Wellock's World

The floods at home were almost matched by those in Athens as the magnificent Matthew Pinsent wept buckets of joy and Paula was overcome by despair.

As a member of Paula's fan club, I am not about to join those condemning her as a quitter. Two weeks ago I quoted Baron Pierre de Coubertin saying that women could not be allowed in the Olympics because it would be uninteresting and unaesthetic. More famously he also said that it was not the winning but the taking part that counts.

People like Paula and Kelly Holmes have disproved the baron's first observation and it's a fair bet they don't go along with his second, which is why Paula was too devastated to continue the moment she realised she had no chance of a medal.

Kelly's stepfather has revealed that as a child if she wasn't going to win a board game the board would go up in the air. In a child this is usually called petulance, which is a word I have also seen directed at Paula this week. It might also be called a winning attitude, which all champions need.

Paula had already suffered the trauma of fourth place finishes in major events and in marathons she had grown used to winning and breaking world records, so having battled gallantly for 22 miles why should she suffer the agony of a further four knowing her dream was in tatters?

For her there are no prizes merely for finishing an Olympic marathon, which is all that Liz Yelling and Tracy Morris set out to do. So it is pointless to praise them while pillorying Paula.

It is also pointless to look for excuses such as the heat, although I was reminded of how the career of another apparently invincible sportsman, Barry McGuigan, was ruined when his beloved Barney - the man he liked to call Mr Eastwood - sent him out to fight in the raging heat of a Texas desert.

It is most likely that Paula simply had a bad day. Any fun runner knows that for no apparent reason some days you feel far better than others. Occasionally the tank runs dry and you just can't go on, which is what I imagine also happened to the Teesside cyclist, Chris Newton.

THE Aussie press apparently really laid into a member of their women's eight who gave up rowing in mid-event. This, of course, is a different kettle of fish from giving up in an individual event, and while it's undoubtedly stamina-sapping rowing does not require the same endurance as running a marathon.

So while our men's coxless four drove themselves to the limit, they knew it would be all over in five minutes and in the heat of battle Sir Steve Redgrave has admitted that the pain doesn't really kick in until the finish.

Redgrave jumping into Penrith Lake after winning his fifth Olympic gold was one of the enduring images of Sydney, but for sheer excitement, drama and exhilaration it was upstaged by Pinsent's fourth.

It is difficult for mere mortals to imagine the effort and dedication which goes into becoming the world's best oarsman, and Pinsent's tears of joy were probably also prompted by overwhelming relief that it had all been worthwhile.

Rowers, cyclists and sailors have won the bulk of our medals and while they will say that Lottery money helps, they tend to be self-motivators from a level of society which is well aware of life's rewards.

Kelly Holmes and the supremely talented boxer Amir Khan are exceptions, which is why the government needs to set them up as role models in an attempt to ensure the Lottery money devoted to sport has a greater impact in inner cities.

WE don't want to stop the inner cities producing footballers like Wayne Rooney, of course, but it would be good if the football culture was re-defined to prevent the young stars becoming tainted people.

After recent tabloid revelations about Rooney's antics I can't see that it's a good idea that he should team up with the likes of Dyer, Bellamy and Bowyer, no matter how brilliant he might be.

I'm a big Bobby Robson fan, but he should have opted for a dignified retirement at 70 instead of allowing himself to be sucked into the deepening mire at St James' Park. I predicted pre-season that Middlesbrough would finish above Newcastle and I see no reason so far to change that view.

PAUL Collingwood's inclusion in the England squad to tour South Africa is a reflection of how highly he is valued for his contribution to team spirit. If everyone stays fit he will hardly get a game until the one-dayers at the end of the tour, but he can be relied upon to remain buoyant.

Sadly, however, being an England reserve means he doesn't play enough first-class cricket and while it looks good for Durham to have two in the squad they are suffering as a result.