The greatest Paralympics yet?

Hands up who’s enjoying the Paralympics then? Actually, I have a confession. I didn’t volunteer during the Paralympics in Sydney. This was mainly due to funding and having to get on with my travels while I could. And partly a little ignorance maybe. And it’s taken me until now to realise.

Last week, I raised myself from my bed at 12.30am and went down to see the Paralympic torch pass the end of my road. It was a great moment and the lads and ladies running with the torch did us proud. They’d come a long way to participate in this special event and were part of a sports club I understand.

I heard a few people complaining about the long delays as the convoy was running around two hours late. May I direct them to twitter at this point. Or the Queen, who had to stand all day long on her jubilee. Either way, I was really proud of Team GB, their families, Stoke Mandeville, our police force, volunteers and spectators alike. It gives me goosebumps every time it's claimed London 2012 is shaping up to be the best ever Paralympics yet.

I returned to my bed in the small hours of the morning before having to get up an hour later to feed the baby. But it was well worth the ‘hangover’ feeling the next day!

London 2012 pin badges

I want to get some Olympic pin badges to add to my Sydney 2000 collection. They’re a pricey £6 on the official shop website. I never bought any in Sydney, the idea being that you get given them by other people and swap the ones you have. If you’re wondering what the big deal is with little bits of overpriced metal, they’re more than just a collectable bit of Olympic history. They’re a talking point (so to speak) for visitors to the games, guests and visitors alike, which is brilliant when you don’t actually speak the same language.

I remember the Icelandic official and the Brazilian athlete I helped whilst working in the Sydney 2000 Olympic village. The pin badges they gave me remind me of the friendships we made and the smiles between strangers – ultimately, an important part of the Olympic values, respect and friendship.

Bradley Wiggins. A Tribute.

Cycling. Whether it’s a rain-soaked commute to work or the thousands spent on Boris bikes in a quest to make us more Dutch, cycling is often an important part of water cooler conversation these days. My last two Art Director colleagues both took a tumble on their way to work, prompting at least a week’s worth of ‘I’ll show you mine (bruises), if you show me yours’ type discussions.

But this is all set to change – and next time we’re embarrassing ourselves on two wheels, we can hold our heads up high whilst we’re doing it. The days of the Penny Farthing are more than over. Because we have the Wiggmeister. He is the original wheels of steel – and his team of course, Team Sky.

Just watch Brad pedal up a mountain and think about that slope that makes your eyes water on the way to work/home/weekend recreational fun and you can’t help but be impressed. Then think about doing it every day for 21 days. Incredibly, to coincide with a year of amazing sporting achievement across the board, this weekend could deliver Britain’s first ever Tour de France winner in its 109 year history. UN-BEL-IEVE-AB-LE.

And once he has finished eating all the baguettes he can handle, Bradley Wiggins, like Mark Cavendish, is coming to the Olympics. So all ye who have tickets to see this man, believe. You’re about to see one of our greatest ever athletes in action. Just don’t blink.

FACTS ABOUT BRAD

Bradley Wiggins says you have to ‘keep the chimp in the cage’, in reference to building mental strength and holding it all together while your body aches like it just rolled over a bunch of tacks in the road. Andy Murray, please note, it’s time to get with the chimp.

He's been quoted as saying, ‘You need to be a ruthless robot or you’ll choke’.

On tour, Bradley burns about 8,000 calories a day.

His dad was a successful Australian sportsman, six-day cyclist Gary Wiggins.

Brad is a Londoner. Boom!

The French have nicknamed him the ‘Golden Heron’ for his bird-like physique and yellow back.

Rain, go away...

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.

Where will you watch the Opening Ceremony?

It’s July and that can only mean one thing. The surreal prospect of a home games is very nearly here. And like the mind-bending feeling of carrying a baby in your tummy one day and then holding the very same baby in your arms the next, I just can’t get my head around that fact. In just a few weeks, I’ll be sitting in my living room getting goose bumps like I always do on any Opening Ceremony night. Only this time, the goose bumps will have goose bumps.

