The Olympics: Faster, higher and stronger
Fireworks ignite over the Olympic Stadium during the Opening Ceremony for the London 2012 Olympic Games on July 27, 2012 at Olympic Park in London, England.
What you need to know:
- Lost keys, wrong flags, a man winning a women’s race: The Olympics, which close on Sunday, are much about the determination to excel as they are about certain flaws of the human race
A billion people, that is a seventh of humanity, are following a clash of idealism, nationalism and sporting glory in some action fest called the Olympic Games.
The Games have made their return to England for the third time in 60 years, but the world’s greatest sporting spectacle has never been controversy free in that time span.
Even now.
Take the women’s soccer match between Colombia and North Korea that was delayed for one hour. Reason? An introductory video before the match featured the South Korean flag.
In another women’s soccer duel against South Africa, Japan’s coach Norio Sasaki instructed the players not to score in the second half. Reason? A 0-0 draw would allow them to remain in Cardiff for their quarterfinal match.
And, there are virtually no unsold tickets, but seats are empty.
Meanwhile, outside the Olympic venues, touts are selling tickets that were meant for sponsors and national Olympic associations.
But the indefatigable London Olympics Organising Committee chairman, Lord Coe, told journalists, from one side of the mouth that the Olympics were “stuffed to the gunwales”.
And what comes from the other? Talk of recruiting the military and students to fill the empty seats.
The “mother of all cock ups,” though, is an official who lost the £40,000 (Sh5.2 million) laser keys to Wembley Stadium.
Then there was the chutzpah by Dr Ian McCurdie, the British Olympic Association’s chief medical officer who warned British athletes not to shake hands with their foreign counterparts lest they contracted diseases.
Britons ignored McCurdie, but raised hell over the Games’ logo that has been likened to a Swastika, sexual act and pro-Israeli propaganda, besides allegedly causing 200 epileptic seizures.
The logo, with its shades of blue, green, orange and pink in 1980 typeface is shaped to represent 2012. It was designed by brand consultants Wolff Olins for £400, 000 (Sh56 million).
Attached, is a timeline of Olympic sideshows that took gold as Allen Guttman informs us in his 2002 effort, A History of the Olympic Games:
