If Beijing 2008 was all about smog and firing canons into the sky to control the weather, London 2012 is all about rain. It's OUT OF CONTROL. I'm telling you now, our country has never seen a washout of a summer like this before. Or at least one that I can remember, for what it's worth. Thank goodness Wimbledon now has a roof on centre court, or Andy Murray and Federer would still be hanging out in SW19. They'd probably have tossed a coin for the championship by now. Victorian fog and Mary Poppins dancin' on chimneys it ain't. Her umbrella would've come in handy though.
Boris Johnson, London Mayor extraordinaire, has our back however. Ponchos have been ordered in their thousands. Plus most events are under cover, especially if you're in the cheap seats at the athletics like we will be. I believe it's only beach volleyball, most equestrian events, BMX, triathlon, hockey and rowing/canoeing that are exposed to the elements.
However...my roving reporter on the ground says the weather will suddenly clear and London will bask in glorious sunshine for two weeks. Given that he's a designer and not a meteorologist in real life, I'm not sure what basis he has to believe this. I'm thinking it's the pure disbelief that having come this far, a bit of rain could scupper what should rightly be an amazing games at the final furlong. I mean, it's only rain for blimmin' sake, right?
Simply put, I have to trust he is going to be right, the sun WILL shine and all will be well in the world. Right now though, the official stance is bring a mac, you're going to get wet. Usain Bolt better not use 'rain' as an excuse for not giving us a 100m final to boast about for years to come. That would be like blaming leaves for a late running train in the morning...oh. One thing I do know though, if the sun does grace us with its presence, it'll be the most supercalifragilistic Olympics ever. And it's only days away.
Showing posts with label Hockey. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Hockey. Show all posts
Sunday, 15 July 2012
Monday, 30 April 2012
Diary entry from Sydney 2000 Village
So I’m one week into my stint at the Sydney Olympics and I’m absolutely shattered. I get to the village at 8am so up at 6am. Now the competition has started it’s far more interesting. Britain has a gold for cycling and shooting so far. Ian Thorpe broke the World Record for 400m freestyle and then went on to help win the relay with his team and the Aussies are going crazy over him. He has size 18 feet (Aussie size, so probably a UK 14 or something) – practically flippers instead of feet. Chelsea Clinton is here, along with Nelson Mandela, Mohammed Ali, Princess Anne etc.
Anyway, I got given two free judo tickets from Father Vladimir Makeev, the Russian Orthodox Archpriest. He was given them by Team Uzbekistan. So in the evening, Steph and I went to Darling Harbour’s Exhibition Hall to see what it was all about. We got caught up in the atmosphere and bought Union Jacks. A Spanish girl won Gold, an Aussie got Bronze and an Italian man won Gold. He didn’t stop crying the whole time once he’d won! It was ace to see people win medals – a first and a last for me. When we got home, we headed to the Coogee Bay Hotel to join our housemates. It was packed and a great atmosphere.
The next day, I took the train to the Olympic Stadium where I went to see some athletics with friends. I saw Denise Lewis in the long jump. She won gold in the heptathlon in the end, and I saw a bit of it!!! We also saw the 110m hurdles heats with Colin Jackson who ended up 5th in the final. Tony Jarrett was disqualified in his heat – very sad. It was a great privilege to see some athletics at all to be honest – all of the volunteers were given a ticket each and we were able to get hold of additional tickets a few weeks before, would you believe. So I went twice in the end.
We spent the rest of the afternoon sat in Olympic Park, lounging in the afternoon sun and chatting to Aussies. Steph and I went on to watch Team GB play Canada in the hockey. It belted down with rain and we huddled under our Union Jack. The teams were playing for 5th and 6th position, and it ended up being a draw. It was good to see a sport I wouldn’t normally watch ¬– Steph used to play religiously at home near sunny Croydon. We legged it home afterwards, chuffed with our day out as supporters of Team GB.
Anyway, I got given two free judo tickets from Father Vladimir Makeev, the Russian Orthodox Archpriest. He was given them by Team Uzbekistan. So in the evening, Steph and I went to Darling Harbour’s Exhibition Hall to see what it was all about. We got caught up in the atmosphere and bought Union Jacks. A Spanish girl won Gold, an Aussie got Bronze and an Italian man won Gold. He didn’t stop crying the whole time once he’d won! It was ace to see people win medals – a first and a last for me. When we got home, we headed to the Coogee Bay Hotel to join our housemates. It was packed and a great atmosphere.
The next day, I took the train to the Olympic Stadium where I went to see some athletics with friends. I saw Denise Lewis in the long jump. She won gold in the heptathlon in the end, and I saw a bit of it!!! We also saw the 110m hurdles heats with Colin Jackson who ended up 5th in the final. Tony Jarrett was disqualified in his heat – very sad. It was a great privilege to see some athletics at all to be honest – all of the volunteers were given a ticket each and we were able to get hold of additional tickets a few weeks before, would you believe. So I went twice in the end.
We spent the rest of the afternoon sat in Olympic Park, lounging in the afternoon sun and chatting to Aussies. Steph and I went on to watch Team GB play Canada in the hockey. It belted down with rain and we huddled under our Union Jack. The teams were playing for 5th and 6th position, and it ended up being a draw. It was good to see a sport I wouldn’t normally watch ¬– Steph used to play religiously at home near sunny Croydon. We legged it home afterwards, chuffed with our day out as supporters of Team GB.
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