w.atching the w.orld unw.ind

to see the British presentation team applauding the French team's final presentation to the IOC.

It was also depressingly inevitable that today, there is talk from the other side of La Manche about 'underhanded' solicitations, such as bringing on Mr Beckham etc. to boost support for the bid.

Excuse me, but unlike Trafalgar, 200 years ago, when (again) we pipped the French team (and the Spanish too, let's not forget that incidental) no lives were lost in this campaign (to my knowledge, anyway) so, as one J Edwards - of hop, skip and jump fame - admonished this morning, "Lose gracefully!"

Wither FCUK now? (and I mean that spelling.) And whither Chirac, who seems to be getting possibly more flak than ever for his appallingly-timed remarks about British cuisine. Not least from the Finns, to whom we were patronisingly compared as being marginally better in the kitchen. Or perhaps it was the successful staging of Live8 that tipped the scales in our favour. Who knows? But London deserves better weather today to celebrate its first full day as the appointed hosts for 2012.

I'll be nearly 60 then. Guess the 100 metres is not one event I'll be entering for?