0:00:04 > 0:00:07Sport is transformative.
0:00:07 > 0:00:10Sport gives us, really, an opportunity, what I feel,
0:00:10 > 0:00:13is to dare greatly.
0:00:14 > 0:00:18I think the more we can do to show how it can benefit you mentally,
0:00:18 > 0:00:20physically, emotionally...
0:00:20 > 0:00:23I mean, for me, it's sport that keeps me healthy and sane
0:00:23 > 0:00:25in lots of different ways.
0:00:25 > 0:00:27The feeling-good factor is very important.
0:00:27 > 0:00:30If you feel good about yourself, then, obviously,
0:00:30 > 0:00:32there's a bit more of a strut to your step,
0:00:32 > 0:00:34and that can aid to positive thinking
0:00:34 > 0:00:39which is perhaps the most important part of winning at the highest level.
0:00:39 > 0:00:42The risk of being physically inactive,
0:00:42 > 0:00:44in terms of risk of heart disease,
0:00:44 > 0:00:47is about the same as the risk of smoking.
0:01:26 > 0:01:30I think exercise is absolutely fundamental for our health
0:01:30 > 0:01:32and our wellbeing in general,
0:01:32 > 0:01:36because if you think about our background, you know,
0:01:36 > 0:01:38when we were hunters and gatherers,
0:01:38 > 0:01:42exercise was absolutely essential part of our life,
0:01:42 > 0:01:46whereas now a lot of us sit in the office, pretty much all day,
0:01:46 > 0:01:48with minimal exercise.
0:01:48 > 0:01:52People that sit down a lot seem to be getting more heart disease,
0:01:52 > 0:01:54more diabetes.
0:01:54 > 0:01:57They seem to have greater obesity, so they're a bit fatter,
0:01:57 > 0:01:59and the interesting thing is
0:01:59 > 0:02:02this doesn't seem to be completely offset by being physically active.
0:02:02 > 0:02:05So you go to the gym and you do your half-hour of activity
0:02:05 > 0:02:09in the evening and that gives you a clear benefit.
0:02:09 > 0:02:13It appears that sitting down a lot is bad, even if you do that.
0:02:25 > 0:02:28Our bodies are built of different systems, if you like.
0:02:28 > 0:02:32So the basic frame that we have is our bones, joints, muscles.
0:02:32 > 0:02:34They're all designed to move.
0:02:34 > 0:02:37Essentially, if we don't move, a lot of that system can seize,
0:02:37 > 0:02:41it can be badly conditioned so that when we do move,
0:02:41 > 0:02:42we maybe injure ourselves.
0:02:42 > 0:02:46And then the second big system we have is our heart and lungs.
0:02:46 > 0:02:48That really is the engine.
0:02:48 > 0:02:50We have to keep exercising that muscle
0:02:50 > 0:02:53because that's what pumps blood around our body.
0:02:53 > 0:02:57It brings oxygen into our system, which is just vital.
0:02:57 > 0:02:58It's vital for our brain function,
0:02:58 > 0:03:01it helps our muscles to operate effectively.
0:03:01 > 0:03:04What happens is they have to oxidise fuels,
0:03:04 > 0:03:05and the fuels are carbohydrates,
0:03:05 > 0:03:08which are stored in the muscle in the form of glycogen,
0:03:08 > 0:03:11and they're transporting the blood in the form of glucose.
0:03:11 > 0:03:14And fats, and you've got some fats stored in your muscle.
0:03:14 > 0:03:16You've also got fat which is transported in the circulation.
0:03:16 > 0:03:18It's liberated from your fat tissue.
0:03:18 > 0:03:22They need to oxidise these fuels and they need to do that with oxygen.
0:03:22 > 0:03:24The oxygen is carried in the blood.
0:03:24 > 0:03:27So your heart rate beats faster and that supplies more oxygen
0:03:27 > 0:03:29to the muscles to enable you to do the work.
0:03:29 > 0:03:32And the third sort of set of things that are going on are
0:03:32 > 0:03:35largely chemical and some of that's hormonal.
