Archives for June 2010

Tsvetana Pironkova saw off Marion Bartoli and indulged herself with at least ten minutes of picture taking, hand shaking, ball signing and general chatting with the crowds who watched her book a place in the quarter finals.

Fast forward to the quarter final victory over Venus Williams and Prionkova disappeared off the court sharpish. Why? This is her most succesful grand slam to date and I don't think anyone would begrudge her a little bit of celebrating.

I'm not saying go daft and rub your opponent's nose in it, but surely having the crowd on side helps and applauding them after the match is a gracious and sensible thing to do? Then again maybe I'm missing the point and she had to use the bathroom or people to meet.

Helen Skelton is one half of the Wimbledon with Tarango and Skelton podcast and is reporting from Wimbledon on 5 live throughout the fortnight.

You can see videos, photos and other highlight from the tournament on our Wimbledon website

"This is Africa's time, man!" Picture the scene: Nicky's in the middle of Nelson Mandela Square in Johannesburg, doing the phone-in. The deafening sound of vuvuzelas is all around. A caller from Liverpool is talking to a young man from Nigeria. The pride and passion is written across the guy's face as he tells 5 live listeners just what this World Cup means to him and his continent. It's a snapshot which, I hope, reflects what World Cup Breakfast has been all about so far: bringing the colour, the sounds and the stories from South Africa to the audience back home.

The focus - painful at times - has obviously been England's stuttering progress through the tournament. It's taken us from a Greek restaurant in that square (where one morning Vassos's Uncle Tony unexpectedly dropped by), to the wonderfully named Hodge Podge Lodge campsite in Rustenburg. Then on to the waterfront in Cape Town, in the shadow of Table Mountain, before heading to the attic of a beachfront bar in Port Elizabeth.

But it's not all been about the football and England. We've broadcast from Soweto and talked about the legacy of apartheid. We've met people living in shacks in a township in Port Elizabeth - eking out an existence without electricity or running water, to hear what difference, if any, the World Cup has made to their lives. We've watched Bafana Bafana bow out of the tournament in a shebeen in that same township, and been moved by the songs of joy and defiance at the full-time whistle - sung by people who know more than most that it's only a game. We've also heard songs from Nicky. Lots of them. In fact, in Nelson Mandela Square in Johannesburg, that's what they're all still talking about. Probably.

Liam Hanley is an assistant editor on 5 live

When the World Cup's on, everyone has an opinion. As well as our coverage and analysis from South Africa, part of 5 live's job is to capture the mood of the nation back home.

It's about getting people's views and voices on air. So in addition to World Cup 606 and the World Cup Breakfast phone-in, we're holding a 5 live Sport Fans Forum in Manchester.

It's on Thursday the 1st of July, the day before the Quarter Finals start -- so the mood will be dependant on whether England are still in the tournament at that stage.

The discussion will be hosted by Mark Clemmit, with special guests Danny Mills, Peter Reid and John Aldridge. They've all played in World Cup finals: Danny and Peter for England, and John for the Republic of Ireland. And they'll be primed to answer your questions.

It's at the Castlefield Rooms in Manchester at 8pm. If you want to come along and be part of the audience, you need to email [email protected] with your full name, your address and a contact phone number. Tell us how many tickets you would like (up to a maximum of 4 per request) and write World Cup Fans Forum in the subject bar. Tickets are free, but it's first come, first served, so you'll need to be quick.



Michael Carr is the editor of 5 live Sport

I'm a working Wimbledon virgin: I've been before, but as a child . All I was bothered about was collecting practice balls that I told everyone belonged to Steffi Graff (I don't think they did but the class of 7b never knew that).

So far the tennis has been good: unpredictable, Federer (who's won Wimbledon six times, holds the title and has 16 Grand Slams under his belt) lost his first two sets. While some commentators in the green room were feeling sick, others thought "woo hoo, there's a cat among the pigeons now".

It wasn't to be. Federer kind of cruised it in the end. Other elements are slightly more predictable: many strawberries are being eaten, lots of champagne is being sunk. You can get little bottles to carry around.

