BS: Our Emma (Raducanu) - Tennis

Subject: RE: BS: Our Emma (Raducanu) - Tennis
From: punkfolkrocker
Date: 12 Sep 21 - 03:43 PM

Shame she's not a competitive cyclist or equestrian...

.. We'll never get the sports news headline "Emma Rides.."...

Subject: RE: BS: Our Emma (Raducanu) - Tennis
From: Backwoodsman
Date: 12 Sep 21 - 03:45 PM

‘Those colonials’ are sulking because their girl lost… ;-)

Subject: RE: BS: Our Emma (Raducanu) - Tennis
From: gillymor
Date: 12 Sep 21 - 03:48 PM

I haven't seen this much nationalistic fervor around here since old ake was trying to claim "Donal John" for Scotland.

Subject: RE: BS: Our Emma (Raducanu) - Tennis
From: Dave the Gnome
Date: 12 Sep 21 - 04:13 PM

Far from nationalistic from me, gilly. See my earlier points about Britain being a mix of all nations. I don't think one nation can claim Emma but I am proud to be a member of the same club as her :-)

Subject: RE: BS: Our Emma (Raducanu) - Tennis
From: gillymor
Date: 12 Sep 21 - 04:18 PM

I was just rattlin' cages, Dave.

I didn't have the sound on yesterday but I think I saw a silver-haired "Our Ginny" Wade court side.

Subject: RE: BS: Our Emma (Raducanu) - Tennis
From: Dave the Gnome
Date: 12 Sep 21 - 04:47 PM

She was there, as was Tim Henman. Lots of other tennis stars too but I only remember Billie Jean King by name

Subject: RE: BS: Our Emma (Raducanu) - Tennis
From: gillymor
Date: 12 Sep 21 - 05:03 PM

Rocket Rod Laver was there.

Subject: RE: BS: Our Emma (Raducanu) - Tennis
From: Dave the Gnome
Date: 12 Sep 21 - 05:10 PM

Out of interest I looked up Virginia Wade and although she was born here she was brought up in South Africa. So the last female grand slam winner was the reverse of Emma :-D

Who was out front with Martina earlier? Was it Jimmy Connors?

Subject: RE: BS: Our Emma (Raducanu) - Tennis
From: gillymor
Date: 12 Sep 21 - 05:14 PM

Didn't notice.

Subject: RE: BS: Our Emma (Raducanu) - Tennis
From: Backwoodsman
Date: 12 Sep 21 - 05:21 PM

”I don't think one nation can claim Emma”

Exactly the point I was trying to make yesterday, Dave! I’m very relieved that you agree with me now.

Subject: RE: BS: Our Emma (Raducanu) - Tennis
From: Steve Shaw
Date: 12 Sep 21 - 06:35 PM

She has British and Canadian citizenships.

Subject: RE: BS: Our Emma (Raducanu) - Tennis
From: Backwoodsman
Date: 13 Sep 21 - 02:13 AM

And Romanian and Chinese parents. Truly an international sportswoman.

Subject: RE: BS: Our Emma (Raducanu) - Tennis
From: Joe Offer
Date: 13 Sep 21 - 02:15 AM

I bless the moderator who changed the title. I tried to a few days ago, but the discussion was so cryptic I couldn't figure out what anybody was talking about.

Subject: RE: BS: Our Emma (Raducanu) - Tennis
From: Dave the Gnome
Date: 13 Sep 21 - 03:17 AM

It's what I have always said, John. Let me remind you of my opening words in this exchange

«i»To me, BWM, that makes her the perfect British citizen! Bit of everything :-) «/i»

I can claim to be part English, part Polish, part Russian, part Welsh etc. It does not make my claim to be British any less, nor does it mean that I am not British. Same with Emma. We can say "Our Emma", as can the Chinese, the Romanians, the Canadians and the human race.

As I said earlier, we seem to be at cross purposes over the word "our". If you feel the need for some sort of moral victory, then, yes, "our" is used to describe possession. But it is not always exclusive possession and you need to look at what the speaker actually means by "Our Emma". If you want to continue playing the Nigel that is :-D

Subject: RE: BS: Our Emma (Raducanu) - Tennis
From: Backwoodsman
Date: 13 Sep 21 - 04:26 AM

No Dave. I’m not sure whether you’re simply failing to understand my point, or deliberately, wilfully refusing to see it.

