Gold Post Boxes for Uniqueness

Apparently the Royal Mail have stated that they will not paint a mail box gold for Northern Ireland's own golden girl Kelly Gallagher. They say the the 59 gold post boxes for the Olympians and 50 for the Paralympians were for a unique occurrence.

With 109 of them that is new definition of unique.

But initially there were only 106 of them all of which were on the GB part of Team Great Britain and Norther Ireland. The other three were awarded for five gold medals one for Bethany Firth in Seaforde, County Down, and for their two gold medals apiece but just one box Michael McKillop in Glengormley, Antrim and Jason Smyth in Eglington, Londonderry. These three were UK nationals who competed for the Irish Paralympic team.

However, the case for uniqueness is strong for Kelly Gallagher. She is the first Winter Paralympian ever to win a gold since the first Winter Paralympics in 1976. Plus she is the first GB athlete to win on snow in either the Olympics of Paralympics since 1924.

Therefore I am suggesting if the Royal Mail really want to honour uniqueness there should be 8 more gold mail boxes.

Firstly we need a gold mail bow in Mottingham, Kent to honour Launceston Elliot. Although he was born in Tasmania to Scottish parents it was here that Britain's first gold medalist is listed in both the 1891 and 1901 census. At 21 he won that historic, and unique, first medal in those first 1896  games in the one handed lift. We did another Gold in those first Games but painting a Mail Box gold in O'Connell Street, Dublin to honour John Pius Boland's gold in tennis is asking for trouble.

Next up we need the Royal Mail to say #Ilovecurling and provide Scotland with four more gold mail boxes, indeed South Lanarkshire would get three for itself. Edinburgh would need to find another one to paint gold for Robin Welsh, Biggar would deserve one for Tom Murray,  and f there are two mail boxes in Carnwath they need painting for the father and son team of William Kilgour Jackson and his son Laurence. William was the skip in the first Winter Olympics in Chamonix, France in 1924 of which the other three all member of the Royal Caledonian Curling Club brought home the gold.

There will of course be purists who insist that Kennsington should receive one gold post box instead of Scotland's four to mark the fact that Madge Syers took GB's first gold medal in an ice or snow sport in the 1908 London Olympics. So maybe we should provide one for here uniqueness as well, so make that nine more gold mail boxes.

There will have to either be one in Lacashire where she is from or Watford where she now resides for Margaret Maughan. She was the archer who was the first GB Paralympian to win gold in the 1960 Games which saw 28 gold medals coming back from Rome that year.

As well as these six seven deserving firsts we will also mark the success earlier this week with boxes in Bangor, County Down and Chatham, Kent for Kelly and her guide Charlotte Evans, for their acheivement in the Visually Impaired Super-G.

This would lead to a total of nine new post boxes marking all the firsts now that we have them all. And there will be five for men and four for women.

Northern Ireland gets gold...

....letter boxes that is.

Northern Ireland's Paralympic medalists
l to r: Bethany Firth, James Brown, Michael McKillop,
Jason Smyth

There were three towns in the UK that bred Paralympic heroes who were left out from the original phalanx of gold paint from Royal Mail engineers. Their 'crime' was that these Paralympians competed for Ireland and not GB.

Eglington, Glengormley and Seaforde have all welcomed home gold medal winners, respectively Jason Smyth, Michael McKillio and Bethany Firth, now each will receive an honourary gold post boxes. In a statement from the Head of External Relations for Royal Mail in Northern Ireland, Barbara Roulson said:

"Honorary [sic] gold post boxes for Jason, Michael and Bethany are an appropriate tribute for our local Paralympic heroes given their tremendous achievements and the very clear community support for this."

So well done to the Royal Mail. Northern Ireland is not the sole non-gold black hole on the map of this summer acheivements

Royal Mail golden stamps 21 #London2012

It was down to the last day of competition, GB Paralympics weren't going to give the Royal Mail any break in producing stamps.

There were only two chances of GB athletes taking medals on this last day both of them over 26 miles and 385 yards. First away were the men's T54 marathon and GB's hope had already won gold in the 800m 1500m and 5000m. But David Weir was in the lead group all the way and once again was ready when the race came around the Victoria Monument for a final push up The Mall pulling away from Marcel Hug SWI and Kurt Fearnley AUS to make if the full four golds.

