Go team!
In latest news, Pittman has withdrawn from the Queen’s Baton relay today, citing concerns over a hamstring injury she is trying to recover from before competing in the Commonwealth Games (do these games really need an el-cheapo imitation of the Olympic torch?). This comes after her statements recently about planning to leave Australia and base herself in England - she says the drama surrounding her feud with Lewis had been the last straw, among other criticisms of her, and that she no longer had the passion she once did to run for Australia.
I think Jana needs to grow a thicker skin and get over it. I think a lot of her problems are about her inability to live up to the standards she set before her injury prior to the Athens Olympics, including winning at the World Championships. I detect a lot of disappointment and frustration in her behaviour. Hopefully, she’ll do well in these Commonwealth Games.
As for Tamsyn Lewis, she seems to have a much higher public profile through TV and other appearances than her successes as an athlete warrant. Helps to be attractive and bubbly I guess! Jamaican athlete, Sandie Richards, puts across this comparison of Lewis’ record compared to Pittman’s:
“She is a top-class athlete, way better than Tamsyn will ever be so she should not comment on those sort of things. She should have just walked away and saved her energy for other things. “Jana is world class, she has been the top-ranked (400m hurdler) in the world. Has Tamsyn been ranked in anything? No.
“Tamsyn is getting sponsorship and all that good stuff. People are listening and giving her the glory and that is why she continues. If the newspaper wasn’t writing about her and paying her
attention I am sure she would shut up. Nobody else in the world knows who she is.”
Lewis needs to focus on her running if she is to succeed at the level Pittman has. It would be best if both of them did, and let their results speak for them - I’m sick of hearing the bitching. Officials with the Australian team claim to have hosed down the dispute between them - remains to be seen if that continues.
I read a story about government funding of sports on the weekend and saw that Tamsyn Lewis had received funding of $217k in the past 6 years from Athletics Australia and the Victorian Institute of Sport. Not a huge amount really (I don’t know what she makes from sponsorships and other sources) but you’d hardly say there’s been a great return on the investment of taxpayers’ money (I’m assuming that the AA funding comes from grants via the Australian Sports Commission). I wonder at what point do the funders of athletes decide that he/she has max’d out and its no longer worthwhile funding them for the likely results they might achieve.
Technorati Tags: Jana Pittman, Tamsyn Lewis, athletics, Commonwealth Games, bitchfight
March 14th, 2006 at 6:49 am
Well, the reporters who cover athletics in this country have to write about something. And it has to be tiffs. Since they can’t write about on-track success.
March 15th, 2006 at 9:21 am
It is odd that normally savvy media thinks we are interested in their nonsense. More publicity last night, as Pitman pulled out of carrying the baton. An athlete about to compete in a running event in the games, cannot jog for how ever many metres? And there, done it myself and so have you. Even more publicity.
March 15th, 2006 at 4:30 pm
Nothing about the Australian Institute Of Sport would stand up to examination - weird goings on there for sure.
Pitman is a pain in the neck and should just hurdle and be quiet about it. If she couldn’t do the baton run, then she must not be fit.
I still don’t understand why athletic competition has turned into Show Business - there is too much peripheral pomp.
‘The Media’ panders to tabloid sensibilities and is to blame for much malignancy.
March 15th, 2006 at 6:57 pm
I’m for Team Tamsyn - if I was getting ready to race someone as up herself as she is and who then tops it off by saying that there’s no competition, I’d say exactly was Tamsyn did: I’ll show you no competition bitch!.
Pittman is just a pouty whingy coz in serious need of some ego deflation and PR assistance…