Tuesday 7 August 2012

Olympic tale: part 1

When interviewed on a local Wisconsin radio station on the 4th July 28 years ago, I told the interviewer that as a European, I struggled with the idea of patriotism as it often felt like nationalism which has so many negative connotations.

My planned trip to the Olympics in London 2012 , whilst eagerly anticipated, was viewed with some cynicism related to the expected hoo ha of patriotic fervour, massive crowds, awful transportation infra-structure, oppressive security measures and the prominence of sponsorship deals with MacDonalds, Coca- cola and Visa.


I want to post about the sporting achievements I saw later.( I was one of the 80,000 to be in the athletics stadium on the day Ennis, Rutherford and Farah won their gold medals within 45 minutes of each other). Today I want to concentrate on the powerful feelings of pride and joy the trip has left with me.


First: The transportation system was faultless. Everything worked perfectly, trains, information, volunteers providing directions....it could not have been better. We walked from one train to the next, they were clean, rarely crowded and there were plenty of them.

Second: Olympic Park was beautiful. The stadium architecture was interesting, the planting of millions of wild flowers was an ingenious idea and despite the biggest MacDonalds in the world, it was possible to avoid it and eat other food. My fears about oppressive security were also unfounded. Pleasant and smiling security people checked bags and wished us a great day, quickly and efficiently. No real queues and no hassle at all.
Third: The volunteers were astounding. They were everywhere, providing information, directions, humour and smiles by the mile.
Fourth: The crowd was the best part. Everyone seemed thrilled to be there. Costumes and flags were in abundance. Communication between fans in various languages took place everywhere, with smiling as the universally understood sign.

Here is some of the evidence:

















Cynicism abandoned, and a childlike wish that all nations could be as happy together as they seemed during our fabulous two days at the Olympics of London 2012.

18 comments:

  1. Janice how exciting and how lucky to be among the crowd on the wonderful day Team GB won three gold medals in 45 minutes. Goodness the atmosphere must have been unbelieveable to have actually been there! Many thanks for sharing your pictures. They really give an idea of how great the feeling of international goodwill can be.

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    1. It was pure chance we were there on "super Saturday" ( we were there on the Friday too), just the luck of the ballot....not planned at all. It was a wonderful experience, and I am so pleased my inbuilt cynicism didn't stop me going or enjoying it so much. The question is how to maintain that spirit of goodwill.....and I guess no one has the answer to that. J.

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  2. Janice...the pictures are amazing and really give you an insight on how people from around the world are celebrating all together.
    Soooo exciting and once in a life time to be at the Olympics and more amazing when your country wins. I really haven't watched the Olympics this year, but I do admit I watched the Winter Olympics this year, but unfortunately I lived way across the other side of the country and time wise it was not possible....

    Very nice photo of you...and yes what could be there if there was NO MacDonald's.
    Thank you for sharing your photos......

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    1. Thanks Erica ( Irene)... it was a great weekend, and it was especially good that we were able to take 2 of our kids with us to share the whole thing. J.

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  3. I'm glad it all went so well...all I saw in the newspapers was carping about the arrangements so it's good to have evidence from the horse's mouth (evidence so despised by statisticians) that things were actually going smoothly.
    You certainly picked the right day to go.

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    1. I believe Mitt Romney was questioning the Brit's ability to stage it......a few people I know were pleased to say "Up yours Mitt". It isn't over yet, there still maybe problems, but the infra structure has done better than just cope, and the experience for visitors has been excellent. J.

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  4. Wonderful photos Janice. Hope you had equally faultless and stress-free accommodation?!

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    1. I can actually recommend the place we stayed. It has a reputation for having a gloriously sunny garden, although I did see evidence of some rainfall there this weekend. However, the bed was incredibly comfortable and the breakfasts were to die for. They also kept a great supply of interesting teas for people who arrived back late at night. Thanks Hannah.....as always, we really enjoyed our stay. Looking forward to you staying with us in France....very soon. J.

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  5. Dear Janice - thank you for this wonderful and joyous account of your day at the Olympics.
    I admit to having had negative feelings about it together with the Jubilee celebrations. However, hands up, I have been proved completely wrong. I am loving the positiveness that has resulted from both events, and the wonderful young inspirational athletes that hopefully can encourage the new younger generation. I have never seen so many competitors hugging, commiserating and congratulating their rivals from other countries - what great role models and hopes for the future.
    You were so fortunate to be present at Team GB's golden night. A night that you will remember forever.

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    1. You probably can't have had more negative thoughts about the whole thing than me Rosemary. It is great to be so wrong though, I am so pleased. Going up to groups of supporters from other countries, asking if I could take their photo was really interesting. Everyone was lovely, exchanging email addresses so I could send them copies, and generally being happy to be part of everyone's celebrations. J.

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  6. Thanks, Janice. More than one 'reason to be cheerful' and it's clear what they did to 'make you feel proud'!
    I look forward to reading more about your special day.

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    1. Thanks Gaynor, it was a wonderful couple of days. Youngest daughter ( featured in one of the photos, clinging to her boyfriend) loved it all, and she also went to see some boxing at the Victoria Dock venue. That was incredibly well run as well. Eldest daughter was with us on Super Saturday, and she still has a big grin on her face. J.

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  7. SO glad that you went!! We had the same feelings years ago when we went to Utah for the Winter Olympics there.

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    1. It was so good Jane...and you know me, always up for doing things....but usually with some cynicism, which can be suspended for brief periods of time......I would love the brief period of time to be extended forever ! J.

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  8. What a wonderful experience to have had, Janice, first in your attendance and then in your sharing. I love your pictures and the pride of place and participation that is so evident on the faces shown in each and every one. I hope you will post some more, as I hope you know this is one American that never questioned Great Britain's ability to see this through. Well done!

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    1. To be honest Penny, I am one Brit who questioned GB's ability to do it. I was born and lived in London for many years, and know how bad the transport links can be, how the city can feel oppressive, and the inhabitants can have such busy lives that they dont have time to do anything but rush around, bad tempered and cross. There was none of that...just smiles and smiles and smiles. The multi national goodwill was very powerful. J.

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  9. It's amazing how well this has all been organised isn't it? I'm not really a patriot to be honest, but I have had real feelings of pride during this past couple of weeks.

    How lucky that you were there on Saturday..the atmosphere must have been wonderful.

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    1. The atmosphere was unbelievable, and the whole experience was so much better than I had expected. I feel very lucky to have got tickets in the ballot, when I know many people were unable to get any. It was also pure luck that we had tickets for the day that will now be known as Super Saturday. J.

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