For the love of F1

It is never wise to criticise a sport or those who have become successful because of that sport because you will always end up annoying someone. Still, here I am about to try to explain why F1 has left my heart this year and it is not Vettel's fault.

When I first started watching F1, it was Senna that caught my attention and as I have heard many times over the years "You started off seeing the best and now no one will compare". That could be true but there have been other times during the years since watching Senna that I have loved watching the sport. Mostly for the rivalries, I think one of my favourites was between Damon Hill and Michael Schumacher. I was a big Damon Hill fan and their rivalry was a really fierce one at times. But this was proper wheel-to-wheel racing, it had a real edge to it. It wasn't just that there wasn't things going on further down the grid, technology improvements had started but still cars would spin off and retire. There was definitely more excitement.

My vote for Sports Personality of the year goes to...

This year's Sports Personality of the Year is surely going to be the hardest and closest that it has ever been. 2012 has been an epic year for sport, how you can choose from all the Olympians and Paralympians is just hard enough in itself. There are seven names that all stand out for me, yes I managed to get the list down to seven. It could have been twenty!

On my list are Mo Farah, Jessica Ennis, Andy Murray, Sir Chris Hoy, Ellie Simmonds and David Weir. The seventh choice and who gets my vote would be...

My Favourite Sporting Moments of 2011

For my next look back at 2011 we head into sport so the top picture is pretty obvious right? Haha. ;-) But there were other noteworthy sporting moments of the year too.

Vroom Vroom!

F1 is back this weekend and this girl is very happy, I've missed the vroom vroom (yes that's my car noise - shh!) and again there are new rules and already the competition it heating up at home. I'm firmly in the Red Bull camp, with a soft spot for Jenson Button and Spurs boy is still cheering on those Ferrari boys.

Sarah Loves... Any Given Sunday

Possibly not an obvious choice for my Sarah Loves... blogs but Any Given Sunday is one of my favourite films. I always tend to watch it around the time of the Superbowl. It's not one of the greatest films ever but it's got one of the best motivational speeches ever.

It's 6 Nations time again!

Yep it's time again, 6 nations rugby... excuse me whilst I just re-organise my life around it :-) This year it seems intensified as the 2011 World Cup just months away. Although this means football, cricket and rugby will all collide at some point for the next two months.

Be a part of London 2012

Unless you've been living on the moon in recent years then you'll know that the Olympic and Paralympic Games are coming to London in 2012. Now unless you're training to compete in the Games, and well if you are "Good Luck" but I wanted to let you know about the volunteer programme - 'Young Games Maker' that has been launched.

Spain win The World Cup

Well it's over. Another World Cup won. Spain I feel are worthy winners across the tournament, although it certainly wasn't great World Cup overall. I don't just mean England's dismal display which I might add I'm still trying to erase from my memory. But there have been better tournaments, but I'm not taking anything away from Spain.

Javier Hernandez

Now with England's not unexpected early exit from The World Cup now I can watch the rest of the games with no fear or nerves. Although a Spain win will still make me a very happy girl, a nice win on the World Cup sweepstake. Perfecto!

Dan Carter... you're just too good

Oh yes he's back... back again.

Dan Carter, you certainly brought me out of my post football anger yesterday with his complete demolition of Wales 42-9. The second half 27 point masterclass by Carter illustrated the pure talent of the man and showed he still is an amazing player. It was never in doubt. 

Does the FA do refunds?

Forgive me if this still seems as bitter and disappointed as I was during and straight after England's awful World Cup 0-0 draw against Algeria in South Africa. Even after a night's sleep I am still annoyed but mostly I feel letdown. Again.

World Cup Fever Starts NOW

It's here it's finally here. The World Cup starts today - woot woot! I'm excited, I really am I've been excited for weeks months and now the waiting is over!

Probably the best team talk in the world

You expect more football themed adverts in a World Cup year but this advert below is just the best. Mr Capello please make the team watch this advert LOTS of times.

The Faithful

So the football season is over. The trophy is on loan to Stamford Bridge. They had better look after it, as we already want it back. Manchester United will be back BETTER and STRONGER next season. 

Becoming a WAG

With everything that's going on at the moment I probably was more than a little surprised that Spurs boy has joined a Sunday League football team. I asked on Twitter if this meant I had now become a WAG, and apparently it does!

