Strict Instructions

L works from home this afternoon and I give her strict instructions to keep prodding the dogs to keep them awake, as I don’t want them disrupting the cycling later.

It doesn’t sound like she’s having much success. They do like a long siesta and apparently there’s not a great deal of life in them. There won’t be in me either by the time I get home. I’m not feeling fit enough to run, but we’ll see. I need to do my bit for Team GB.

Bizarrely I have a really good run home. I just keep going and going. I do 10 miles with no stops in 1:16. Bloody good. Perhaps there was a point to doing Friday’s 10k race after all. On the downside, I stand waiting for a bus, unable to walk and considering vomiting but it was fun...

The medals continue to roll in. Alistair Brownlee becomes the first Briton to win a Gold medal in the Triathlon.

His younger brother, Jonathan, takes Bronze. Meanwhile the Equestrian team win the nation's first Olympic Dressage medal which was Gold, not that I'm even sure what Dressage is.

Then in the velodrome there was Chris Hoy recording a sixth Olympic Gold medal in the Keirin, Victoria Pendleton with Silver in the Sprint and then the Trotty Train crushing all before her in the Omnium.

So the track cyclists match their Beijing tally of seven Gold medals from ten events. Overall that 22 Golds now, three up on four years ago.

High Jumper Robbie Grabarz wins a three way tie for Bronze in the most boring high jump competition ever. Ten of the twelve finalists couldn't get past the third height and Grabarz ended up in a three way tie for bronze because they couldn't even split them on countback. A jump off anyone? The Russian winner was really the only one who distinguished himself.

(Tuesday 7th August)

Kick Off... Throw Off... Bully Off...

I saw this on the ever unreliable BBC. Beijing has set a rule that public toilets should contain no more than two flies at a time. It is not clear how the flies will be punished if more than two of them enter at the same time.

I tell L to start brushing up on her handball. In this morning’s latest Olympic ticket scramble I add another ticket to our Olympic portfolio and book the entertainment for the Saturday evening when we’re down there for the Pentathlon. Not just any old handball but the bronze medal match no less. I could have got the gold medal match but as Team GB won’t be in either, I thought I’d go for the early evening game so we get to spend our one night in London out on the tiles. This game is a 5pm kick off... throw off... bully off... whatever it is. Must google. At least we’re in the Olympic park this time.

There actually now appears to be plenty of tickets, just not for the highest profile sports. Which makes you think the initial hysteria created by the original ballot system was manufactured and as it turns out totally unnecessary. They could have just balloted half a dozen sports.

I don't know if they intend to reopen their resale system or not but I'm guessing a lot of people will have tickets from that original ballot that they've now improved up on and hence will be leaving an empty seat somewhere if they can't get rid.

My receipt says I’ve been charged £6 for ‘fulfilment’. Wonder if that means they’re chucking in beer and a massage.

I spend the evening out in Derby bragging about my handball tickets to a couple of friends over a few beers. Naturally they think their badminton and volleyball tickets are superior. They may have a point of course, my knowledge of handball is a little sparse, as the moment.

(Wednesday 23rd May)