Victoria Pendleton: Cycling's Golden Girl

gtvlusso

London_Falcon wrote:

gtvlusso wrote:

FWIW; I felt that Lady Pendleton came across quite badly;

Great cyclist - no doubt
Great athlete - no doubt
Neurotic - Yes, completely
Self absorbed - Totally
High Maint - yep, very high maint

I also felt that the team handled the whole 'affair' very badly. It would seem that there were allot of regrets around what happened and how it had been handled.

After seeing the show on Usain Bolt and having an opinion purely based on his showboating antics, I wound up kinda liking the guy. For all the bravado when racing, he came across as a family loving, decent bloke that would have a beer with you and enjoyed being with his mates.

Queen Vic came across as a bit of a pain in the ar$e.

You're probably right but I do think it is a very English trait to take someone who is world class in their field and then criticise them for something pretty much irrelevant.

"That Einstein was a bright bloke but his golf swing was useless".....

And your point is? If we are not discussing what we think (praise or critique), then why do we have this thread or forum?

My point is:

Vicki P - Not very likeable, but one hell of an athlete
Joanna R - Very likeable, still one hell of an athlete

SimonAH

Ms Pendleton,

Just a quick note though, should fate be weird enough that you find and read this thread, regardless of our bar-room pontificating the one thing we're all in accordance with is that you are an astonishing athlete and every man jack of us will be screaming for you to win at the Olympics! Very best of British to you m'dear!

gtvlusso

SimonAH wrote:

Ms Pendleton,

Just a quick note though, should fate be weird enough that you find and read this thread, regardless of our bar-room pontificating the one thing we're all in accordance with is that you are an astonishing athlete and every man jack of us will be screaming for you to win at the Olympics! Very best of British to you m'dear!

+1 Agreed. Personality traits aside, each to their own and all that, go get it! You too Ms Rowsell!

rjsterry

gtvlusso wrote:

London_Falcon wrote:

gtvlusso wrote:

FWIW; I felt that Lady Pendleton came across quite badly;

Great cyclist - no doubt
Great athlete - no doubt
Neurotic - Yes, completely
Self absorbed - Totally
High Maint - yep, very high maint

I also felt that the team handled the whole 'affair' very badly. It would seem that there were allot of regrets around what happened and how it had been handled.

After seeing the show on Usain Bolt and having an opinion purely based on his showboating antics, I wound up kinda liking the guy. For all the bravado when racing, he came across as a family loving, decent bloke that would have a beer with you and enjoyed being with his mates.

Queen Vic came across as a bit of a pain in the ar$e.

You're probably right but I do think it is a very English trait to take someone who is world class in their field and then criticise them for something pretty much irrelevant.

"That Einstein was a bright bloke but his golf swing was useless".....

And your point is? If we are not discussing what we think (praise or critique), then why do we have this thread or forum?

My point is:

Vicki P - Not very likeable, but one hell of an athlete
Joanna R - Very likeable, still one hell of an athlete

I really can't get my head round this need that people have for top athletes, or people who excel in any field for that matter, to be 'nice' or 'likeable'. Surely what was interesting about this documentary was the contrast between the imperious performances on the track and the doubt and insecurity off it. Furthermore, when things off track got really bad, this seemed to start affecting her performance - a look of how psychological 'fitness' is just as important as physical fitness. It also looked at the mistakes that the team management made in handling the situation. That's what the programme was about, not some personal promo for VP.

CiB

I watched it; felt sorry for her tbh. This sort of programme always seem to be made with an agenda up front and this one followed the pattern. Who's to say that the metaphorical cutting room floor isn't littered with examples of her charity work, her kitten orphanage project, the enthused description of her reclusive country mansion where children are rescued from a life of poverty and taught to express themselves and live the dream, all funded by her philanthropy?