 Next up was Shelly Woods who finished in a group of four. But didn't manage to add to the golds but did come away with a silver.

So GB end the Games with 34 Golds 43 Silver and 43 Gold medals for 120 in total.

All that is left is the Rugby and seven-a-side football medal matches then the closing ceremony will bring to a close a marvelous summer of sport.

So sport by sport in the Paralympics GB won

Archery 1 gold, 1 silver
Athletics 11 gold 7 silver 11 bronze
Boccia 1 solver 1 bronze
Cycling 8 gold 9 silver 5 bronze
Equestrian 5 gold 5 silver 1 bronze
Football 5-a-side 5th
Football 7-a-side 7th
Goalball women made the quarter-final
Judo 1 silver 1 bronze
Powerlifting 1 bronze
Rowing 1 gold
Sailing 1 gold 1 bronze
Shooting 1 silver 2 bronze
Sitting volleyball neither team progressed on their debut
Swimming 7 gold  16 silver 16 bronze
Table Tennis 1 silver 3 bronze
Wheelchair basketball 4th
Wheelchair fencing best of 8th in the men's team foil
Wheelchair rugby 5th
Wheelchair tennis 1 silver 1 bronze

Royal Mail Golden Stamps 20 #London2012

It was the final full day of activity in the Paralympics though there is some action tomorrow, but our GB Paralympians weren't letting the Royal Mail rest as there was more gold in the offing.

First up at Brands Hatch David Stone (keeping up the look a like train looks like David Millar) got on his Tricycle in the T1-2 Road Race, he's lost his time time title the other day but was determined to hold on to his other title from Beijing. He ended up taking on Giorgio Farroni of Italy in a sprint finish taking the gold by 7 seconds.

It is hard to think that tomorrow it will all be over for another four years. There are six medal events tomorrow. The 7-a-side football, wheelchair rugby and four categories in the marathon. There are still two chances for GB medals David Weir in the men's T54 and Shelly Woods in the women's T54.

Royal Mail Golden Stamps 19 #London2012

Targets reached for the team, but there is no stopping them. There were yet more medals but only one of them gold today for Paralympics GB meaning more for the Royal Mail to do to keep producing those stamps but a light day.

Early on today was an gold in the morning session in the F51/52/53 women's discus. Josie Pearson threw a F51 world Record of 6.58m in the third round; her third of the competition. She didn't throw any further in the final three rounds but she didn't need to securing GB's 32nd gold. As it was a mixed classification event it was decided on points not distance, but none of the other categories broke their world record even once so gold was coming to team GB

It wasn't the only UK athlete to win gold today. Jason Smyth from Eglington, Derry won his second gold of the Games defending his T13 200m title for Ireland and smashing the world record in the process. His time of 21.05secs for someone who is partially sighted is impressive, he was 0.9 seconds clear of silver medalist Labzin from Russia.

Royal Mail Golden Stamps 18 #London2012

Paralympics GB finished yesterday with more silver medals than Beijing and the same number of bronzes. With 25 golds, only 2 more yesterday, so far they are 17 down on what they achieved then, but within striking distance of the Olympians. Today was to be no exception in continuing the Gold Rush though meaning more Royal Mail stamps.

First up down at Weymouth there wasn't enough wind to be able to compete in the medal races, however it didn't prevent GB's first ever medals in Paralympic sailing and one of those was gold. Helena Lucas may have been the only woman in the 2.4mR class fleet but after yesterday's race she was guaranteed at least silver with her lead over Germany's Heiko Kroger. A gold post box will appear in Portland.

Then there was hiStorey being made over at Brands Hatch. Yeah that women Sarah Storey won her fourth gold of these Games in the C4-5 women's road race. She was in a lone breakaway and finished 7 mins 22 secs ahead of the rest of the field: she actually caught the men's C1-3 peleton that was 2 minutes up the road. As a result she has equaled Tanni Grey-Thompson as the female GB Paralympian with the most gold medals they both now have 11. Also level with fellow 'swimmer' David Roberts with his 11 golds. Will there be more at Rio to add to Storey's 20 year career in the pool and on the bike.