The excitement I always feel since experiencing Sydney 2000 at firsthand comes rushing back to me. But this time, it will be special again. This time will be just as important to me as being on the ground surrounded by world-class athletes, watched by the eyes of the world. My sense of national pride and achievement will be off the podium. I expect my other half may decide to hide in another room.

So what I’d like to know from others is how you’ll be watching the Opening Ceremony? Now that Eurovision parties and Big Brother parties have become the norm, I wonder if Brits will embrace the London 2012 Opening Ceremony in the same way they braved the grim Diamond Jubilee weather back in early June. And will they make fancy dress compulsory? Will the streets of London be witness to gaggles of ‘sporting stars’ spilling out of Fitzrovia and Soho pubs long into the night? I like to think so.

Most people I know have very young children and babies these days, so I expect the event will be low key for them. I personally plan to buy a sofa picnic made up of all my favourite food and drink from around the world. Then I’ll have my union jack at the ready (recycled from Queenie’s street party) and a big box of tissues on hand to cope with the only house guests I’ll be having that evening: a grand mix of nostalgia, excitement and hormones. Bring it on!

Girl power from Team GB

It’s a month to go until the Olympics begin and the Spice Girls have been in town to promote their new musical. I say ‘their’ but it’s actually the brainchild of comedian Jennifer Saunders. A great day for inspirational women then?

Well I don’t know entirely about that, but I have been finding out a bit more about Team GB’s athletes to watch at this summer’s games. I’m glad to say, many of them are women and they really, really want gold. I don’t know why I’m so glad, except maybe it was after all the reporting earlier this year about girls being put off sport at school. That or I'm just fed up with all the gloom that's out there right now. So here we are, two inspirational ladies heading to London 2012.

Beth Tweddle – Gymnastics
Now forgive me, but gymnastics is a sport I’m largely ignorant about. My knowledge began at school with a terrifying ordeal involving a so-called ‘horse’ which wasn’t vaguely fluffy or friendly and some enormous ropes that dangled from great heights. That and navy blue knickers.

However, those in the know will consider 27-year-old Beth Tweddle to be Team GB’s most successful gymnast ever. She is three times world champion and our first ever individual medallist at this level. Beth’s event is the uneven bars and she finished 4th in Beijing. She just won gold at an Olympic test event recently, so so could very well be a contender for our first gymnastics gold this summer. And if she is, I’ll be doing a little living room gymnastics myself (minus the navy blue knickers).

Keri-Anne Payne – Open Water Swimming
You may remember this talented swimmer as the first person to qualify for Team GB last year. She was also a silver medallist in the 10k marathon swim in Beijing and a competitor in the 200 and 400 metre individual medley events in the pool. Keri-Anne was also crowned world champion in marathon swimming in 2009 and 2011.

Sadly, a shoulder injury meant she had to pull out of this spring’s European Championships. However, she’s apparently firing on all cylinders now and is a hot favourite for this year’s event in Hyde Park’s Serpentine. I expect we’ll be seeing a lot more of this lovely lady from now on, in and out of the water.

Tickets, PLEASE!

So every day at 11am last week, I’ve imagined hundreds of people asking their bosses if they can ‘nip out’ for an early lunch/meeting/phone call while they spend the next hour desperately trying to navigate the ever confusing Ticketmaster website to purchase last chance Olympics tickets. I sincerely hope that if this is you, you got what you wanted.

I had the added complication of having my ‘due date’ thrown in to the mix. Would I be up to my eyeballs on gas and air shouting, ‘But I haven’t logged on yet to get my rowing tickets!’ or would I have to just take what I could get on day one? I decided with the latter as the disappointment would likely have matched the pain of delivery. (I know, I’m crazy).