Emma Raducanu is, first and foremost, Canadian-Born. She is, and always will be Canadian by birth. Her parents are Romanian and Chinese, so she is entitled to claim both of those as her Nationality. She is a British Citizen by choice (no doubt the choice of her parents, but just as valid) and I’m delighted by that. But it has to be remembered that citizenship and nationality are not the same thing - my brother-in-law and his wife are British nationals, but have Canadian citizenship, their daughter is a Canadian national, having been born in Oakville ON, but also has British nationality by virtue of her British parents.

In the light of the above, to claim her as ‘ours’ is nonsense, unless ‘ours’ is being used in the global sense, i.e. ‘belonging to all of mankind’, and I’m fairly sure that wasn’t the sense originally intended in the thread title.

So, far from being one of the ‘no foreigners allowed, send them back where they came from’ brigade which you introduced to the conversation (speaking of Straw-Men), and yes, I am offended that you would insinuate that I am one of those, the very fact of her international background, and that she chooses British citizenship makes me very happy indeed. But AFAIC, Emma isn’t ‘ours’ any more than she’s Canada’s, Romania’s, China’s or indeed, the whole world’s.

And if we, as a country, are so eager to claim a beautiful, successful, foreign-born sportswoman as ‘ours’, I wonder why we don’t have the same attitude towards desperate, traumatised refugees fleeing violence in the war-zones they originate from?

Finally, I’ll assume that your linking me with Nigel was a leg-pull - unlike his usual tactics, nothing I’ve said is a distortion or one-sided view, just straightforward, sensible and, above all, factual, indisputable points. ;-)

Now, the gas-man cometh and I have to prepare…

Subject: RE: BS: Our Emma (Raducanu) - Tennis
From: G-Force
Date: 13 Sep 21 - 04:42 AM

She's beautiful. She's talented. She can play a bit of tennis. She speaks Chinese. She's a multi-millionaire, and counting. Please tell me she can't play the concertina, I've got to have something left.

Subject: RE: BS: Our Emma (Raducanu) - Tennis
From: Steve Shaw
Date: 13 Sep 21 - 05:23 AM

She can pass exams too! So far, I haven't heard that she can play jigs and reels on the harmonica...

Now then, Dave. Time to remind these curmudgeons that preceding someone's name with "our" is a very affectionate northernism, as in "our Dave" or "our Eric." Usually reserved for family members, of course, but not necessarily exclusively in m'humble.

And Joe. The word tennis appeared in the first post in the thread! I can only assume that you spent Saturday and Sunday with the telly and radio off, with your curtains drawn and with your headphones delivering continuous 150-decibel heavy metal in your attempt to drown out the world outside...

Anyway, all that aside I see that our Novak slipped up... ;-)

Subject: RE: BS: Our Emma (Raducanu) - Tennis
From: Backwoodsman
Date: 13 Sep 21 - 05:46 AM

He might be 'your' Novak, Steve, but no way in hell is he 'mine' - can't stand the arrogant bugger! Nor 'your' Roger.

I can take 'our' Emma all day though... ;-) :-)

Subject: RE: BS: Our Emma (Raducanu) - Tennis
From: Black belt caterpillar wrestler
Date: 13 Sep 21 - 05:49 AM

As regards the "Emma rides" comment above, she gave up karting and motocross to concentrate on her tennis!

Robin

Subject: RE: BS: Our Emma (Raducanu) - Tennis
From: Steve Shaw
Date: 13 Sep 21 - 06:22 AM

I was being "ironic" there: he's definitely not my Novak either! I'm not that keen on tennis to start with, and I never watch the men's game. All that raw baseline power with rocket-fuelled rackets I find unsubtle and boring.

And didn't Liverpool play well...but with their stratospherically-talented teenager brutally felled by one lousy tackle...

Subject: RE: BS: Our Emma (Raducanu) - Tennis
From: Backwoodsman
Date: 13 Sep 21 - 06:37 AM

Ah, not a great day for Super-Leeds at all, and yes the tackle was appalling - a top-flight professional footballer should know you can’t jump in to a tackle like that, as soon as we saw it, both Mrs Backwoodsperson and I said ‘Red Card!’.