0:03:35 > 0:03:38So the way our hormones are balanced in our body is also
0:03:38 > 0:03:40affected by how active we are.
0:03:40 > 0:03:43You get quite a significant release of endorphins that
0:03:43 > 0:03:47bring about a feeling of wellbeing.
0:03:47 > 0:03:50It's during, beyond a certain length of exercise,
0:03:50 > 0:03:52and then beyond the exercise.
0:03:52 > 0:03:56So you get that real sort of nice warmth, relaxation, feel good.
0:04:08 > 0:04:11Any form of physical activity, whether it's walking the dog
0:04:11 > 0:04:14or swimming just with your friends once a week or twice a week,
0:04:14 > 0:04:17all of that helps keep yourself healthy.
0:04:17 > 0:04:20I think dancing gives you a lot of joy.
0:04:20 > 0:04:24Remember dancing involves music so it is rhythm, it is tune
0:04:24 > 0:04:28but a little dancing also is a social activity.
0:04:28 > 0:04:30A range of sports, not just team sports,
0:04:30 > 0:04:33although teams sports remain very important for a lot of young people,
0:04:33 > 0:04:37are increasingly looking at health and fitness type, lifestyle, exercise
0:04:37 > 0:04:42for young people and, increasingly, you see that in schools.
0:04:42 > 0:04:45They're equipped with gyms, not just gym halls.
0:04:45 > 0:04:48So there's been quite a lot of things that have really caused us
0:04:48 > 0:04:51to reflect on a serious problem and how to solve it
0:04:51 > 0:04:53and part of that's been, importantly,
0:04:53 > 0:04:57talking to, and involving, young people in some of the solutions.
0:05:19 > 0:05:25In order to get to the top level of either sport or dance,
0:05:25 > 0:05:29you have to change your lifestyle. This is not just a set of exercises.
0:05:29 > 0:05:34You do the training consistently throughout many, many years
0:05:34 > 0:05:38and this affects how you interact with your friends.
0:05:38 > 0:05:44A lot of athletes are unable to go out with their mates.
0:05:44 > 0:05:50Sometimes even birthday celebrations are very downbeat occasions because of the training.
0:06:02 > 0:06:04I think I've had three epidurals.
0:06:11 > 0:06:13Which is the funniest thing in the world to have, as a man,
0:06:13 > 0:06:17because your legs are drunk and you're all right up top, aren't you?
0:06:17 > 0:06:19So they let me out and I tried to run to my car
0:06:19 > 0:06:21and my legs were like that, all over the place.
0:06:21 > 0:06:22You didn't play?
0:06:22 > 0:06:25Yeah, I had the epidural on a Monday and I played on Tuesday.
0:06:25 > 0:06:28At times, I had my knee drained of fluid on a Friday,
0:06:28 > 0:06:30just before the game, so I could play on the Saturday.
0:06:30 > 0:06:33Maybe I'll limp a little bit when I get older, a lot of people do.
0:06:33 > 0:06:35But I think everybody's proud of trying
0:06:35 > 0:06:37to help their team-mates in that way.
0:06:48 > 0:06:52This is a guy who was fighting for his life.
0:06:52 > 0:06:55He had a 4% chance of survival when he was diagnosed with cancer.
0:06:55 > 0:06:59He was a good cyclist beforehand but when he was able to come back
0:06:59 > 0:07:02and started competing, he became a great cyclist.
0:07:02 > 0:07:04He admits himself the cancer actually
0:07:04 > 0:07:06focused his mind a lot more.
0:07:06 > 0:07:08You never want to hope for an injury
0:07:08 > 0:07:10but I also think it made me stronger mentally
0:07:10 > 0:07:12because so many people started putting me down
0:07:12 > 0:07:15and saying I wouldn't even make the Olympic team
0:07:15 > 0:07:17because I was too old, I was over my prime.
0:07:17 > 0:07:20I'm just 18 years old. But it made me want it that much more
0:07:20 > 0:07:25and I guess I like to prove people wrong, so that's kind of what I did.
