On July 27, London will create history as the 2012 Summer Olympiads or the XXX Olympic Games commence. The games will be held over 16 days, concluding on August 12. London will be the very first city to be hosting the Modern Olympics for a precious third time, the city held its first games in 1908 and the second in 1948.
The city of London perfectly blends history and modernity into a warp of culture. The bidding of the city was won over Moscow, New York, Madrid and Paris with just four votes. The British people and government have worked tirelessly for four years and their biggest challenge is now six days away – London has to try and beat the everlasting performance, organisation and momentum of the 2008 Beijing Opening Ceremony.
London has no problem with accommodation, transportation or venues, but holding the games twice before might see the ceremonies redundant or even a step down from the impeccable Beijing ceremonies. In London, 200 hectares of land have been developed and is now called The Olympic Park which holds the Olympic Stadium, aquatic centres, velodrome and residential buildings and malls for the athletes and visitors as well as other venues. But take a good look at the new Olympic Stadium and compare it to the Beijing National Stadium nicknamed ‘The Birds Nest’. The London stadium is pretty, but not an architectural marvel and wonder like its predecessor. Maybe this is a sign that the opening and closing ceremonies wouldn’t be as astonishing, who knows?
Each city needs to make their ceremonies bigger and better than the last one, but from what I saw four years ago, Beijing was unforgettable. It was well planned, flawless and astonishing to see what these people unified and did – It was literally… WOW! The closing ceremony had everyone crying that this magnificent season is closing; imagine the closing ceremony was as great as the opening ceremony.
I have always asked myself why not consider the Culture rich West Indies to host the Olympics; stupid question, of course. It’s not that we don’t have the time or that it would be nonsensical to hold mega events over several islands and a couple of mainland countries – we simply lack the resources. London has invested an estimated £2 billion for the staging of the games and £9.345 billion for the Olympic park, venues and accommodation. Please bear in mind 64% is from the British Central Government, 23% from the National Lottery and 13% from the Mayor of London and his departments, the only finances that came from the International Olympic Committee is the sporting utilities.
London also has to step it up knowing that this year celebrates Queen Elizabeth’s Diamond Jubilee, Michael Phelps’s retirement after the games and a stage to see the world’s fastest man, Usain Bolt, after his recent step downs.
Whatever the case may be, I am a big fan of the Olympics and sincerely hope London is not a disappointment. After London’s games it will be Rio de Janeiro, Brazil’s time to shine four years on – the only city in South America to ever host the world’s largest sporting event. (Jairo Rodrigues)
