It was on the 6th of July 2005 that the organisers of London 2012 officially found out that the Olympic Games would be heading to the UK. It would be the third time that the English capital had hosted the games after the world had descended on the iconic city firstly in 1908 and then after the close of the Second World War in 1948.
A lot has changed since these early days of the world largest sporting event. The 1908 games were originally planned for Rome but a Volcano eruption scuppered their preparations and with just ten months to go before the games iconic flame would be lit London was asked to take over.
They duly agreed and in a great show of organisational skill and team work they had a new stadium built and plans in place house the many athletes (If only builders could work as fast now-a-day). The games were of course a little smaller than we see in modern times with just 22 countries taking part compared to 59 when the games returned in 1948 and the 205 that are expected to represented in London this July. The 1908 games was also the first time when athletes were paraded behind their flags at the opening ceremony.
Around 300 gold medals will be dished out during the games in sports ranging from football, basketball and hockey to diving, Greco wrestling and beach volleyball with over 10,000 athletes competing to take one back home. The USA will be hoping to overturn the 2008 games when they were trounced by China in medals table and with the like of the Michael Phelps in the pool, the Dream Team on the basketball court and strong athletics and gymnastics teams it will be hard to look past them doing just that.
The Opening Ceremony is supposed to set the tone the games with dancers, music, lights and fireworks usually the go. The ceremony for the London games has been organised by British film maker, Danny Boyle. Boyle has reportedly spent 27 million GBP on the show that will be seen by a packed stadium that can house around 62,000 people as well as millions of TV viewers around the world. The show will apparently pin point the UKs free health care system with a parade of the country’s nurses.
It will also take a look at its quinte village and farming history with sheep, cattle, picnicking families and people playing cricket on church green thought to feature heavily (a good waste of 27 million then). The exact identity of who will light the stadiums Olympic flame is still being kept under wraps. Football David Beckham was the favourite to do so but apparently refused to do so after being omitted from the GB team. It all kicks off on the 27th of July with Australia’s first golds coming in the pool just a couple of days later.
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