When the BBC come knocking on my door wanting to present the man behind SC Stats, they'll be told to sling their hook. Inviting the media in to do a full on look at you always ends badly, for the subject at least.

gtvlusso

rjsterry wrote:

I really can't get my head round this need that people have for top athletes, or people who excel in any field for that matter, to be 'nice' or 'likeable'. Surely what was interesting about this documentary was the contrast between the imperious performances on the track and the doubt and insecurity off it. Furthermore, when things off track got really bad, this seemed to start affecting her performance - a look of how psychological 'fitness' is just as important as physical fitness. It also looked at the mistakes that the team management made in handling the situation. That's what the programme was about, not some personal promo for VP.

Points taken and understood and agreed with; however, on a personality level, i thought she was a pain in the ar$e. Whether that pain in the buttedness be attributable to being a top athlete and the dynamics that get you to that point or basic upbringing, I have no idea. And of course it was a promo for VP, to get the country behind her at t' lympics....show how she has overcome adversity and that.

So, you formed no opinion about Ms P at all? Go on, I bet you did really!

As I said earlier, my opinion of Usain Bolt was 'brilliant sprinter and he knows it' - After seeing his documentary, my opinion is 'Brilliant sprinter, he knows it, but he is also quite a nice bloke and I like him'.

Daz555

I thought she came across ok. Obviously a bit mad and overly emotional but she seems like a good egg to me. There seemed to be a lot of affection for her in the team from the cuts we saw trackside.

BillyMansell

rjsterry wrote:

I really can't get my head round this need that people have for top athletes, or people who excel in any field for that matter, to be 'nice' or 'likeable'.

It reveals a lot more about the posters' flawed state of mind than it does say anything of worth about VP.

Surely what was interesting about this documentary was the contrast between the imperious performances on the track and the doubt and insecurity off it. Furthermore, when things off track got really bad, this seemed to start affecting her performance - a look of how psychological 'fitness' is just as important as physical fitness. It also looked at the mistakes that the team management made in handling the situation. That's what the programme was about, not some personal promo for VP.

A good precis. I should hope people are proud of British Cycling and that we've managed to maintain our position at the top of world cycling for so long, nurturing great talent and supporting people psychologically and emotionally as well as physically to achieve their best.

rjsterry

gtvlusso wrote:

rjsterry wrote:

I really can't get my head round this need that people have for top athletes, or people who excel in any field for that matter, to be 'nice' or 'likeable'. Surely what was interesting about this documentary was the contrast between the imperious performances on the track and the doubt and insecurity off it. Furthermore, when things off track got really bad, this seemed to start affecting her performance - a look of how psychological 'fitness' is just as important as physical fitness. It also looked at the mistakes that the team management made in handling the situation. That's what the programme was about, not some personal promo for VP.

Points taken and understood and agreed with; however, on a personality level, i thought she was a pain in the ar$e. Whether that pain in the buttedness be attributable to being a top athlete and the dynamics that get you to that point or basic upbringing, I have no idea. And of course it was a promo for VP, to get the country behind her at t' lympics....show how she has overcome adversity and that.

So, you formed no opinion about Ms P at all? Go on, I bet you did really!

As I said earlier, my opinion of Usain Bolt was 'brilliant sprinter and he knows it' - After seeing his documentary, my opinion is 'Brilliant sprinter, he knows it, but he is also quite a nice bloke and I like him'.

I suppose I see being 'difficult' not so much as a negative characteristic, but as something of interest, in this particular case, because of the effect it appears to have on her sporting performance. Mr Bolt sounds a bit boring as the subject of a documentary. I accept that the programme was to some extent a promotional piece, but from what I've read, that wasn't the primary aim of the programme maker.

EDIT: I seem to be exhibiting some rather negative personality traits myself in not being able to let this go/having to be proved right.

notsoblue

rjsterry wrote:

I really can't get my head round this need that people have for top athletes, or people who excel in any field for that matter, to be 'nice' or 'likeable'.

+1 I don't understand this either. Its possible to respect and admire someone's sporting/athletic abilities, without also speculating that you'd get on with them personally... Theres something a bit snide and judgemental about that.

veronese68

rjsterry wrote:

EDIT: I seem to be exhibiting some rather negative personality traits myself in not being able to let this go/having to be proved right.