For the record Storey has 11 gold 7 silver and 3 bronze to Grey-Thompson's and Robert's both with 11 G, 4 S, 1 B. Only Mike Kenny has more golds 16 plus 2 silvers. She also is the British athlete on the most gold medal stamps....so far.

Next in the Aquatic Centre 15 year-old Josef Craig took three seconds off his own world record in the Men's S7 400m freestyle which he took off fellow Brit Jonathan Fox in qualifying this morning, who this time finished outside the medals. He took the lead at 150m and never looked like getting caught from there. He won in 4:42.81 and was the baby on the men's swimming team.

Then it was over to the Olympic Stadium where the 29th Gold matching the Olympians and 104th medal surpassing Beijing came in one 32 seconds of explosion. Hannah Cockcroft beat her own Paralympic Record set in the heats to win the sprint double in 31.90secs and 2.26 seconds ahead of the rest in the women's T34 200m. Her second gold medal winning push will see a second golden post box.

But things were not over in the stadium just yet. Within an hour Dave Weir was up for the third and final of his track finals in these Games; the T54 men's 800m. He sat in second from the break until coming off the last bend into the home straight as he pulled away to make it three in London 2012.

In the very next race the men's T44 100m Jonnie Peacock beat Oscar Pistorius, Alan Olivera and others to be the fastest man on one leg. The crowd were roaring 'Peacock, Peacock' before the start which caused Jonnie himself to ask them for silence. He ran away to the line in 10.90seconds. 

Three days to go but already surpassed the number of medals from Beijing and the target set by Paralympics GB. Also more Gold medal stamps for the Paralympians than the Olympians.

Royal Mail Golden Stamps 17 #London2012

So at the start of the day there were 23 Golds for Paralympics GB, but Dame Mary Peters was calling for all 27 of the UK gold medalists to be honoured with gold post boxes. She was referring to Bethany Firth a swimmer for Seaforde, Co. Down, and athletes Jason Smyth from Eglington, Co. Derry and Michael McKillop (with 2 golds) from Newtownabbey, Co. Antrim.

Either way the Paralympians were closing in on the 29 golds won by the Olympians, so today there was to be no rest still for the Royal Mail stamp design team.

However, what was the story of today. Well the Storey got underway over at Brands Hatch with the cycling women's C5 Time Trial. Of course in the Olympics we took gold with Bradley a multiple Olympic Champion, so our very own Storey added to her haul of gold medals win a third at these Games, her fifth in cycling to go with her five in swimming. She won by 94 seconds over the 16km course.

Finally in the pool we had a golden Hynd in the men's SM8 200m medley when Ollie Hynd made his breaststroke count to take the lead and go into the final length well a head and nobody ever looked like getting anywhere near him. His big brother Sam however was just outside the medals 4th in the same race, but Ollie like Lee Pearson now has a full set of Gold, Silver and Bronze from London 2012. So Ollie will be expecting to see a golden post box in Kirkby in Ashfield.

Royal Mail Golden Stamps 16 #London2012

It is another day at the Paralympics and the golds just keep on coming to keep the Royal Mail stamp designers busy.

The first gold of the day took the total for the Paralympic Games to 20, or two bullseyes for the winner of number 20. It wasn't a tense matter of would Britain win gold in the compound archery final at the Royal Artillery Barracks at Woolwich, but which one would win gold. Defending champion Dani Brown was up against Mel Clarke. It came down to the last arrow with Clarke needing a 10 to wrest the title from her British team mate, but she shot a seven her worst of the final to leave Brown as the champion once more. It is still an improvement for Clarke who took bronze in Beijing. She'll get her gold post box in Lothersdale, Yorkshire.

The Lancastrians didn't have to wait long for a bit of roses balance. The next gold was over to the pool in the women's 100m backstroke S8 where Heather Frederiksen (a bit of a Becky Adlington lookalike) took gold in 1:17.00, ahead of hotly tipped American Jessica Long. It was a defense of the title she won in Beijing, though in the other three events she medaled at in Beijing, Long had won gold. Frederiksen had been an able bodied swimmer before an accident in an open water event caused her a nervous disorder. She'll bring a gold post box to Leigh.

Where else would the next one come from but over at Greenwich Park in the Dressage and Sophie Christiansen in Grade 1A became a triple gold medalist with her freestyle dressage. Another gold post box for Sophie heading to Maidenhead.