So I still haven’t given birth to my Olympic baby (due to be born at Stoke Mandeville – the name of one of the funny looking Olympic mascots in case you didn’t know). But I did press the panic button early and bought Beach Volleyball Tickets on day two of the re-sale. I read a tweet that described the ticket sale as a mass free-for-all. You literally didn’t know if you would get anything in your basket after frantically trying to work out what was still available. (Apparently, everything was that was showing on the site – except, boo! It wasn’t…)

Obviously I’m chuffed I can go – admittedly, it was something I always took for granted when the London Olympics were announced. Am also delighted I can take my Olympic baby in arms – thanks for the u-turn there Lord Coe (see earlier post). Now I can put my feet up and think of Team GB in relative peace..!

The last of the tickets will be on sale this week – Paralympic sales Monday 21st and the rest of the Olympics Wednesday 23rd, first come, first served.

Who's got the matches?

The Olympic Torch has finally arrived from Athens and burns bright on British soil. A contingency including Beckham, the Princess Royal and Wiff Waff (Boris Johnson) have made us proud tonight. Its arrival has prompted tweets suggesting Beckham will not be the one to light the Olympic Cauldron at the Opening Ceremony. I never thought he would – I mean, he's not exactly an Olympic athlete, is he? A great ambassador and an Olympic money earner, that’s for sure. To quote Obama: ‘It’s a rare man who can be that tough on the field and also have his own line of underwear.’

So it’s been suggested Sir Steve Redgrave must be the one to light the cauldron. Or will it be someone more senior, such as the legendary Roger Bannister, the first man to run the mile in under 4 minutes. He ran at the 1952 Helsinki Olympic Games but didn’t win a medal. I’m trying to think of a female athlete to add to the mix – Sally Gunnell or Kelly Holmes perhaps? Someone suggested the Queen, but I think she’s in the Beckham category. Sorry m’aam.

My money is also on sailor Ben Ainslie to carry the Team GB flag into the stadium at the Opening Ceremony – although I hear he has a back injury and is to be the first person to carry the Olympic Torch in the UK. So perhaps Sir Chris Hoy will be the one to lift the Union Jack?

Whatever happens, I feel very proud this evening to have marked the Olympic Torch’s arrival on British soil. Good luck to all those who are running with the flame over the coming weeks (8,000 people in total). I hope to get a glimpse at Stoke Mandeville when it passes through.

Diary post from Sydney 2000 Olympic Village

There are lots of interesting characters dropping in and out of the Religious Services Centre throughout the day. I had a relaxing chat to an Irish Boxing Coach of Cuban origin today; he’s a tall Afro-Caribbean guy who is a Buddhist, working for the Irish Amateur Boxing Association. And when he doesn’t do that, he's working in prisons teaching inmates Spanish and Than-Phong – a martial art like tai chi.

I also met Maria Mutola, fresh from winning gold in the 800m. She had come to thank Phra Mana and his team for their support. She is, I believe, the first ever gold medalist for Mozambique and has appeared at an amazing six Olympic Games – which only four other track and field athletes have achieved. And considering that was over a 21-year career, I feel very privileged to have met her. Brits might remember Maria as Dame Kelly Holmes’ training partner who was thought to have assisted Holmes’ win at the 2003 World Championships in Paris.

At lunchtime I sat in awe of the massive queue of athletes for McDonalds meals in the Olympic Village dining hall. My meals are free, so I always make sure I eat lots – easy, as the food is delicious. I take advantage of the amazing salad dishes from around the world – particularly as fruit and vegetables are so dear here in Australia, and on my backpacker budget, quite a luxury. My college friend Anna Hemmings joined me today. She's canoeing for Team GB and she gave me a guided tour of the athletes’ accommodation. I got to see all the physios at work and where her teammates hang out when they’re not competing, sightseeing, chasing autographs or generally having a whale of a time!

