This review has
sat as a draft for a while as the website was just about to get the green light
- and here we are!
Wow is the first
word that comes to mind and is usually adequate for describing the greatest
show on earth!
So, did we do
it???
100% and with a
legacy that will inspire millions for many years to come, both on and off of
the athletic field.
I managed to get
tickets for weightlifting 85kg and 105kg Gold medals and Taekwondo
80kg Gold medals. It was a very surreal experience sitting
there among the crowds and then realising that you are actually at
the Olympic Games. Something I have always watched on TV for as many
years as I can remember and being inspired by the greats
and their fantastic achievements! I have cast iron memories of too many people
to name, right back from when I can first remember developing an interest in
sport - possibly the 1980 Moscow games when I would have been just 5. Many of
the greats such as Carl Lewis, Ed Moses, Sergei Bubka, Haile Gebrselassie, Flo-Jo, Heike
Drechsler, Petra Felke, Saïd Aouita. Far
too many to remember and do justice to. There were the controversies - Ben
Johnson, Zola Budd and Mary Decker, Marion Jones and even a kick to the
Taekwondo Ref in Beijing. Most of all it is the glory of seeing the best in the
world perform something magical in front of the crowd. That is what the games
are about and that is their legacy.
So how did London do? Most of my events were at London
Excel as this hosted weightlifting and Taekwondo. I was very lucky to get these
tickets as I now compete in and teach weightlifting and I have done
Taekwondo since the age of 10 and taught for 15 years in London. I
was 3 rows back for the first 85kg group and it was certainly something to be a
part of the crown. Nothing compares to the atmosphere of actually being there
and being a part of it.
The 105 group unfortunately had its 2 superstars
missing - Klokov and Akkaev and then Dolega bombed his 3 snatches so not the
best group I am afraid. And going to the best group I have to say that Ilya
Ilyin of Kazakhstan is possibly one the most dynamic lifters I have
ever seen - putting up a total that would have won Gold in the weight group
above him! There was something about the confidence with which he approached
his lifts. No preparation or ritual to set up - just grab, pull and smile.
Very good to watch over and over again.
The Taekwondo had an amazing atmosphere and one thing
about the games is that the crowd get behind everyone regardless of the nation.
They were simply excited to be there and wanted everyone to do their
best. I was very impressed with our Bronze medalist and also
the Korean Gold medalist in the
-67kg, Fantastic technician and very skillful.
Having watched many of the medals on the TV I was
desperate to get a real sense of the action at the Olympic Park, but was unable
to get a day pass until the very end. We got some for the Saturday just before
the closing ceremony and also Orbit tickets for that evening - just after
sunset. I don't think it is possible to capture the scale of the park
without being there. It is enormous - almost like a small city. The
crowds were also enormous, but not excessive and you hardly had to queue or
wait for anything - food, toilets, photo opportunities. The atmosphere was very
special with everyone smiling right through from the organisers,
helpers, police, military and the athletes we managed to find.
The Orbit was a must- just to say we had done it
during the games as after would not be the same. We also expected to see part
of the stadium and got to see 2 medal ceremonies and possibly Usain
Bolt doing his lap of honour after the 4 x 100m finals. The sheer scale of the
stadium can only be appreciated from the inside and I will actually get there
as I have a ticket for the opening ceremony of the Paralympic games,
along with another Excel visit for my good friend Ali Jawad, our medal hopeful
in the powerlifting 56kg class - "the bench" to most of you!
For pictures of the entire park please check the link
below -
As a weightlifter you kind of hope that
you will bump into a champion at the park as after all this is the
Olympics!
While sitting on a bench opposite the stadium watching
my son roll down the grass bank I spotted an absolute hulk of a guy walking
along towards the stadium entrance. It was none other than Matthias Steiner -
Gold medalist from Beijing!
The Olympics embodies something very special - the
ultimate demonstration of human ability in sport and achievement. These role
models in life go through something that most of us could never image. Think of
the hardest workout you have had in your life. Now double it
and repeat it up to twice a day, several times per week. They are
finely tuned machines that know of little limits mentally and physically and
strive for perfection in many areas of live. Not everyone can take on this way
of life which is evident by only several thousand athletes making the games
from a population of billions.
Love it or hate it, the Olympics for me was
a huge success and will inspire millions to take the initial step of
improving their fitness and well being. You do not need to be an Olympic
athlete to train; you just need to make that conscious decision to want to be
better than you are now and then take the positive action to do something about
it.
If you are serious about taking the first steps to a
better lifestyle then the link below will do the job. I have just finished
arranging public kettlebell workshops across much of the south and east of
England so that people like you can better understand how to take
personal responsibility for your fitness and make lasting
and lifelong changes to your health and fitness -
In Strength and
Health!
