2008 Olympics Updates

Picking a symbol for the Olympic Spirit is the easy part. Defining the concept is also straightforward, but judging its relative standing in modern society isn’t.

The symbolic emblems of the Spirit are the Olympic torch and the Olympic flame. Lit every four years in ancient Olympia in Greece, for these Beijing Games, the flame has been on an unprecedented intercontinental journey.

China’s desire is for people everywhere to feel, live and understand its slogan “One World, One Dream”. So the torch has been to places it never had before, highlighting the inclusiveness of the Olympic Games.

If you doubt that inclusiveness, consider that there are more competing teams in Beijing than there are members of the United Nations.

The international relay of the Olympic torch was certainly controversial, with vigorous – often violent – protests in some cities, most notably London and Paris.

Dr Jacques Rogge, the President of the IOC, expressed his shock at some of the levels of violence exhibited against the torch procession, but there were also plenty of expressions of support for the torch, such as in San Francisco, most often by expatriate Chinese.

What the international torch relay showed definitively, once and for all, is that sport and politics are indivisible partners. One does not exist without the other.

From Moscow to Havana, from Washington DC to Paris, sporting glory is a symbol of national success, of progress and achievement, a matter of national pride and an indication that a country truly belongs amongst the elite of world society.

For me, the essence of the Olympic Spirit is togetherness, solidarity, understanding, compassion and participation. The Games are meant to unite, and again, as I’ve said in previous blogs, they are about establishing cultural connections.

But if I’m thinking about the Games themselves, in the here and now, the three words I’d use are multi-disciplined, marketing and money.

I’m not saying every TV viewer will analyze their reactions in such a manner, but watching great sporting achievement can lift the soul. Sporting brilliance celebrates the ascent of man and can be a common denominator for all humanity.

Those moments are also mirrored at the other end of the scale, because while we can all appreciate winners, we can also empathise with the rest, be they fourth, fifth or stone cold last.

Participation is the key, to be a part of the Olympic Games and to feel the togetherness of the biggest sporting gathering on the globe.

In Beijing, there will be more than 10,000 athletes taking part in 302 different events. That means only 906 medals are available for those thousands of competitors. The majority will have arrived here fully aware they stand no chance of winning gold, silver or bronze, but they still want to be here to take part.

Two of the most symbolic and evocative moments of Atlanta 1996 came from completely opposite ends of the spectrum.

First there was the indelible image of the American Michael Johnson, his golden shoes and upright stance sprinting to a world record in the 200 metres.

Then there was the Briton Derek Redmond pulling up injured on the home straight of the 400 metres. Almost unable to walk, his father jumped over from the spectator stands to put an arm around his son and help a tearful Redmond across the finishing line.

The white heat from the flashbulbs around the stadium was just as intense for both moments, and they are both two of the best manifestations of the Olympic Spirit.

What sums up for the Olympic Spirit for you? If you want to appear live on the show, or just have an opinion to share, email us at mygames@bbc.co.uk.

Beijing

It is quite literally the burning issue: how will they light the Olympic cauldron tonight?

It’s always the key moment of any opening ceremony (check out our photo gallery of ceremonies from years gone by here) – the one detail they keep totally hush-hush until the night itself, the iconic image designed to be remembered for years to come.

Back in the day, it was all so charmingly simple.

At the 1948 London Olympics, athlete John Mark simply jogged up to the cauldron and shoved the Olympic torch in. Whoosh. Bingo.

By Montreal in 1976, things were still relatively prosaic.

Two Canadian teenagers – one French speaker, one English speaker – did the job, the most memorable aspect being the incredible bubble perm/wafro that young Stephane Prefontaine was sporting at the time.

Those Montreal Olympics – so low-tech that, when a rainstorm put out the Olympic flame, an official re-lit it with his cigarette lighter – now seem almost laughably downbeat.

These days, the spirit of Leni Riefenstahl stalks Olympic stadiums once again.

It has to be bold. It has to be daring. It has to trump anything we’ve ever seen before.

Cast your mind back to the Games of 1988. Three torch-bearers were carried skywards on a gleaming white disk, higher and higher into the Seoul sky, like astronauts ascending into the belly of a spaceship.

It was incredible to watch – particularly for the doves who had perched on the cauldron’s lip after being released into the stadium earlier.

As the flames rose up, the scorched bodies of dove after dove plunged hundreds of feet to the ground. Never before has a television director jumped so quickly to a long-shot.

By Barcelona four years later, lessons had been learned.

Back-up plans had been put in place – which was just as well, since the burning arrow fired the length of the stadium by Paralympic archer Antonio Rebollo clearly over-shot the cauldron by some distance, sailing clean out of the stadium and into the streets beyond.

Not that you would have noticed, watching on TV. Spookily, the cauldron blazed into life regardless.

In Atlanta in ‘96, organisers provided an unusual twist by producing the highlight of the entire Olympics before the Games had even officially started.