Then in the Olympic Stadium David Weir stepped up for the second of his gold medals in the men's 1500m T54. He played in very well strategically, always sitting in the top three but ready to take it on from the bell and from that point he was never headed.

Royal Mail Golden Stamps 14 #London2012

It may the Sunday in the middle of the Paralympics, but just like their Olympic counterparts the Paralympians were not giving the Royal Mail stamp designers a day of rest.

Over at Eton Dorney there was the first gold of the day. The Mixed Coxed Four LTAMix4+ of Pam Relph, Naomi Riches, David Smith and James Roe and cox Lily van den Broecke took the gold to add to their world championship. Gold post boxes will appear in Weston Turville (for Pam), Marlow (Naomi), Stratford upon Avon (James), Aviemore (David) and Oxford (Lily).

Over in the Olympic Stadium there was a young 21 year-old going for his second medal of these games in his preferred event. Aled Davies in the Discus F42 threw 46.16m in the final round after already a guaranteed gold to add to his bronze in the shot putt. So there will be a gold post box in Bridgend for the Welsh thrower. His medal was presented to him by the future Princess of Wales, HRH The Duchess of Cambridge.

Then it was over to the velodrome where there chances in all three events on the final day. In an all British final in the men's tandem sprint saw Anthony Kappes and his pilot Craig MacLean take the first race. They then took the banking round and jumped with over a lap and half to go than Neil Fachie and pilot Barney Storey had to settle for only silver today and had sat up before the bell.

Next up the gold rush headed into the Aquatic Center in the women's 200m Freestyle S14 Jessica-Jane Applegate was only 4th at the half way stage and third at 150, but in the final 50 metres she came through to  touch out with a win by 0.55 secs.

At Greenwich Park Sophie Christiansen onboard Janeiro 6, surely a horse named for four years time scored 82.7% in Grade 1A Dressage.

 

Sophie's win along with Natasha Baker in her class yesterday and the three silver in the other classes also ensured that Team GB yet again took the team gold. So Lee Pearson wins his 10th with Sophie Wells and Debbie Criddle also forming part of the team. Gold has been the exclusive domain of the GB equestrian team since Dressage was introduced to the Paralympics in 1996.

Finally back on the track in the last race of the night it was time for another GB Paralympics poster boy to follow in the footsteps of Mo Farrah and take men's T54 5000m gold. Dave Weir did not disappoint coming into the back straight of the last lap he was starting to come up on the rear wheel of the leading Korean and then with 200m to go he went on the attack and surged away in the last 100m to win with a gap between his rear wheel and the chair behind. So a gold post box for Wallington, Surrey.

Royal Mail Golden Stamps 13 #London2012

Day three and the GB Paralympic gold rush continues so too do the stamps, though not until Monday. It really was a Superhuman Saturday

First up in the velodrome there was success in the men's B 1km for Neil Fachie and his sighted pilot Barney Storey (yes keeping the gold rush in the family is Sarah Storey's husband). Neil gets a gold post box in Aberdeen and Barney as well as getting a gold medal (a first for the pilot riders) gets a gold post box in Disley, Chesire.

The track produced our next medal with our very own homegrown bladerunner Richard Whitehead in men's T42 200m. Richard is a marathon runner normally, but there is no event over that distance for his class. So not wanting to have the opportunity to compete before a home ground stolen for him he asked the IPC what he had to do, they said run the 200m, so he did and broke his own world record to win in 24.38. He certainly did have to steal away his medal as his gold post box will appear in Robin Hood country in Nottingham.

Greenwich Park saw a continuation of gold in the dressage ring from the Olympics. However, not in the form of Lee Pearson who only managed to add silver to his 9 golds so far. But Natasha Baker in Grade II took a first equestrian gold for GB Paralympics. Uxbridge, home of Brunel University (not Abraham Lincoln University my American friends cf Olympic Opening Ceremony) will be the location of her gold post box.

The gold kept on coming not just in the velodrome, but also in the Storey household. Yeah Sarah was back to her winning best in the women's 500m time trial C5. So if Disley can manage a third post box to be painted gold they will all be due to the Storeys. Sarah isn't finished yet as she will be looking for more on the road at Brands Hatch.

