Taking a look at recent, positive, uplifting, news stories and yarns, from New Zealand and all around the world, to bring a smile and a bit of cheer.
Huge win for Kiwi runner
New Zealand runner George Beamish achieved an incredible win this week at the World Athletics Championships in Tokyo. Overcoming fierce competition and a fall and a nasty injury in the heats, Beamish took gold in the 3000 metre steeplechase.
“He cursed repeatedly when speaking after his triumph, reflecting on two years during which injury stalled the transition of the 2024 1500m World Indoor Championship gold medallist to the steeplechase. ‘There weren’t dark moments, but there were just hard moments, like, “shit, this sport is hard”,’ he told SBS. ‘There are so many more lows than there are highs, and I’ve lost so many more races than I’ll ever win. But I have an incredible support team and just a desire to keep fucking showing up.’
“Given what had just transpired over the previous 48 hours, he could be forgiven for letting himself go. The man from Hastings seemed to be out of luck when, in his heat, he fell with a lap to go. The pictures of a competitor’s spikes flashing across his nose quickly circulated as one of the images of these championships. That the man in the black singlet recovered to surge back and reach the final was – at that stage – little more than an afterthought.
With most of the race run Beamish looked out of contention, with the favourite in the lead but he found an extra gear and surged home, first to the tape. “The noise was piercing as the Kiwi ate up the deficit in the final 50m. And with a stretch at the finish line, victory was his. ‘I’ve got a thing for timing apparently,’ he said. ‘I’ve figured out, you know, when the moment is to go.'” (Source: “Golden George Beamish delivers kick for New Zealand athletics at world championships,” by Jack Snape, September 16, www.guardian.co.uk).
5 stars – George’s wins ranks with so many previous Kiwi triumphs and he seems like a thoroughly decent bloke as well. Total upside!
Time capsule sealed by Princess Diana opened
Thirty four years ago Princess Diana sealed a time capsule at the Great Ormond Street Hospital for Children (GOSH) in London that was recently dug up for the construction of a new treatment centre. The capsule is a snapshot of a moment in time in the early 1990s – before Britpop and the princess’ death in 1997.
“Workers who were either born in 1991 or already working at the hospital that year helped remove the capsule which revealed items including a pocket size television, Kylie Minogue CD, and some tree seeds.
“The late Diana, Princess of Wales, was president of GOSH in 1989 and was known for regularly visiting children at the hospital in the heart of London. She was part of the time capsule ceremony in March 1991 when GOSH was laying the foundation for its Variety Club Building.
“Two young people who won a national competition provided the items for the capsule. They had been asked to suggest memorabilia that represented life in the 1990s. There was also a solar-powered calculator, a collection of British coins, a snowflake hologram, a sheet of recycled paper and a European passport.” (Source: “Time capsule sealed by Princess Diana unearthed at London hospital,” by Jennifer Hauser, August 29, www.edition.cnn.com).
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