They're home, early...

So England are out of the World Cup after losing to Germany, again. I’ve got to say, despite a slow start to our world cup, I was optimistic and excited about England’s prospects in this match. I thought we had found our stride again and were well suited to Germany’s efficiency and technical ability. Oh how I was wrong!

What annoyed me the most was both the players’ and the manager’s excuse for their sorry 4-1 defeat. During post-match interviews: Capello, Terry and James simultaneously declared their disallowed goal as valid justification for their failure to advance in to the next round. Now I’m not going to pretend I know a lot about football, because I don’t, but to blame their disallowed goal as the ‘turning point’ in what should have been ‘their match’ is a disgrace. In my opinion, it shows a lack of professionalism and maturity. It’s humiliating.

Why have they not been trained to deal with these kind of situations in training? Surely they should have used it to spur them on further towards victory? Yes, I know that these situations are extremely rare in football, and even more so in arguably the biggest sporting event in the World (after the Olympics, of course!). But it happened, and players get unfairly booked all the time. They should have been ready for any given situation.

That said, the fact that the disallowed goal even happened is equally disgraceful. I cannot fathom FIFA’s stubborn refusal to introduce goal line technology. It makes football appear like an amateur sport. I mean even fencing has video replay!
I could go on, but I won’t. You’ve heard it all before, and I’m sure you’re all tired of it! At least we’ve got Wimbledon to focus on - and a Scot who’s got a bit of fire in his belly.

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Mental Game

Before I go any further I would like to apologise for my recent lack of blogging. I am however back, and will try my best to be more faithful to my writing! Since my last update, I had actually been training really hard in the lead up to a World Cup that I fenced in just over a week ago in New York. Unfortunately it did not go well; I didn’t make it out of the pools.

I still feel like I was the most prepared and physically fit I have ever been and I was looking forward to putting in a good performance. However, my head and my nerves let me down as they have often done in individual competition throughout the season. It is something that I must crack and overcome with urgency. I know that once I do, something will shift, and I will get my fighting confidence back. Indeed, I feel I have committed too much time and effort to fencing over the past 15 years to allow myself to fall short so near to 2012.

Sport can be cruel and frustrating at times, particularly when you put in so much and don’t see the progress you expect from yourself. But that is the nature of sport – there are plunging lows and soaring highs. At this level, I don’t think you can survive mental weakness. You can have all the physical attributes but if you don’t have the confidence and your own self-belief, then it is difficult to realise your potential.

On a positive note, I will be off to Australia to compete in the Commonwealth Games from 29th September-5th October. I will be representing England and also captaining my team for the duration of the tournament. I have always been proud to fence for England and it is an honour to captain the team.

Nothing succeeds like success

Another congratulations is due to Richard Kruse who came second in a Grand Prix in St. Petersburg today. It is another fantastic result and takes British Fencing up to 7 Senior World Cup and Grand Prix medals this World Cup season, topping last year’s 5 – not that we’re counting or anything!

What’s more, the medals have come from four different fencers across all three weapons: foil, epee and sabre. All of these great results inspire healthy competition and desire amongst the team. It is motivating and creates incentive for betterment across the weapons. Well done Ricardo.

Wenlock & Mandeville - 2012 Mascots

The London Olympic 2012 mascots have been revealed as Wenlock and Mandeville. These strange little one-eyed creatures will be all over Britain for the next two years and I’m not entirely sure what to make of them. Check out this cartoon clip which tells you the story of how they came about: http://www.london2012.com/mascots.

According to the mail Online, Wenlock is named after the Shropshire town of Much Wenlock where, in the mid-19th century, the Wenlock Games became one of the inspirations of the modern Olympic movement. Mandeville’s name is derived from Stoke Mandeville, home to Stoke Mandeville hospital. Their metallic appearance is said to be due to the fact that they came from the last drops of steel left over from the Olympic stadium when it was made in Bolton.

Although at first I found them a little unnerving with their Cyclopes like features, I’ve actually come to find them quite endearing. Just like it took me a while to adjust to the official 2012 Olympic logo when it first came out, I’m sure these little cretins will grow on me.

Apparently the orange light bearing the W and M on top of their foreheads are said to represent taxi/cab lights and the rings that they carry around their wrists represent friendship bracelets. I like the fact that the lights have been incorporated into the mascots as black cabs are a huge part of London identity.

Love them or hate them, they are different and original. The 2012 Olympic logo also dared to be different and that is a good thing. I think the new mascots will help engage young people and encourage more kids to participate in sport.

The Winning Mindset

Congratulations to Laurence Halsted and Chrystall Nicoll on their respective bronze medals in Tokyo and Koblenz – it’s great to see team mates doing so well and it also raises the bar for the rest of us to follow suit. I definitely feel inspired by their performances and want a taste of their glory! They received coverage of their results on the BBC website which is nice to see, and rightly so. Fencing is gaining in respect and exposure in the national press and it will only improve in the build up to 2012. Here is the link for it: http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/fencing/8687701.stm

This is the best international season British Fencing have had so far and as Chrystall says in the BBC sports section, she now ‘expects’ the best from herself. Before, we were members of an underdog team, and too many times we were edged into defeat because we didn’t ‘expect’ to win. Now that British Fencing has developed a winning mindset & has grown in confidence and in strength, I cannot see us losing momentum. I am sure that this shift in mindset will deliver results.

Asian travels

Last week I came back from a 10 day trip to Shanghai and Seoul after fencing in respective World Cup and Grand Prix competitions. It was a positive trip in many ways, and I was really happy with our team performance. As a team, we’re not often in the same place at one time, and we learned a lot from being together and fencing over a longer period of time than we usually get in Europe. It allowed us the chance to develop and grow stronger as a team.

I really enjoyed being in Asia. We arrived in China as it was welcoming the world to the Shanghai Expo. Beautiful lights adorned the main streets and needless to say, the view from my hotel room on the 13th floor was quite special! The Expo began the day we arrived and will run on over the next six months. I must admit, I enjoyed Shanghai a great deal more this time around. When I first visited with the team in 2007, I found the place abrasive and difficult to make sense of. This year, however, with the preparations for the Expo in full swing and a collective effort to make tourists and foreigners feel welcome, I sensed a definite change. Everybody was warm and hospitable and restaurants and shops were much more accessible. We had some wonderful meals in China and I particularly enjoyed the Korean BBQ’s in Seoul... although here’s hoping we weren’t eating dog meat!