In the pool the whole debate about whether Victoria Arlen was in the wrong category as for the first 300m she was racing just ahead of Ellie Simmonds in the women's S6 400m freestyle. In the last hundred Ellie made her move and smashed the world record by 5 seconds 5:19.17, Arlen whose record it was also smashed it just 1.01 seconds down in silver. So Ellie not only just gets her face staring down from bill boards but her own gold post box in Aldridge, Walsall.

Royal Mail Golden Stamps 12 #London2012

Sorry for not doing this yesterday on the second day of the Paralympics but I was seeing Games Makers, the Paralympic Agitos hanging from Tower Bridge and watched some of the coverage on the big screen at Potters Field next to City Hall after I had a job interview.

So day two saw two more golds.

First up was the first Paralympic stamp for Wales and a gold post box in for Tredegar in Blaenau Gwent because of Mark Colbourne's win in the men's C1 individual pursuit.

The athletics started in the Olympic Stadium and there was gold from the start with Hannah Cockcroft finishing 10m clear of the field in a new paralympic record of 18.06 secs. Halifax will get a gold post box to celebrate the winner of the women's T34 100m. (Is there still any gold paint left in Yorkshire?)

Don't go looking for their stamps yet though as they are not being released until 3 September, i.e. Monday.

Royal Mail Golden Stamps 10 #London2012

As we wait for the Games to close the Royal Mail have one final stamp to add to the 28 they have already released in the last couple of weeks.

There was one final gold to lift the total to 29. In the boxing ring a medal would soon be bound up the Metropolitan line, the oldest line of the Olympic city's underground network, to Watford. In the newest of the men's Olympic boxing disciplines Anthony Joshua beat the defending champion (who now over three Games have all three colours of medal) to take the the Super Heavy Weight Gold.

The range of stamps has been proving popular especially in the areas where the winners come from with many local post offices selling out within hours of them going on sale in certain locations.

Gold for my Uni #London2012

My university town was close to some of the Olympic action, the torch sailed past it on opening day and the cyclists rode through it both in the road race and the time trails.

But our summer Alumni magazine looked at all sorts of aspects in which our Alumni were involved in the Games from designing the livery for the nine British Airways Olympic jets, to broadcasting (including a previous Olympic medal Alumnus Gail Emms in the badminton plus 155 students gaining experience in their fields), to being part of the Olympic ad hoc Court of Arbitration for Sport. But one aspect was like me one of Kingston Universities sporting alumni and he had a real chance for gold as he was world champion in his event in 2010.

He event was new a shorter canoe sprint over just 200m of the course at Eton Dorney just up stream from our University town. Yesterday morning he did strike gold making it at the time 26 for Team GB.

For the former Polytechnic it was to be a second Olympic medal following Emms's silver 8 years ago, but Kingston University's first gold.

Royal Mail fail Team GB & NI #London2012

I mean it is not like I have already successfully ordered 25 of these, and received my first batches of them.

But it appears that between gold number 25 and 26-28 we have been cast out of the United Kingdom by the Royal Mail at least...

Uodate: I tired again this morning and this fault appears to be rectified.

Royal Mail Golden Stamps 9 #London2012

It is hard to believe that there are now less than 24 hours of these Olympics left. But after another day with a lack of gold the penultimate day of competition saw Team GB extending their success. So after the first stamps issued on a Sunday by the Royal Mail last week there will be more tomorrow.

First up just as many may have been sitting down to breakfast the last day at Eton Dorney saw yet another gold medal on that stretch of water. It may only have come over the last 200m and therefore the last 10% of the other four golds there, but then Ed McKeever is a sprinter in his kayak. It is another Bradford that gets a golden post box, though not this time the one in Yorkshire, but Bradford-on-Avon.

Then every Saturday you watch athletics in the Olympic stadium one thing happens. Mo Farrah wins gold. By winning the 5,000m to add to the 10,000m he joins the likes of HannesKolehmainen (1912), Emil Zátopek (1952), Vladimir Kuts (1956), Lasse Virén (1972 & 1976), Miruts Yifter (1980) and Kenenisa Bekele (2008) in doing one of what is the hardest double of the Games.

