RVP Reminder

It was "only" the Community Shield, granted. And, no, beating Owen Coyle's second-tier Wigan at Wembley doesn't earn you any gold stars. But it does mean you've avoided more controversy and acrimony and, perhaps, a knee-jerk reaction, of the kind that manifests itself when you stumble. And Manchester United's 2-0 win did provide two important reminders. 

One is that Ryan Giggs, less than one hundred days removed from his 40th birthday, can still generate magic and energy. Certainly not every game, probably not every week, and maybe not even every few weeks. But knowing he's around and can still make the difference is a boon for the club's younger players (which is basically everyone bar half a dozen guys). 

The other is that Robin van Persie is still around. That's right. RVP. Remember him? A year ago today there was talk of little else. His potential transfer fee, his wages, whether he could fit in at Old Trafford, whether he could stay healthy, whether he could deliver. Thirty-six goals in 48 outings for United answered that question. 

Yet this summer, in a soap opera dominated by Wayne Rooney and manager David Moyes -- with supporting roles for Rooney's agent, Paul Stretford, and team executive Ed Woodward -- RVP has been a minor recurring character. Now that the stage has moved back to the pitch, he's ready to be the whole show once again, as he was early last year, when he carried United on his back in some outings.

It's not just one less thing for Moyes to worry about -- it's also a major added value of the kind the media rarely talks about because Van Persie is not the kind of guy who generates headlines when he's not doing his thing on the pitch. 

With Luis Suarez and Gareth Bale, the other two-thirds of last season's Player of the Year triumvirate, either on their way out or (at best) embroiled in long and unsettling transfer controversies, Van Persie is the one guy who has had a long, relaxed summer during which to recharge his batteries. 

Given the upheaval and changes at the club and throughout the top of the Premier League, Van Persie's stability could end up making all the difference come May.

Isinbayeva's Retirement Fairytale

The world championships finally caught fire on Tuesday as the fans turned up to say farewell to Yelena Isinbayeva, only for the Russian pole vault queen to roll back the years and win an emotional gold medal against all the odds.

Without a global title since 2008, struggling for form and due to retire after this event, the 31-year-old fed off the energy produced by a finally near-full and raucous Luzhniki Stadium to triumph with a leap of 4.89 metres.

Ever the show-woman, Isinbayeva ended the night with an assault on her own world record, set in her pomp when she won the second of her Olympic titles in Beijing. With chants of "Yelena" ringing in her ears, she fell short, but there was no trace of disappointment from her, the crowd or the organizers who finally got the memorable night they had craved.

Most big athletics events advertise themselves with an image of a sprinter but the posters around Moscow have a pole vaulter as their centrepiece - and now the world knows why. Twice Olympic and world champion, four-times world indoor champion and multiple world record holder, Isinbayeva has been an icon of the sport. But after finishing sixth in the last world championships and third at the 2012 Olympics it seemed as if the glory days were behind her.

American Jenn Suhr and Yarisley Silva of Cuba, who had the five best vaults of the year, came to Moscow as favourites. The home fans had other ideas, however, having finally decided to attend in numbers after nights of embarrassingly low crowds. Tuesday felt different - they even mustered their first Mexican wave - and Isinbayeva, who knows better than anyone how to work a crowd, surfed the wave of goodwill.

With four athletes left, the bar went to 4.82 - beyond her best of the season. She cleared it on the second attempt, only for Olympic champion Suhr to follow her over to regain the lead on countback. The bar was hoisted to 4.89 and, writing a script the organisers could only have dreamed of, Isinbayeva soared over at the first attempt.

Suhr and Silva could not match her, taking silver and bronze respectively, and the Russian tore off to climb into the crowd and hug her coach. After the sideshow of the world record attempts there came a joyous lap of honour, complete with spectacular cartwheels and backflips, and she was still talking to TV crews 90 minutes after her victory.