It’s about control and handling the bike, it’s like the lighter the bikes, the harder it is to control but it cannot be too heavy as well. The momentum of the race, the speed, how you adjust your weight in your every steer and at every bumps, steps and avoiding the grass areas. The flight across the grassy area between two higher bumps should not be too high because it will slow you down, it cannot be too low or you’ll hit the edge of the bump. Now that is tough. Every landings are crucial, when to pedal, when not to. Its almost loke strategic precisions. But these athletes did great! I enjoyed it every moment. Here are some of my photos collection:

Silver medallist Sarah Walker of New Zealand, gold medallist Mariana Pajon of Colombia, and bronze medallist Laura Smulders of the Netherlands celebrate during the medal ceremony for the women’s BMX Cycling Final.

Silver medallist Sam Willoughby of Australia, gold medallist Maris Strombergs of Latvia, and bronze medallist Carlos Mario Oquendo Zabala of Colombia celebrate during the Victory Ceremony for the men’s BMX Cycling Final.

I realized Colombians, Latvians and the Dutch dominates the BMX bike events. Okay, let’s look at the two champions at one of their happiest moments of their lives.

Mariana Pajon, bringing home a Gold medal, the joy, it’s overwhelming.

Maris Strombergs of Latvia, yes, I’m number one!

And of course the awesome photos I would love to keep in my personal Olympic Sports collection:

The flight, pure momentum derives from the speed.

Please keep away from the grass.

Beautiful shot!

Aerial view of the track.

Not easy to get this shot, especially when you capture the shadow as well, nice one!

Any glitch in the handling caused pain, a lot of it. Thank goodness for the helmet.

Another crash during the qualifying match.

The cyclists at their best.

Medics are always on standby.

Shanaza Reade of Great Britain in despair for getting 6th place.

Now that’s fast.

(Thanks to all the photo sources)

Too bad, my prediction is true and that luck is not on Malaysia side. It appears that my country has no fate with the Olympic gold medal. Every Malaysians purposely had their dinner early so that they could get back home on time to watch the much anticipated final, giving chance to make the country proud from Lee Chong Wei. The chance to win the gold medal heightened as soon as Chong Wei won the first game (21-15). It is quite unbelievable and we are so excited by that time as Chong Wei had shown a very good start. Things don’t go smooth for Chong Wei in the second game. Lin Dan is much more aggresive and widen the gap between their points, hence winning the second game easily (10-21).

Then, left the last rubber game, which is the most essential. Our attention never gets off the TV screen and my heart was pumping so fast that I somehow sense a strong nervosity in my mind. I believe every Malaysians must be feeling the same. It’s the deciding game. It is a very close contest between the two. Lin Dan made some very obvious net mistakes and sometimes had his shuttlecocks aimed out of boundary. That is good for Chong Wei to earn points. However, Chong Wei himself also did several major mistakes and he is found weak on his backhand skill. Well, both played to their very best and it seems that Chong Wei’s performance is now on par to Lin Dan. What’s separate Chong Wei from winning the gold medal just now is only the luck.

Luck is not on Malaysia’s side at the last minute of the game when the score is 19-19. Few rounds earlier, it is Chong Wei that stood nearer to gold medal point, but then Lin Dan strike back hard to make the score even. Then, without wasting any further time, Lin Dan do his attacks and Chong Wei countered it with unlucky mistakes and finally lost in a very saddening way. Chong Wei immediately kneel down in a sign of extreme disappointment which is inevitable as this would be his last Olympic outing and he did not make it for the gold once again. While on the other hand, Lin Dan is too happy and excited, screaming out loud, taking off his shirts and doing a lot of patterns after becoming the first ever Olympic defending champion (won in two straight editions of the games) in badminton. It is a great achievement for him once again, but it’s a serious heartbreaking thing for Chong Wei to face. It is really sad to see him in moment after losing the last game. We all felt so sad, and to be honest, now I’m seriously feeling very down and in no mood situation. Hope Chong Wei would rise up from all those disappointments and pressure, and don’t take this defeat too seriously. You have had captured every Malaysian’s heart from your wonderful performance just now which is shown to be extremely better than his meeting with Lin Dan in Beijing 2008.

