Retirements

Two sportsmen retired over the weekend, both of whom are the very models of the word sportsmen, and of everything that word implies.

Hamish Carter, whom reports suggest has signed off with silver at the World Triathlon Champs in Lausanne, knows how to be a winner and did everything necessary in his career to make sure he was one. Everything honestly necessary. The impression I always had with Hamish Carter was that he was competing to see how good he was, not to prove anything to anyone else; by that standard any victory achieved any other way than honestly would not be a victory worth the name.

Carter was never just there to make up the numbers -- his reaction to his disastrous showing at Sydney showed that. He was always there to win, and if any sportsman isn't there for that, then sport is just not for them.

His one-two finish with rival Bevan Docherty at the Athens Olympics was magnificent. As he says of it now:

"It's hard to continue after Athens because it was such a massive high. You've got to be 100 per cent committed otherwise you're kidding yourself."

The man he beat at Athens agrees with the decision.

"There seem to be a few guys of that era pulling out of the sport, so it would be sad to see Hamish go but it would make my life easier wouldn't it," said Bevan Docherty.

What a great tribute from a great rival. After that victory he and Docherty both said they were looking forward to having some time off and getting a beer belly. I hope he does now.

And what about that other retirement, that of Andre Agassi: his will to win, his tactical nous and his tennis intelligence were a thrill to watch, as was his obvious passion for the game and his determination to win. Without the heavy artillery of his rivals he relied instead on being smarter then they were, and at his best Agassi's smarts were good enough to win everything tennis has to offer. He was always a pleasure to watch, and a deserving champion. Tennis will be less thrilling for his retirement.

What an irony that in his last game he was beaten by B. Becker.

(Perhaps after the weekend's sport Rodney So'oialo might also be considering retirement? Who could blame him? Or at least digging a hole in the ground and crawling into it for a month or so. Let's hope he gives some thought next time he plays for his country to using his head for something other than just something to put between the two people in front of him in the scrum.)

LINKS: Is it the end for Carter - TVNZ
Evolution and appreciation of Agassi - ESPN

And speaking of "thrilling" and "tennis": If you haven't seen it before then check out this You Tube video of that iconic "tennis game on the roof of the world" between Agassi and Federer. Enjoy.

RELATED: Sports, Heroes