But we’re still Marching On Together… :-)

Subject: RE: BS: Our Emma (Raducanu) - Tennis
From: Backwoodsman
Date: 13 Sep 21 - 06:38 AM

And yeah, I knew you were pulling my plonker with ‘our Novak’! :-)

Subject: RE: BS: Our Emma (Raducanu) - Tennis
From: punkfolkrocker
Date: 13 Sep 21 - 07:35 AM

We need more healthy intelligent attractive foreign blood in our stagnant gene pool,
before the brexiteers build their barbed wire fences around our island...

.. but that still don't stop me rgarding tennis as a posh tory sport...

Subject: RE: BS: Our Emma (Raducanu) - Tennis
From: Dave the Gnome
Date: 13 Sep 21 - 07:41 AM

I suppose everytime I am referred to as 'our kid' I should point out that I am not a young goat and do not belong to the speaker.

Hevean protect us from literalists...

Subject: RE: BS: Our Emma (Raducanu) - Tennis
From: Steve Shaw
Date: 13 Sep 21 - 07:54 AM

'Ave yer 'eard from us sis this week?

Subject: RE: BS: Our Emma (Raducanu) - Tennis
From: Backwoodsman
Date: 13 Sep 21 - 07:59 AM

One man’s ‘literalist’ is another man’s truth-speaker, Dave.

Heaven protect us from deniers of the truth.

Subject: RE: BS: Our Emma (Raducanu) - Tennis
From: Dave the Gnome
Date: 13 Sep 21 - 08:01 AM

I was going to mention the other 'our' earlier , Steve, but thought it would be wasted on southerners :-D

Name 4 people from Coronation Street who's names begin with R

Roy, Rita, are Jack and are Vera...

Subject: RE: BS: Our Emma (Raducanu) - Tennis
From: Backwoodsman
Date: 13 Sep 21 - 08:20 AM

I’m not a southerner Dave, the town I was born in and still live in is on roughly the same latitude as Manchester - 53.38333 N v. 53.483599 N.

Near enough for me…

Subject: RE: BS: Our Emma (Raducanu) - Tennis
From: punkfolkrocker
Date: 13 Sep 21 - 08:32 AM

Back in the late 80s I shared an East London rented house with 4 or 5 brickies and chippies
who were making top money on the docklands site.

One was a scouser ..

I was a skint arty farty post-grad culture and ideology student,
but he was a good mate, kindly buying me pints on housemate nights out at the local..

He was a really nice intelligent generous bloke..

.. except for his defiant proud blatant racism - flagrant use of the "n" word...

He made it very clear how much he disliked them.
He justified it because he said he grew up in an area of Liverpool
under threat of being beat up by gangs of black kids...???

The only black guys he tolerated, even revered, were those who played for Liverpool..

I puzzled at this contradiction and asked him..

"Because they're our n*****s !!!"...

Subject: RE: BS: Our Emma (Raducanu) - Tennis
From: Dave the Gnome
Date: 13 Sep 21 - 09:08 AM

It's not location, John, it's a state of mind:-)

Subject: RE: BS: Our Emma (Raducanu) - Tennis
From: Steve Shaw
Date: 13 Sep 21 - 09:10 AM

Stockport is 53.4083°N, which is further north than your place, John. And everyone knows that Stockport is, at best, in the Midlands. That makes you a southerner, John...

Subject: RE: BS: Our Emma (Raducanu) - Tennis
From: punkfolkrocker
Date: 13 Sep 21 - 10:36 AM

Oi mate stop arguing..

Everyone knows the southwest is the best..

That's why we've got so many bloody rich incomers flooding in buying up all the properties.
Pricing young born and bred locals out of the housing market...

Now Emma has buckets more quid..
has she started house hunting down here yet...???

Subject: RE: BS: Our Emma (Raducanu) - Tennis
From: Rain Dog
Date: 13 Sep 21 - 10:42 AM

What was that about diluting the "stagnant gene pool" pfr?

Or is it just a case of not in my back yard?

Subject: RE: BS: Our Emma (Raducanu) - Tennis
From: punkfolkrocker
Date: 13 Sep 21 - 10:49 AM

1: oops "mates" plural - not singular..

2: ENRICHING and IMPROVING the stangnant genetic cesspool..


Fat blotchy gammon faced ugly xenophobes might call me a traitor to my race..

but eff 'em...!!!

Subject: RE: BS: Our Emma (Raducanu) - Tennis
From: punkfolkrocker
Date: 13 Sep 21 - 11:02 AM

3: if you are trying to be clever implying what I think you are..