It is such a pity that he lost it out in the last few minutes of the deciding game. Luck is seriously not on Chong Wei’s side but we all know he did his very best and his performance just now is extremely good and impressive. He at least gave a very good fight and both delivered a badminton performance in the very best quality ever I have seen in men single category. Chong Wei would be forever champion in all Malaysians’ hearts despite not able to win Olympic gold medal. Nevermind, he still had two silver medals for Malaysia (one from Beijing 2008, and latest one from London 2012). He already made the country very proud. He is forced to settle for silver medal once again. On another news, Koo Kien Keat and Tan Boon Heong lost to the Korean pair in men double bronze match not long ago (few hours earlier). I didn’t watch that match because I expected Malaysia to lose for that since Korean pair is much more superior. But getting fourth placing that comes with no medal at all appears to be another big disappointment to the Malaysian pair and to the whole country. Well, this is what it is. We have to accept that. No matter what, Malaysia Boleh!

(Images from this post are not mine and are obtained from various sources in Facebook)

エンジェルからの帰り、Regent’s Canal（リージェンツ・カナル）を歩いていた時見た光景。調べてみると、子供たちの描いた絵を元にして、アーティスト・Ron Haselden（ロン・ハーセルデン）が制作された「Diver（ダイバー）」だそうだ。これは、600人のロンドンの小学生とハーセルデンのコラボレーションで、Paddington Basin（パディントン船着き場）からオリンピック開催地まで、リージェンツ・カナル沿いのの9マイルの遊歩道を、8つのanimated light sculptures（動く光の彫刻）で飾ろうという、オリンピック・アート・プロジェクト「GAMES」の一環。ロンドンの様々な場所を、著名アーティストによる光のインスタレーションで飾ろうというプロジェクト「Art Lights London」によって制作された。残り7つのインスタレーションも随時設置される予定で、運河沿いを行き交う人々の目を楽しませてくれそう。

「Diver」は2月2日夜、飛び込みのオリンピック銀メダリストであるPeter Waterfield（ピーター・ウォーターフィールド）によって点灯、お披露目された。改装されたビクトリア時代の製材所・Diespeker Wharf横にクレーンで吊り下げられたこの作品は、今年度末まで見ることができる。暗くなってライトアップされた方が綺麗だと思うが、薄暗い運河沿いを歩くのはちょっと怖いので、夜見に行かれる方は気をつけて。

This is what I found when I was walking back on Regent’s Canal from Angel. Later I found out by googling, that it is called “Diver“, created by artist Ron Haselden from drawings by local schoolchildren. This is the first of eight animated light sculptures of an Olympic art project “GAMES”, which is an collaboration between 600 London primary school children and Haselden, and is produced by “Art Lights London“, a cultural initiative to creating a series of light installations by renowned artists. The rest of seven sculptures will be placed along 9-mile trail of Regent’s Canal from Paddington Basin to the Olympic site, and will entertain pedestrians and cyclists passing through the canal , together with ”Diver“.

This light sculpture was unveiled and switched on by British Olympic silver medallist diver Peter Waterfield on February 2. You can see this work suspended from a crane at the Victorian timber mill Diespeker Wharf, until the end of this year. It must look better after dark with lights, but be careful when you walk along the dim-lighted canal at night!

Each piece in the collection can be worn with other collection pieces for the brave, for those who aren’t afraid to make a statement. Each piece can also be used to add an interesting design element to your otherwise basic pieces, within your wardrobe.

A brand to watch out for in 2012, THREE FLOOR and Jones Loves have teamed up to give you lucky readers the chance to stay ahead of the style game and win a stunning piece from the collection. You can be wearing this beautiful metallic MEDALLIST sweater in time for the party season, before the brand hits the pages of Vogue.  We have THREE to give away!!

All you need to do is tell us what you would team this item with…

Would it work with leggings, or would it be the perfect addition to your midi skirt? A pair of sky-high heels and a Trilby, or over the top of a mini dress?

It’s completely up to you but leave your answer as a comment (top left), along with your email address (if you don’t have Twitter) OR tweet your answer (‘@jonesloves I’d wear the @3_Floor MEDALLIST jumper with…’).

THIS COMPETITION IS NOW CLOSED

If you’re on Twitter remember to follow Three Floor and Jones Loves too.

Good Luck!

xx

PS. Worldwide readers of Jones Loves feel free to enter – THREE FLOOR will ship worldwide…

www.threefloorfashion.com

American Rebecca Bross will miss the world gymnastics championships after dislocating her kneecap and is expected to recover in time for the 2012 season.

Stephen Miller is one of Britain’s most successful record breaking athletes around today. Born in Cramlington, Northumberland, Stephen Miller has cerebral palsy and has won three Paralympic gold medals plus dozens of other international accolades in the club and discuss event.