But the one thing that is unnerving is how nice everyone is. Surely sports are about tantrums, traumas and popping veins? They certainly are in my world: I watch a lot of Scottish football. Yet I've been here all day and not heard one swear word. Everyone is just so nice. Even in the queue, they'd been there for hours but they didn't care.

To be honest they were loving the sunshine and the banter. Maybe someone had spiked those free cordials being handed out? But I really don't think so. Each and every one made sense.

I've spent most of the day with Jeff Tarango, the infamous tennis player who once stormed off court, and whose wife slapped an umpire. We're doing a daily podcast together, so I'm in for a lot of Tarango time. I think it's a good thing.

He's good for a laugh, inappropriate at times but he certainly knows his stuff, he's made me giggle all day and any man who leaves his wife in the USA as she is about to give birth to his fifth child is certainly dedicated (and brave). I know he is going to make my first working Wimbledon a legendary one so Jeff, I thank you in advance, and don't make me retract this in a few days.

Helen Skelton is one half of the Wimbledon with Tarango and Skelton podcast and will be reporting from Wimbledon on 5 live throughout the fortnight.

This is a week we have been planning for since December!

It's the week when the World Cup collides with Wimbledon and cricket one-day internationals. And just for good measure, we've got Budget day thrown in (we didn't know that bit in December).

On 5 live tomorrow (Tuesday), Victoria Derbyshire stays on air beyond midday as we bring live coverage of the Budget. That is followed by Mark Chapman hosting coverage of South Africa's final group match against France. Hopefully at some stage later in the afternoon, Andy Murray will be on centre court, and then we have the Argentina v Greece game at 7.30pm.

The England/Australia one-day cricket series starts this week: the first two matches are "day-nighters" on 5 live sports extra on Tuesday and Thursday.

So on those two days, to make sure there is still an uninterrupted tennis commentary service, we're providing a feed from Wimbledon on DAB radio and on the 5 live website.

The editorial and technical challenges are pretty big to try and make all this happen neatly. There are currently people on our 5 live website team for example running round the building trying to work out how they can get Tuesday's Mexico v Uruguay game to appear on our website.

With producers in Television Centre, Westminster, Wimbledon and South Africa, the main thing is that they all talk to each other to work out what should be on the right station at the right time.

As I write this, Clare Balding and Michael Stich are commentating on Roger Federer in trouble on centre court, whilst Nigel Adderley leads the commentary on the Switzerland v Chile match on 5 live sports extra.

We won't be able to keep everyone happy but our aim is to try to make sure if you only listen to 5 live, you get all the major news and sports stories and updates.

And if you only want the cricket or the tennis in an uninterrupted version, you have that option as well.

Nicky Campbell's Breakfast road show has now moved on to Port Elizabeth. He'll be there until Thursday to preview and do the post match analysis on England.

Also this week, John McEnroe will be taking your calls at 1230 this Thursday from Wimbledon, and on Saturday, it's the last of Danny Baker's special outside broadcasts from South Africa.

Let me know what you think of our coverage of whichever sport, whether it be on 5 live, 5 live sports extra or the 5 live website.

Jonathan Wall is the Commissioning Editor for 5 live and 5 live Sports Extra

Karma. Thierry Henry's handball was not forgotten by the footballing gods. Sure, France got to South Africa, but it's been a rough ride for Les Blues.

Nicolas Anelka offered his boots to coach Raymond Domenech, asking Domenech to do better. Anelka's au-revoir soon followed.

Funny how Anelka was sent home for swearing at his coach in the privacy of the dressing room, but Wayne Rooney stays on in South Africa after swearing directly at a live TV camera on the pitch.

The difference, of course, is in the apology. Anelka refused to offer one; Rooney released a standard issue "heat of the moment" explanation.

So often in sport, it's not what you do wrong but how you say you are sorry. Immediately after Tiger Woods' private life hit the headlines, he was being urged to do a "mea culpa" - to come clean and confess all. His delay in doing so saw his sponsors desert him.

John Terry may not have gotten a handshake from Wayne Bridge, but his wife accepted his apology with a public snog by a pool in Dubai.