But nobody else ever does that on t'interweb forums.
For what it's worth (not much) I get GTV's point and kind of agree. But, to get to that kind of level in anything you'd have to have a fairly odd personality type. That's probably where the drive to get them right to the top comes from.
I read something about Andy Murray a while back and it said that his brother was the better natural tennis player, but was lacking the drive to get to the top. Personality type was crucial to make up the difference between very good and world class.

Yukirin

I really felt for her and wanted to give her a big hug! She's done really well and hope she gets a well deserved emotional rest once she retires.

Gizmo_

Yukirin wrote:

I really felt for her and wanted to give her a big hug! She's done really well and hope she gets a well deserved emotional rest once she retires.

That's more or less what my OH said. And also that she doesn't seem to have done anything for her, only to impress other people. Her dad, her coach/fiancé, British Cycling, etc.

I sincerely hope she wins gold in a couple of weeks: and I hope that finally, this one's on her own account.

cje

It's weird how people expect normal folk to be civil, but expect famous people to be charming. Who has never been a bit short with someone whilst under stress at work? What was saw was a perfectly normal reaction from someone in a high-pressure environment.

I don't know what she's like away from that enviroment, but frankly it isn't any of my business anyway.

supersonic

I really can't get my head round this need that people have for top athletes, or people who excel in any field for that matter, to be 'nice' or 'likeable'.

I used to dislike many people for this reason too: Stephen Hendry in snooker, Tiger Woods, Schumacher (and a few others), but now I have more respect for them than ever - they were that way because were so focused on their goals, and they became the best.

veronese68

supersonic wrote:

I really can't get my head round this need that people have for top athletes, or people who excel in any field for that matter, to be 'nice' or 'likeable'.

I used to dislike many people for this reason too: Stephen Hendry in snooker, Tiger Woods, Schumacher (and a few others), but now I have more respect for them than ever - they were that way because were so focused on their goals, and they became the best.

I didn't have much time for Schumacher after he punted Hill off to take the title. Always came across as arrogant. But, the thing about focus applies. A friends wife works for BA and checked him in at Heathrow a few times. Apparently a really nice bloke, checks himself in and is polite and charming. Unlike many others she's dealt with that get one of their staff to check them in and refuse to answer security questions about who packed their bags.
The ability to keep your feet on the ground should not be underestimated.

jonomc4

my feelings? - Don't give a damn about her character - all I care is that she continues to be the great cyclist that she is. This is not a beauty contest she wins by being the fastest and that is it - all the rest I don't give a damn about one way or the other.

Go GB!!!

DonDaddyD

I have to ask,

pangolin wrote:

Well I guess someone had better give Vicky the bad news. She's been judged by DDD and found wanting.

Now that more people have come along and basically said the same as me; that she came across, in part, negatively. How do you feel about singling me out as though what I said was wrong?

And what was the point of your little outburst (not that it has been the first time).

rick_chasey

Just watched this.

I was surprised how honest she was.

Can't help but get all freudian watching it too.

When the camers are there with her father, with the first worlds jersey she won what does he say? "I wish I had one".

Pfft.

Anonymous

Yep. As someone said quite rightly in Cake Stop or BB, he comes across as a bit TOO much

london-red

I'm surprised by some of the negativity on this thread. To me, Pendleton came across as totally honest - which for me is more important than anything else. Everyone has their quirks of character, not everyone puts them on display. And even less people have the world watching their every move and making judgements.

Good on her for being single minded and uncompromising, chapeau to her determination (10 years riding round a bloody track while plugged into a computer...) and who cares that she's a bit high maintenance.

lesz42

good program, VP came across very honest, focused and on the edge, hope she can get the gold she wants


seems normal, for someone who is 100% into a sport

Daz555

supersonic wrote:

I really can't get my head round this need that people have for top athletes, or people who excel in any field for that matter, to be 'nice' or 'likeable'.

