BUCS DAY ONE....

All the action from Bedford, rounded up by our dedicated team.....

BUCS TO LAUNCH HORN PROBE

Meeting officials in Bedford have promised a swift investigation into the “ridiculous nuisance” that is a perennial horn blower. One insider told the Echo, “we have a fair idea of who it is and let me tell you the full weight of the law will be brought upon them....it’s all very childish and athletes are getting really quite upset about it.” All bags will be searched upon entry tomorrow with athletes and spectators to be subject to “random searches”. Our source went on, “we can’t go around making blind accusations and so hopefully the threat of action will deter the miscreant.” This news comes hours after Stephen Emery blamed the blower for running “too fast” in his 5,000m heat. “How can I be expected to win on Monday [in the final] now?” thundered the LSAC star from the team hotel, “I was 8 seconds quicker than I needed to be and frankly, I’m knackered....that god awful horn just kept blowing and I mistook it for a signal to speed up. It’s very poor.”

Emery was not the only athlete to be upset by the horn blowing. Matt Sullivan has said that it “almost certainly” cost him a place in the 1500m semi-final. “The horn put me off at the crucial moment,” harrumphed the 3:55 man from his post race press conference, “going into the final lap, I was ready to go. Then that f*****g horn blew and I jumped. I am really gutted.” Meanwhile, others have been quick to pour cold water on what is fast becoming known as ‘horn-gate’. Gary Bradbury said that he had “no issue” with the noise and that those who complained were “just being precious”. The 3:43 man went on, “I really can’t see the problem. Just because some guys aren’t good enough they look for excuses. That’s annoying. I found my heat extraordinarily easy.”

PARER CUT LEAVES STREET “50/50” FOR FINAL

Medics will this evening assess the damage to Peter Street’s right hand after the 5k star suffered a “horrendous” paper cut when removing his vest this afternoon. The Preston man had just qualified with ease for Monday’s final, but caught his finger on his bib number just before starting his cool down. A spokesman for LSAC said that it was “deeply troubling” but that Street would “receive only the very best care”. Our source continued, “it’s nasty, really nasty. But no one here feels like telling Ian Anholm [LSAC Administration chief] we may have a withdrawal. He reacts badly to things like that and it might kick off.” Street’s injury is currently being looked at by Loughborough’s team doctor and insiders have refused to rule out flying in a “paper cut specialist” from the States. “The good news is that we have tomorrow to get it sorted,” said a spokesman, “if the medics think that a specialist is required then that is what we will do. No expense will be spared.” The spokesman, who was speaking before boarding LSAC’s team coach, went on to lambast a “shoddy” day’s officiating from BUCS. “We’ve had paper cuts and power cuts,” he said, “it’s just not on. I only hope they can buck [geddit?!] their ideas up for tomorrow.”

WOODS IN GANDY SLUR

Mick Woods took time out today to tell the Echo that George Gandy was being “unprofessional” by failing to turn up to support Loughborough at the Championships. “Hopeless,” sighed the St. Mary’s man, “you don’t see me swanking off to Front Romeu now do you? That is because I am professional and I value my athlete’s progress.” Woods was speaking just after Mitch Goose, one of his charges, crashed out in the heat of the 800m. “That was disappointing, but Mitch is experimenting with a new haircut and it seems that his latest short look isn’t the way to go....he’ll be growing it now.” Woods went on to point out that Goose had “forgotten” his compression socks and that that gaffe was likely to have cost him “at least 3 seconds.” The Aldershot coach explained, “when you look at it like that, he made the semi. It’s all learning and he will be keeping a co-ordinated pair of socks on him at all times from now on.” Woods would not elaborate on rumours in this morning’s newspapers that another athlete of his, Stephanie Twell, was ruled out of BUCS after mistakenly eating two bananas in a day. “I won’t comment on such media nonsense,” stormed the former UKA coach before accidently walking into a wall.

PORTUGAL LATEST......

SULLIVAN FURY AT ‘WEAK’ OFFICIATING

Matt Sullivan has hit out at what he called “the most ridiculous refereeing performance of all time” after losing in a dramatic press-up competition late last night. The contest came at the end of another ill-tempered encounter between various top LSAC stars and their Preston AC counterparts. The night of challenges was always set to be close and given the fierce rivalry between these two clubs had the potential to get out of hand. One observer slammed the whole set-up stating that the ‘questions round’ was “ambiguous at best”. The source continued, “everything looked as if it was very last minute. When the stakes are as high as this it’s just not on.” Sullivan was upset when he was beaten by his LSAC colleague, Seb Foy by 77 press ups to 66. “The fact is that I have a lot more to carry than him,” fumed the 3:55 man, “how can a dwarf take part in this? They should have their own events or at least be made to carry extra weight.” The Shaftsbury Barnet star did concede that he was “below par” on the day but maintained that had the scoring been ordered correctly it would have been enough to win. “Foy was barely bending his arms. I don’t want to go on about it, but it is true. I feel let down by the officials today- the fact is that the contest was just too big for them.”

The evening ended with Preston and LSAC chiefs having to call for calm when Peter Street and Tom Gayle squared up to each other over a “drink spill”. Gayle was fuming when Street accidently knocked his Orange Fanta on to the floor drenching his designer flip-flops. The 3:48 man then attacked the Preston athlete with said flip-flop demanding a replacement drink. Alasdair Donaldson leapt to the defence of Gayle and it was only after David Howe intervened that the situation was pacified. The tension around Vilamoura has certainly reached an all time high as this is the latest in a long line of spats between the two camps. After Sunday’s sun-bed debacle (which resulted in a Preston coach being pushed into the pool) and Loughborough’s humiliation at beach rounders, many will be relieved when Preston head home on Thursday.

DAVID HOWE: A CLARIFICATION

In Sunday’s article, the Lufbra Echo alleged that Dr. David Howe spiked his athlete’s drink with a double shot of vodka in a bid to help his charge “relax”. This was not the case and it was in fact a single shot of the spirit. We think you will agree this changes the situation a good deal and we are happy to set the record straight.

FOSTER ‘SURPRISES HIMSELF’ WITH COACHING BRILLIANCE

In a revealing interview with the Lufbra Echo, LSAC Women’s Coach Bill Foster has revealed that he can’t quite believe how well he has taken to coaching. “I sometimes catch myself giving advice” said the World Masters 3,000m Champion, “and think ‘wow- that is just incredible’....I am not sure how I do it- I guess I am a natural.” When asked what he felt his greatest achievement was, the coach said that there were “just too many to count.” “The thing is,” he went on, “I never seem to fail. My programme would work for anyone.” On his personal regrets he said, “there are a lot that other coaches could learn from me, but they don’t ask. George [Gandy] could come to me and say, ‘Bill- you are best of the best, how do I do it?’ But he doesn’t and that frustrates me.”

Foster went on to hint at a potential big money move away from Loughborough in the near future. “I have heard that St. Mary’s are unhappy with Mick [Woods], but they haven’t come to me yet. I am not ruling anything out. Who knows what the future holds?” This revelation comes just months after Foster rebuffed a move from Durham University to take over the entire set-up in the North East. “There was a lot of money on offer,” explained the Yorkshire man, “but there was also a lot of pressure. A rich owner often wants things done his way and I don’t work like that. It’s my way or nothing.”