0:07:25 > 0:07:28But it wasn't even for those people, it was for me.
0:07:28 > 0:07:31I wanted to prove to myself that, even after a serious injury,
0:07:31 > 0:07:33I was able to come back, and not just come back,
0:07:33 > 0:07:36but come back stronger and be on top of the world.
0:08:15 > 0:08:19It actually takes mental ability to do exercise,
0:08:19 > 0:08:22so you're actually triggering nerve cells,
0:08:22 > 0:08:24you're triggering responses,
0:08:24 > 0:08:26you're making decisions while you're being active,
0:08:26 > 0:08:30and the more complex the skill or sport that you're involved in,
0:08:30 > 0:08:34the more that nervous system is triggered and involved.
0:08:34 > 0:08:36There is some evidence that exercise actually helps
0:08:36 > 0:08:38develop new neurons in your brain.
0:08:38 > 0:08:40They can see that from studies where
0:08:40 > 0:08:43they do magnetic resonance imaging of the brain.
0:08:43 > 0:08:46So exercise actually might make you a little bit smarter.
0:08:46 > 0:08:49You respond, adapt, you change the way your mind processes things.
0:08:49 > 0:08:52It becomes faster at doing those things.
0:08:52 > 0:08:57So you actually are training the mind in quite a skilful way
0:08:57 > 0:09:00and stimulating those new cells that way.
0:09:13 > 0:09:16I don't know a boxer that I've ever seen that,
0:09:16 > 0:09:21before the bell for the first round, he thinks he's going to lose.
0:09:21 > 0:09:24Now what creates that mentality?
0:09:24 > 0:09:27It's a belief in yourself.
0:09:27 > 0:09:30And that mentality's not something that you find in a textbook.
0:09:30 > 0:09:34It's something, sometimes, you find on the street. Not in the classroom.
0:09:34 > 0:09:37Sometimes you find it in your living room.
0:09:37 > 0:09:39Sometimes you find it in your church.
0:09:39 > 0:09:42There are different ways, but it does mean the same thing.
0:09:42 > 0:09:44You believe you're invincible.
0:09:44 > 0:09:47After, it sort of clicked and then that was it,
0:09:47 > 0:09:48I was strong in the head.
0:09:48 > 0:09:51I knew I was going to win before I started.
0:09:51 > 0:09:53And it's a brilliant feeling to have.
0:09:53 > 0:09:57Through my own experience, I'm not sure you have to be this completely
0:09:57 > 0:10:01self-assured, certain person that you're going to be a champion.
0:10:01 > 0:10:04I just think that you have to try hard and keep trying,
0:10:04 > 0:10:06and when you get into a negative state,
0:10:06 > 0:10:08do everything you can to get out of it
0:10:08 > 0:10:11and stay focused on doing the best you can,
0:10:11 > 0:10:14training well and, hopefully, good things will come of that.
0:10:19 > 0:10:23Sports psychology is effectively part of sports science that takes
0:10:23 > 0:10:28care of people's thoughts, people's emotions and people's behaviour.
0:10:28 > 0:10:30One of the things we'd focused on is that
0:10:30 > 0:10:33competition really shouldn't be different to training,
0:10:33 > 0:10:35and not to let the moment overwhelm you.
0:10:35 > 0:10:38So the goal was, in the start gate at the Olympic Games,
0:10:38 > 0:10:41to turn my head off and let all the work
0:10:41 > 0:10:43and all the quality training I'd done
0:10:43 > 0:10:46come into play and just let it happen.
0:10:47 > 0:10:50Being on the start line of the race in the Olympics,
0:10:50 > 0:10:54so many people have helped me get where I've got to, so many things...
0:10:54 > 0:10:58So many people and so many resources have helped me on this journey.
0:10:58 > 0:11:01So I feel the pressure now, even eight months ahead of the race,
0:11:01 > 0:11:03that I have to pull it off on the day.
0:11:03 > 0:11:04It really has to happen.
0:11:04 > 0:11:08So I think sports psychology, to help you deal with that anxiety,
0:11:08 > 0:11:11and still perform to the best that you can, is crucial.