I used to dislike many people for this reason too: Stephen Hendry in snooker, Tiger Woods, Schumacher (and a few others), but now I have more respect for them than ever - they were that way because were so focused on their goals, and they became the best.

Exactly. And when they retire or step back a little from the top you get to see their other side. Steve Davies is a good example.

Daz555

Rick Chasey wrote:

When the camers are there with her father, with the first worlds jersey she won what does he say? "I wish I had one".

Pfft.

That moment tells us a lot about how Pendleton developed emotionally.

cyclingprop

Quite like her, and didn't see the honesty in the film as detracting from her.

Plenty of work romances happen; so who cares?

Cycloslalomeur

Daz555 wrote:

Rick Chasey wrote:

When the camers are there with her father, with the first worlds jersey she won what does he say? "I wish I had one".

Pfft.

That moment tells us a lot about how Pendleton developed emotionally.

Or so say we as amateur psychiatrists on the basis of a few seconds' worth of footage of her dad... I couldn't help myself either, with my inner Freud popping out. Note to self: don't push offspring to take up racing no matter how much I regret my own failings.

DonDaddyD

I preferred the one on Bradley Wiggins.

In general I don't have to like the sports person, based on what I've gleaned of their personality from a TV screen, to admire their sporting feats. But Vicky's, who professional career seems so closely entwined with her personal life, is one where you just can't escape linking the two.

She generates drama, I can't stand that and instead of saying just appreciating or marvelling at her feats like winning Olympic Gold, World titles etc she has to turn it into more psychobabble drama, it seems.

pangolin

DonDaddyD wrote:

I have to ask,

pangolin wrote:

Well I guess someone had better give Vicky the bad news. She's been judged by DDD and found wanting.

Now that more people have come along and basically said the same as me; that she came across, in part, negatively. How do you feel about singling me out as though what I said was wrong?

And what was the point of your little outburst (not that it has been the first time).

There is more that one person in a mob DDD, that doesn't make the first person more correct.

It wasn't personal, it's just you were the first one to say something I thought was wrong. Mainly what you wrote below.

DonDaddyD wrote:

coriordan wrote:

attention seeking perhaps...but considering she was too young to understand that she might have been overlooked as a child as her twin brother was going to die of cancer?

surely given the circumstances, it's acceptable?

I didn't see that part. It may be an explanation but I don't think it makes it acceptable, no.

My thinking was basically, who on earth do you think you are to decide whether her personality is 'acceptable' or not? And of course that's judging someone don't pretend it isn't. But whatever, I decided to leave it at that. Other people like BillyMansell and notsoblue had already come back and said pretty much what I was thinking by the time I read it again.

I apologise in advance for this second outburst

rick_chasey

cyclingprop wrote:

Quite like her, and didn't see the honesty in the film as detracting from her.

Plenty of work romances happen; so who cares?

Yeah. They didn't really explain why the work romance was SOO bad, and why so many people were upset by it.

BillyMansell

DonDaddyD wrote:

I preferred the one on Bradley Wiggins.

In general I don't have to like the sports person, based on what I've gleaned of their personality from a TV screen, to admire their sporting feats. But Vicky's, who professional career seems so closely entwined with her personal life, is one where you just can't escape linking the two.

I suspect had you properly watched the Wiggins programme you would have learned that Wiggins' personal and professional life are just as entwined as VPs. Wiggins has had as many doubts as to his ability, has had periods were he 'lost it' and put his career in jeopardy when he thought he was better than the sport, but with the same network of physical, psychological and emotional support as VP he recovered, like her, to achieve success.

She generates drama, I can't stand that and instead of saying just appreciating or marvelling at her feats like winning Olympic Gold, World titles etc she has to turn it into more psychobabble drama, it seems.

So your issue is with someone who wears there heart on their sleeve and it causes you to judge their professional ability diffirently. It sounds like the problem here is your ability in dealing with honest and open human emotions.