It’s not over until it is over －終わるまでには終わっていない－

The big rugby match between Scotland and Japan is now over.  Scotland thrashed the Japanese by 45 points to 10 in the Rugby World Cup this week.  As a Scot living in Japan, perhaps I ought to gloat.  But I am not that keen on any sport other than football.  I will wait until we thrash Japan in the real World Cup instead.

At least if the action is dull, we can have some fun with the commentary.  There was another sporting story in the news this week which caught my attention.  This was the death of legendary American baseball player and commentator, Yogi Berra at the age of 90.

Commentating on live sport is no doubt very difficult, as the games and events can last hours and you have to keep talking.  So it is no wonder that commentators often make verbal slips or accidentally humorous statements.  Yogi Berra was particularly remembered for this.  One of his quotes inspired the title of this blog: “It ain’t over until it’s over.”  “Ain’t” is another form of “isn’t”.  I wonder if non-native speakers of English will find it hard to spot the unintentional humour?  See if you can find it in these others from the great Yogi:

“You can observe a lot by watching.”

“The future ain’t what it used to be.”

“Baseball is 90 per cent mental.  The other half is physical.”

And just to prove that commentating is difficult the world over, here are some humorous slips from a famous British sports commentator, David Coleman:

“In a moment, we hope to see the pole-vault over the satellite.”

“He’s got his hands on his knees and holds his head in despair.”

“And the line-up for the final of the women’s 800 metres hurdles includes three Russians, two East Germans, a Pole, a Swede and a Frenchman.”

Respect to sports commentators the world over, past and present. 

Vocabulary:

to thrash someone – In sport, this means to beat your opponent by a very wide margin; to give your opponent a beating

to gloat – to bring attention to one’s own success or a rival’s misfortune

dull – boring

to spot something – to notice something