0:11:11 > 0:11:16One of the most essential sports psychology tool that I use is
0:11:16 > 0:11:21the potential of the athletes and, indeed, dancers I work with.
0:11:21 > 0:11:26I think that a lot of them perform at the highest level.
0:11:26 > 0:11:30A lot of them had very, very successful,
0:11:30 > 0:11:33either competitions or performances.
0:11:33 > 0:11:36And it is important for them to be aware that,
0:11:36 > 0:11:40when they're facing a very tough competition,
0:11:40 > 0:11:45to remember "I've done it before and it worked really well before.
0:11:45 > 0:11:50"I managed to turn the corner and I can do it again."
0:12:01 > 0:12:05One of the areas that's been largely kind of taboo in sport has been
0:12:05 > 0:12:09around mental health, rather than physical disability or whatever.
0:12:09 > 0:12:13Mental health is, I think, a very kind of tricky area for sport
0:12:13 > 0:12:16because within sport, there is a very high end of psychology,
0:12:16 > 0:12:20the will to win, the desire to focus, all of those things
0:12:20 > 0:12:24that are mental skills as much as they're physical skills.
0:12:24 > 0:12:27That's probably been the reason why people have been beaten
0:12:27 > 0:12:30in certain situations or have not been able to cope with
0:12:30 > 0:12:31a career in sport or in business.
0:12:31 > 0:12:34It's something now that is a bit more in the public domain.
0:12:34 > 0:12:38People are a bit more comfortable about coming out and talking to it.
0:12:38 > 0:12:40If you look back, I suppose, 50 years ago,
0:12:40 > 0:12:47homosexuality was not discussed in public and now is open and why not?
0:12:47 > 0:12:49If you're a high-performing athlete,
0:12:49 > 0:12:52there's a kind of euphoria around what you're doing.
0:12:52 > 0:12:55You're highly concentrated, you often lock yourself away.
0:12:55 > 0:12:59You often kind of lock out contact with wider social groups.
0:12:59 > 0:13:02You stop drinking, you maybe stop socialising.
0:13:02 > 0:13:03So, in lots of ways,
0:13:03 > 0:13:06that has to have an impact on your wellbeing as an individual.
0:13:06 > 0:13:09It's not uncommon, therefore, as a consequence of that,
0:13:09 > 0:13:13for high-performing athletes or, indeed, for middle-ranking athletes
0:13:13 > 0:13:17to begin to take on some of those everyday mental health challenges -
0:13:17 > 0:13:21depression, sense of loneliness, sense of isolation,
0:13:21 > 0:13:24sense of actually not feeling strong inside yourself,
0:13:24 > 0:13:26but having to be physically strong,
0:13:26 > 0:13:29whilst inside you might actually be breaking up.
0:13:29 > 0:13:35It's something that, you know, I probably went through
0:13:35 > 0:13:39when I moved over from Australia to Leicester in 2001
0:13:39 > 0:13:44and I was severely homesick and just couldn't get out of bed at all.
0:13:44 > 0:13:47I just didn't even want to sort of face the world.
0:13:47 > 0:13:51A lot of it maybe comes from if you're putting too much pressure on yourself,
0:13:51 > 0:13:54and then it's not quite happening the way that you thought it would
0:13:54 > 0:13:57and, you know, you start thinking, "Well, is this it?"
0:14:04 > 0:14:07You know, when you've got family and stuff like that...
0:14:07 > 0:14:09You know, if you've got a normal job and you come home,
0:14:09 > 0:14:12you kind of get them things that feed your soul.
0:14:12 > 0:14:14But when you're sitting in a hotel room
0:14:14 > 0:14:16and you don't get to see much of them anyway,
0:14:16 > 0:14:18that can play on your mind and it was on mine.
