1) With the passing of Sir Roger Bannister at the weekend we were reminded of a man ahead of his time, not just with his speed but knowing lightweight footwear was key, getting his own bespoke shoes made for athletics. It would only be fair to let Sir Roger explain his four-minute mile in his own words. Alternatively, just enjoy the miracle mile and the three minutes and 59.4 seconds in all their glory.
2) No good can come from creating the name for a project before actually thinking about the concept. The pinnacle of this failing is Footballers’ Wines where ex-professionals are quizzed about their careers while some bloke explains why they might like wine at random junctures. Sadly, after grilling Tony Dorigo, Dave Beasant, Jason Euell, Pat Nevin and Hope Powell the idea was ended despite an infinite amount of wine/football puns in the presenter’s locker. Who knows what we could have learned from Mark Draper being interviewed over a class of Rioja? Or Paul Parker answering questions while sipping a Pinot Grigio?
3) Philippe Saint-André finished off a wonderful move from deep for France in the Five Nations back in 1991. It was a stunning game that England just edged 21-19, winning the championship in the process.
4) The Winter Olympics passed off relatively incident-free. However, during a World Cup event in Igls, Austria in 2015, the Canadian Jane Channell had her run disrupted in the skeleton by a broom that had been left on the track; one assumes not by a curler.
5) Supposedly 360ball was the future of sport in 2012 but for some reason this odd pastime does not seems to have caught on.
1) Sport is not always exciting, as this enthralling display of snooker proves.
2) Dennis Bergkamp did not just score goals, he also knew how to pass a ball.
3) Here is a mildly hypnotic video about how shuttlecocks are made, obviously.
4) Some NBA ‘disrespect’ from James Harden?.
5) Bruising encounters in the women’s AFL.
Spotters’ badges: LeeWall, whobroughtoranges, The Cedar Room.