As the summer of sport draws to a close, Sports Editors George Hobbs and Jamie Klein take a look back at some of the heroes who made 2012 a year to remember for British sport:
1. Andy Murray (Tennis)
Following his latest Major final defeat at the hands of Roger Federer at Wimbledon, Murray finally cemented his place as a British sporting hero during the Olympics, as he crushed the same Swiss who had rolled him over on the very same court in SW19 just four weeks prior. That Gold Medal seemed to free Murray from the shackles of his ‘perpetual bottler’ image and thirty-six days later he clinched his first Major at the US Open in imperious fashion, edging Novak Djokovic in a thrilling final.
2. Mo Farah (Athletics)
On ‘Super Saturday’, Farah ignited the Olympic Stadium and the whole of Britain by surging to victory on the last lap of the 10,000m. An event seemingly monopolised by Kenyans and Ethiopians over recent years, Farah became the first British gold medallist in the event ever. His win in the 5000m the following week was equally composed, whilst his celebratory ‘Mo-bot’ pose ranks alongside Usain Bolt’s ‘To Di World’ salute as iconic images of the London Games.
3. Bradley Wiggins (Cycling)
Wiggins successfully ended an agonising 99-year wait for a British winner in the Tour de France, never losing the lead of the general classification that he picked up on the seventh stage. ‘Wiggo’ held on to win the Tour by a margin of three minutes from fellow Team Sky rider Chris Froome, before taking the fourth Olympic gold medal of his career in the Men’s road time trial event at London 2012.
4. Rory McIlroy (Golf)
The loyal British sporting public can be forgiven for not giving golf equal attention this summer. While Emma Bunton’s head was popping out of a black cab in a stadium in Stratford, Rory McIlroy was cruising to his second Major victory in South Carolina. Fourteen months after his US Open win – also by eight shots – Northern Ireland’s finest was at it again, pulling away on a windy Sunday as America’s best could only watch and admire.
5. Jessica Ennis (Athletics)
Ennis more than lived up to her billing as the ‘poster girl’ of the London Games, winning the gold medal in the Heptathlon with consummate ease. She set three personal bests – in the 100 metres hurdles, 200 metres and javelin events – en route to a British record-breaking points haul of 6,955 that put her 308 points clear of silver medallist Lili Schwarzkopf.
6. Johnnie Peacock (Athletics)
If the face of the Olympics was Ennis, then the face of the Paralympics was unquestionably Peacock. The nineteen year old stormed to victory in the T44 100m, beating the ‘blade-runner’ Oscar Pistorius in the process, and affirmed his status as the fastest amputee in the world. His winning time of 10.90 was just five hundredths of a second off his own world record and capped a remarkable few weeks for British athletics.
7. Lewis Hamilton (Formula One)
Two wins from the last three races have served to put Hamilton firmly back in the running for this year’s Formula One championship. The McLaren driver headed into the summer break on a high note after fending off the advances of Kimi Raikkonen to take victory at the Hungaroring, whilst a dominant display from Hamilton at Monza has put him within reach of the points lead of Fernando Alonso.
8. Jonathan and Alistair Brownlee (Triathlon)
The Yorkshire-born Brownlee Brothers made history by becoming the first British siblings to both win medals in an individual event at the same games since 1900. That they did it in such a gruelling event as the triathlon, and considering Johnny had a time penalty mid-way through the run, makes their 1-3 finish all the more remarkable – their mother must be so proud.
9. Laura Robson (Tennis)
Robson’s recent performances have breathed new life into British women’s tennis – after accompanying Murray all the way to the mixed doubles final at London 2012, Robson then proceeded to defy all expectations at the US Open. She beat two former grand slam winners in Kim Clijsters and Li Na before being halted by reigning champion Sam Stosur in the fourth round.
10. Cal Crutchlow (Motorcycling)
It had been 12 long years since a Brit stood on the podium in a MotoGP race, making Crutchlow’s mature ride to third place at Brno worthy of mention. A maiden rostrum finish was a just reward for beating more experienced teammate Andrea Dovizioso in a straight fight; with a more competitive bike Crutchlow could yet become the first British MotoGP winner since Barry Sheene in 1981.
exeposedev 