Viva la sport

I thought I would kick off the tour by writing about the historical contest between old timers Eton and Harrow. But it would be plain dumb to ignore a contest, more immediate and more important at the moment, that will have millions of fans across the globe glued in for the (hopefully) 90 minutes of play between another pair of old enemies: England and Germany.

As soon as I set out this morning, I noticed the multitude of Union Jacks fluttering proudly out of car windshields and apartment balconies and pub terraces. Bare-chested fans with their bodies painted in England’s colours of red and white, or wearing Rooney-numbered t-shirts, are parading the streets blowing the world’s most popular musical instrument at the moment – the vuvuzela - and screaming "England! England!" with half-full pints in hand.

All my life I’ve read a lot about Super Sundays and derby clashes, but this is the first time I’ve been a witness to something where the air is so full of hope, expectation, national pride; an occasion where sport becomes the melting pot into which fans of all hues and nationalities plunge and experience a pleasure that is so unique, and which only sport can provide.

Even for a fan these moments only come once every few moons but that simply makes them all the more memorable. I experienced a similar surge of emotion while rushing down those sloping greens along with hundreds of other people on the morning of the Boxing Day Test between Australia and India in 2008.

The sense of anticipation, and the anxiety of what might happen on the first ball as the countdown began, surged with every step. I just wanted to be there to feel the pulse of the G as it reverberated. I’m sure the English and Aussies experience such emotions come the Ashes, as did the Indians and Pakistanis when Sachin Tendulkar lined up against the menace and pace of Shoaib Akhtar at Centurion in the 2003 World Cup.

To sum up, it is not the winner who matters in these moments. Rather it is the athletic beauty of sport that comes alive and stays etched in the memory forever. Viva la sport.