Sports Doping – Winning At Any Cost?

Watched on a CX flight from TPE to HKG. June 2016.

Okay. Since it’s June now, there have been new additions to the documentary section of the Cathay Pacific entertainment system… and there are so many things I want to watch, but on a one hour flight, there are only so many things I can watch without pulling my hair out. Some, for example, like A Plastic Ocean and The 24 Hour War, both of which are almost two hours long, are an utter no no, as I won’t be able to get to the ending of the film. Luckily, the person curating this section has the good sense to include some shorter TV documentaries, like the one I ended up watching, which was an engrossing 52 minutes long.

Sports Doping – Winning at Any Cost? follows Dr Xand van Tulleken as he talks to athletes, doctors and scientists around the world, while investigating the use of anabolic steroids, which has become increasingly widespread within the general public. It’s an eye-opening piece not only on the psyche of athletes who want to be the best no matter what the cost, but also on the psyche of all humans, including those who “just” want to look good. It cautions strongly against the use of drugs, interviewing former athletes who used steroids regularly and now have lost use of kidneys, have shown cognitive impairment, etc.

An really insightful, well-researched film. Good stuff.

French Open: Rafa!

I’m a Roger fan through and through. And a huge Andy Murray fan. When Nadal as a 19-year old won the French for the first time, I wasn’t overly impressed. This annoying boy with the long hair and sleeveless shirts. Not my cup of tea. But over the years, what he has achieved is just incredible – and not only on his favourite surface (clay, duh). His rivalry with Federer has produced some of the best tennis ever, so yes.

Last year, when Nadal was trying to come back from injury, and came close-ish but not quite in several matches, there were so many questions about whether he could make it back to the top… And then this year at the Australian Open, when the men’s final was – astonishingly – a Federer-Nadal match up, it was such an awesome throwback to their years of dominance. And though I was rooting for Federer, and though I was extremely happy that Federer won, from then on, all I wanted was for Nadal to win the French (preferably also in a Federer-Nadal final… but that was not meant to be as Fed decided to skip the entire clay season). It would be a record-breaking tenth title, and it would be a fitting return for the King of Clay.

And he did it! He swept aside Wawrinka (who, granted, was not playing his best – I am grateful to Murray for wearing Stan down haha), and just was immoveable. An incredible tenth French Open title – aptly named La Decima. Fantastic. So glad I got to watch it live (one of the perks of staying at a hotel…) :D

French Open: the women. And F1.

Oh man. I wanted Simona Halep to win so badly. Like… even more than I wanted Andy Murray to beat… no. That’s not true. I probably wanted Murray to beat Wawrinka more. But still. I wanted Halep to win. Oh well.

In other news, Lewis Hamilton won his 65th pole position today in Canada, and received one of Ayrton Senna’s helmets from his family for matching the late, great Senna’s achievement of 65 poles… That was incredibly touching. And it was a great day for Hamilton whose last race was not so great.

In any case, it’s going to be an interesting day tomorrow… Nadal-Wawrinka (go Nadal!) and the Canadian Grand Prix…

I love sports <3!! And yay to being in a hotel, so I get to watch sports (even though it’s all in Mandarin) hahahaha…

I am Bolt.

Watched on KA flight from SHA to HKG. May 2017.

So… this guy is a true champion and this documentary follows his journey to nine incredible gold medals. And while winning those nine medals is fabulous, and while yes his road is all hard work and discipline and more, beyond that, he does have a great life.

So. It’s a great movie for the fans. For me… I guess… I wanted a bit more than the perfunctory behind the scenes. Yeah.

 

F1: Shanghai

Lewis Hamilton baby!!!! What an awesome race. This year is going to be a great one – Hamilton vs Vettel, two of the greatest drivers of this generation :D And especially since Vettel won Melbourne, this year looks like it’s shaping up to be a super competitive one!

Knicks@Raptors last year

I didn’t watch the game that they played on Valentine’s Day last year. I saw the highlights. I “watched” the game live via play-by-play (we were on the tour bus going from hotel to airport in China), and I remember saying to Randy, It’s been a good run, it’s about time they lost…

And then of course, after I’d checked in all the guitars and gear and stuff, Randy told me to check the play-by-play, and JLin’d made the winning 3-pointer.

I didn’t get to watch the whole game until tonight. Can I just say… HOW THE HECK DID THEY PULL OUT THAT WIN???? Seriously. How!!!!

Anyway. That’s all. Haha.