Stephen completed his GCSE’s and A ‘Levels at Blyth Ridley High School before gaining a 2-1 honours degree in Business Information Systems from Northumbria University.

Stephen made his debut in Atlanta in 1996 aged 16 and juggling his GCSE’s as well as training he won gold as the youngest member of the GB athletics team. Since then he retained his title in both Sydney and Athens and has also achieved European and World Champion and World record success.

As well as an athlete, Stephen is a writer, poet, website developer and public speaker. The refreshing honesty and infectious humour Stephen uses when he describes the struggles and triumphs of his athletic career show that disability doesn’t have to stop you or slow you down but motivate you.

The Newcastle United football fan had a busy year in 2008, when he released his autobiography – with a forward written by the Newcastle legend Kevin Keegan. Miller talks about his career and the disability he’s proud of.

On 27th May 1980 at the Princess Mary maternity hospital in Newcastle upon Tyne, Stephen was delivered as a breech birth. The medical staff decided against doing a caesarean for reasons unknown to Stephen and his mother, Ros.

“A caesarean would have probably resulted in me not having cerebral palsy, but I’m not bitter or angry. I believe there is reason for whatever happens in life and I don’t want to waste time analysing what has already happened, it’s best to move on and look forward.”

His mother gave birth to Stephen naturally; during the delivery Stephen’s head got stuck, with his body half in and half out, he was being starved of oxygen. As he was pulled out by his feet his skull was left slightly dented.

“If the dent had touched my brain there would have been a chance I may have been brain damaged” he chirps, clearly pleased things weren’t more serious. “Being starved of oxygen could have also resulted in brain damage.”

However once Stephen started crawling on his back and not doing much walking it was clear something wasn’t right.

“I was diagnosed with athetoid cerebral palsy, a form that results in lots of involuntary movement. My parents could have sued the hospital for compensation that would have paid for carers and so on but that would have dragged for years and they preferred to concentrate on giving me the best possible life. They were understandably devastated; all parents hope that their baby will be perfectly healthy.”

“It was a scary time and my parents had no idea what effects a disabled child would have on their lives.”

His mother Ros and father John made sure Stephen’s childhood was no different to any other child his age growing up.

“I wasn’t wrapped in cotton wool or spoilt rotten, quite the opposite actually I was brought up as normal and having cerebral palsy was never an issue as I grew up I didn’t feel any different in any way and never thought of myself as disabled if I was out playing with other kids and. I fell over my parents weren’t over protective.”

“When I think of what I have achieved despite my disability it gives me great sense of pride and I like to think it gives hope to a lot of people.”

I asked would you give up all of your achievements not to be disabled. Stephen in an instant replied, “No because I would not be the same person I am today. I like who I am, what I have achieved, and my outlook on life.”

“It’s difficult for some people to understand disability they assume it must be horrible to be disabled. When I speak to people I try to convey that I’m really just the same as them just a bit wobblier yes some people can be patronising and there are some who don’t take my achievements seriously and just think I’m brave that does annoy me.”

Is there anything about the sport that still makes Stephen’s blood boil?

“Cheating. At one competition I was really gutted as I sat and watched a competition unfold a suspect athlete was being watched by a classifier and pulled out the most blatant act of deception I’ve ever seen in sport obviously aware than he was being assessed he dropped his discuss then threw it into the cage and then tamely threw about 10 metres. It was barefaced cheating. Pretending to be more disabled than you are is the worst thing anyone can do in my opinion.”

There are six categories of disability in the Paralympics: Amputee, Cerebral palsy, Intellectual disability, Les autres, Vision impaired and Wheelchair. The athletes are then divided according to their differing level of impairment.
The classification systems differ from sport to sport, in accordance with the different skills required to perform the sport. Stephen is F32: F stands for field athletes, and cerebral palsy is classed 31-38.

Atlanta 1996

Stephen’s first Paralympic experience was when he had just turned 16; he was the youngest member of the Great Britain track and field team. The holding camp was at an air force base in Pensacola, and proved to be the lap of luxury compared to the Paralympic Village.

“To say this wasn’t the best organised games would be a gross understatement but the opening and closing ceremonies were easily the best I’ve been to.”

Atlanta was hit by the edge of a hurricane which delayed Stephen’s competition.

“I don’t remember much about the competition, it’s all a bit of a blur. I didn’t feel nervous and threw a Paralympic Record 25m 84cm with my 5th throw to take the gold medal. I became the youngest ever Great Britain track and field gold medallist.”

