“Why is it we are so emotional about this game?” asked the man sitting next to me, biting passionately into a chunk of tortilla. “Because it is a beautiful game,” I replied, as we watched the black and white ball slide perfectly off the foot of a Spanish player clad in [...]
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Gareth Southgate, England’s Finest
The manager of the England football team, Gareth Southgate, is a diplomat, a tactician, a patriot and a leader. He has brought his young team to the final of a major tournament, eloquently defended them from slurs and set an example of gentlemanly behaviour not just just for his players but [...]
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#TakeAKnee
I couldn’t help but note that on the day American footballers staged a peaceful protest across the country, Neptune, the higher octave of Venus (planet of peace) and Mars, the planet of warriors, came into perfect opposition. The athletes chose to kneel when The Star-Spangled Banner was [...]
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Muhammad Ali: Leo Rising
Self-named, self-invented, self-motivated, champion boxer Muhammad Ali was a modern embodiment of the archetype of hero. He was charismatic, strong, graceful, poetic in speech, courageous in deed. He spoke up for the millions and laughed at the powerful. He took his punishment squarely and [...]
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Sepp Blatter In His Own Words
Despite scandals a-gogo, FIFA has just re-elected its president Sepp Blatter for the 5th time. Swiss-born Blatter is nearly 80 and he’s been in office for 17 years. His rivals have been trying to get rid of him for about half the time he’s been president and last week a whole [...]
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Lendl and Murray: Coaching a Champion
Andy Murray: finding the emotional strength The Men’s Final at Wimbledon this year was so graceful and exciting. And always, it was not just a test of physical prowess – although the sheer animal magic of the occasion was beautiful – but a contest of mental stamina and [...]
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Lance Armstrong: Another Conspiracy of Silence
It turns out that the seven-times Tour de France champ Lance Armstrong cheated. Apparently, he was doped up to the eyeballs, bullied other team members into joining him and lied and lied and lied. The US Anti-Doping Agency says Armstrong was the leader of “the most sophisticated, [...]
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Olympics: Happy Shiny Pluto and Dippy Dotty Uranus
OK – I’m on holiday, but I was just popping by to update the horoscopes so I thought I’d briefly post on the Olympic Opening Ceremony – what a hoot! Have you ever wondered what the shiny, happy face of Pluto might be? If so, you might want to watch the Opening Ceremony [...]
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Olympics: Looking Backward To See Forward
What with all those shiny bodies flinging themselves around giant stadiums filled with cheering crowds – the marching, the uniforms, the survival of the fittest, the faux-historical ceremonies – there’s always been more than a touch of fascism about the Olympics. Jesse Owens going for [...]
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Vesta and the Olympic Flame
As you probably know, Oxford is a World Heritage Site. There’s Radcliffe Camera, the Sheldonian Theatre, Broad Street, St Giles… all beautiful, historic, and full of life, much used, much loved. Radcliffe Camera: probably one of the world’s most famous library annexes. The [...]
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Literal Astrology
Martina Navratilova Martina Navratilova, the great tennis player, gave a touching interview on the radio last week. She was wiping away tears within the first few minutes as she recalled being separated from her family when she defected to the West more than 30 years ago. She has the Moon [...]
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Venus and Serena: Pluto Power
Venus Williams (17 June 1980) born with the Sun kissing Venus, sextiling the charismatic Moon-North Node conjunction in Leo (left. Neptune is in sporty Sagittarius directly opposite that Venus – again giving her star quality. With Pluto rising, she must have been her own worst enemy [...]
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Venus and Serena Williams: The Greatest Double Act at Wimbledon
Ix Ah Wimbledon – pock, pock goes the little ball, ahh sighs the crowd, grunt grunts the player, “out” shouts the linesman. The rain, the strawberries, the tedious interviews (“yeah, I like played tennis, you know”) , the lovely game of tennis. In the midst of [...]
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