The Olympics brought a buzz do the whole of Great Britain. People were smiling. Post Boxes were turning gold. The country was glued to the fantastic BBC coverage. These athletes presented exceptional role models to everyone and many contrasted them to the pampered overpaid modern footballers. Everywhere you looked there were stories to be told, such as the first Saudi Arabian female competitor to personal stories such as Tom Daley's strength to take bronze after losing his dad in 2011. London 2012 offered so many incredible moments that means it is incredibly difficult to single out favourites. I asked the question on Twitter and it seems other people feel the same way. Tom McMinigal stated, "The most amazing thing about the games for me is that from our perspective there's been so many amazing individual stories".
Hannah Dunnett (@dunzel123) suggested that her top three moments included, Tom Daley diving to win bronze, Federer's dignity in defeat versus Murray and also when a boy from the crowd asked for a hug from Andy Murray. Jo Hopewell (@lilHopewell) said her favourite moments also included Tom Daley, the many rowing medals and Mo Farah's golds. Each of these moments and many more are drenched in a glitter that has captivated the eyes of the public. Moments of magic that have inspired a nation to participate in sport.
"The Olympic Spirit is neither the property of one race nor of one age." Pierre de Coubertin, founder of the Modern Olympic GamesNonetheless, the athletes were not the only winners at the 2012 Olympics. London was showcased unbelievably through the various venues. The opening ceremony and track and field events created iconic moments that will go down in history. The Beach volleyball in the historic horseguards parade, races finishing on infront of Buckingham Palace, horses galloping through luscious British gardens and of course the phenomenal Olympic park. This was a phenomenal advertisement for London and Britain.
View of beach volleyball from the London Eye
Here is a selection of my favourite moments of the London 2012 Olympics:
Jessica Ennis
The poster girl of the Olympics overcomes the pressure of the nation upon her and takes gold in style in the women's heptathlon.
An incredible story that shows the wonderful modern multicultural Britain. Farah grabs two golds to ensure everyone is doing the Mobot.
Kenyan, Rudisha, smashes the world record in the 800m in style. Also seems like an incredibly nice guy when interviewed.
The 18 year old, Plymouth diver, holds his nerve to secure a phenomenal bronze and celebrates with his team by jumping in the pool.
The moment she qualified for her Judo semi-final was goosebump making. The crowd roared as Gemma looked up to the sky and mouthed "I love you Mum", who sadly passed away when Gemma was a teenager.
Usain Bolt
This guy personifies coolness and confirmed his legend status with three gold medals. Entertaining whenever the cameras are on him. Bolt has done wonders to inspire youngsters into running.
After three successive silvers in previous Olympic games, Grainger finally secured that Gold she had been after for so long. This was followed by an emotional hug with Olympic legend, Sir Steve Redgrave.
I could go on and on with the individual stories, Chris Hoy, Bradley Wiggins, Laura Trott, Victoria Pendleton, Louis Smith, Beth Tweddle, Greg Rutherford, the rowers, the kayaker's and Andy Murray all provided moments to smile, be proud, inspire and motivate. Everyone was tuning into sports they had never watched before, became experts on dressage, tweeted messages to athletes. This was the social media games with more than 150 million tweets being recorded during the games. The public became citizen journalists in the heart of the action, uploading images and stories to Facebook, tweeting messages and 'instagramming' moments they'll remember forever.
"When our time came, we did it right. Britain, thank you."
Lord Sebastian Coe at the Opening Ceremony
London 2012 was a celebration of positivity and peace. As the Olympic charter states that the aim of the games is, “using non-discriminatory sport to educate the globe’s citizens on values of peace, justice, mutual understanding and international friendship”. I think it's fair to say it achieved this aim. Sport provided a vehicle to bring people together as well as inspiring generations. A legacy left for a bright future.
If only the Olympics could be a yearly thing.
What were your favourite moments of the games? Tell me by leaving a comment below.
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