0:14:18 > 0:14:21We're all different, some people can handle it better than others,
0:14:21 > 0:14:25but I've realised that that's something that's not going to make me happy and content,
0:14:25 > 0:14:29so it's just finding that balance and kind of getting a schedule
0:14:29 > 0:14:32and managing my time right, and getting a bit of everything
0:14:32 > 0:14:37and, as long as that means you're happy doing what you're doing then that would equal success in my eyes.
0:14:37 > 0:14:40Physical activity is one of the few things that has
0:14:40 > 0:14:42a huge amount of evidence to support it being
0:14:42 > 0:14:45a very effective intervention to improve mental health.
0:14:45 > 0:14:47And it doesn't need to be sport.
0:14:47 > 0:14:50Any kind of physical activity is seen to be good for mental health.
0:15:30 > 0:15:33The Olympics is a fabulous thing to bring, the only time, probably,
0:15:33 > 0:15:36in our lifetime we'll see it in London, or in England.
0:15:36 > 0:15:39Unfortunately for us, the Olympics has coincided with
0:15:39 > 0:15:44a period of huge recessionary problems for the country - lack of money, lack of investment -
0:15:44 > 0:15:47and the Government's hands, I suppose, are tied
0:15:47 > 0:15:50because this is a time, on the back of the Olympics,
0:15:50 > 0:15:54what we should be doing is pumping millions of pounds
0:15:54 > 0:15:58into school sports, grassroots sports, to encourage, to build.
0:15:58 > 0:16:00We can't just suddenly think,
0:16:00 > 0:16:02"I watched the 5,000 metres on TV
0:16:02 > 0:16:05"and I'm going to be a 5,000 metre runner."
0:16:05 > 0:16:07There has to be a structure.
0:16:19 > 0:16:22People I can think of, it's really encouraged them
0:16:22 > 0:16:23to take an interest in sport.
0:16:23 > 0:16:25People have booked tickets to go and see things
0:16:25 > 0:16:27that they would never, ever normally go and see
0:16:27 > 0:16:30and I hope that that would have a positive effect in perhaps
0:16:30 > 0:16:32encouraging people to try something themselves,
0:16:32 > 0:16:34become a bit more active themselves,
0:16:34 > 0:16:37bring a lot more role models to the forefront in the country
0:16:37 > 0:16:40that will hopefully encourage and inspire young people
0:16:40 > 0:16:43and people across the generations to try things.
0:16:43 > 0:16:44What we do know is that, in the past,
0:16:44 > 0:16:48there's not much evidence to suggest that that actually happens.
0:16:48 > 0:16:49In Manchester, for example,
0:16:49 > 0:16:52less people were doing physical activity there after the event
0:16:52 > 0:16:54than there were before, and inequalities,
0:16:54 > 0:16:58that is the difference between the rich and poor within Manchester,
0:16:58 > 0:17:01had widened after the 2002 Commonwealth Games.
0:17:01 > 0:17:04It's an enormous responsibility, running these major events, and,
0:17:04 > 0:17:10therefore, requires a degree of what I would say legacy-consciousness.
0:17:10 > 0:17:13What I mean by that is really thinking about how
0:17:13 > 0:17:17everything that we do as a major event organiser,
0:17:17 > 0:17:20how can we impact on the future prosperity
0:17:20 > 0:17:23of the communities that we're working in?
0:17:23 > 0:17:26And how can we make things, essentially, better?
0:17:26 > 0:17:28A large amount of money, over £9 billion,
0:17:28 > 0:17:30has been spent on providing new sports stadia,
0:17:30 > 0:17:33providing other kinds of infrastructure
0:17:33 > 0:17:36in the East End of London and I'm sure much of that is to be welcomed.
0:17:36 > 0:17:38What's less clear, though,
0:17:38 > 0:17:41is what is good for the actual population of the East End of London.
0:17:41 > 0:17:45Not much of that money is actually spent on the kinds of facilities
0:17:45 > 0:17:47that would be of use to local people.
0:17:47 > 0:17:50A large number of the facilities are really aimed at elite athletes
0:17:50 > 0:17:53rather than participation in sport,
0:17:53 > 0:17:55or just participation in physical activity.
