Sport in West Norfolk

Last night (Tuesday) I had the pleasure of speaking to a group of sportsmen and women at the West Norfolk Sports Council AGM, held at Lynnsport, King's Lynn. From that evening, I just wanted to share a few, brief thoughts.

The first thing is why I was there. I was asked to speak because of my fast-impending Olympic role, leading the news service team for hockey. I spoke for about 25 minutes about the role, how I came to get it, my expectations and a little bit about the process involved in the organisation of the event since London first won the bid in 2005.

But what struck me far more than the delivery of my speech was the emotion I felt as I drove up to Lynnsport. I left King's Lynn nearly 25 years ago, and when I left Lynnsport was a very new facility. The people who used it then were mainly footballers, middle class, middle aged gym goers and some senior citizen indoor bowlers.

Last night there was a group of youngsters taking a break from 'The Shed', an indoor skatepark; there were athletes of all ages on the track - from teens to silver-sprinters (grey-haired athletes); there were disabled people heading towards the sports centre for gym-based activities; there were footballers, squash players; and a host of other people. In other words it was a hive of activity.

Which got me thinking about sport in the last 25 years. When I left King's Lynn, the people who 'did' sport were the 'sporting' people. They were fairly much from the same social category - well-off enough to be able to afford match fees, membership charges and kit; they would have been in the school sports teams for that sport; they would usually be male and they would always be under 45. Oh, and being in Norfolk, they would be white and British.

I have been witness to a huge shift in sports provision and sports participation over the last quarter of a decade. At Loughborough University I saw the beginnings of the National Coaching Foundation and its influence on raising coaching standards; as a sports coach I saw the activities of Sport England and the National Governing Bodies, with programmes such as 'Tops Sport' and the introduction of mini sports; as a teacher I learnt how to engage more people, especially girls, through offering a varied programme of sport, rather than a programme based on team games; and as a magazine editor for a sports body I have seen numerous examples of incredible good practice that is working hard to reach out to a wider audience.

And last night I saw numerous people, all engaged in providing sport/activities to the people of West Norfolk. This in itself is no easy matter due to the rural nature of the area and the number of low income families in patches of the borough. There was the elderly gentleman from Sedgeford Tennis Club who was worried that people who devised sporting strategy were forgetting the social aspects of sport; there were the two athletes from Ryston Runners who have done more to keep people engaged in athletics, running and walking well into their retired years than any amount of funded programme could do; there was the sports development officer who had led a team that had delivered a varied and exciting programme around the borough in the lead up to the Olympics.

The speaker ahead of me, a sports strategy consultant, gave a pessimistic take on sport in West Norfolk. I gave, I hope, and upbeat message about the Olympics. The gentleman who spoke after me was a fanatical football commentator for the county radio station. He loved the local league clubs and would rather watch Diss Town than a premier league match.

I think what the people of West Norfolk should be proud of, is that they have such a vibrant sports community, despite of the problems outlined by the sports strategist. As long as the village tennis club, the local bowls club, the community zumba class and the local Parkour club continue to run, then sport in West Norfolk will not only survive, but thrive.

So my emotional return to Lynn Sport was because I felt I had come a full circle. I had left the area loving sport but not really understanding its place in society. I had come back, on the eve of going to the most highly-publicised sports event on the planet, and found that actually the most meaningful sports participation and provision is evident in every community, and for that reason should be supported and cherished.

Handball is one of the Olympic sports that could become a community activity

A new challenge or warped logic?

You know how it is. You run a good time in your most recent half marathon (83 minutes). You harbour great ambitions to really push for an age-group GB cap and then disaster strikes. You are doing an innocuous exercise to develop your core stability and a sudden stabbing pain attacks your right hip.

Driving on despite a hip injury

First thoughts - 'Ah well, I was due a rest for a couple of days' and 'what a pratt for trying to do an exercise without warming up first!'

Thoughts after a week and no sign of improvement - 'This is not looking good, I had better see a physio.'

Two weeks later - 'Definitely need to see a physio.' Book physio, discover you used to teach him, so feel very old and past it, especially when he says that at my age (44) injuries take longer to heal.

Four, expensive weeks later, no improvement. Youth does not equate to knowledge, but then looking at my inability to rest the injury, or ice it properly, age doesn't always equate to wisdom either.

