OUR Olympians have returned home to the heroes' welcome they so justly deserve.
And the celebrations will go on for weeks and months to come as the nation queues up to praise their achievements. The feel-good factor which flooded over credit-crunched Britain is palpable and will silence even the sourest of critics who feel that
sport is merely a side issue to divert attention from the more pressing problems facing our world today.
But the successes in Beijing were not flashes in the sporting pan. They were the result of tireless hours of training, preparation and rehearsal by not only the athletes but also their trainers and mentors. The cluster of medals also comes as reward for significant investment. With that in mind, the road to the London 2012 Olympics, and hopefully chance to swell Team GB's trophy cabinet even more, begins now.
The nation is in the right frame of mind to value further investment into our sporting potential and we look towards the Government to create the right environment to nurture this spirit. And not just for the sake of future Olympians: as triple gold medal winner Chris Hoy says, the authorities should not merely target elite athletes but should give sport a general boost for the good of the nation as a whole.
Tackle symptoms and the causesMUCH is said and done to make the roads safer for our children. But one area which does not get enough publicity is the work going on to make children themselves fully aware of the dangers they face on our roads today.
That is why we welcome the idea of staging a special road safety day at Woodhouse Nursery School, where children as young as five are taught potentially life-saving lessons.
We are aware that these kind of initiatives are taking place throughout our region. But the time has come when this ought to be part of every child's educational routine.
Bad habits on the roads are not merely adopted by those behind the wheels of a vehicle. We need a joined-up approach to road safety which tackles symptoms and the causes at all levels.
What do you think? Add your comment below.
READ MOREMain news indexYour letters.
FeaturesMore Rotherham newsMore Doncaster newsMore Barnsley newsCheck out the very latest on South Yorkshire's roads - including live traffic cameras on Sheffield's commuter routes - with our Traffic sectionLatest sport. The full article contains 414 words and appears in Sheffield Star newspaper.