No apology here in South Africa from the Malian referee who denied the USA a win over Slovenia. Rangers' Maurice Edu scored a perfectly good goal, but Koman Coulibaly deemed that the USA had committed a foul in the process. No TV replay has yet shown any wrong doing by the American players.

Brazil's Kaka was sent off for standing in the way of Kader Keita. The Ivorian hit the ground quicker than Rivaldo against Turkey in 2002. At the time, Rivaldo was one of the most respected players in the world - but his credibility was shattered as TV replays showed he had been struck by nothing other than the ball.

Speaking of TV replays, does anyone else think they are overdoing the super slow-motion replays at this World Cup? Sure, the technology is impressive, and every now and again it does show impressive detail of the game. And I do think "super slo-mo" has been used effectively in tennis and horse racing in particular in recent times.

Plus, to be fair, the opening week of the World Cup did need a bit of decoration.

However, the host broadcasters in South Africa seem to be playing with "super slo-mo" as if it is a new toy. Every shot that gets ballooned over the crossbar is followed by a reaction of barely moving facial features and gradually developing grimaces. Put the toy back in the box for a while.

I interviewed the former Chelsea coach Luis Felipe Scolari in Johannesburg for 5 live. The man who coached Brazil to World Cup success in 2002 thinks Fabio Capello will prove the doubters wrong: "Capello was criticised at Roma, and he went on to win things... Capello was criticised at Real Madrid, and he went on to win things...".

Famously, "Big Phil" was offered the England job in the past, but turned it down because he felt the scrutiny of the job would be impossible to work with.

It seems to me that the lambasting of Capello has been targeted around three main issues:

1) The duration of his training camp - shudder at the thought of professional players having to train together for a few weeks.

2) The boredom of the squad - ie. a lack of wags

3) Capello's choice of goalkeeper - one is too old, one is too young, the other let his manager down.

Bet "Big Phil" is not sorry now.



Conor McNamara is one of Radio 5 live's World Cup commentary team

This is my first week with 5 live's interactive team, and so far, I haven't broken anything.

I've worked on 5 live for six years: firstly with Nicky and Shelagh on Breakfast, and most recently on Victoria Derbyshire's programme.

I'm moving desks for three months to work on 5 live Connect and the 5 live blog, and to develop ways to interact better with the 5live audience (that's you).

5 live's programmes get huge numbers of texts, emails, Tweets and Facebook messages every day, but I want to know if we can improve our conversation with you. I'm looking forward to hearing your thoughts.

Update

Thanks for all your thoughts: I've been reading all your messages as they come in, and if it's taken me a little time to respond, that's because I don't yet have the access rights to respond directly to your comments on this page (I'm working on getting that changed, though...)

It's good to hear what you want from the 5 live blog: accessibility, and a chance to talk about the network in more depth. I'll try to bear that in mind in the weeks ahead, as I ask our editors and producers to write about the projects they're working on.

Ellie Reuter is a senior producer at 5 live

Well, fair play to South Africa. They have launched the World Cup without a hitch. It's not so long ago that real concern was emanating from the country as to whether the stadia would be ready, and if they were ready, would all the seats be filled?

I'm pretty sure that anyone could have bought a ticket to any of the games so far by just turning up on the day, but even if it has meant giving tickets to volunteers to 'fill-in-the-blanks' suffice to say the grounds have looked full. The atmosphere has lived-up to the giddy excitement so evident on the streets of South Africa.

The word 'vuvuzela' has entered the language of football, but I'm already putting these horns down as 'something we won't miss at the end of the World Cup'. Reportedly louder than a chainsaw, the noise of tens of thousands of them has provided the soundtrack to the tournament. Not an African drum to be heard, just the incessant drone of these infernal trumpets.

Now, I don't want to be a kill-joy, and I know that the vuvuzelas are part of the 'unique' African flavour of this tournament, but the real fear is that every fan that has travelled to this World Cup will bring a vuvuzela home with them.

