"It has been brilliant & I am both fortunate & grateful to have shared those successes with my team mates & friends,” @Olympics silver medallist @m_goodfellow88 announces his retirement after more than a decade at the top of the game.
➡️https://t.co/xO6sYZdj74#curling pic.twitter.com/cFLQ4h3hnF— British Curling (@BritishCurling) June 28, 2021
I read that Michael felt the time was right because it was clear that he wasn’t going to make it to Beijing next year – which says a lot about how strong Team Mouat have been recently.
It’s good to know that he’ll follow all the other members of that Sochi group into coaching and the development of the game in this country.