So a WAG I must be. Immediately my head was full of premieres, shoe shopping, perfumes, my own clothing line etc. In reality though my life doesn't change, I was just getting carried away for a few minutes hours.

The Great Debate

No this isn't going to be about the upcoming elections. This is about the biggest debate of recent times and it's going on in my home right now. Just who will be victorious at Old Trafford on Saturday...

Sport Relief

Last week I participated in a few Sports Relief fundraising events with my football classes and it felt good to be able to do something for this cause. I admit that I am a bit of a softie at heart and watching the evening's television show on Friday was as emotional as they always are.

F1 is back!

Yes it's back! F1 is finally back for the 2010 season this weekend. Excited? Well I am. In fact our home has sort of gone a bit F1 crazy at the moment. Little man decided he no longer liked his Ben 10 themed bed set (although he still loves Ben 10) and he wanted a Jenson Button one. Guess he wants Button to win then?

Interview with Sophie Brown - London 2012 Young Ambassador

This is my first interview I've ever done on my blog and hopefully this will be the first of many. So my first one is with Sophie Brown who is the Youth Ambassador for London 2012 Olympics for the Wear Valley and Teesdale District. Sophie is only 16.

What made you want to become a Young Ambassador?

It wasn't so much that I wanted to become the ambassador of sport, I had honestly never thought about it, I didn't even know existed in my area. My PE teacher nominated me for the role by writing up my achievements and I honestly thought nothing of it, I didn't think my achievements would stand out from the rest. So when I became the Ambassador I was surprised yet very proud.

What do you do as Young Ambassador for your area?

I was named in Young Ambassador in September 2009, so I have taken that time to plan for this year. I have however been into local primary schools and the community to make people aware of who I am. I plan to get every school onto the GET SET program by london 2012, and there will be notice boards promoting the values of the Paralympic and Olympic Games. 

How do you promote what work you do?

If I'm honest at the beginning this, I wasn't going to do any promotion at all I was going to rely on word of mouth. I then realised that I wouldn't achieve much from this. I have been featured in a local rugby clubs newsletter, its the club I used to referee for so they are very supportive. I then decided only a few weeks ago to promote what I do over the internet using twitter and youtube. I have just set up a facebook page recently and I might join bebo.

What is your Favourite sport?

Rugby is my favourite sport and rugby is the reason I am so interested in sport. Particularly because of the Rugby World Cup 2003 when England became world champions. In 2008 I became the youngest ever fully qualified Female Rugby Referee in the country.

Who are your sporting inspirations?

I have a few people in the sporting world that I look up to and think WOW - Jonny Wilkinson being one of them, he is such a dedicated athlete. I remember reading his book many many years ago and there was quote, an inspirational quote you could call it and it has stayed with me ever since I think it went along the lines of 'Reach for the moon, because if you fail you'll land among the stars'
Another inspiration is Dame Kelly Holmes, she has done so much for sport, she runs a campaign called 'Girls active' its all about getting girls to stay interested in sport, I am a part of this campaign. I met her briefly in January last year, I was very proud to receive an email from her recently congratulating me on all my success.

How do you manage your time?

This is a good question, because at the moment I don't manage my time well at all, many people say I do too much. I am juggling all the sport work I do with full time education and 2 weekend waitressing jobs. So I do as much as I can when I can fit it in.

What does 2010 hold for you?

This year is going to a BIG year in many ways I have my exams to complete at GCSE level and I also have my ambassador work so this year I am going to have to find the right balance. Ambassador-wise, I am going to do as much as possible for the local area for the Olympics, I would like to be able to run a sports event maybe a multi-skills tournament, I want to get more publicity for the Values.

I am also in the process of writing a radio show, of which I need people's opinions and thoughts on, I will be asking questions on my twitter page, and need as many people as possible to answer.

At the moment I can’t tell you much, but in the near future I will be sitting down to right out a detailed plan for the future. 

What do you do in your free time?

Free time is something of a dream, but when I do have free time I like spending time with friends going to music concerts, this year I have been to see Mcfly, Pink, Beyonce, Girls Aloud and Take That twice.

If I could grant you three wishes; what would you wish for?

I would wish for; success, to be a part of London 2012 in a big way and to be a part in the rugby world cup 2015.

Have you got any New Years Resolutions?

I usually don't make these, because I would only break them. But this year is going to be different, I am going to manage my time, have no regrets and take every opportunity that's given to me.

If anyone has any advice or wants to help Sophie then please contact her using the links above thank you!