HEROES !

WHAT DO I CONSIDER IS A " HERO " ?

This week i am seeing a lot of commentary about a " Deserving Australian "and some would say his " heroic efforts " to win the Tour de France ! Can we agree that this Guy is the epitome of the " Bleeding Aussie Battler " ! His efforts over 20 years have finally achieved perhaps his Greatest Ambition but there have been other Goals along this road that he has achieved and others that he did not achieve . Being Vice Champion in Mountain Biking was the spur to taking up Road Racing as i discovered in reading about his being tested by Dr Michele Ferrari in St Moritz so many years ago . Here are the links to that story and his reports on the Tour de France :


http://www.53x12.com/do/show?page=indepth.view&id=122

http://www.53x12.com/do/show?page=indepth.view&id=123

Throughout a long and determined career Cadel has shown the depth of Character and Perseverence that is required by a Sportsman to attain their self set goals . Epic events and huge disappointments have accompanied him throughout these years of sporting endeavour . Now the world is able to recognise what few were aware of before waking up last Saturday morning , the day of the Individual Time Trial in Grenoble , that here was a quiet Unassuming Australian who was about to achieve a boyhood Dream ! That he was able to rise to the occasion and deliver a performance that was bested by one other , Tony Martin , showed his character . This was the second time he raced this course and he absorbed the lessons of the first occasion to improve his resulting time .

An EPIC effort but it was no way "Heroic " !

There has been huge amounts of ABUSE directed at an Australian Woman for her definition of " Heroes " , given on a morning TV show . Mia Freedman in all probability was "ambushed" by the show presenter , Karl Stevanovic , who may not have read up on Cadel either before going to Air ! Whether there was an agenda or her utterances were " ill conceived " one can only speculate but the uproar and the " hate " generated by some of those viewing the show were definitely " Un Australian " !

HERO for me is " Someone who risks their life to assist another " ! We read about them all too often and i don't mean a fireman climbing a tree to save a cat !

Police , Firemen and Ambulance Personnel do not consider themselves "Heroes " BUT they will point to some in their ranks WHO they consider to be " Heroes " since they have seen them in action and acting " Beyond the call of Duty " !

Members of the "Armed Services " also do not consider their service " Heroic " but again they are PROUD to relate episodes of " Heroism " that they have seen or heard about !

" ROLE MODELS " are what youngsters need as they grow to maturity and we all know that a child's ambition to be a "train driver" will convert to being a " musician " and then to countless other professions as they grow older . Boys and Girls come from all walks of lives and some grow in better circumstances than others and their ambitions are coloured by their family heritage and country . Some children of third world countries have little to look forward to other than finding something to eat each day so a " role model " is not a part of their daily life .

So many labelled " Hero " for their actions would tell you that they are NOT ! Cadel would be one of the first ! He would be PROUD of the fact that he is an Australian and that he is a " Role Model " to so many people !

Some of the reading that inspired this Blog Post :

http://www.smh.com.au/opinion/society-and-culture/a-little-aussie-battler-does-it-again--you-beauty-20110725-1hx96.html

http://www.smh.com.au/opinion/society-and-culture/theres-room-in-our-world-for-all-types-of-heroes-20110729-1i383.html

http://www.mamamia.com.au/news/cadel-evans-is-he-a-hero/

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