Tuesday, September 21, 2004
What is it good for?
Absolutely nothing, say it again. War, what is it good for? Absolutely nothing.
Today is the third International Day of Peace. It's the brainchild of a chap called Jeremy Gilley who seems surprised and delighted that it's been adopted officially by the UN. Proof that a single individual can create a little gap that lets a lot of other individuals make small differences that may one day amount to a big difference. Proof that we aren't entirely powerless even though it often seems that way.
Teo other little inspirations over the last few days have come from the world of cycling.
A bit over a year ago Santiago Perez was just starting out on a very promising racing career and about to get married. He'd landed a few successes over his forst two seasons and was marked down as a rider with a lot of potential. Thn his finacee, Vanessa, was killed in a road accident.
He's continued riding, but understandably hasn't continued his development. Until the last few days. On Saturday and Sunday he won two stages of the Tour of Spain in a row. In particular his victory in the mountain time trial on sunday was extrodinary. It's good to see that there's life on the far side of grief. It's good to know that the worst of setbacks can be overcome.
However there's an even more inspiring little snippet from the velodrome at the Paralympics. Brothers Javier and Ricardo Ochoa were both top class road racers, both has taken part in the Tour de France, both were coming to the peak of their careers. In 2001, whilst out training together, thy were both hit by a car. Ricardo was killed, and Javier severely injured, spinal, nerve and brain damage. He also developed cerebral palsy as a result of his injuries.
Yesterday Javier Ochoa won the silver medal in the 3000m pursuit at the Paralympics. He was beaten by Britain's Darren Kenney, but for once I was cheering on the rider trying to stop the Brit getting the gold. Still, it's a hell of a come back.
My heroes for this month are Javier Ochoa and Jeremy Gilley.
Have a peaceful day.
Today is the third International Day of Peace. It's the brainchild of a chap called Jeremy Gilley who seems surprised and delighted that it's been adopted officially by the UN. Proof that a single individual can create a little gap that lets a lot of other individuals make small differences that may one day amount to a big difference. Proof that we aren't entirely powerless even though it often seems that way.
Teo other little inspirations over the last few days have come from the world of cycling.
A bit over a year ago Santiago Perez was just starting out on a very promising racing career and about to get married. He'd landed a few successes over his forst two seasons and was marked down as a rider with a lot of potential. Thn his finacee, Vanessa, was killed in a road accident.
He's continued riding, but understandably hasn't continued his development. Until the last few days. On Saturday and Sunday he won two stages of the Tour of Spain in a row. In particular his victory in the mountain time trial on sunday was extrodinary. It's good to see that there's life on the far side of grief. It's good to know that the worst of setbacks can be overcome.
However there's an even more inspiring little snippet from the velodrome at the Paralympics. Brothers Javier and Ricardo Ochoa were both top class road racers, both has taken part in the Tour de France, both were coming to the peak of their careers. In 2001, whilst out training together, thy were both hit by a car. Ricardo was killed, and Javier severely injured, spinal, nerve and brain damage. He also developed cerebral palsy as a result of his injuries.
Yesterday Javier Ochoa won the silver medal in the 3000m pursuit at the Paralympics. He was beaten by Britain's Darren Kenney, but for once I was cheering on the rider trying to stop the Brit getting the gold. Still, it's a hell of a come back.
My heroes for this month are Javier Ochoa and Jeremy Gilley.
Have a peaceful day.
# posted by Eric @ 11:06 PM 