The consequence of this could be enormous. In a worst-case scenario I can envisage these plastic tubes migrating around the world and almost virally taking over football around the planet. They can't be expensive to manufacture, and I'm worried they will multiply like rabbits until all football games end-up sounding like a car alarm convention. Factories in china will be working overtime to melt down old supermarket plastic bags, and turn them into vuvuzelas - heck, they'll probably get a grant to do so.

Blackpool fans will have their tangerine versions selling like hotcakes by August. Protesting Manchester United fans will make their Anti-Glazer feelings known at Old Trafford by blowing through green and yellow vuvuzela's until they are red in the face.

Realistically though, I can foresee the problem for the vuvuzela - The authorities elsewhere will not be too keen on fans bringing a 3-foot long plastic instrument past the turnstiles. Can you imagine the reception for travelling Millwall fans should they try to each bring such a wieldable item into a stadium.

Maybe that is why replicas of miner's helmets are the characteristic piece of attire for South African fans? Suddenly it all makes sense.

Just wait until some clown throws one of these instruments onto a pitch here at the World Cup. Suddenly the security guards at the entrance to the games will be confiscating vuvuzelas.

So rejoice then; our hearing will have a better chance of making it into old-age intact. The strength of the vuvuzela - it's size which provides the volume - will ultimately be its downfall.

Until then, I am off to buy some ear-plugs.

Conor McNamara is one of 5 live's commentators for the World Cup

• Conor will be shooting video from behind the scenes for the blog throughout the tournament.
• Keep up with 5 live's World Cup coverage on the web site and on BBC Sport's World Cup page.
• The Vuvuzela's Wikipedia entry says: "They have been associated with noise-induced permanent hearing loss, cited as a possible safety risk when spectators cannot hear evacuation announcements, and potentially spread colds and flu viruses on a greater scale than coughing or shouting."
• According to The Guardian, vuvuzelas may be heading for the Premier League and according to The Mail: "Rugby's knowledgeable fans show you don't need a vuvuzela to appreciate the game".
• All the vuvuzela pictures are published on Flickr under Creative Commons licences. Credits here.

I was impressed that Alan Davies changed into his retro, every-colour-of-the-rainbow David Seaman England jersey just as he walked into the studio. This wasn't wasted as Armchair World Cup is being broadcast from the same studio as Danny Baker and is available to watch live on the Red Button on digital television and online.

Speaking of Red Button, Mark Watson is currently tearing up the Red Button (that may have been the first time anyone has written that line) with his 'How To Watch Football' videos. He came on to plug these, but in the end hardly mentioned them. I will mention them for two reasons. First of all they are really good, and, second, they were filmed in my house.

Ian Stone and Tayo are going out-and-about this week to watch South Africa's opening match with actual South Africans. Highlights of their afternoon will go out in this Sunday's show at 1100. We will also be asking real South Africans who they will support once their side is mathematically eliminated after two games.

Last week, in our warm-up programme, Tayo wore a lovely hat and punched the air whenever a listener texted in a horrifically contrived footballer-as-food pun. I would try and list some examples but I can really only remember Leighton Beans and Landon Doner Kebab Van. I have spent the rest of the week trying to forget the others and happily have been successful.

Our first Armchair World Cup was a bit like an England friendly. We still won, but it was difficult to get in the flow before the real action gets going in South Africa... This Sunday we will have no problems filling time talking about England's shock 3-0 defeat to the USA.

Simon Crosse is Director of Programmes at USP Content, makers of Armchair World Cup

• Alan Davies' Armchair World Cup is on 5 live on Sunday between 1100 and 1200.
• Mark Watson's 'How to Watch Football' videos are very funny (and quite useful). They're on the red button, if you are so equipped, or here on the BBC Sport web site.
• There's an Armchair World Cup Facebook group for you to join and a free podcast - so you can download and keep the programmes forever. DJ Tayo is on Twitter
• Armchair picture by Alan Stanton. Used under licence.

We're making some changes to 5 live's weekend evening schedule in September. We're trying to make our programmes more distinctive and to give more specific reasons for tuning in at those times.