Sydney 2000

“This was my second Paralympic Games and I had now become an established international athlete, breaking the world record and becoming world champion since the Atlanta games. Lottery funding had come in the year before, which meant even more pressure to win.”

Stephen classed Sydney as his toughest Paralympics to date, the games were held right in the middle of his degree at Northumbria University as well as his full time work placement.

“The holding camp was on the Gold Coast at the Radisson resort and after 10 days there it was easy to forget the reason you are there.”

“I had managed to qualify for the discus as well as the club. The discus was first and I initially finished 4th with a modest 14m 99cm, which I was devastated about but there was a protest against the winner and I was given the Bronze medal two days later. That gave me a boost for the club, and after a very tight and long competition (4 hours) in which I threw very badly, I won gold with another Paralympic record 27m 79cm.

Athens 2004

“I remember starting to feel like a veteran of the squad, at the age of 24. There were a lot of new young athletes at these games which is great to see for the future of the sport.”

The holding camp was in Cyprus, the athletes stayed in a luxurious hotel in Pathos and for the first time every personal coach were allowed to the holding camp.

“In Athens I hadn’t qualified for the discus this time which I wasn’t too happy about, but it meant I could focus 100% on the club and I knew it was going to be even tougher than usual as the points table was going to be used for the first time in a Paralympics. My competition has always been combined with another disability class and the points system has been brought in to make it easier to combine classes.”

“I was unusually relaxed up to the competition, apart from when my equipment went missing and I couldn’t train for two days. It was another long competition and I won it with my second throw of 33m 53cm, a new world record.”

Beijing 2008

“It was my 4th Paralympic Games, I was defending my club title for the 3rd time having first won it in Atlanta 1996, and then successfully defended it in both Sydney and Athens, and it was my 2nd time competing in the discus at the Paralympics.”

“The journey to Macau was long – a 12 hour flight to Hong Kong which I thankfully was upgraded on, and then a ferry journey to Macau. I spent 11 days in Macau training and getting acclimatised, it was much needed as I was very tired after the travelling, it took about 10 days to get over the jet lag and to get used to the very hot weather – being in a 5 star hotel was a big help too.”

“The games were fantastic, the venues were mind-blowing and the Chinese came out in their thousands to support. My discus event was before the club, I wasn’t expecting a lot from the discus as I hadn’t thrown it in training since June and was basically using it as a warm up for the club. I certainly got a taste of how strong the competition was as I threw a season’s best 15.44m and came 12th, but I was happy with how I performed and the hip just about held up.”

“My build up to the club wasn’t the best, every session was a struggle against my hip and I wasn’t exactly setting the world alight – I never threw over 32m so I knew I had a lot to find in the competition.”

“The competition was just as tough as I expected and I found myself down in 4th place after the first round despite throwing a respectable 32.72m. So I knew it was all or nothing in my last 3 throws, I was confident even though the Tunisian athlete had broken my world record with 35.77m, I still felt I could win it. My 4th throw was an improvement at 33.15m but still kept me in 4th place; my 5th throw would’ve been huge but was way too high. So it was all down to my last throw, any athlete will tell you that 4th is the worst place to finish but a negative thought never entered my head. When I threw it, I knew it was big but I knew the gold had gone. There was an agonising wait to see if it was enough to win a medal, then it came up on the board ’34.37m – 2nd’, I was ecstatic and jumped up and down, then as I came out the circle I realised that my Paralympic title and world record had gone, it was hard to take but I’m proud of how I performed and I just got beat by someone who threw out of their skin on the day – that’s sport.”

“I’ve never been so focused and aggressive in a competition, in 4 hours I barely had a thought in my head apart from thinking ‘oh shit’ when the Tunisian threw 35.77m – it would’ve been so easy for me to fall apart in there. Idoudi (the Tunisian) put more than 3m on his personal best, so it was unexpected and I’m dubious of his classification but it’s gone now and I move on.”

“I couldn’t walk for 4 months up to Beijing, My preparation for the games was hampered by a hip problem that had been bothering me since then to throw the furthest I’ve ever thrown in a major competition was pretty unbelievable – 34.37m is my 6th biggest throw ever and the others have all been in open ‘stadiums’ (or fields) with massive following winds. If that isn’t good enough then I don’t know what is.”

