David Parkin on sporting heroes and villains and ponders the best hotel in the region
THEY say you shouldn’t meet your heroes as they will always disappoint.
I’ve never been so sure of that pronouncement. The only major sports figure that has really left me unimpressed was former England cricket captain Nasser Hussain, who in my two meetings with him, once when the national skipper, and then earlier this year, now he is a Sky Sports pundit, was just a miserable individual.
They must give him an injection of charisma before he goes on air.
But there is a difference between being dull and being downright disgusting.
A quiver of genuine excitement ran around the marquee of nearly 700 people at last weekend’s Firecracker Ball when it was announced that Tour de France winner and Olympic champion Sir Bradley Wiggins was in attendance.
He had donated a signed shirt from the Olympics and when compere John Hammond approached him at his table to comment on the auction lot, Wiggins said he liked John’s “posh” voice and then made a really foul sexual reference.
He didn’t swear, but the comment would have shocked those in the back room of a pub. Given the event was raising money for Barnado’s work with abused children, it was even more inappropriate.
Jon Hammond is a charming, ultra-professional host, who, after reflecting that he had never had to deal with a comment like that in 20 years of compereing, moved swiftly on to completing the auction without fuss but with great success.
Most guests sat in stunned silence. One on my table said Wiggins had been his hero up until that evening.
Someone said that the Tour de France winner may have been drunk. That’s no excuse for his behaviour.
Somebody else suggested that he didn’t want any attention at the event.
I’m sorry, but if you accept a knighthood and enjoy the trappings of success then you have to accept what comes with it.
Clearly Wiggins doesn’t feel he needs to conduct himself in that way.
For those of us who saw him last week, we just don’t find him acceptable any more, either as a sportsman or an individual.
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IT’S your last chance to sponsor my efforts ahead of this weekend’s Abbey Dash 10km run.
Along with colleagues Ellie Newton-Syms and Lee-J Walker, I’m joining the team from private equity player Endless competing in the annual race.
We are running to raise money for the charity, The Turnaround Foundation, founded by the partners at Endless and with a focus on helping individuals turnaround their lives and overcome adversity.
My appeal for sponsorship last week brought some generous pledges of support and also a challenge.
Paul Martin of Brewin Dolphin pledged £20 or £100 if I run the race in a mankini.
The thing is, I think I’ll raise more money by getting people to pay me not to brave the run in a mankini.
Every pound donated will be matched by Endless and, just think, you’ll save the people of Leeds a horrific sight on Sunday morning.
Just click here to donate http://www.justgiving.com/endlessllp
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IS Rudding Park the best run and staffed hotel in Yorkshire? If it isn’t I’d like to experience one better (all invitations gratefully received).
Managing director Peter Banks leads from the front at events at the hotel and his team reflect his unique combination of bonhomie and professionalism.
I also noticed owner Simon Mackaness doing the rounds, keeping an eye on proceedings.
That personal touch from both Simon and Peter makes a huge difference. I was never its biggest fan but I can’t find fault with this impressive Harrogate venue, and that’s something coming from a misery like me.
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DID you hear the BBC Radio Five Live interview with Hull City owner Assem Allam this week? Dr Allam was being questioned about his plans to rename the Premier League club Hull City Tigers, with the long-term plan to drop the City completely.
A very successful businessman, when I’ve seen him talk before he has always spoken eloquently and struck a rather avuncular figure.
However his pronouncements on the radio this week appeared to suggest he was competing with the Venkys at Blackburn and Cardiff City’s Vincent Tan as most bonkers boss in football.
I can sense his frustration that he has ploughed a fortune into his local club and then doesn’t get what he wants from Hull City Council, namely the opportunity to buy the KC Stadium off them.
But his assessment that nobody tells him what to do with his businesses appeared a little off beam.
You see, football just isn’t a business. And however much he feels he can make any decision he likes because he owns the club, there are thousands of fans who also feel they have a piece of it too.
And dictating your wishes to football supporters is probably not the best approach to getting your own way.
Allam feels that renaming the club Hull Tigers will make it more marketable across the world.
Does he really think that one day we’ll see people clad in Hull shirts wandering down Fifth Avenue in New York, through the streets of Ho Chi Minh City or having a kickabout on the beaches of Kenya?
That’s no criticism of Hull City, its just that the reality of football means that global recognition will only really be confined to Manchester United, possibly Chelsea and very few other clubs.
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TALKING of football, before this week I really wondered whether BT Sport could succeed.
The communications giant got involved in TV sport for the first time this season by buying the rights to ‘second tier’ Premier League fixtures.
It threw money at the venture, hiring ‘national treasure’ Clare Balding to present a sport chat show and poaching Jake Humphrey from the BBC’s grand prix coverage.
But a straw poll conducted by me of 10 blokes, all sports fans, at Cheltenham races last month (it was properly done, after the first pint of Guinness) found not one had paid for the BT service, while all had Sky Sports.
That may change following the news this week that BT has coughed up almost £900m for all 350 Champions’ League matches a season for three seasons from 2015.
In comparison, that’s about three times as much as Sky and ITV paid for those rights in their current deal.
Is is a game changer?
Well, it is good to see some rare competition for Sky – the terrestrial channels just don’t have the resources to go toe-to-toe with the broadcaster in rights auctions.
But is the Champions’ League the be all and end all? Not for me, anyway. But Sky now knows that when the Premier League rights next come up for bids, it may well have a fight on its hands.
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THE inaugural Yorkshire Asian Business Dinner was held last week at Elland Road in Leeds. It attracted an impressive turnout of almost 600 guests but organisers recognise that elements of it will have to improve if it is to persuade those guests to return next year.
You know it is going to be a long night when the “professional” comperes read out the instructions on their scripts as well as the script itself.
Amid the guests, many dressed in their best Asian finery, was the rather incongruous sight of a Yorkshireman toastmaster, crew cut and barrel chested beneath his red tailcoat.
He certainly found it a struggle to pronounce some of the names of the evening’s speakers.
I thought he might be on safer ground when introducing one or two local dignitaries to the audience.
“Ladies and gentlemen, pray silence please. To give the loyal toast, Rodney Marsh.”
I looked around for the flamboyant but controversial former footballer, or even the colourful Aussie ex-cricketer.
Then I saw former PwC Yorkshire boss and current Leeds City Region LEP chairman Roger Marsh get to his feet to provide the traditional salutation to the monarch.
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ENTREPRENEUR Andrew Cope of hugely successful Yorkshire-based vehicle leasing business Zenith walked past my table at the Firecracker Ball. Resplendent in a plush velvet dinner jacket, dinner shirt with shimmering studs and yellow and black tartan trousers, he certainly cut a dash.
“Is he gay?” said the lady sitting to my right on our table.
“No, most definitely not,” I replied. “But as a massively successful businessman who has completed four successful buyouts of his business and still remained in control, he will have been told that he looks fantastic by every accountant, lawyer, wealth manager and banker in this room.
“Whereas you and I might have told him he looks like Ronnie Corbett on steroids,” I said to my neighbour.
Have a great weekend.