Now I am having acupuncture and it is very refreshing to meet a therapist who sees the whole picture. Not only is the acupuncturist looking at more than simply the site of pain – she is treating the whole body for its stresses – she also realises that telling me to rest is useless, and she is positively encouraging an active recovery.

So, I have decided to take a novel approach to a long-term injury; I am going to train for an ultra marathon, and perhaps even do one.

Why? Well, this might be warped logic but I think it is going to work. My injury seems to be stable, ie it is not getting any worse. The affected area gets better with movement but I cannot do anything that involves high impact - jumping, hopping, skipping or...running fast. But I can plod for ever, and the further I plod, the better the hip feels.

Ultra marathons involve lots of plodding. In fact some of the most successful ultra marathoners plod, and in doing so overtake the faster runners (think parable of hare and tortoise).

So today I did my first training session. My poor little dog joined me and, after two ibruprofen, we set off on a 20 mile walk/jog. I took a rucksack filled with dried apricots, dates and doggie treats, along with some water and sports drink. We had a great time and I didn't miss running fast at all.

Fresh as daisy! Beano a few miles in

It was odd transitioning from a jog to a walk, and for the first few times I was very reluctant, but I am committed to two things: 1. Getting over this injury and 2. Doing the training properly.

It took me just under four hours, which is much slower than I would run if I was going to run a marathon, but in the back of my mind was the thought that, at this pace I really could keep going for many more miles.


As it was, three months away from running has taken its toll slightly and by the end my legs were tired but not unpleasantly so. I took a cold (can't quite do ice) bath and then kept moving around the house. Little dog has taken a different approach to recovery - sleeping for the rest of the day, except when he hears a potential food-begging opportunity.

This first day is the start of a base-building section of preparation, so tomorrow I shall be putting more mileage in my legs, but via a three-hour bike ride this time.

Warped logic it may be, enjoyable experience it certainly was.

Hockey passes first test

The hockey test event at the Riverbank Arena on the Olympic Park was an outstanding success - both for its organisation and the results.

The four-day test event pitted the world's number one and number two-ranked men's teams, Germany and Australia, against each other in a thrilling final; while the women's final saw Great Britain overcome the might of the Champion's Cup holders, Argentina to take gold - much to the delight of the home crowd.

The participating teams were:
Women's section, GB, Korea, China and Argentina.
Men's section, GB, Australia, Germany and India.

As a test event, I don't think things could have gone better - unless someone at the head of the London 2012 organising committee has a direct line to the god of weather. Despite the odd downpour, the more continuous steady drizzle and a bitter wind, the tournament went smoothly.

The blue pitch with the pink surround was well received by spectators, camera-people and players alike. The stadium, although compared to a set of match sticks by one eminent hockey journalist (who clearly didn't realise it is a temporary structure), was really well set out. The spectators could get in and out easily, the seats all had great views and the big screens were visible around the ground.

The team's changing rooms were a short walk away but nothing too strenuous - we are talking metres not miles. The press facilities were a bit cold but nothing that a hot British summer won't cure.

Down points 
The injuries to GB's Alex Danson and Crista Cullen will leave coach Danny Kerry sweating on his team selection. See the England Hockey website for updates and team news.

The distance that people have to walk from the entrance to the park to the hockey arena may cause elderly or disabled people a problem, although there are buggies available.

The replica fans, which seem to have replaced the vuvuzela, will eventually get on people's nerves, as might the band that accompanies all GB matches - fine for four days, not sure about 14.

Moments of controversy
The GB men conceded a goal when the hooter went before they were all on the pitch. The goal scorers - obviously the German's, so will it be a case of 'don't mention ze score' come August?

The Argentinian player, Fernando Zylberberg, who featured in an advert for the games,  doing step-ups on the British war memorial in the Falklands - he has not been picked but bad feeling may linger.

The bounciness of the pitch - venerable Aussie coach Ric Charlesworth was among those who complained that the pitch was too bouncy and may not settle in time for the Games. And pommes are whingy?

Anyway, 12,000 spectators on finals day and many thousands more in the previous three days of competition, all agreed that as a test event, hockey had come out with top marks.

A heroine fix

Where are all the sports heroines? Following on from the great Sports Personality of the Year debate, there is a deeper issue that should be under serious discussion.