“Being in the Olympic/Paralympic Parade in London is a grand occasion, trailing through the streets of London to the ovation of the public is something to make you very proud and humble indeed. Although it’s hard to fade into the background amidst Hoy, Addlington, Pearson and co – but hey ho I take what I get.”

Sport Relief 2010

As a North East Sport Relief Ambassador Stephen had a tough start to 2010 with the death of his father who had battled with cancer on and off, the past few years and sadly died on the 11th of January 2010.

Stephen took on a sport relief challenge by aiming to throw over a mile in distance with the club in less than an hour. That is roughly throwing a club every minute for the hour. The challenge took place at Gateshead stadium on the 23rd of February 2010.

“My dad was such a strong person, and he would’ve wanted me to press on with my work for Sport Relief and take on my challenge of throwing a mile.”

“My Dad was very proud of what I was doing for sport relief, and that gave me the strength to do the challenge I set whilst still coming to terms with a life without him.”

Stephen successfully threw the club a mile in under an hour to complete his Sport Relief challenge, with 1744 metres in 40 minutes and with 71 throws.

“My furthest throw was just less than 28 metre, with my shortest being 17.50 metres, but consistency was the key and I averaged around 25 metres which ended up being more than good enough.”

“I started to feel the pace halfway through and was worried at one point that we might run out of markers (we had 72), I did it with a few pegs to spare and before my body seized up.”

Marriage

A high came for the athlete on the 25th of September when he asked his girlfriend Rachel to marry him of which she replied yes.

“I’m pretty sure there aren’t many people in the North East of England that doesn’t know about our engagement, as it was well publicised. It was a bit of a blur and I was more nervous than I’ve been for any competition. Rachel said she expected a poem, I had intended to recite a poem, but I lost the ability to speak and can’t remember what I blurted out, it all worked out well in the end though.”

The Future

Stephen is currently training hard for the 2012 Paralympics in London.

“I’m looking forward to the events being closer to home so that friends and family get a chance to come see me competing, but with that I will have to be even more focused and step up my training.”

You can keep up to date with Stephen on the channel 4 website and Stephen Miller Paralympian- my autobiography is available to buy now.

Merritt tested positive for drugs three times at the end of 2009 and 2010 the début.Merritt supports the testing of medicinal products has failed “” were caused by Extenze… he bought a 7 11 store. “”

The USADA recognizes that use ExtenZe Merritt was the source for the test failed.But because Merritt “was negligent” ingestion of the substance, it has been slapped the prohibition.

Arbitrators have accepted the decision, but he challenged Merritt Olympic ban on the CIO.Le International Olympic Committee says that any athlete banned for 6 months or more is automatically ineligible for the next Olympic Games.

Arbitrators do not think that this is a consequence “appropriate” test failed RTI ‘ others argued that the addition of an Olympic ban on regular suspension equals double criminality.

Unfortunately, the IOC said that they are not bound by the arbitration rule and Olympic ban Merritt will stand.

With 2012 impending Olympic athletes will observe closely to see if this dispute can reach a settlement.

View the original article here

Currently, Consolidator ranks 16th nationally among second-crop sires, one notch below fellow Journeyman resident Hear No Evil (by Carson City), the sire of Jackson Bend, most recently second in the Holy Bull to the now sidelined Winslow Homer.

The lead beast in the Journeyman Stud stallion barn is the Forest Wildcat horse Wildcat Heir, who ranks fourth nationally behind only Roman Ruler (Fusaichi Pegasus), Offlee Wild (Wild Again), and Pollard’s Vision (Carson City).

Not a bad showing for Journeyman Farm owner and stallion selector Brent Fernung (widely recognized as “The Genius” for purchasing the dams of two Kentucky Derby winners before they had that honor).

Fernung appears to be at least useful in the art of selecting stallions too.

Nor are the thundering herd in Florida the only ones with good prospects on the list of stallions whose first crop just turned 3 on January 1.

The good racer Medallist (Touch Gold) is standing in Pennsylvania and ranks 17th on the list, while Mobil (Langfuhr) is in Ontario (20th place) and Oratory (Pulpit) is in Maryland at 23rd place.

Bwana Charlie (Indian Charlie) is ranked 25th and stands at … Journeyman Stud. Fernung is going to be hard to live with if this gets any better.

Brown, 25, won a silver medal in the 200-metre breaststroke at the 2005 world championships in Montreal and set a Canadian record in the distance while finishing fourth at last summer’s Olympic Games in Beijing.

