Losing Sleep Over Sport

June 19, 2010
by Rodney Olsen
2 Comments

Technology is a wonderful thing. Instead of waiting days or months to hear results from sporting events on the other side of the globe, we now watch sport live wherever it is being played.

The 2010 FIFA World Cup is currently happening in South Africa and so football (soccer) fans all over the world are watching hours and hours of the world game. Many of those watching are on a completely different time zone so they’re watching their televisions through the night and trying to stay awake at work each day. I’m not such a fan so I’m happy to just hear the results the next morning.

For tennis fans, Wimbledon is about to get underway. Again, fans around the world will stay up late to see their heroes battle it out on centre court. I don’t mind watching tennis but I’m not going to lose sleep over it.

At various times of the year there are all kinds of sports that are played on the other side of the world, dictating late nights and sleepy mornings. Cricket, Formula One, Olympic Games, Commonwealth Games and the list goes on.

Now it comes to my weakness. Cycling. The Tour de France starts on Saturday the 3rd of July. I may well be losing vast amounts of sleep over the three weeks of the tour. I won’t watch every moment live but there will be some exciting stages that will keep me glued to the television.

How about you? Are you a sports tragic that watches all kinds of sport, no matter when it’s being played? Do you have a favourite sport that you enjoy watching live, even though it means you’re up in the middle of the night?



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Footy Tipping 2010

March 18, 2010
by Rodney Olsen
2 Comments

afl_logo.jpgAs each year passes I prove more and more that I’m hopeless at footy tipping. This year I’m at it again and I’m inviting you to give me a kicking with your tipping prowess.

If you follow AFL can I encourage you to try to beat me at tipping for the coming season?

I’ve signed up again at footytips.com.au and so I’ll be able to pit my skills against thousands of other footy fans. The best part is that you can try your skills against mine by signing up to The RodneyOlsen.net Footy Tipping Competition. Just follow the link and join up. It’s free.

Some people spend ages checking the form of each side and thinking through the match ups, the ground, the ladder and a whole range of variables before tipping. I tend to just go ahead and choose then hope for the best.

I’ve run a competition for the last few years and it’s always just been a fun thing but this year I’m determined to find some prizes to award to the top tipper at the end of the season. I can’t guarantee that it’ll be a world trip but it’ll be something. (If you want to donate a prize or two, let me know.)

Go on. Join up. It’ll be fun.

The great thing with footytips.com.au is that you can be part of more than one competition at a time so if you’re already part of a competition with them you can still add your name to mine.



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Talking to a Demon

May 12, 2009
by Rodney Olsen
3 Comments

sca.gifThis morning during my radio programme I spoke to a man who is both an Assemblies of God minister … and a demon.

Chaplain of the Melbourne ‘Demons’ Football Club and head of Sports Chaplaincy Australia, Cameron Butler, joined me on 98.5 Sonshine FM this morning to talk about his role with the club and the wider influnce of chaplains in sport around Australia.

Far from being religious zealots out to force their faith on others, chaplains prefer to simply be a trusted friend to those who are comfortable with developing a relationship. Their duties can cover a range of areas that go well beyond those of a traditional pastor or minister.

A lot of high performance sports in Australia have chaplains supporting their teams. There are over 180 chaplains now serving teams of men and women involved in sports such as test and shield cricket, motor racing, tennis, rugby league, AFL, basketball, baseball, soccer, golf, yachting, skiing, netball, rodeo and horse racing, the Australian Institute of Sport and state Institutes of Sport.

Sports chaplaincy is a Christian cross-denominational service providing support for sports organisations. This includes sports men and women, administrators, supporters and family networks.

Why Chaplaincy?

Sports organisations and welfare officers recognise that sports people are whole human beings. The condition of other areas of an athlete’s life including unplanned circumstances can and do affect their performance, both on the field and in the public arena. Sporting demands can also have an impact on vocational responsibilities and relationships.

If you’d like to hear what Cameron had to say when we spoke this morning you can click the play button on the audio player in this post.

[audio:http://mpegmedia.sonshinefm.ws/feeds/MOR051209_1148.mp3]

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What's your greatest sporting moment?

August 8, 2008
by Rodney Olsen
15 Comments

BeijingOlympics.jpgThe opening ceremony is in full swing and Olympic Games for 2008 are finally underway.

In the coming days the best of the best will be representing their countries and competing for gold.

I must admit that I’ve never really been a competitive sports person. I’ve won a sprint or two against friends during our casual Saturday morning bike ride but I don’t think that counts. I’ve certainly cycled long distances including five times across Australia as well as a couple of cycling trips in India and one in Canada, but I wasn’t actually competing against the other cyclists who rode with me.

I’ve also played a bit of squash over the years and even though I’m not great, when I play, I do play to win. (Not that I’m always successful in my endeavours.)

Have you ever been involved in competitive sports? Do you have medals and trophies from your younger years? What is your greatest sporting moment?

I reckon the closest I ever got to sporting greatness was getting a green ribbon for third place in the sack race back at Wembley Downs Primary School when I was in about grade one or two.



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Will you be watching the Olympic Games?

August 6, 2008
by Rodney Olsen
12 Comments

Will you be watching the Olympic Games from Beijing this year?

Many people are boycotting the games in protest of what they see as China’s appalling human rights record.

I must admit that I’m not a big Olympics watcher usually but I’m even less enthused than normal this time around.

I’m certainly not thrilled by the way that politics has been dragged into the equation for the Olympic Games once again but I also realise that no matter where the games are held, someone will be trying to score political points. There isn’t a place on this globe that doesn’t cause questions to be asked about certain behaviours or lack of action on some topic.

No one country has it completely right and so if we wanted to we could find reasons to boycott every sporting event, no matter where it’s held around the world.

While I won’t be watching too much of the games I might just sneak a peak when Cadel Evans jumps on his bike.

Amnesty International is hoping to make the most of the event and use the attention on the Olympics to hold China accountable for its human rights record. They have a comprehensive explanation of their concerns and actions on their site under the title Human rights in China and the Beijing Olympics. They also have a seperate site called The China Debate dedicated to debating the issues where they encourage people from around the world to discuss the

What about you? Will you be watching? Do you think that not watching will achieve anything? Do you think that we should just forget about the politics and focus on the sporting contest? Does holding the games in China help us to shine a spotlight on what’s going on there or do you think that once the carnival leaves town it’ll be business as usual?



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