After lunch, I headed back to work and saw Gomez playing in the International zone. There must have been 3-40 people watching at any one time, mainly Brits working in the village and a few Team GB athletes. The lead singer was saying how surreal it all was as they usually play to packed venues. Once again I had to pinch myself that I was hanging out at an Olympic Village, nevermind having another amazing free experience as a volunteer. My only complaint was that Nelson Mandela didn’t pop in to see us, but by all accounts he was hanging out with his national team so we let him off….

Alight here for London 2012

It seems to be a changeable season – I can’t say I’ve ever had to have my heating on in the month of May before. Ever since the UK announced a drought warning, it has tipped it down cats and dogs. But the good thing is, this will surely mean July and August are sunnier than usual. So pack your Bermuda shorts people, I predict London will be the hottest spot in Europe this summer.

It’s true it’s been an eventful week – England’s football manager has just been replaced with only a month or so to go before the Euro Championships. Roy Hodgson has been chosen to take on the (some might say, poisoned) chalice.

The good news is, London has kept its Mayor for another term. A little bit of consistency should be welcomed with open arms at this late stage before the Olympic games begin. Congratulations to Boris Johnson. Not sure the same will be said of our Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport Secretary (the dude in government who is officially responsible for looking after the Olympics). Jeremy Hunt’s position is looking increasingly unsustainable due to allegations of corruption and backhanders.

And finally, the Olympic Torch is about to set off from Olympia in Greece. It starts its journey on 10th May and somehow gets to Lands End in Cornwall, South West England, in time to set off on 19th May. Let’s hope it has a smooth and successful journey over the next few weeks. Here’s a nice little video about the Coventry factory that created the Olympic torch. (Yes, it’s UK made!! Unlike our sports kit and a few other bits and bobs…)

Mad dogs, Englishmen, women and children

It’s good to see it’s not just me with the crazy hormones coursing round my body at the moment. It seems that towns and villages across the UK are gearing up for their very own Torch Relays, in protest that the real thing won’t be visiting them. They clearly used to watch a lot of Blue Peter as their torch designs are inspired.

The other curious news is that Stuart Pearce, Team GB’s football coach is heading the LA to check out Beckham’s fitness for selection to the Olympic team. He could save a bob or two by listening to ex-England forward Gary Lineker on the subject. After all, he’s the Simon Cowell of football. If he doesn’t know talent when he sees it, I’m a twelve year old girl singing about getting my swag on.

On another note, it was great to see the capital showcased for the London Marathon on Sunday. Well done to all those who’ve worked so hard to get us looking our best. Sydney was gleaming in the months leading up to the 2000 games. Upon my return in 2006 however, shops were empty, buildings gone and you could no longer see your face in the pavements. Make the most of it London, now’s the time to see your city as never before.

And if you’ve been too busy celebrating the amazing fact that Chelsea got through to the Champions League Final with just ten men (breathe), the 30-year-old woman, Claire Squires, who collapsed and died during the London Marathon, has now posthumously raised over half a million pounds for The Samaritans. Our thoughts are with her family – may they be comforted by this amazing tribute. See more here.

100 days until the London Olympics

It’s all too much. I’m so excited by the prospect of the London Olympic Games that I think I’m going to give birth. Oh yes, I am! I’m due in a matter of weeks and this can only mean one of a few things:

1. I’m considering calling the baby Seb.
2. I’m in for a marathon not a sprint.
3. I’m not going to get to the Olympics.

Well, one of the above is definitely true. And although a new baby didn’t make any difference to my prospects of tickets, it does mean I may have more trouble getting to some of the other wonderful things going on in and around London.

So if you’re still in the camp that this headline is aimed at (London Evening Standard, yesterday), I beseech thee to wake up and smell the elixir of fun.

I know it’s not a natural thing to do. I know you have concerns. But come on people, this is the sparkle that makes life good – the times you look back on and think, bloomin’ heck that was great! Times like when you queued forever to see your first gig at Wembley Old Stadium. You got sun burnt, your bag got nicked and you missed the last train home. But you were only two people away from Prince (insert relevant idol of youth)!