Formed over four years ago to provide exposure to new bands, artists and comedians that require YOUR attentions! Liberation Frequency dare to cover (nearly) all genres with a slightly leftfield bias – and in 2009 they are launching a new free quarterly magazine available in venues/pubs across capital.

To celebrate the magazine launch, we are teaming for one hell of a party.

http://www.liberationfrequency.co.uk

Medallist
http://www.myspace.com/medallist

Coming together in and around the Bristol area in late 2006, electro rock five piece Medallist have everything it takes to make it big, the swagger, the look and, most importantly, the songs. Danceable verses slam right into catchy choruses that’ll have you humming them for weeks. All of it delivered with the air of a band ready to break out of the local club circuit and take on the big time.’next big things’.

“Gusty electro rock five piece with basslines hefty enough to kill a horse at 20 paces- catch them while their hot” -NME

NewIslands
http://www.myspace.com/newislands

“You can Lead or you’ll be following”……..

Explore….. NewIslands.

The New Devices
http://www.myspace.com/thenewdevices

The New Devices write songs about debauched nights, mischief and sometimes the regrettable mornings after. Listening to them, you can clearly hear the dance influences and the energetic beats driving the songs, but there’s additionally a wide rock’n'roll soundscape offering the big catchy choruses that could fill football terraces and stadiums. The live performance cements The New Devices sound, using live instruments and Justin as the killer frontman. In this digital age where increasingly you are your own DJ and the shuffle option on your iPod is your main form of musical adventure, The New Devices offer that thrill of ‘where am I going to be taken next’

Tickets £5 advanced more on the door… so get them now!

Sarah was a relaxed and very enjoyable guest speaker – although she could have been upstaged by the goosebumps on everyone’s arms after watching her gold medal-winning performances on the big screen.

She was informal, chatty and honest and not in the least bit arrogant and over polished (or unpolished actually). Sarah also seemed to thrive in the ‘sports cafe’ type setting that has become the norm at the CHB sports awards.

Sarah Ulmer flanked by MCs Ian Sharp and Simon Law from Central FM

Sarah complained of being 10kg heavier now that when she was competing – she better watch out – four of the last guest speakers at these awards – our own Norm Hewitt, Queen B and ironman Cory Hutchings – have gone on to strut their stuff in Dancing with the Stars!

One message that was easily taken home was her answer to a question from the local swimming coach calling for three words she would use to describe the path to becoming a champion – they were passion, mongrel (for want of her trying to find a more appropriate description) and risk – at some point you have to put everything on the line for that ultimate result.

There were six of us at the dinner representing the Takapau Phoenix netball team (and our club) as we were nominated in the team and club categories. But proud as we were of our efforts on the local scene, we were amazed and intensely proud of the effort, skill and passion being shown by the teenagers of this provincial area (okay, most of them put us oldies well and truly to shame!)

So many NZ representatives in everything from regular sports like netball, rugby, cricket, swimming and cycling through to trampolining (that group of youngsters won the teams event), highland dancing and orienteering.

So many Central Hawke’s Bay College pupils doing so many fantastic things on the national and international sporting stage – especially alpine ski racer Piera Hudson and NZ agegroup rugby player Dominic Bird – winners of the young male and female sportperson awards (whatever happened to sportsman and sportswoman?)

Our club category was won by the Waipawa Bowling Club (yes, we were beaten at both ends of the age spectrum) which, with just 70 members, raised $260,000 for a new lawn (is that what it’s called?!)

A wonderful night was had by all, thank you Sport Hawke’s Bay.

It was the end of a great day actually. Having spent the morning doing mundane housework tasks, Thomas went off to golf and the children and I went to the CHB Show. We started with a picnic under the trees, prepared by Sarah, followed by a relaxed but hot wander around the show. Then I surprised them with chocolate and strawberries under the trees again and then we went swimming in the crystal clear waters of the Tukituki.

Sarah and Lachlan cool off in the Tukituki River

Two more athletes fail dope tests

Kim Jong Su was stripped of a silver and a bronze medal

A North Korean shooting medalist and a Vietnamese gymnast have been kicked out of the Olympic Games after testing positive for banned substances.

Shooter Kim Jong Su was stripped of his silver medal in the 50m pistol and bronze in the 10m air pistol, the International Olympic Committee said.

Gymnast Thi Ngan Thuong Do finished in 82nd in the women’s floor exercises.

The incidents follow the expulsion on Monday of Spanish cyclist Maria Isabel Moreno, who tested positive for EPO.