Well have to say despite the usual British pessimism London 2012 seems to have been a success on many fronts. The venues, organisation and volunteer effort all seem to have gone really well. The security has also been fine with thankfully no major incidents.

The great was:-

• The sport. Apart from team GB which was immense, the Jamaican Sprinters, David Rushida and the USA Women´s sprint relay. I hope France winning the mountain bike race will make them feel a little less bitter about GB´s total domination of track cycling. Clearly it is those “extra round” wheels – of French origin…………
• The venues. Beautiful, built on time and worked well.
• The organisation was generally excellent and especially when the security put back on track that ran like a well oiled machine exclusively thanks to our superb armed forces once rid of the shambolic GS4. If GS4 gets paid a penny (of profit) it will be a national disgrace – £57M for what exactly ?
• The volunteers, public services (Police, NHS, Fire) and all the military. Simply the best. Well done all.

The mediocre

• The jobs worth official who insisted on Bolt returning the relay baton! It was the final and last event of the athletics just what did he think they needed it back for?

The bad.

• The ticketing web site. Simply shocking. An object lesson in how not to do it especially at what´s supposed to be the first truly digital Olympics.
• And as much as Lord Seb Coe and company are to be massively congratulated on organising and delivering a simply splendid Olympics it does stick slightly in the throat to see talk of “Zil” Lanes and the celebrities (and their children) in, presumably complimentary, seats at multiple hot ticket events when everyone else struggled so badly. So sadly the preferential treatment offered by rank, privilege and accident of birth long not dead in Britain. Just my opinion and overall much, much more to praise than criticise.

 862 total views,  1 views today