08-07-2008, 01:15 AM
Aussies declare war on Brits
AUSTRALIAN Sports Minister Kate Ellis has thrown down the gauntlet to her British counterpart, telling him to put his money where his mouth is.
Ms Ellis is challenging British Sports Minister Gerry Sutcliffe to a bet after his government declared that Britain would beat Australia in the Olympic medal tally in Beijing.
After jetting into Beijing, Ms Ellis said the British were getting a bit ahead of themselves by suggesting they would top Australia for the first time in 20 years.
And she reminded the British of their dubious record when performing in the heat of battle.
"I am meeting with the British Sports Minister tomorrow morning actually and I might be prepared to put a wager on with him,'' Ms Ellis told Beijing Now.
"But all I can say is I hope their athletes can handle pressure because their Government is putting it on their shoulders in pretty heavy loads at the moment and I hope they don't crack under it.''
Mr Sutcliffe's Cabinet boss, Sports secretary Andy Burnham said Britain would beat Australia at these Games following a $500 million splurge on its Olympians in the lead up to the London 2012 Olympics.
"Other countries and old rivals like Australia now look to us as a country that got serious about sport and are saying they are in danger of falling behind team GB in the medal table,'' he said.
"We are about to enter a glorious new era for British sport and I hope success in Beijing will inspire the next generation of young sports stars.''
Ms Ellis said the British weren't renowned for their ability to perform at the pointy end of sporting contests.
"That's at an Olympic level and at a number of other sports,'' she said.
"I just hope the athletes can sustain that sort of pressure.''
The Sports Minister said the Olympics suited Australia down to the ground because, with a smaller population base, we loved our underdog status.
"Australians, we love a challenge and we love to exceed expectations and to punch above our weight and that's something that we have done on sporting fields and particularly in the past decade or so,'' she said.
"The English to this point haven't really been up there with us but we know that they have been putting in a huge effort ahead of London and we know that there are enormous emerging challenges for the Australian team.
"But I'm not sure that they're (the British) ready to pip us just yet - we'll see.''
Asked if she took particular pleasure in defeating the Brits, Ms Ellis said: "I am happy to beat anyone, pretty much. I enjoy beating the British but we're happy to beat anyone and I think that most Australian athletes would feel the same way.''
News.com.au
AUSTRALIAN Sports Minister Kate Ellis has thrown down the gauntlet to her British counterpart, telling him to put his money where his mouth is.
Ms Ellis is challenging British Sports Minister Gerry Sutcliffe to a bet after his government declared that Britain would beat Australia in the Olympic medal tally in Beijing.
After jetting into Beijing, Ms Ellis said the British were getting a bit ahead of themselves by suggesting they would top Australia for the first time in 20 years.
And she reminded the British of their dubious record when performing in the heat of battle.
"I am meeting with the British Sports Minister tomorrow morning actually and I might be prepared to put a wager on with him,'' Ms Ellis told Beijing Now.
"But all I can say is I hope their athletes can handle pressure because their Government is putting it on their shoulders in pretty heavy loads at the moment and I hope they don't crack under it.''
Mr Sutcliffe's Cabinet boss, Sports secretary Andy Burnham said Britain would beat Australia at these Games following a $500 million splurge on its Olympians in the lead up to the London 2012 Olympics.
"Other countries and old rivals like Australia now look to us as a country that got serious about sport and are saying they are in danger of falling behind team GB in the medal table,'' he said.
"We are about to enter a glorious new era for British sport and I hope success in Beijing will inspire the next generation of young sports stars.''
Ms Ellis said the British weren't renowned for their ability to perform at the pointy end of sporting contests.
"That's at an Olympic level and at a number of other sports,'' she said.
"I just hope the athletes can sustain that sort of pressure.''
The Sports Minister said the Olympics suited Australia down to the ground because, with a smaller population base, we loved our underdog status.
"Australians, we love a challenge and we love to exceed expectations and to punch above our weight and that's something that we have done on sporting fields and particularly in the past decade or so,'' she said.
"The English to this point haven't really been up there with us but we know that they have been putting in a huge effort ahead of London and we know that there are enormous emerging challenges for the Australian team.
"But I'm not sure that they're (the British) ready to pip us just yet - we'll see.''
Asked if she took particular pleasure in defeating the Brits, Ms Ellis said: "I am happy to beat anyone, pretty much. I enjoy beating the British but we're happy to beat anyone and I think that most Australian athletes would feel the same way.''
News.com.au
