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In a recent poll conducted by the London Daily News 51 per cent of the respondents said they were totally against the 2012 games, in just two weeks London will be put on "Olympic footing" with only 1460 days left to complete Europe's largest ever regeneration project. Many things need to change one being London need's to stop looking at cost alone but look at the legacy the 2012 games will leave, John Kaponi looks at the experiences of Athens 2004 and how London has to start thinking "Olympics" to succeed. By John Kaponi Today London will begin the stop clock on the 2012 games with the the opening of the 2008 Beijing Games which is being heralded by the IOC as one of the most spectacular games to date. Our city at the end of August will be put on "Olympic City" footing and life as we know will change. It’s hard to see any type of enthusiasm for the 2012 games in the capital given the barrage of negative reports from the media, and the failure of the organising committee to date to create a "goodwill factor" amongst the public. The cost of the games will continue to be an issue of concern for every Londoner given the apparent spiraling costs, today we are preparing ourselves for a bill of £8 billion, but many sources including Assembly Members and other politicians believe we will exceed £20 billion by 2012.
Athens is the example that should be used as a compare and contrast to London. When the games were awarded to Athens the whole Greek nation were enthused and exuberant that the games which began in Greece were returning home, in London the day after we won the games British Muslims killed 55 innocent people. Despite the reports of "white elephants" stadium and venues in Greece, ask any Athenian how proud they were of the achievement of the Greek Olympic Committee being able to say to the world that the 2004 games were well organised and the legacy for Athens? A new subway, a new airport, civic pride a sports legacy for Greek youth, but this all cost the Greek taxpayer financially around £6 billion. London will need to change its attitude towards the games and the ODA and the other bodies including City Hall need to include alot more groups to make the games in London a success. Grass root sports needs to be invested into and stories that running tracks are being left to deteriorate in the capital is absolutely unacceptable. Today sees the ODA announce to London an initiative to invite visits to the building site were the Olympics will be staged with the ODA Chief Executive David Higgins saying: “This is a great opportunity for local people to see first hand how this neglected and contaminated part of London is being transformed into a new urban park that will house world class sporting venues for the London 2012 Games and legacy. It is very important to us to keep local people up-to-date with progress on the Park and consult them on our work. There is nothing like seeing with your own eyes how much this area is changing as venues start coming out of the ground. I hope this will become an annual day out for local families as the excitement builds right up to the 2012 Games.” London needs to understand that the Olympics is something that can inspire generations of young people, unite the nation and be a great advert for Great Britain plc. photo credit: Beijing 2008
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