Time Out by Simon_Doyle

Increasingly when going out I find myself feeling like I'm starting to shrink because anyone under 25 seems ridiculously tall (I blame the gigantism on the fast food intake of kids). Going to a gig or any other event where I'm standing up becomes a major leg and neck workout as I'm there on tip toes and craning my neck to see the speck in the distance.

It's no surprise then the current crop of sporting heroes seem to generally be getting taller and taller, and as I pointed out in a previous blog entry there are some seriously tall competitors out there. It therefore makes sense that those trying to find the stars of tomorrow should be targeting those lanky beanpoles. 

UK Sport's Tall and Talented initiative aims to find young people aged between 16-22 who excel at sport and are fortunate to be graced with one serious advantage - height. They are aiming to find these tall talented athletes and put them in intensive training for sports such as basketball and rowing, where height is a prerequisite, with the 2016 Olympics as a definite target. The way that Usain Bolt performs, you would think that they would also be targeting tall sprinters too. 

I've never been blessed with any great height, and even gave up rugby at school once everyone else grew up and I didn't - after all what kid really wanted to tackle the lads at school who had a beard when they were 12, who were at least a foot taller, and weighed about 5 stone more than you did?  I've therefore got a suggestion for the talent seeker - a 'Small and Talented' initiative. 

Let them find small athletes who could excel at sports where height would almost seem to be a disadvantage. Sports like gymnastics, BMX, dressage, and table tennis, would all seem to be good options for those less-well-endowed in the height department.

So maybe it's time to give the little people a chance - after all they don't all want to be champion horse jockeys or extras in the Christmas panto of Snow White. Maybe there's an option there for Simon Cowell to have a 'Short Factor' to find the nation's talented sporting short arses. Wee Jimmy Krankie and Ronnie Corbett might just have been Olympic champions who were never discovered.

By the way, if you're reading this and you think your big Ben and lanky Laura could be future Olympic champions, you can submit an application to www.uksport.gov.uk/talent - but you'll have to be quick as the closing date is 16^th November.