05 August 2012

Meanwhile back at the Olympics

For a Briton the first half of the games have been a delight well after a shaky start and a few early disappointments and six gold medals yesterday in sports I actually enjoy watching.

But analysis etc can wait. Today's Guardian coverage of the one medal being decided in the velodrom today - in the Omnium (a cycling version of the heptathlon or the decathlon)


The omnium is about to start. The only Olympic discipline named after a flight of fancy by Flann O'Brien, incidentally, who had "omnium" down as the stuff of life in his novel The Third Policeman. In that novel, the scholar and philosopher De Selby set up a complicated mechanism featuring postcards and shipping equipment which allowed him to travel all around the world without ever leaving his bedroom. His theories were never disproved, according to O'Brien.
 
Glad to see the author of my favourite novel getting a mention.
 
Meanwhile one hurdler who crashed out of the women's 400m hurdles having hit one of the hurdles had the unfortunate name of Vania Stambalova.....

Well close enough!

8 comments:

Anonymous said...

I did wonder if "Seanso Jeating" had noticed the Omnium at the Olympics, and, thinking of your mutually much-loved movel, especially as part of the cycling! :) Some of these cyclists are 50% bicycle don't you think, so melded with their machines are they.

Anonymous said...

eh... "novel"

I am becoming 1% typo

jams o donnell said...

Indeed, I am sure that the cyclists are part bike themselves. But the theory of mollycules required the bicycles to go over lots of umps for the bike and people mollycules to mix.

On the other hand....

Anonymous said...

Rudimentary theories are there to be refined Jams. I think we need to ponder a new three part alloy of human, bike and lycra, however.

jams o donnell said...

Now that is a good point. I am sure lycra makes a real difference

Anonymous said...

Lycra is a medium that catalyses the molecular swapping that brings cycling success, obviously. It's so obvious how can I be the first chemist to realise it? A Nobel Award awaits me (again). Don't let Ted sit on your lap while you are wearing lycra please. The world could not cope with a Jams who is 20% Ted (although a Ted that is 20% Jams may be an improvement).

Anonymous said...

Come to think of it, I suspect the risk of you ever wearing lycra is quite small; but I am now rather worried about the dangers for your nephew Tim... if it's not too late already.

jams o donnell said...

Mercifully he doesn't wear much lycra