Tuesday, September 11, 2012

Past Pain Made Murray Find his Farah Factor


It was the agony not the ecstasy that made Murray a champion

He looked almost numb. Later, he said he was shocked, and his post-final interview on the court of major was in stark contrast to his previous one, at Wimbledon two months ago. Whereas there he had been unable to hold all of the emotion in, here he kept it together. Was he still in match mode, keeping everything under control, or was it that he simply could not believe that he had the trophy in his hands?

The Olympic summer – the golden summer – has been bookended by Andy Murray. As a nation moved from pessimism to optimism, so Andy moved from tears to joy. He wept on Centre Court, but Britain and he have not shed a despairing tear since then.

Monday, September 10, 2012

One Glorious Summer

The fireworks over the Thames last night

The Games are over, but what it has created can live on

And so it is over. London’s greatest summer ended last night with a festival of flame. As the Paralympic Cauldron was extinguished, the Thames exploded with a breathtakingly beautiful cacophony of noise and light, and the night sky turned to fire. Beneath this were a people who were in bittersweet mood: sad to see it go, but jubilant at the glory of these few months and utterly inspired.