Then I say bollocks at ya...

As it happens I am extremely attracted to Oriental and East Euro women...

My mates in Bridgwater were proudly at the vanguard of inviting talented hard working E. Europeans
to visit and stay in our region..

What we're not happy with is the lockdown flood of rich wankers
flooding in snapping up homes with big gardens...

We're sick of all the posh people targetted lifestyle 'news' articles
promoting "getaway from the infected cities" house hunting in the Southwest...

If the rich uninvited guests are here to stay, at least let them be attractive foreigners...

Subject: RE: BS: Our Emma (Raducanu) - Tennis
From: Steve Shaw
Date: 13 Sep 21 - 11:39 AM

"Now Emma has buckets more quid..
has she started house hunting down here yet...???"

Yeah! She was in the chippy in Bude at lunchtime, standing right next to Elvis!

Subject: RE: BS: Our Emma (Raducanu) - Tennis
From: Backwoodsman
Date: 13 Sep 21 - 11:55 AM

Well, I say ‘path’, not ‘parth’, and ‘bath’, not ‘barth’. I say ‘book’, not ‘berk’. I say ‘Will’, not ‘wiw - in other words I speak with a northern accent’. I support a northern football team (I presume Leeds qualifies as northern). And, more than anything, I feel like a northerner. If our Emma can be British, I can be a northerner. So, my state of mind is that I am a northerner, and I don’t give a rat’s arse what anyone else says. ;-)

Subject: RE: BS: Our Emma (Raducanu) - Tennis
From: punkfolkrocker
Date: 13 Sep 21 - 12:25 PM

When was 21, after a couple of years living and working in Leeds & Bradford,
I retunrd back home to Scrumpyshire with a Yorkshire accent...

Those sneaky Northerners had covertly deprogrammed the wurzel out of me...!!!

Subject: RE: BS: Our Emma (Raducanu) - Tennis
From: Senoufou
Date: 13 Sep 21 - 12:46 PM

I think men's sports can sometimes bring out the worst in the players/spectators. I remember many years ago when I presented my not-very-fluent-English-speaking husband to our Village Team manager down on the football pitch. Husband longed to play for our village (he's really an excellent player!)
It was obvious by the chap's dubious expression that he wasn't sure about this. My husband was 'The Only Black in the Village' (Little Britain). I explained that he was from Ivory Coast "...you know, like Didier Drogba!" and the chap perked up. He turned to the team and bellowed, "Oi reck'n Didier Drogba has arroived fellas!"
He became their much-admired striker and his team members were all over him. Photos taken with their arms around him when he scored yet again.

Subject: RE: BS: Our Emma (Raducanu) - Tennis
From: Steve Shaw
Date: 13 Sep 21 - 02:08 PM

N.B. - Virginia Wade, on the One Show, talking about Emma, has just exclaimed "She's OURS!!"

Subject: RE: BS: Our Emma (Raducanu) - Tennis
From: Dave the Gnome
Date: 13 Sep 21 - 02:44 PM

Is she South African as well then? :-D

Subject: RE: BS: Our Emma (Raducanu) - Tennis
From: punkfolkrocker
Date: 13 Sep 21 - 02:57 PM

.. or a possible claim for the LGBT community...???

[ok.. Wade is not confirmed.. but rumours persist about women's tennis...?????]

Subject: RE: BS: Our Emma (Raducanu) - Tennis
From: Allan Conn
Date: 14 Sep 21 - 03:02 AM

Getting back to the start of this thread I am completely with Steve. There is nothing wrong with celebrating in the achievements of someone from your country or community or town etc etc. The facts that she has links elsewhere is completely irrelevant. And the idea that she is somehow less British than Greg Rusedski is surely a nonsense. This kind of thing is being spouted by a minority on social networking sites. Imagine how the lass feels when she sees stuff like that. There are different ways to be British. As I understand it Greg did not move to Britain and become British because of some attachment through one of his parents being born here. He moved here to live with his British girlfriend and after a few years took citizenship. For heaven sake Emma has been her since she was 2 years old and is a British citizen. She seemingly also retains Canadian citizenship but the UK allows dual citizenship. It does not make her less British. Neither does the fact that she has Chinese and Romanian heritage! So she can give interviews in fluent Mandarin and she learned Romanian recipes from her Romanian grannie!!! That doesn't make her less British. It might make her a marketing industry dream though.