The dismal showing by the BBC’s nominations for the annual sports personality does throw up the rather unpleasant truth that there is a dearth of visible female talent within sport in the UK. That is not to say there is no talent – that is far from the truth – but the fact is, that whatever their sporting walk of life, women tend to take second place to men.

In competitive terms there is no need to look further than the big three – football, cricket and rugby. In each of these sports women are recording equal, if not better, results on the world stage than their male counterparts. The women’s rugby team were beaten finalists in this year’s world cup. In recent years the women’s cricket team have won the Ashes, the One Day International World Cup, and World T20. The women’s football team were quarter finalists in the last World Cup.

But the same inequality exists in other spheres of sporting life. A study by the Women’s Sport and Fitness Foundation has found that the number of women on the boards of national governing bodies of sport has remained stagnant for the last few years at 20 per cent.

This immediately throws up a number of issues. Firstly, if only a few women make it to boardroom level, at what point do they get stuck on a rung or completely fall off the career ladder? Secondly, what hope is there that the decisions made by a boardroom that only reflects the views of the male half of the population will be appropriate for the sporting demands of female participants.

And, perhaps most importantly, where are the role models for aspiring female leaders to be found? Just as young girls need to see elite participants on the television or in the newspapers, so too do the young women working in the sports industry. How many female sports graduates have the aspiration to get half-way up a ladder and then stop?

Currently, 54 per cent of graduates in sports-related degrees are female. There are many female sports centre managers, a high proportion of gym instructors are female. But then where do they go? National team coaches tend to be male – Dyl Powell, the England football coach, is a shining exception to this rule. Top umpires and referees are usually male, and there was uproar when a female referee was appointed to premiership football matches. And how many of the sporting press are female? There are some very good female journalists but the chief sports reporters and sports editors of most of the nationals are male and heavily biased towards golf, football, cricket and rugby in its male form, of course.

However, there is a light at the end of a very long tunnel. Two of the most influential UK sports organisations are female. Jennie Price is chief executive of Sport England and Liz Nicholl has recently become top dog at UK Sport. Other female heavyweights include the Baronesses: Tanni Grey-Thompson and Sue Campbell – but these high achieving women are the exception not the norm.


Shining examples in sports management















But a male dominated boardroom makes no sense. A recent government study into the lack of women at the top of big businesses said: ‘the business case for increasing the number of women on corporate boards is clear. Companies with a strong female representation at board and top management level perform better than those without’.

And the pro-business lobby group the CBI, believe that having a gender diverse board improves business performance in the areas of “Innovation and creativity”, “Knowing your customer” and “Business reputation”.

Situations like the BBC Sports Personality Awards offer a momentary spotlight on these inequalities, and the promised review is a small step forward but there is a much longer game to be played here.

There are many changes that need to happen. The media can play a huge part by supporting women’s sports to a much greater extent. The female sporting elite can take a leading role in pushing a positive message through the media and the sports industry, which is a huge employer in the UK, can take an enlightened view on its senior management strategy – by making it possible for a women to combine family and career, and by recognising the many strengths that females can bring to the industry at boardroom level.

Female sports stars can act as role models

A new guest at the top table

Last night I went to a 'working dinner' celebration of the formation of the Institute for the Management of Sport and Physical Activity held at Roehampton Tennis and Golf Club.
Guest of honour was Sport and Olympic minister Hugh Robertson, and after admitting that even he had not received his choice of Olympic tickets, it was down to serious business. 'I want this body of sport to make my job uncomfortable,' he said. Robertson added that the Institute in it's two previous forms - ISRM and ISPAL - had been too reactive, but now that the move had been made to create one creditable, chartered organisation then there was space at the top table for a representation from sports management.
'This industry should be getting it's people into positions of power, chief executives of local authorities and within the higher levels of government,' added Robertson.
This was music to my ears because my new journal - Sport and Physical Activity - is the voice of IMSPA and listening to the minister and seeing the faces around the tables I could see that there is a real potential for both this organisation and the magazine to make a real impact on both the sports industry and the health and fitness of the UK.

