What a year for a world in turmoil: crisis, riots, revolution and economic catastrophe. And that’s just Manchester City. Meanwhile, there’s the cheering news that next year’s even more calamitous financial armageddon will coincide with London hosting a fortnight’s sporting event costing, oh, £23 million an hour give or take some change. Ah yes, 2011 — we will miss you dearly.
But after a canny trip to the bookies, some highly complex leveraging against future gains, and by cashing in the remnants of a pension, this column has secured a few bottles of Asti for the traditional end-of-year awards ceremony. With Manchester’s Euro downgrade affecting both blue and red halves of the city, you can now get 8-1 against Fergie’s lot lifting the highly prestigious Europa League trophy. What could possibly go wrong? So let’s raise a plastic cup to the sporting achievements — and scandals — that gave us cause for distraction.
Two fine couples head the lists for the romance of the year. Denmark’s tennis world No. 1, Caroline Wozniacki, deserves special commendation for finding the only young man on the planet earning more than her: boyfriend Rory McIlroy has picked up $12.5 million compared with the lovely Caroline’s paltry $11.5 million. Wozilroy, as the Belfast press prefer to have them, are like a fiendish experiment to create offspring with genetically perfect ball control. She has the Hollywood looks, he has the, er, Holywood looks.
But mistletoe and alcohol-free wine for Mark Cavendish, not only one of the star performers of British sport in 2011, winning the Green Jersey in the Tour de France and becoming road cycling’s world champion, but then proving his prowess in the romantic pursuit by stepping out with überfabulous glamour model Peta Todd, who’s soon to become a mother.
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