0:17:55 > 0:17:58Those venues that we are building are,
0:17:58 > 0:18:02and the infrastructure projects, are communally relevant,
0:18:02 > 0:18:06communally active and are open to the public
0:18:06 > 0:18:10and the general neighbourhoods that they're being built in,
0:18:10 > 0:18:13well before the Games actually start.
0:18:13 > 0:18:17So the legacy really is starting before the Games. It's started now.
0:18:29 > 0:18:33There is a trend whereby big sports events like this
0:18:33 > 0:18:35get held in brownfield sites.
0:18:35 > 0:18:38That's sites that were, perhaps, in the past used for industry
0:18:38 > 0:18:41and they were left behind and are lying derelict now.
0:18:41 > 0:18:43These sports events are used
0:18:43 > 0:18:45almost as a regeneration tool for these areas.
0:18:45 > 0:18:48The question, really, has to be, what could have been done with the money
0:18:48 > 0:18:52spent on the Olympics if that was to be diverted to regeneration schemes?
0:18:52 > 0:18:56Challenging ourselves for local community benefit is
0:18:56 > 0:18:59absolutely something that is in our ethos,
0:18:59 > 0:19:03and already, to this day, 83% of the contracts that have been
0:19:03 > 0:19:09awarded to Games-related business have been from the local community.
0:19:09 > 0:19:11So that's already having an impact.
0:19:11 > 0:19:16There's a lot of things do help us to develop sport economically,
0:19:16 > 0:19:19things like the Mountain Bike World Cup - huge event,
0:19:19 > 0:19:22large numbers of people travel to Fort William to see that.
0:19:22 > 0:19:26They spend money in shops around the area, buying food, drink,
0:19:26 > 0:19:27you know, just gifts.
0:19:27 > 0:19:31They also stay over in bed and breakfast accommodation, hotels etc.
0:19:31 > 0:19:33They buy their petrol in the area.
0:19:33 > 0:19:36So those major sporting events can be a really big,
0:19:36 > 0:19:39important part of our economy.
0:19:44 > 0:19:46I think, with something like the Paralympics,
0:19:46 > 0:19:49you have to look beyond the purely economic because,
0:19:49 > 0:19:51what, in lots of ways, you're dealing with
0:19:51 > 0:19:53is issues of portrayal as well.
0:19:53 > 0:19:56You're looking to actually challenge orthodox images of how
0:19:56 > 0:20:00disabled talent is actually treated in the UK and you're looking, also,
0:20:00 > 0:20:02to put on, in this case,
0:20:02 > 0:20:08on a world stage people of amazing calibre as performers and athletes.
0:20:08 > 0:20:11Obviously the Blade Runner, Oscar Pistorius,
0:20:11 > 0:20:14who'll be running in the Olympics probably,
0:20:14 > 0:20:16and definitely in the Paralympics,
0:20:16 > 0:20:18you're looking there at something that's world-class,
0:20:18 > 0:20:21of immense quality, and, therefore,
0:20:21 > 0:20:24to see that as being second best is actually something of the past.
0:20:24 > 0:20:27I think the Paralympics will be a huge success.
0:20:39 > 0:20:43There is some evidence to suggest that being a host country
0:20:43 > 0:20:46makes it more likely that you'll win medals.
0:20:46 > 0:20:49I'm quite patriotic and, yeah, if you ask most riders,
0:20:49 > 0:20:53from a patriotic country, the likes of England, Australia and the US,
0:20:53 > 0:20:55it is a big thing, especially being in London.
0:20:57 > 0:20:59I'm massively excited about it.
0:20:59 > 0:21:03It's on a great course and we should have a great team there.
0:21:03 > 0:21:08And, obviously, it's the first medal on offer at the Olympics
0:21:08 > 0:21:10so I'm quite excited
0:21:10 > 0:21:14to try and get Great Britain's account opened with a gold medal.
0:21:28 > 0:21:31We did what's called a health impact assessment in Glasgow
0:21:31 > 0:21:33when we went and asked the communities around the city
0:21:33 > 0:21:37what kind of aspirations they had for their own city from the event.