Hopefully, you’ll look back on this in years to come and forget about the money stuff and remember with fond happiness the way Team GB picked up medals like they were hot cakes. And in the same way we lament the passing of 1966 in world cup football trophy terms, it’s likely to be a moment in history that doesn’t come around again any time soon. This is our greatest chance to get behind our athletes and embrace what lies ahead. C’mon!

God Save The Queen – here's something we can do well!

There are a few things that might get you in really hot water in some countries around the world. Like refusing to play for your national football team when you’re actually a star player. You might refuse because of, say, a political stance for example. And then you might have to get on a plane out of there. Not in the UK. Last year, ‘professional’ England footballer Wayne Bridge refused to play at the World Cup because his teammate John Terry had been carrying on with his wife. Just imagine if we all brought our personal lives to work.

So anyway, it must be a huge honour to be asked to attend a ‘once-in-a-lifetime’ event as a representative of your country. However, this week, John Lydon of Sex Pistols/Punk movement fame, revealed he had turned down a request to appear at the Closing Ceremony of the London Olympics. I believe and hope this is due to his ideological stance rather than the fact that performers don’t get paid as this Telegraph article suggests.

It got me thinking that there must be umpteen famous Londoners, nevermind countrymen, who could easily represent the cultural achievements of the UK. Now I don’t know that I could say the same for many other places in the world. Obviously, I’m biased, but although I don’t know any famous Qatari singers or Brazilian film stars, it’s a good feeling to think that here is one area that Great Britain can excel at globally. Even the naysayers can’t doom this, surely?! After all, it’s already been reported that rock legend Keith Richards of Rolling Stones fame has hinted of their involvement in the Ceremony.

It’s also no wonder that Daniel Craig has already been signed up to appear as James Bond at the Opening Ceremony. And although he might feel a little silly in his penguin suit, doing laps of the stadium in an Aston Martin or flying in on a high wire, I’m sure the spectacle of the event will keep him going just fine. And if that doesn’t, Craig must spare a thought for Kylie Minogue in pink sequins at Sydney 2000, being wielded by scantily clad Adonises on a giant flipflop. We can only imagine what may have been in store for Lydon.

Trenton, the oxymoron

I had an interesting conversation with my dad this weekend. He lives in Australia’s Perth, the most remote city on Earth I believe it’s called. He hadn’t yet heard about the ‘Trenton!’ incident that took place this weekend on the River Thames. It’s a stretch of the river we used to live near. I’ve never rowed it as I don’t have a death wish, but I did feel privileged (and not elitist at all) to live around there. The only thing I know is that no one goes swimming in the Thames because it is so dangerous. Just ask the London whale that ended up in Battersea that time when he took a wrong turn by Graves End.

So it was a no-brainer that the guy in a wetsuit swimming in the middle of the river as Oxford and Cambridge’s boats came through was clearly unhinged and/or a protester of sorts. I don’t want to name him as he’s had his five minutes of fame, but it does seem he has created more anxiety about protesters turning up to the Olympics and putting an end to years of preparation and desire in the blink of an eye. He was protesting about ‘elitism’ – although it probably came across as more of a dislike of Oxbridge and ‘posh’ people. Which is curious, not least because there is no money in rowing, unlike football for example. See more >

Anyway, so turns out, ‘big T’ as I shall call him, is in fact a privately educated chappie from Sydney, who has swapped ‘classless’ Australia for ye olde England. An oxymoron if ever there was one. The Cambridge captain was interviewed about their ‘win’ and he was also Australian. Apparently the crew included oarsmen of six different nationalities in total. I’m not sure who else was English, apart from the umpire maybe, who, in my humble opinion, should have stopped the race when an Oxford rower’s oar broke and made the race unfair, resulting in an ambulance being called for one of the team at the finish line. Dr Woods is now thankfully out of the woods – hope you’re feeling better.

It was the most eventful boat races in years, but with one eye on the Olympics, I think we should all be thankful no one ended up like that poor whale.