There was more to come as in the boxing ring we saw a little bit of history in the first time that Team GB faced Ireland in a gold medal match in 100 years of the sport at the Olympics. It was the Brit Luke Campbell who came out victorious at bantamweight to take the GB medal taking the tally to 28. His gold post box will appear in Hull.

We have two gold medal boxing matches tomorrow, the women's modern pentathlon and the men's mountain bike. Dare we dream of being the 5th nation since the First World War to end the 30 club of Gold medals in one Games joining USA, USSR/Russia, China and (East) Germany.

Royal Mail Golden Stamps 8 #London2012

So Team GB decided to give the Royal Mail stamp designers a day off after a busy week yesterday.

But they had them called back into action today.

First up over at Greenwich Park Charlotte Dujardin on Valegro were back on the top step of the podium in the individual dressage. Well ok Valegro's hooves were firmly planted on the ground. But in an event we have never medaled in before we come away both golds.

Then it was across the river into the ExCeL for a little bit of history. The first ever medal in women's boxing went to the hosts so Nicola Adams enters Olympic history as the first female winner in her sport as well as being Team GB's 24th gold of these home Games. Another golden post box for Yorkshire as this one will appear in Leeds.

At 10:32 PM after a long day of fighting from 10amin the morning the Royal Mail ended up having to add one more. Jade Jones took Gold in the -57kg women's taekwondo. Wales will gain another gold post box in the village of Flint in North Wales.

Royal Mail Golden Stamps 7 #London2012

Today was the day that Team GB not only equaled their best* Olympic performance in modern times, but soared past it. It was a Tremendous Tuesday. So those folks at the Royal Mail have had their work cut out for them once again with four more stamps to produce and ship.

First up in and around Hyde Park there was the men's triathlon where the hot favourites were the Bradford Brownlee brothers (adding to Yorkshire's top ten position in the medal table). They were both in the lead group in the water, stayed ahead at the start of the cycling and then formed a trio with Javier Gomez in the run. But the elder brother Alistair was the first to cross the line by the Serpentine.

If you had signed up for the Royal Mail First Day Covers you're twentieth was free, so the one you will be receiving will be for Team Dressage. Carl Hester on Uthopia, Laura Bechtolsheimer on Minstral Horjis were sitting on the best and third best scores with all the German's completed before Charlotte Dujardin on Valegro came in and rode the best test of the day to secure another historic gold as Britain's first ever medal in dressage. So a gold post office will appear on one of the smallest of the British Isles of Sark for Hester, Apney St. Peter the adopted home in Gloucestershire of Bechtolsheimer, maybe the London borough of Enfield will try and claim a golden post box for Dujardin as that was where she was born as opposed to Newent Glos. where she is based.

At this point the GB medal table read 20 12 12, I don't think anyone would have guessed that at any point we would have read the  year in the number of golds and silvers.

Just over an hour later it was the turn of Laura Trott to get her second gold of these Games. She won three of the six disciplines of the Omnium the most important being in the last the 500m time trail where she had to win and come three places higher than Sarah Hammer (USA). That was exactly what she did, she is the first British women cyclist to win two golds at one Games.

Within an hour the velodrome awarded the next gold, sadly not in her last race to Vicky Pendleton who had to settle for silver, but for Sir Chris Hoy making him the British Olympian with the most gold medals taking his sixth in the Keirin, despite being passed in the last lap by the German Levy.

* Ok only second best after 58 in London 1908 but things were a little different then in the early days....and no I don't think we can match that number.

Royal Mail Golden Stamps 6 #London2012

No five day week for the Royal Mail stamp design team as Team GB continue to bring on the Gold rush.

Over at Greenwich Park our show jumping team of Nick Skelton, Scott Brash, Ben Maher and Peter Charles were taken to a jump off by the Dutch team, but they had three clear rounds in  the jump off while the Dutch had three fences down between two riders so they couldn't discard both.

The gold paint will be out for post boxes in Peebles (Scott Brash), Alton (Peter Charles),  of Bishops Stortford (Ben Maher) and Alcester (Nick Skelton)

 The second stamp is for someone who already has a share of one. But this one is on his own. Some thought that when he was picked instead of Sir Chris Hoy who was looking to defend three golds from Beijing that they were stopping a legend. But Jason Kenny has he second gold from these Games in individual sprint to go with the team one, his third overall and going with the silver in this event four years ago behind only Hoy. So Bolton will get a second golden post box.

