Organisers have made the Games as safe as they can be – now athletes must follow the rules and embrace their opportunityNo matter who you are, or what sports you enjoy, the Olympics remains the greatest show on earth. It’s bigger than anything in football. Bigger than anything in any other sport. And, while I know there are many who don’t feel it is right that Tokyo 2020 is taking place during a global pandemic, I respectfully disagree and can’t wait for the Games to get under way.Let me try to explain why. It’s about wanting the best athletes in the world to have the opportunity to display their talents on the biggest stage of all, so they can provide...
Britain’s London 2012 long jump champion once had his achievements branded a fluke but he is now ready to again defy critics of his lofty ambitionsYou know how Greg Rutherford celebrated his first day as a retired athlete? By turning up at the Whitley Bay junior Parkrun on Sunday morning to be a tail walker, chatting to kids from four to 14, and turning what might have felt like a 2km slog into a chance to high-five an Olympic champion. But Rutherford gets it. He understands that being a role model starts – not ends – with winning medals, although he was damn good at that too.Has any British sports star squeezed so much pith and pulp from high class...
Greg Rutherford, like many of Britain’s recent Olympic heroes, is short of a nickname so it’s time for sports fans to raise their gameMy allotted time with semi‑pro ballroom dancer Greg Rutherford was up. It wasn’t his agent tapping an expensive, oversized watch face, the internationally recognised signal; instead, it was a two-year-old called Milo cruising into Rutherford’s kitchen, pushing a fire engine. Milo wanted to muck about in the garden in the sand, which, unbeknown to him, also happens to be an IAAF-approved long jump pit. Related: Greg Rutherford: ‘Strictly helped me to not dwell on the Rio Olympics’ Related: Greg Rutherford leaves Strictly Come Dancing after Blackpool week Continue reading...