On a slightly different note...

...I just had to share this with y'll. I bolded my favourite bits. Hooray for sport.

Gloating British celebrate rare success

After 20 years of Olympic humiliation, the British have celebrated beating Australia's gold medal tally with all the restraint and good taste that you'd expect.

Tabloid UK newspaper The Sun hired tray-top trucks in both Sydney and London that were mounted with giant signs comparing Britain's (19) and Australia's (14) gold medal counts and driven around the respective cities.

Emblazoned across a Union Jack background was the question "Where the bloody hell were you?", referencing the Lara Bingle-led tourism ad campaign.

The signs also hint at Australia's relative "failure" in cycling, rowing and other sports in which the contestants sit down — events with obvious appeal to the British and where they accumulated the bulk of their gold.

The Sun even scoured London for an Australian called Bruce, finally cornering 48-year-old Bruce Howes in what they termed a "posh Kensington High Street" and confronting him with the rare defeat.

"We'll get you next time," he warned.

British expat Suzie O'Carroll, who forwarded a mobile phone photo of the truck driving along George St this morning to ninemsn, said she thought the Sun had been "pretty darn quick" in setting up the prank.

"I've heard that the bookies are offering odds of 4/7 on Britain getting more medals next time and the same odds of us beating Australia," she said.

"I'm sure the Aussies will pour everything into avoid that, but I think the GB will still come out on top."

Asked if she might rub in another victory for the motherland amongst Antipodean colleagues, Ms O'Carroll said: "Well, maybe just a little bit."

British excitement is understandable: it is the first time since the 1988 Seoul Olympics that the country has topped Australia's medal count.

The fervour has been further increased by the prospect of federal sports minister Kate Ellis wearing red, white and blue clothing to a sporting event involving the two countries as a result of a bet with her British equivalent Gerry Sutcliffe.

A spokesman for Ms Ellis said she had not yet decided when she would meet the obligation but "would be looking at the calendar in the coming months to see in which events the two nations clash".

Surely, as their population is three times ours, they should have collected three times as many gold medals? Logic? What is this logic?

Shoosh y'all, Gilly speaks

There was a picture of Gilly in today's West Australian (look, I have to read it for work. I don't enjoy it).

Gilly thinks Twenty20 cricket should be introduced to the Olympics in, er, 2020.

"Cricket was part of the 1900 Olympics, when Great Britain beat France," he said.

Was that the last time Great Britain beat France at anything? Probably because they got to utilise the services of Irish, Scottish, Welsh players.

"I believe the Olympic Games is the vehicle the sport should use to aggressively sell the message of our sport to all 202 competing Olympic nations, so our sport is strong and robust in countries where it is currently played, and exciting and groundbreaking in countries who haven't yet caught the cricket bug."

I'm up for that, I'm sure Warney would still be an option, bring it on! Our lads can add Olympic gold medals to their mantles... they'll just have to nudge a little space between the urn and the world cup, plenty of room.

The life and times of Graeme Smith

For anyone who cares, Shane Warne drove his Mercedes (see previous post) into a tram in Melbourne. Here is the "Channel 9 Exclusive" which was taken from a peeping tom's window. It's worth a look just to hear the guy say "It's Shane Warne!"

Also. Here is one funny photo of Neil McKenzie.
Well it made me laugh, anyway.

Let us see, India conveniently rounded off the day's play with a wicket, which ended South Africa's innings on 265. Graeme's boys started well enough, and were at one point 152/1, but collapsed and lost 9 wickets for 113, which is very crappy.

Does anyone else find it mildly amusing that Graeme Smith was out on 69, considering the poor lad can't get a girlfriend?

For a comprehensive update go here (although there's a pretty good chance you meandered over from there).

If India win the series will be drawn. So... carn South Africa!

Finally, and on an unrelated note, I'd just like to point out that this week the French did something that the English couldn't, although I praise their efforts.