The new line-up will be:

Sports Report within 5 live Sport will run regularly for a full hour from 1700 until 1800. This will let us give a full round-up of the day and showcase our sports reporting. Then:

1800 6-0-6 (right after the news and sport): back at its most logical time of bang on 6.06, a new two hour Saturday version presented by Mark Chapman and Robbie Savage. Robbie's already had a great impact for us in what he's done so far; he'll still be playing for Derby County next season so on many Saturdays he'll be joining us just an hour or so after the game.

2000-2200 A new Saturday night news and lifestyle programme. We'll pilot in the next few weeks before deciding the presenter, final format and title but as well as the day's main news we're looking at how we cover things like technology, communications and travel. We want to be able to develop new specialist contributors and to give another chance to hear some of 5 live's best audio from the past seven days.

On Sundays the schedule will be:

1800 6-0-6: Alan Green changes days to present the Sunday night edition of Britain's most listened-to football phone-in.

1900 Pienaar's Politics: John Pienaar with a new agenda-setting Sunday evening political programme.

2000 Weekend Money (not necessarily the final title): Declan Curry with key interviews and topical discussion from the business world.

2100 5 live Investigates: a new sound for our weekly current affairs programme which places a premium on original stories and hard-hitting interviews. We'll confirm the presenter over the next few weeks.

So a lot of changes here with three brand new programmes and big changes to 6-0-6 and the current affairs hour. Invevitably this means that certain programmes will finish - in particular Weekend News which has been a foundation of weekend evenings on 5 live. Spoony's seven year run of presenting 606 comes to an end but he'll still be with us making a series of one-off documentary and interview-based programmes and Donal Macintyre leaves us after successfully establishing the Sunday evening current affairs programme - I'd like to thank him for all he's done for 5 live.

We're aiming to have the new line-up fully on air by early September - I hope you enjoy what you hear.

Adrian Van Klaveren is Controller of BBC Radio 5 live

• The current 5 live schedule is here. You'll already see a number of changes made to accommodate World Cup coverage.
• Pictures by Leo Reynolds, Tom Magliery, Eva Ekeblad and Steve Bowbrick. Used under licence.

This time yesterday I was wondering if I should have packed a pair of football boots in case any more England players joined the injury list before we arrived in South Africa. Fortunately England fans, it seems everyone is in working order (touch wood).

For the next five weeks my colleague Guy Oldfield and I will be producing 5 live's multiplatform coverage of the 2010 World Cup. We'll be working with BBC Sport and following the 5 live Breakfast team as they travel around South Africa. We'll be shooting video, producing the new World Cup Daily podcast, taking photos and working to give you a truly unique experience of the tournament.

The World Cup 'buzz' is very real here. As we landed, the pilot pointed out England's training camp in Rustenburg and the incredible Soccer City stadium.

Driving from the airport to our accommodation you can feel a carnival atmosphere around Johannesburg. Huge advertising boards featuring David Beckham and Lionel Messi greet you, whilst hundreds of properties and lamp posts are adorned with the 32 flags of the competing nations.

As we collected our accreditation from the legendary Ellis Park sports stadium, we watched queues of South African teenagers waiting patiently to collect their volunteer passes which they'll use as the official guides and helpers at the tournament. Security is tight but all the officials - from policemen to local FIFA staff greeted us with 'hellos' and handshakes.

Connectivity is going to be key for the next few weeks, and a team of local staff are working to ensure we can turn our lodge into a mini broadcast centre.

Now we've unpacked we have to test how we send content back to London when on the road. Events such as Wimbledon are easy to cover having one location allowing access to players and talent. As 5 live will be broadcasting from several locations throughout the tournament we won't have this advantage on a daily basis.

We do have access to the International Broadcast Centre in Johannesburg, where we can jump online and get in contact with the 5 live office in London. But as you can imagine, internet access and mobile phone reception will vary between other locations and will have a big impact on when we can send content back. To solve this problem producers based back in London can gather up material to make complete programmes or films as well as get those unique World Cup stories from back home.

