Although I was interested in the idea of the Olympics, I wasn't all that fussed about tickets. So when she applied and failed to get any, I wasn't too fussed although we are both now seething at the masses of empty seats. Tickets you/we could have had.
With her job though, she was very lucky to be invited to the opening ceremony rehearsal although she refused to divulge any of its contents to me. She is also at the gymnastics today.
With this in mind we sat down to watch the opening ceremony. We watched every second of it and she got to wave the flag I bought her. I was also in charge of "snacks". We needed them as we didn't miss a second.
I was transfixed. I still don't really care much for sport, however it was with huge emotion and pride that we watched Danny Boyle's vision of the UK unfold in front of the eyes of the waiting world.
I only have two caveats and they probably say more about me than being a problem with the games.
1) I remember as a boy the teams marching into the stadium, smartly dressed, in step. Proud and yet respectful. Instead we got what looked like the cast of "The Only Way Is Essex" out on the lash Friday night, chewing gum, waving video cameras and phones and yelling "hello mum" into the TV cameras.
2) Why do we make impossible demands on our athletes? Commentators spend hours agonising over their form and building unrealistically high expectations, then when they limp in seventh we are disappointed. I thought one of the basic tenets of the Olympics was "it's not the winning it's the taking part".
We should remember we are British and are hosting the best games in history. (This from a non-sport type person.)
When the Italians won the archery, beating the U.S into second place, I logged onto an American chatroom. It was full of vile anti-Italian abuse.
Err excuse me pea-brains. It's sport. They were better on the day. Get over it!
2 comments:
You should be in the Government, Alex, your comments are so sensible and what most people are thinking. Its like Steve Redgrave not being happy at lighting the cauldron - was it not nicer that young people got a chance to be involved.....
Bravo! As was said when Team GB were relegated back to Bronze in the gymnastics, it's all about sportsmanship and getting the medals you deserve and not triumphing over the competition by a mistake in marking.
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