Tim Lovejoy’s top 5 events of the summer

With all its wasps, skin blistering sunrays and men in Birkenstocks handing you dangerously undercooked BBQ bangers, the summer can be a petrifying beast if you dare venture outdoors. Ice creams melt, white wines warm, nobody seems to know when it is appropriate to still wear socks. But look, here's that nice man Tim Lovejoy (who will be blogging with us, courtesy of Freesat, right here) with some kind of guide to the truly incredible events that will keep you stuck in front of an HD screen in a darkened room all summer:

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European Championships

I have no hopes for England, but it's still just going to be absolutely brilliant. The big thing for me this time is Twitter. In the last World Cup, people were still snobby about Twitter. If I was tweeting during a game, people slated me. Fast forward two years, if I'm not tweeting during a match, people will be having a go. The tides have properly turned. Also, I'm excited about Oxlade-Chamberlain. In every major tournament there's some guy who comes out of nowhere to suddenly be the best thing since sliced bread. Like Gazza did and Ozil in the last World Cup. If I was Roy Hodgson I'd start him every match. The Ox. He's young, he's confident, and he's called... The Ox! How can you go wrong when you’re called The Ox? Failing that we'll all just have to sit back and watch Balotelli go mental.

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The Olympics

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The Ryder Cup

I've sort of retired from playing golf myself, because I was getting frustrated with my game, but I still like hacking around every now and then, and I adore The Ryder Cup. I think I love it so much because golf is such a lonely, individual sport, and then when you put these people in teams, you just see the animal change. It's all about the team, and I love all the politics involved with the captain picking the pairings. I've been mates with Ian Poulter for a while, and he's played in all these amazing tournaments, but still he just lives for The Ryder Cup. It's everything. To thrash the Americans, it's fantastic, and it's in America this time around, which I kind of prefer. I like the late night events, like the boxing, and World Cups in terrible time zones.

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Wimbledon

I really got into tennis last year, when I learned how to play properly. I play a lot now, and it's just made me realise how incredible those guys we have at the moment are. We're in an era where we have perhaps four of the greatest ever players, all competing at the same time. That’s such a rarity, in any sport. Poor Andy Murray is this phenomenal player, and he's just that little bit behind these monsters Nadal, Federer, Djokavic. To see one of those players compete is a privilege, but to have them all up there at the same time is a really special thing. I know Andy Murray and he's such a great guy - I think he can do it. People think he's too serious, too dry, but you need to focus like crazy to beat these guys. He's such a genuinely good guy, I just hope he can do it. To win he has to be one of the best players the world has ever seen, and... I genuinely think he can do it.

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Tour de France

I'll be really honest with you, I've loved The Tour for years, but still don't really know what's going on with the whole thing. It's just really hypnotic. I used to just watch the highlights shows, but now I really commit to it and watch the whole thing. I guess, it's a bit like watching test cricket, I like the fact that you have to really put an effort in to totally immerse yourself in it, and when you do, it rewards you for it. And it's very interesting this year with the Sky team. There's two big British stars, and normally it's all about getting a team effort for getting the one guy the victory, but Wiggins and Cavendish is kind of a Prost, Senna situation. It's going to be the best summer ever for sport. God help you if you're thinking about getting married this summer. Nobody wants to be at your wedding. Nobody wants to go to your festival. Sport is everything this summer.

Tim Lovejoy will offer weekly comment on this summer’s sporting stories - exclusively on the Freesat Summer of Sport website, here