0:21:37 > 0:21:40The biggest thing that people wanted to see and the biggest thing they
0:21:40 > 0:21:43wanted to derive from the event was a sense of pride in the city.
0:21:43 > 0:21:46They wanted to be proud of a city that had once been proud
0:21:46 > 0:21:48because of its industrial heritage,
0:21:48 > 0:21:50but had seen the city decline for a number of reasons.
0:21:50 > 0:21:53And that's what people are crying out for.
0:22:31 > 0:22:34It was interesting last year at a big World Cup race.
0:22:34 > 0:22:37I had an energy gel just before the start of the race.
0:22:37 > 0:22:41It was really gooey and sticky and left a horrible taste in your mouth.
0:22:41 > 0:22:44I had no water on my bike and there was a bottle of water
0:22:44 > 0:22:46at the side of the road with someone stood next to it.
0:22:46 > 0:22:48I asked for a swig of the water,
0:22:48 > 0:22:50had the water, did my race and, after, somebody said,
0:22:50 > 0:22:53"I saw what you did at the start of the race there.
0:22:53 > 0:22:55"You should never, ever, ever do that.
0:22:55 > 0:22:57"You don't know what could be in that water."
0:22:57 > 0:22:58Some sports, you know,
0:22:58 > 0:23:04will forever be scarred with the effects of ethical issues,
0:23:04 > 0:23:06such as doping and it takes, sometimes,
0:23:06 > 0:23:08a lifetime to change perceptions.
0:23:08 > 0:23:12Cycling's at the forefront of anti-doping, you know.
0:23:12 > 0:23:14There's more tests in this sport than any other sport.
0:23:14 > 0:23:16With more tests, you catch more people.
0:23:16 > 0:23:19There's cheats in every aspect of sport, every aspect of life,
0:23:19 > 0:23:21and if you put the time, money and effort
0:23:21 > 0:23:23into catching cheats, you'll catch them.
0:23:23 > 0:23:25Cycling does that so, technically,
0:23:25 > 0:23:28you could say cycling's the cleanest sport.
0:23:28 > 0:23:31What gets me more frustrated is the ignorant, close-minded
0:23:31 > 0:23:33view of that, you know.
0:23:33 > 0:23:35"Oh, cycling? They're all cheats."
0:23:35 > 0:23:37Well...
0:23:37 > 0:23:38we're not.
0:23:38 > 0:23:41The worst thing now for athletics is every time we see someone run
0:23:41 > 0:23:43a tenth of a second faster,
0:23:43 > 0:23:45the first thought in your mind is, "What's he on?"
0:23:45 > 0:23:49It's quite an interesting topic in para-sport, as it gets called,
0:23:49 > 0:23:52because if you have to take a drug for medical or therapeutic reasons,
0:23:52 > 0:23:56you get what's called a therapeutic use exemption form.
0:23:56 > 0:24:00So there's people that I race against who are on
0:24:00 > 0:24:03very significant amounts of morphine, painkillers,
0:24:03 > 0:24:07all sorts of drugs, some which are very much stimulants,
0:24:07 > 0:24:11which they're allowed to be on for medical reasons.
0:24:11 > 0:24:14And you have to question how beneficial that might also be,
0:24:14 > 0:24:16that they can push through pain barriers
0:24:16 > 0:24:18that other people can't push through.
0:24:18 > 0:24:20How might it be affecting their performance?
0:24:20 > 0:24:23Because it affects the fundamental integrity of the sport,
0:24:23 > 0:24:27I think the warning signs have to be, and the penalties have to be,
0:24:27 > 0:24:31so draconian, that it forgoes the idea of
0:24:31 > 0:24:33"he's paid his price" because
0:24:33 > 0:24:36the damage has not been paid for.
0:24:36 > 0:24:38So, therefore, zero tolerance.
0:24:38 > 0:24:39Life ban.
0:24:50 > 0:24:52I played at teams where they've spat at me.
0:24:52 > 0:24:56Gone to get the ball out of the crowd and they spat in your face.