See also Trenton/Fenton mash-up as reported in Australia.

Diary entry from Sydney 2000 Opening Ceremony

Well, from where we were in the Olympic stadium, we could see a giant TV screen (Pete from Aylesbury, my housemate, actually helped to install them as part of his job). So we saw all the action, from Olivia John and John Barnes singing, Tina Arena with ‘The Flame’ song and Amorosis ‘Heroes Live Forever’, which is the bit when a giant white sheet dropped over the south stand and covered the audience, making its way to the field of play and images were projected over on to it, including athletes’ images and the dove of peace. Everyone was excited by this point to see who was going to carry the flame. The torchbearers are always kept top secret so no one knows who is going to do the biggie of lighting the cauldron until the last possible moment.

By this time, we found it hard to keep the athletes contained in their ‘pen’, with lots wanting to get out and go off to the loo. It was a long time for them to wait, some 2.5 hours on their feet and they did get restless. Then the moment came when Herb Elliott ran the torch to the stadium and five of the Aussie great athletes took turns to run it on its final lap of glory. These were all women and mainly swimmers, including Betty Cuthbert and Dawn Fraser. This was because it was 100 years of women at the games. Go girls!

And then the moment of moments came… and there was Cathy Freeman standing in a white flame resistant bodysuit – she appeared as if by magic holding the torch and she took it up to the steps of the cauldron and stood in the middle of a circle of water. I watched her live, over the athletes’ heads and my God. You could see the emotion surging over her face on the screens. Anyone who was not affected by that is not alive, but having been here since April 2000 and followed the news, politics etc, the march for reconciliation etc, I think I appreciated it all the more. For this was a statement about Australians for Australians. It will have gone over a lot of viewers’ heads. ‘Who is Cathy Freeman?’ ‘Only a silver medalist’ etc etc. Simon, a lad I work with in the Athletes’ village, said the only reason she did it was because she was Aboriginee. I said, ‘And?’ Australian politics have come a long way in just one year; people’s attitudes are changing and they need to. The backlash with the press at home (in the UK) is that the whole Opening Ceremony was more about political correctness than anything; no kangaroos on bicycles like at the handover at Atlanta which caused an uproar.

At the end I had my photo taken in the stadium and I hope they came out OK. I got separated from the girls I was stood with and ended up walking out behind Matt Shrivington (Aussie athletics hopeful), the Aussie team and then past the US Dream Team (Basketball) who were signing autographs. Apparently they are very famous! I couldn’t help thinking, is some of this wasted on me?! Anyway, I was buzzing, and got home and had to go to the pub/beach to celebrate. Didn’t get home til 6am in the morning. Who could sleep after that?! What a fantastic day!

Note from blogger:
(I should note the rest of these diary entries are recorded further back in this blog, and written by my eager 21 year old self. I’m not sure what you’ll make of it, but there’s nothing like the enthusiasm of youth, that's for sure.)

Smells like the Olympics

It’s all go on the London 2012 Olympics news front as we get enticingly nearer to the UK's BIGGEST SUMMER OF SPORT EVER. In case you’ve been too busy being bombarded by Usain Bolt ads or recovering from Sunday's early start to watch the Melbourne Grand Prix (Well done Jenson), here’s a round up of all the big Olympic stories:

1. The volunteers uniform has just been revealed, with the Mayor of London ‘apologising’ for the uniform. If you’re not a UK resident, you might not be familiar with our self-deprecating sense of humour. Right Boris?!

2. The exact times and locations of the Olympic Torch have just been revealed. I’m secretly a bit gutted as I’d booked a cottage at Land’s End the day the Torch was due to set off. But then it turned out I’d potentially be in labour that day, so that cancelled that out. Who knew the title the Mummy Olympics would actually be so apt?

3. You can see the athletes’ apartments online now. I like the fact the beds are extendable for particularly ‘long’ athletes like basketball players. I wonder if the Cubans are annoyed at being called the noisy party team whom no one wants to stay next to?