Jul 24 2012
by Gordon Parks
Scots sprinter Allan Wells grabs gold at the 1980n Olympics
JIM WATT didn’t expect to live long enough to watch a Brit wearing a yellow jersey cross the finishing line on the Champs-Elysees.
But the Scottish boxing legend doesn’t buy into Sir Chris Hoy’s belief that Bradley Wiggins’ Tour de France triumph can be ranked as the greatest achievement by any British sportsperson.
Watt defeated Colombian Alfredo Pitalua in Glasgow in 1979 to become the world lightweight champion before successfully defending his title four times to secure his own sporting legacy.
But despite hailing an astonishing cycling triumph from Wiggins, Watt pulled no punches as he refused to put the Englishman’s historic success on a pedestal.
And he claimed Allan Wells’ gold run at the 1980 Olympics is the moment that springs to his mind whenever the subject of Britain’s greatest sporting moment is brought up.
Watt said: “People say boxing is the toughest sport there is and if you accept that then you would have to say the Tour de France is second on that list.
“Maybe it’s even tougher but it’s all a matter of opinion. I fully respect how tough the Tour de France is and it was a terrific achievement.
“Having someone from Britain win that race was something I didn’t expect to see in my lifetime.
“It is a phenomenal feat and full credit to Bradley.
“His success didn’t come out of the blue as it looked from early on in the race as though he was going to win it.
“Sometimes in sport you like the drama and that wasn’t the case with Wiggins as it was never in doubt.
“But the fact he won so comfortably just underlines what a great athlete he is.
“It’s a matter of opinion what the best sporting achievement is but all sports require commitment, courage and a degree of skill.
“It’s impossible to compare marathon running to boxing or cycling. The only certainty is that you don’t get much better than what Wiggins achieved.”
Watt believes anyone looking for a sporting performance to match Wiggins’ need only rewind to Wells bursting out of the blocks in Moscow.
The Scot struck gold in the 100m final and Watt insists that was every bit as impressive as the cyclist’s feat.
He said: “If you look at the sporting achievements of Scotland, for such a small nation we have a lot to be proud of. People who get to the top in their chosen sport deserve as much respect as anyone.
“Wells won gold at the Olympics and if you talk about Scottish or British achievements in sport, that’s what springs to my mind.
“The only problem with his success compared to the Tour de France is that his race was over in 10 seconds.
“That shows how hard it is to compare achievements in different sports.
“But the sheer non-stop effort of Wiggins’ win has never been bettered, that’s for sure.
“That’s just my opinion but there are other moments in sport which stand on par.
“You expect Scottish boxers to win world titles but we didn’t expect Wells to win the 100m and it was an astonishing achievement.
“However, I’m not into giving titles such as the ‘greatest sporting achievement ever’.
“We don’t possess a multitude of top-class athletes so when someone does achieve something great then we should just try to savour it.”
The debate will rage on though and Watt gave tennis ace Andy Murray a mention after reaching this year’s Wimbledon’s Final.
He said: “Everything is relative in sport but you can’t compare a successful football team with other sports.
“It was a pity Andy didn’t win Wimbledon as that would have been another great moment in British sporting history.
“In the end though it’s all about the bottom line and that is winning.
“Murray didn’t have to beat Rafa Nadal or Novak Djokovic to reach the final. I wouldn’t knock him but it shows that in some sports you have different elements such as avoiding people in the draw.
“However, you can’t compare winning a tennis tournament with something like the Tour de France. You just need to enjoy the moment and applaud a phenomenal success.”
It’s the ultimate test of endurance and Bradley has shown superhuman skills - Graeme Obree
GRAEME OBREE emerged from his garage on “Old Faithful” to rewrite the rules of professional cycling.
But the Flying Scotsman insists Bradley Wiggins’ Tour de France win was a superhuman feat from a man operating on a different planet.
Obree enjoyed a career of shattering records as well as claiming a pursuit world champion crown but he’s adamant Wiggins’ success is in another world.
He said: “To be that good, you need to go beyond what normal people do. Normal people push themselves to what they think is the limit but to be as good as Bradley you need to push through the barrier of what you believe is humanly possible.
“It’s a superhuman ability to do that. I can’t think of any other sport which requires that extent of
discipline. If you look at both the physical and mental fitness required for three weeks of the tour then you can’t have any weaknesses.
“Bradley’s a working-class hero from a working-class background and doesn’t take himself too seriously. That’s something I believe has played a part in his success.
“He’s had his own family struggles and hasn’t had anything gifted to him. Bradley’s father was a manic depressive and died in suspicious circumstances in Australia so he’s had a lot to deal with which makes his success all the more remarkable.”
The jury is out on Chris Hoy’s claim that Wiggins’ win was Britain’s “best ever” but Obree doesn’t need any convincing.
He said: “You can calculate sporting achievment in a mathematical sense. It’s about fans’ interest as well as the size of media and sponsorship coverage. Whether something is the greatest-ever sporting event depends on the size of the event.
“Just how do you compare something like Wimbledon to the Tour de France in a global sense?
“Bradley’s achievement in cycling terms for a British athlete is like scaling Mount Everest compared to Mount Snowdon.
“That’s how massive it is in terms of the greatest cycling achievement ever. That’s just a fact. The Tour de France accounts for about 70 per cent of cycling importance.
“There is nothing more demanding as it’s the ultimate test of endurance. If you look at the margin with which he won it’s absolutely incredible.
“It’s about an amazing time trial ability and being able to hold his own in climbs.”
Obree knows more than most about the struggles to attain sporting greatness and insists Wiggins has
sacrificed a lifetime to lift the Tour de France crown.
He said: “This isn’t just about the Tour de France. It’s an entire lifestyle. He has spent every waking moment of his life gearing up for this.
“Trying to improve his form and working on his condition will have been the centre of his entire life.
“He’ll have worked out what to eat, how much rest he needs and everything else that allows you to become good enough to win the Tour de France. That’s a lifetime of preparation.
“He had finished fourth in 2009 and 2010 so it has taken him that length of time to get the required endurance and climbing ability to actually dominate the race.
“It’s taken him until he’s 32 to be ready to win it. He’s the ideal role model and will inspire a generation to go and get on a bike.”
●The Graeme Obree Ayrshire Sportive takes place on Saturday July 28. For info see www.obree.com.