We talked about this team being Team GB's greatest team. Well with six more days of competition they are one short of the target from Beijing with three very good shouts in the cycling tomorrow with Hoy in the Keirin, Victoria Pendeton in the women's sprint and Laura Trott leading the Omnium after day 1.There are also the Brownlees in the triathlon, Robbie Grabenz in the high jump plus the chance of more horsey gold in the Team Dressage. So we are close to nut just equaling Beijing but zooming past that total.

Royal Mail Golden Stamps 5 #London2012

Well no rest for the Royal Mail again today, although with only 2 stamps to produce it has been a little bit of a breather after yesterday's magnificent six.

First up is the man who if he didn't get his own stamp it would be a great shock. But in making history as the most successful Olympic sailor Ben Ainslie with his fourth gold earns his stamp. They often say that you don't have to lead until the final line is in sight. Well this year that is just what Ben did never leading the regatta always chasing Jonas Hogh-Christiansen, until today in the medal race and he took he on head to head and it appears that that is the kind of medal race that Ben relishes and never comes out second in. The village of Restronguet in Cornwall will see their post box turn gold tomorrow in their most famous son's hounour

The other stamp is to celebrate the first winner of a men's singles final match at Wimbledon since 1936. Just 4 weeks after he lost on the same court after being the first British man to make a Wimbledon final he faced the same opponent. This time he won the first set, as well as the second and third against the same opponent. So Andy Murray now has the Olympic Gold part all he needs are the slams for a Golden career slam. Dunblane will have a golden post box.

Will there be more tomorrow? Well we have the track cycling sprints so the chances are high.

Royal Mail Golden Stamps 4 #London2012

The Royal Mail have another busy day and night ahead of them, and they will be making history in the process. This history making comes from the fact that the stamps that follow will be the first to be issued on a Sunday by the first country to issue postage stamps 172 years ago.

But it is also the busiest day they will have.

Things finished off at Eton Dorney with two more gold as Team GB topped the medals at the lake.

First up when the men in the fours which is hardly a surprise as no other country has won this particular gold since a certain five time Olympic Gold medalist moved to that crew. So Alex Gregory, Pete Reed, Tom James and Andrew Triggs Hodge add their names to that line of champions.


Post boxes will be painted gold in Cheltenham (for Alex),  Seattle (Pete), Wrexham (Tom) and Silsden near Andrew's home in Hebden.


Then later on in the women's lightweight double sculls Katherine Copeland and Sophie Hosking added to the fact that GB women wait 36 years to get gold at the rowing lake and then three come along at one.

For Katherine a post box goes gold in Stockton-on-Tees while the wombles of Wimbledon better not find discarded gold paint tins once Sophie's is painted, just down the road from where Andy Murray and Laura Robson will be trying to earn their own golden stamps and letter boxes for Dunblane and Wimbledon in the men's singles and mixed doubles.


Then it was over to the Velodrome for yet another gold. Joanne Roswell becomes British first Alopecia gold medalist since Duncan Goodhew in the pool at Moscow, along with Dani King and Laura Trott in the women's pursuit. And yes, the Team GB cyclists won that in yet another world record.

Then in the Olympic stadium we had a golden night as first Jessica Ennis became our third multi-event women's Olympic champion after Denise Lewis 2000 and Mary Peters 1972 (Pentathlon). It was a second new British record in two days for Jess having taking the women's 100m hurdle record at the start of Day 1. So Sheffield adds to the golden post boxes in Yorkshire.

Nobody was really talking about us taking gold in the men's long jump. Don't know why Greg Rutherford has the season's best distance coming in. But the Milton Keynes jumper leaped for 8.31m just 4cm short of the British record to be the first British long jump Olympic champion since Lynn Davies.

Then as a distance runner myself in a past life I couldn't be happier for the third gold in an hour within site of the Olympic flame when Mo Farah became the first British man since it was introduced in 1912 to win the 10,000m. Isleworth where he trained and went to school after escaping Somalia as a boy will get his golden post box.

 

Today we won gold in the events of Sir Steve Redgrave, Dame Mary Peters and Lynn Davies,so three of the seven British greats who passed the baton figuratively in the Opening Ceremony seem to have done so in golden terms as well tonight.