Inspire a Jen

Inspire a Jen
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London 2012 Olympics. Gosh, we did that well, didn't we? We've smashed our Beijing record, we're good at more than one sport, and beyond all hope and expectation, the public transport system didn't grind to a shuddering halt.

Hasn't it been exciting? Aren't you glad you stayed in London for it? You've not even really begrudged having to hear Heather Small belting out that God awful song, or being reminded about the continuing existence of Brian May, and his resistance to hairdressers for a staggering 36 years.

(Don't read this bit, Mum) You regret bunking off PE at school a bit now, don't you? It's probably too late now, isn't it? But WAIT! There are some oldies competing in the Olympics. You can be 40 and still row. What about the lass who only started rowing four years ago? I could be an Olympic rower. Except that I don't really like rowing very much. I like the look of the Velodrome, but I don't really like spin classes and it's the same thing, right? I reckon windsurfing could be fun. But how the eff do you get into that..?

My stream of consciousness was interrupted by Maya, an inspired/generous with praise friend and colleague, as we wandered back from watching the Olympic triathlon triumph of the remarkable Alistair Brownlee. I say remarkable, really just because he won a gold medal, which I believe to be difficult, but I don't really know that much about triathlons and what constitutes as remarkable in this context, if I'm honest.

"Why don't you try every Olympic sport and write a blog about it?"

So that's what I'm doing, and now, for the sake of clarity, some specifics about the challenge...

First and foremost, in case by some random chance you're reading this and you're not a direct relative of mine, "Inspire a Jen" won't mean very much, unless you also happen to have registered that my name is Jen. Otherwise, it just looks like I can't spell.

Secondly, the important business of rules. And these really are important, as some good friends of mine often point out, the rules help to control the fun.

I have to complete at least one event for each Olympic sport that women currently compete in, over the course of a year. So, when I say event, I don't mean on a competitive basis, but for example, if I'm rowing, I have to row the distance that would be rowed in the actual Olympic event, with the correct number of people etc, I can't just "try rowing a bit". This does not apply to the triathlon, because, well, I'll die.

In case you're clinically insane and you think this sounds quite easy, I'm going to let you - OCJOG (the Organising Committee of the Jen Olympic Games) - decide which events I participate in. OCJOG is headed up by Maya Freedman (she's Seb Coe, if you will) and Ruth Brown (she's the woman on the news that you guess is quite important but ultimately gets lumbered with explaining why the seats are empty and why the outraged lady from Hackney who likes tennis can't get a ticket). Also, because we all know that no democracy is perfect, I'm not diving off a 10m platform, no matter how many of you tell me to do it, because, well, I'll die.

Get involved in the OCJOG by email: inspireajen@gmail.com

Or on Twitter: @inspireajen

Now, for your viewing pleasure, a list of every single women's Olympic event, as per the London 2012 Olympic games. Easy, right?

1. Archery

•Individual

•Team

2. Athletics

•100m

•200m

•400m

•800m

•1500m

•5000m

•10,000m

•Marathon

•3000m Steeplechase

•100m Hurdles

•400m Hurdles

•High Jump

•Pole Vault

•Long Jump

•Shot Put

•Discus Throw

•Hammer Throw

•Javelin Throw

•Heptathlon

•20km Race Walk

•4 x 100m Relay

•4 x 400m Relay

4. Badminton

•Singles

•Doubles

•Mixed Doubles

5. Basketball

6. Beach volleyball

7. Boxing

8. Canoe - Slalom

•Kayak (K1)

9. Canoe - Sprint

•Kayak Single (K1) 500m

•Kayak Double (K2) 500m

•Kayak Four (K4) 500m

•Kayak Single (K1) 200m

10. Cycling - BMX Racing

11. Cycling - Mountain Bike, Cross Country

12. Cycling - Road

•Road Race

•Individual Time Trial

13. Cycling - Track

•Sprint

•Keirin

•Team Sprint

•Team Pursuit

•Omnium

14. Diving

•3m Springboard

•3m Synchronised Springboard

•10m Platform

•10m Synchronised Platform

15. Equestrian - Dressage

•Individual

•Team

16. Equestrian - Eventing

•Individual

•Team

17. Equestrian - Jumping

•Individual

•Team

18. Fencing

•Individual Foil

•Individual Epee

•Individual Sabre

•Team Foil

•Team Epee

19. Football

20. Gymnastics - Artistic

•Individual All-Around

•Vault

•Uneven Bars

•Beam

•Floor Exercise

•Team

21. Gymnastics - Rhythmic

•Individual All-Around

•Team All-Around

22. Gymnastics - Trampoline

23. Handball

24. Hockey

25. Judo

26. Modern pentathlon

27. Rowing

•Single Sculls

•Pair

•Double Sculls

•Lightweight Double Sculls

•Quadruple Sculls

•Eight

28. Sailing

•RS-X

•Laser Radial

•470

•Elliott 6m

29. Shooting

•10m Air Rifle

•50m Rifle 3 Positions

•25m Pistol

•10m Air Pistol

•Trap

•Skeet

30. Swimming

•50m Freestyle

•100m Freestyle

•200m Freestyle

•400m Freestyle

•800m Freestyle

•100m Backstroke

•200m Backstroke

•100m Breaststroke

•200m Breaststroke

•100m Butterfly

•200m Butterfly

•200m Individual Medley

•400m Individual Medley

•4 x 100m Freestyle Relay

•4 x 200m Freestyle Relay

•4 x 100m Medley Relay

•10km Marathon

31. Synchronized swimming

•Duets

•Team

32. Table tennis

•Team

•Singles

33. Taekwondo

34. Tennis

•Singles

•Doubles

•Mixed Doubles

35. Triathlon

36. Volleyball

37. Water polo

38. Weightlifting

39. Wrestling - Freestyle wrestling