A REFLECTIONOF THENEWS

JULY 2012 - SEPTEMBER 2012

The stories that stood out for me.

GOODBYE SNOOP DOGG, HELLO

...

SNOOP LION.

PARALYMPICS BOOM

INTEREST

The Paralympics inspired thousands of Britons to decide that having a dis-ability was no barrier to sport as they cheered on David Weir, Ellie Simmonds and other stars of the Games. Now almost every pursuit connected to the Paralympics has reported a surge in interest.

> Referenced from The Guardian

Headline:

Paralympics boom echoes around British sport.

‘Clubs at the grassroots of sports from cycling to boccia move to capitalise on surge in post-Games interest’

CONTROVERSY AND CONFUSION

The systems used to categorise competitors according to their level of disability is fundamental to levelling the Paralympic playing field but it can also lead to controversy and confusion.

> Referenced from BBC News

Headline:

Oscar Pistorius’s claim that his Paralympic 200m defeat was not a fair race because of the length of his rival’s blades has thrown the debate over how athletes are classified into the mainstream.

“Olympics inspire 150 million tweets”Track superstar Usain Bolt attracted the most discussion overall, and was responsible for the biggest spike in conversation, following completion of his unprecedented double sprint title defence in the 200 metres.

The performance triggered a peak of more than 80,000 tweets per minute, compared to more than 74,000 per minute for Bolt’s 100 metres win.

SUPER SATURDAY

Sandwiched in between, there was an-other track cycling success to savour, as the women’s team pursuit took gold in the London Velodrome with another world record.

> Referenced from BBC News

Headline:Super Saturday started with two successive golds at Eton Dorney to cap the most successful Olympic rowing regatta for Great Britain.

It ended with the nation enjoying its best ever athletics session at a summer Games as three gold medals came in the space of just an hour.

POLICE APOLOGISE

Public reaction: The discovery of Tia Sharp’s body led to anger and disbelief in Britain. The family’s frantic search and appeals had even managed to displace much of the feel-good Olympic coverage from the front pages of the nation’s tabloids, with at one point The Sun offering 25,000 pounds (nearly $40,000) for the tip that led to the girl’s safe return.

>Referenced from The Guardian

Headline:Stuart Hazell, the 37-year-old partner of Tia’s grandmother Christine Sharp, has been charged with murder and will ap-pear in court on Monday.

“Police Apologise For Taking A Week To Find Body In Tia Sharp Case”

‘ORGANISED KILLING’THEORY

Iraqi-born aeronautics engineer Saad al-Hilli, 50, his wife, Iqbal, 47, their two daughters and a 77-year-old woman thought to be Iqbal’s mother, were holidaying in the Alps near Lake Annecy in the Haute Savoie when they were attacked. The adults’ bodies were found inside a British-registered maroon BMW at the end of a narrow track near the village of Chevaline..

> Referenced from The Guardian

Headline:The four people shot dead at an Alpine beauty spot were each killed with two bullets to the head, French investigators said. The revelation supports the theory that they were victims of an organised killing, probably by more than one person.

HILLSBOROUGH COVER-UP

The inquiry into the disaster, led by Lord Justice Taylor, established the main cause as a failure of police crowd control.

> Referenced from BBC News

Headline:On 15 April 1989, at the start of an FA Cup semi-final, a crush on the steel-fenced terraces of Sheffield Wednesday’s stadium resulted in the death of 96 Liverpool fans and left hundreds more injured.

‘Of the 96 people who died, only 14 were ever admitted to hospital’

HILLSBOROUGH COVER-UP

Tony Nicklinson, 58, who suffered from locked-in syndrome, died from pneumonia after refusing food in August.

> Referenced from BBC News

Headline:High Court judges have refused permission for the case of a man who fought for the right to die to go to the Court of Appeal

Mr Nicklinson was paralysed from the neck down after a stroke in 2005.

TONYNICKLISONCASE

This publication is a reaction to some of the news stories between July and September 2012. Prodminately stories surrounded in some controversy.

Stefan Vincent 2012