Subject: RE: BS: Our Emma (Raducanu) - Tennis
From: punkfolkrocker
Date: 14 Sep 21 - 03:18 AM

I am entirely indiferent to tennis,
but this brilliant young woman is a potential poster girl role model
for exposing the hypocrisy of dominant right wing British nationalist sports fans...

[..and if she did have any Romanian Gypsy heritage, that would be icing on the cake...]

Subject: RE: BS: Our Emma (Raducanu) - Tennis
From: Backwoodsman
Date: 14 Sep 21 - 04:23 AM

I’m getting very tired of barely-disguised slurs and insults here, of being told I’m a ‘Damned foreigners, send them back where they came from’, and a ‘right-wing British nationalist’, type of guy. Nothing could be further from the truth.

Something just about everyone here has apparently been unable to see from where they’re sitting on their high horses is that Emma Raducanu has a truly international background, and that trying to bask in her reflected glory by ‘possessing’ her, and claiming her as uniquely ‘ours’, is highly disingenuous. She’s no more ‘ours’ than she’s Canada’s, Romania’s, or China’s…or, in fact, the world’s.

I’m enjoying her success immensely because she’s an astonishing phenomenon and an inspirational figure for any young person of any nationality who has an ambition to succeed in whatever field they have chosen. What I’m not doing is trying to feel good about myself by trying to take vicarious, nationalistic ‘possession’ of her. That was the thrust of my response to the OP, and it’s the point I’ve been trying to make right through this thread.

That’s the exact opposite of a ‘right-wing British nationalist’ attitude. I’m sad that others can’t or won’t see it, but hey, it’s what it is. Anyone who doesn’t like it can BITE ME.

Subject: RE: BS: Our Emma (Raducanu) - Tennis
From: Senoufou
Date: 14 Sep 21 - 04:27 AM

I hope she does become a model for all young people. They need a role model who shows perseverance, determination, courage, maturity, inclusivity, exuberance, unflappablity and so on. Then they can stop copying pop stars, being 'snowflakes', being obsessed with the latest gadgets/clothes/fads. And not fan their silly faces with their fingers any more!

Subject: RE: BS: Our Emma (Raducanu) - Tennis
From: Allan Conn
Date: 14 Sep 21 - 04:53 AM

"Not even as 'British' as Greg Rusedski who, although born in Montreal QC, did at least have one British parent."

Those were the exact words cut and pasted.

Subject: RE: BS: Our Emma (Raducanu) - Tennis
From: punkfolkrocker
Date: 14 Sep 21 - 04:59 AM

BWM - You might have the wrong end of the stick mate...

I'm not even thinking of refering to you, I know you're a sound bloke...

I'm writing for the benefit of certain old brexity mudcatters who may be lurking, or aren't allowed to post down here in BS...

Subject: RE: BS: Our Emma (Raducanu) - Tennis
From: Backwoodsman
Date: 14 Sep 21 - 05:44 AM

‘Those were the exact words cut and pasted’

Eight words, perhaps badly-chosen, but genuinely intended as a light-hearted clarification of the point I was making about her multi-national origins. Cherry-picked to be used as a stick to beat me with. Hardly a fair and comprehensive review, is it?

”There is nothing wrong with celebrating in the achievements of someone from your country or community or town etc etc.

Where did I say there was? Any comment on this, from my last post?…

“I’m enjoying her success immensely because she’s an astonishing phenomenon and an inspirational figure for any young person of any nationality who has an ambition to succeed in whatever field they have chosen.”

Anything to say about my post of 12 Sep 21 - 12:56 AM, wherein I praised her performance to the skies and wished her the greatest success for her future?

”The facts that she has links elsewhere is completely irrelevant.”

Not necessarily irrelevant to those from the other countries to which she has links. They are as entitled to feel she’s ‘theirs’ as anyone in the UK is to feel she’s ‘ours’.

Now BITE ME.

Subject: RE: BS: Our Emma (Raducanu) - Tennis
From: Backwoodsman
Date: 14 Sep 21 - 05:47 AM

Pfr - sorry mate, feeling a bit bruised and battered from this communal kicking for having the temerity to hold a different view to the mob! But I’ve been beaten up by gangs before, and came out stronger and more determined.

Cheers M’Dears!