I didn’t mention that, after he dives into the olympic-size pool, Darren, aka Donovan Marsh¹, Olympic Diving Champion, always performs a kind of rotating movements with his hands, something resembling a boxer punching an (equally imaginary) speedball. As he punches the speedball, he bends forwards (remember: he’s plunging into the depths of the olympic-size pool) and the overall effect is that of a cartoonish figure of an unspecified, generic Arabic man, bowing and ceremoniously greeting in a sort of flamboyant and overelaborate As-Salamu Alaykum. He even then walks backwards, a little bit. This is where I always dread the possibility that Call-Me-Harry might appear right behind him, but so far, this hasn't happened.
A couple of days ago, during one of Darren's epic jumps, I asked him if he was going to take part in the Commonwealth Games. He said he wasn’t, because he wanted to give the other divers and swimmers a chance to do well and create a good team spirit - he was going to beat them at the next Olympics anyway. I thought that was a noble idea.
How lucky that he had decided not to go - I said to him this morning; apparently 15 swimmers have contracted a stomach bug in the not-so-clean waters of the Indian facilities. Darren gave me a knowing look and then picked up the phone to organise yet another viewing of yet another remote industrial estate that nobody wants to take a lease on.
¹ This is the name of Darren’s diving alter ego. He came up with it, although later raised concerns over the American-sounding name.
To set your mind at ease, 'Donovan Marsh' doesn't sound American to me. NORTH American, perhaps—Canadian. (Not Mexican.)
Posted by: Eve | 07 October 2010 at 10:30 PM
Thanks Eve, I will reassure Darren! I guess it sounds 'generic North American' to us, certainly not very British, but the name stays now :-)
Posted by: Asphodelia | 07 October 2010 at 10:41 PM