Giving Stratford a Sporting Chance

Looming large on the horizon – the Olympic Stadium

If I wasn't ridiculously excited enough about the Olympics, then my visit today to the Olympic Park served to do the trick. I decided to walk the four miles from Liverpool Street Station to Stratford to get an idea of the local area.
It is economically deprived, the housing is shabby, shops are boarded up and the whole area from Bethnal Green to Stratford has a tired feel. That said, there is a cultural mix of people and a sense that change may be just around the corner. And, indeed it is. A stones throw from the social poverty a glittering showpiece is slowly growing. The Olympic Stadium, the Amish Kapoor monument, the Aquatics Centre, the velodrome - they are all becoming iconic sights on the east London horizon.
At the same time, the ODA design team have put a lot of thought into the bigger picture. The road, rail and waterways transport system will allow a new ease of accessibility to the east end. The miles of walking and cycle paths hits the governments active people agenda. The acres of grassland, meadows and wetlands create a green haven and 4,000 new trees will add to the landscape.
Economically, new, affordable housing, alongside new private housing, a new school and the huge Westfield shoppin centre will all stimulate employment, training and the local economy.
As a sports fan I was blown away by the facilities, as a person who loves London, I cannot wait to revisit the walk from Liverpool Street to Stratford in a few years time and marvel at the difference this legacy will have left. Well done to John Hopkins and his team for having this vision.

Boules rules!

A friendly game of boules after work, a few pints of real ale and a supper of sausage and chips. There are few sports that are more suited to the quintessentially rosy view of English life than this.

I went to my first game of boules last week, and it lived up to all expectations. The game was a league match between the Blue Lion at Hardwick and the Lamb and Fleece at Horningsea. The home pub, the Lamb and Fleece, was quaint, local and friendly. The competitors were quirky and from a range of backgrounds, and the competition itself was hard fought, with just a hint of steel around the edges.

For those new to the game here is a quick fire summary of the rules.

Two teams of six compete. The team is divided in two for the first round, so three people from each team compete, throwing two boules each. The first team to accrue 13 points wins that round. The cochonnet, or cloche in local dialiect, is thrown a distance of between 6 to 10 metres from the throwing circle. The teams then try to get their boules as close to the cloche as possible. Whoever throws the closest holds the initiative and the other team have to try to get a boule closer. When all the boules are thrown, points are added up. A point for the team with the boule closest, but if the next nearest boule belongs to the opposition then only the one point is scored. If one team has a number of boules closest to the cloche with no boule from the opposition then the leading team gets points corresponding to the boules near the cloche (I hope that makes sense!)

The second round of the game involves the teams splitting into three pairs. They follow the same process but throw three boules each. The final score is tallied in sets won, with five sets played in total.

So, the rules firmly established, let me describe the evening.

As people turn up at the pub there is a laconic air about the early arrivals. No-one wants to appear too keen. Drinks are ordered and the teams carefully eye the opposition up. On this occasion Phil was skipper of the visiting team, a duty he was clearly taking very seriously. One of his team was making her debut so Phil took her through the rules, emphasising that 'the cloche can not be thrown out of the area – that will mean the game is dead.' The debutante, who was clearly more than capable of keeping the cloche in the area humoured her skipper and nodded sagely.

By now one or two members of both teams were rather sheepishly making their way out of the pub to grab a quick practice throw. This was laughed off, because no-one could be seen to be taking this seriously. As more people made their way out, the practice became more serious, until, unable to resist, one of the team members gave a coaching tip. That was it – the match had tipped into competitiveness.

Dave, one of the visiting team had still not thrown a practice boule. This was clearly worrying skipper Phil, who followed him around the pub garden with a boule in his hand. Finally Dave gave in and threw a practice boule. All was okay, Phil visibly relaxed and Dave smiled ruefully, his cool cover disintegrating.

The home team had a worry. Baz was drunk. The youngest team member had been out for a day of drinking with his mate, Jeff. The pair were clearly in their team's bad books and Michelle, five months pregnant thrust the cloche into Baz's hand with a look that clearly defied him to throw erratically. Luckily for Baz, his cloche landed with unerring accuracy and his first boule followed, landing just centimetres from its target.

As the dusk fell, the sun at the back of the pub went down in a blaze of red. The Cambridgeshire skies were a picture and a fabulous backdrop to this most English of evenings. It is ironic that boules is a french import, but it is one, along with brie and garlic, that we have adopted enthusiastically.

The match took three hours and it was past 11 when the final scores were marked and both teams shook hands. The home team had won convincingly, which didn't please Phil, but his newest team member had thrown well, his oldest player had enjoyed six points of ale and was in full flow with stories about the local postman, Dave had played well despite his reluctance to practice and the plates of sausage and chips were beckoning.

Roll on the next match