For me, there has always been something about sport that evokes memories. People often talk about a song reminding them of a particular time, perhaps the first time it was heard or a significant event that happened while it was playing. In my life, the sporting achievements of others do exactly the same thing.
Certain events will always transport me back to not only where I was, but also what was going on in my life at the time. Clips and sound bytes instantly intertwine in my mind with places and people in my own life and forever stitch the two together. For every last minute goal scored or long putt sinking into the cup there is a summer BBQ, university essay due or even a child on the way.
The beauty and effort of the act itself is reflected in and mirrored against how my life was going at the time, either acting as a parallel to a glorious high, providing an outlet for joy during low times or even providing brief moments of anguish when all else was going well.
Sport provokes so many contrasting emotions in people and that really is part of the draw. One person’s elation is another’s despair which means that the experiences had are different for all.
Much of the intention of this page is to highlight these moments against my own life. A story of my own journey framed against spectacles watched by millions. Hopefully some of my own tales bring back memories of your own. And, if you’d like to share your own experiences, please feel free to comment.
I am also incredibly interested in the data and figures that make up sport and are becoming increasingly prevalent in the modern sporting world. Who is most likely to win and why? How many goals should a team have scored? Who has the best percentage in terms of seeing out games that they should win? All of these and many more are questions that we are able to answer with increasing certainty given the wealth of data that we have available to us.
Over time I will be looking at some of these areas in far more detail and trying to bring some answers backed up by facts. If there are any areas that you would like me to look into, please just ask.