0:24:56 > 0:25:00I think we're all responsible for each other's actions,
0:25:00 > 0:25:04be it as a fan in an audience or be it on the football pitch.
0:25:04 > 0:25:09We have to expect that whatever we do also passes on to others.
0:25:09 > 0:25:14I think it doesn't matter what environment that's in,
0:25:14 > 0:25:18it becomes a collective and so, you know,
0:25:18 > 0:25:21if we're responsible out in the streets and we pick up litter,
0:25:21 > 0:25:25other people respect the environment and so it passes on.
0:25:25 > 0:25:30So I think you can be held up as a role model as a footballer,
0:25:30 > 0:25:32but who's the role model for the crowd?
0:25:32 > 0:25:35I was at a game quite recently between the team I support,
0:25:35 > 0:25:38St Johnstone, and another Premier League team, Kilmarnock.
0:25:38 > 0:25:40Now, Kilmarnock have a player, Dean Shiels,
0:25:40 > 0:25:43who's actually got one eye. He had an eye accident as a child.
0:25:43 > 0:25:47And a small group of St Johnstone fans were chanting,
0:25:47 > 0:25:50actually quite crassly, about this guy having one eye.
0:25:50 > 0:25:53Other St Johnstone fans turned on them and started to tell them
0:25:53 > 0:25:55to shut up and stop disgracing the club and that.
0:25:55 > 0:25:58I think people are getting more and more...
0:25:58 > 0:26:00that there's a duty for you not to just humiliate somebody
0:26:00 > 0:26:03cos he happens to play in a different football team.
0:26:14 > 0:26:16There's always been this sense of,
0:26:16 > 0:26:19almost like a kind of apartheid culture where women's sport
0:26:19 > 0:26:22was seen as disproportionately less good than male sport.
0:26:22 > 0:26:25But I think that when you see a competition at the highest end,
0:26:25 > 0:26:29if you look at something like the women's 4x100 metres or
0:26:29 > 0:26:33the Jamaican sprint teams, or the women's tour in tennis,
0:26:33 > 0:26:36you're talking about things of a really, really high standard.
0:26:36 > 0:26:40I think the idea that there will always be this disjuncture between
0:26:40 > 0:26:44"men are good and women less good" is actually beginning to disappear.
0:26:50 > 0:26:54I think in the United Kingdom there certainly isn't the same
0:26:54 > 0:26:58tradition of covering all female sports.
0:26:58 > 0:27:01And I do think this is something that is territory-specific.
0:27:01 > 0:27:06If you go to other countries in the world, you will see massive interest
0:27:06 > 0:27:11in women's events, whether that's football, rugby, netball.
0:27:11 > 0:27:15What we invest in covering any sport has to bear
0:27:15 > 0:27:20some relationship to the audience that's going to turn up for that.
0:27:20 > 0:27:24Women-only sport, when it's played out on the television in the UK,
0:27:24 > 0:27:30is not something that tends to drive big numbers of viewers.
0:27:30 > 0:27:34Coverage of sporting events is very expensive by and large,
0:27:34 > 0:27:39and the audience expect a sophisticated level of coverage,
0:27:39 > 0:27:42so it's difficult just to suddenly decide to
0:27:42 > 0:27:45use two cameras in place of 12 or 14.
0:27:45 > 0:27:48It will look like a shoddy and inferior product if you do that,
0:27:48 > 0:27:52and it would do a disservice to whatever sport you're covering.
0:27:58 > 0:28:00The one area where it's fundamentally disappearing
0:28:00 > 0:28:04is in American collegiate sport where, if you looked at soccer,
0:28:04 > 0:28:07which is perhaps more of a sport for women in America,
0:28:07 > 0:28:11this is something that, at college level, is phenomenally successful.
0:28:11 > 0:28:14Corporate sponsors are into it,
0:28:14 > 0:28:16the branded sportswear companies are aware of it.
0:28:16 > 0:28:19So, therefore, simply more value is being poured into it
0:28:19 > 0:28:22and, as more value's poured into it, then standards rise.
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