Not all things can be prepared for though. Our paperwork may be complete, the podcast ready to go, but spare a thought for 5 live's Vassos Alexander. The picture shows Vassos' accommodation as we found it. Our generous hosts have said they will have it ready by the time Vassos and Nicky Campell arrive.

Andy Hall is an interactive producer for BBC Radio 5 live

• The World Cup Daily will be published twice a day from 11th June. In the first episode you'll be able to catch-up on the best bits that we've produced from South Africa that day as well as getting a taste of the local culture and hearing from the fans that make the World Cup the unique experience it really is. You will also be able to download your regular portion of key football news, interviews and discussion.
• If you miss an episode of the World Cup Daily, don't worry, as you'll be able to hear both parts as a single programme every morning between 0700 and 1000 on Radio 5 live sports extra.
• Keep up with 5 live's World Cup coverage on the web site and on BBC Sport's World Cup page.

Editor's note: we're back. The World Cup is upon us so we're going to have plenty to blog about for a few weeks. Here, to kick things off, is 5 live's match commentator, Conor McNamara, on World Cup language - SB.

As the build up to World Cup 2010 continues, and I think it's time to address a big issue. It's not just the players who need to fine-tune their preparation at this stage; wherever you rank on the spectator scale - from casual to die-hard - it's time to brush-up on your World Cup terminology. Admittedly, this is an area that has come on leaps and bounds over recent tournaments... no-one says "broken foot" anymore, not since "metatarsal" entered the national vernacular.

But as the usual World Cup rituals begin - you know the ones; a goalkeeper drops a bottle of aftershave on his foot and misses the tournament; a high-profile player of a lesser nation falls-out with his coach etc... Now is the time to nail-down the correct usage to see you through to the final in Soccer City on Sunday 11th July.

Let's start with the metatarsal, an area where we can all raise our game. While dogs in the street now speak in authoritative tones of "...doing a metatarsal", impress your mates in the pub by wondering aloud whether it is the "tarsometatarsal joint" that is causing the problem? Or patiently explain to lesser mortals why a broken metatarsal is called a "March Fracture" in the trade (such an injury used to be suffered by military recruits after long marches).

On to the ball itself - The ritual of goalkeepers worrying about a new light, unpredictable balloon that swerves all over the place is a regular feature of any World Cup build-up. The suggestion that footballs are getting lighter and lighter every tournament used to be embraced by professionals; my colleague Jimmy Armfield tells of kicking a cannonball around Chile in 1962. Nowadays goalkeepers complain of "movement in the air", while free-kick takers moan that they can no longer get the ball "up-and-down again" over the wall.

This year's ball is called the 'Jabulani' (meaning 'to rejoice') and, if the early reviews are to be believed, travels 5% faster than previous versions. Goalkeepers have not been 'rejoicing' all that much. David James says its "dreadful", other goalkeepers not endorsed by the manufacturer seem to agree. However, the same comments have been made before every tournament since the 1980s - think of it as an insurance policy for the Custodians' Trade Union.

Of course, our focus here is on the terminology - so instead of the old fashioned hexagonal pieces of leather stitched together to form a sphere - we need to describe the '8 thermally-bonded 3-D panels' that make up the new ball. Basically, the difference is that even with no air inside, this ball remains perfectly round. Not good for packing one in a suitcase! Which is what I am off to do now. My first commentary on Five Live is France v Uruguay on the opening night. I'll be providing regular updates of life in South Africa on these pages over the next month or so.

I'll leave you with an example as to why terminology is so important: I'm sure you have read about North Korea's attempts to pull a fast one by naming a striker as one of their three goalkeepers - giving them extra attacking option. But now FIFA have ruled that Kim Myong Won can only play in goal for the duration of the tournament. Fairly basic terminology that one - 'Goalkeeper: keeps goal'.

Conor McNamara is one of 5 live's commentators for the World Cup

• Conor will be shooting video from behind the scenes for the blog throughout the tournament.
• Keep up with 5 live's World Cup coverage on the web site and on BBC Sport's World Cup page.
• Luke Benedict in the Daily Mail looked into the history of the metatarsal at the World Cup.
• Picture by Jason Trommetter. Used under licence.