IT is time to congratulate Goldie Sayers our local athletics hero. What a magnificent effort by Goldie in the javelin at the Olympics, she missed out on a bronze by just 40cm -which over 65 metres is nothing and Goldie backed it up with better throws as

IT is time to congratulate Goldie Sayers our local athletics hero.

What a magnificent effort by Goldie in the javelin at the Olympics, she missed out on a bronze by just 40cm -which over 65 metres is nothing and Goldie backed it up with better throws as well.

To break the British record again but not gain a medal seems scant reward but what a thin line it is between hero and recognition or relative obscurity. Track and field medals are a rare commodity despite our great medal haul - but a field event medal of any kind is even rarer. The old eastern block countries have a fantastic grounding and the Scandanavians have the history; so to break into the medals here is no mean feat.

To go to the games and produce a personal best, and break a national record and prove that you can rise to the occasion is, I would suggest, is possibly the best track and field effort of the games outside of Christine Ohuraugo's gold medal.

I hope Goldie can find those extra metres over the next four years and on the way to a medal at the World Championships and become a regular big occasion thrower as she did this time. I'm sure Goldie will get her head down and work hard again over the next four years till 2012.

With her coach Mark Roberson being local as well it was a real local effort. Alas for Goldie, on this occasion medals are like confetti so it's left to us 'lewkels' to say "good on yer gall!"

DAVID LLOYD

Pratt Street

Soham