I think everyone can agree that for the past
year or so, Britain has been doing very well when it comes to sport. Murray, Wiggins, the Lions, the Olympics, Froch and (hopefully) the Ashes. What a great time to celebrate
Britain. Or not?
As I look at the comment
sections on the BBC Sport page, I find there isn't a single person discussing sport. Murray has just won Wimbledon and every single comment is about whether he was Scottish or
British, which subsequently leads into the debate about Scottish independence.
For me, this doesn’t seem to be the time or place to have this discussion - even if both David Cameron and Alex Salmond were at the final.
For me, this doesn’t seem to be the time or place to have this discussion - even if both David Cameron and Alex Salmond were at the final.
This is not to say that I don’t believe
sport can be used as a catalyst for politics. Both the South African World Cup
in 1995 and the Battle of the Sexes tennis match are great examples of sport
being used create a better and fairer world.
However if we take a moment to reflect on the vision of Alex Salmond waving a Scottish flag behind the PM after
Andy has just won Wimbledon (which we should note he entered as a Brit), then
we find ourselves entering a particularly grey area.
Personally I think he shouldn't have done it. There's nothing wrong with waving a Scottish flag to support a Scottish sports person or team but Salmond was obviously saying something political in his actions and it was neither the time nor the place.
Yes his motivations might have been genuine as were those of many others. But his presence and his attire was professional and therefore so should have been his behaviour.
For the record although Andy is Scottish, but like so many other Scots he can’t vote in the Scottish independence referendum, because he doesn’t actually live there - he lives in England.
Personally I think he shouldn't have done it. There's nothing wrong with waving a Scottish flag to support a Scottish sports person or team but Salmond was obviously saying something political in his actions and it was neither the time nor the place.
Yes his motivations might have been genuine as were those of many others. But his presence and his attire was professional and therefore so should have been his behaviour.
For the record although Andy is Scottish, but like so many other Scots he can’t vote in the Scottish independence referendum, because he doesn’t actually live there - he lives in England.
I noticed a few days later that Andy was invited to number 10, but rather than this being a catalyst for someone to promote their political message and aims, it was used as a day to congratulate him and thank him on behalf of the nation - note, all the political leaders, including Westminsters' SNP Leader, were invited.
edit - WE WON THE ASHES!