When Muhammad Ali stepped out of the darkness to take the torch off the last relay runner, there was barely a dry eye in the house.

No matter that the pulley-system designed to carry the flame up to the cauldron then moved as jerkily as a backstage curtain at a village hall. The spell had already been cast.

Sydney 2000 saw Cathy Freeman dressed like a sacred alien, walking on water and setting light to a ring of fire that rose around her and wobbled slowly up a precipitous slope to a silver pedestal high above.

And Athens?

With the supposed final torch-bearer, Kostas Kenteris, a late pull-out after apparently falling off a motorcycle that was never seen again, it was left to windsurfer Nikolaos Kaklamanakis to stand unblinking as a giant needle descended from the heavens to an inch in front of his face and sucked the flame upwards.

This time around, rumours have been sweeping the city for days.

You might think that having Sarah Brightman singing live at the ceremony would be enough in itself.

After all, no man-made construction can ever hope to equal the awe-inspiring wonder that was Brightman’s hair/teeth combo during her late-1980s peak.

Still – incredible though it may sound, there is more.

Some have their money on something to do a traditional Chinese kite. Others are certain a terracotta warrior will have a part to play.

Some wags, with a nod to how many websites are still near-impossible to access from China, reckon a great firewall could do the job.

Personally, I’m backing the idea of a dragon being involved somehow. There’s been no mention of one appearing in any other part of the ceremony, and the fire-breathing aspect ties in beautifully.

You read it here first. But don’t blame me if it ends up featuring Monkey tennis…

Bore da guys, welcome to my first postcard from the Far East.

The excitement of an Olympic Games is finally starting to build for me as the British swim team arrived in our pre-Beijing training camp in the Japanese city of Osaka over the weekend.

Seeing the whole team in our Olympic kit on the plane over here has sparked the buzz for me – but the adrenaline really starts pumping when you check into the Olympic village and see the athletes from the other nations.

I can’t wait for that.

After months and months of gruelling training – where I swim on average 80km a week – the purpose for that intense preparation is now in touching distance.

As the Olympics draw closer, the volume of my training decreases as rest now becomes equally as important as hard-work because the last thing any athlete wants to suffer now is burn-out.

I’m now swimming about 55-60kms a week as I fine tune my preparations as I hope to better my bronze at the Athens Games four years ago.

I’ve done all of my base-work and this close to a major event I can only mess up my chances, rather than aid them so I’m not going to over-do it so I’ll be in bed sleeping as much as I’ll be in the pool here in Japan.

Luckily I’m a very chilled-out guy so it’s not hard for me to stay relaxed but this is when I need absolute focus as the Olympics is the pinnacle for any top athelete.

And the fact I’m competing in the 10k open water swim as well as the 1,500m freestyle – the event where I won bronze in 2004 – is an added reason for clarity.

The 10k has aided me in this important Olympic year, it has given me a new lease of life, freshened my approach to training and is a new challenge so I’ve no danger of becoming stale.

I’m always wary of slipping into a comfort zone and while I don’t think I did, this fresh challenge and moving my training base from Cardiff to British swimming’s HQ in Loughbrough ensures I will not switch onto auto pilot.

Top-class swimming moves on at such a fierce pace, athletes must continually keep stepping up their game otherwise they risk getting left behind – and I can ensure you I want to improve on my bronze.

I’d like to thank my 606 friends for their sack-ful of questions and interest in my preparations for this year’s Olympics.

Here’s a few that I’ve answered this week.

comment by tjs_87: When I race I feel sick and everything hurts which I never used to experience before I quit, even when I used to do 1500m races. I am training everyday with another sports team so I know it’s not just due to a complete lack of fitness. I was wondering if you ever experience this and if so how do you deal with it?

When you push your body to its physical limit, somethimes it makes you sick. I’ve been sick a few times in training and it’s all science as lactic acid builds up in your body and heart-rate is racing. Being sick is sometimes part of stepping up your fitness. You’ve got to do it so your training is the same intensity as you’d experience in a race.

comment by Droitrob: Having read about the funding now being aimed at the swimmers and the gearing up to 2012, what would you say to someone who comes along and asks you about the British failure to win a sack full of medals?

Britain is competing against the whole of the world. In the grand scheme of things we’re a very small nation, up against much more populated countries who have massive funding, great coaches and amazing athletes.

Swimming is a massive sport and a tough environment so getting to the final is an incredible achievement. I know the British public want medals and we’ll try our best to win them but for every winner there is a lot of nearly-men who have come very close. I can assure you British swimmers are training hard and will give it everything.

comment by lairdtim: What would have meant the most to you – an Olympic gold or Cardiff City winning the FA Cup? (No sitting on the fence please!)

I’ve been a City fan since I was a kid but I’ve got to be selfish and say a gold medal. I’ve watched the Olympic since I was young and the prestige of the event is massive. The bronze I won in Athens in 2004 means the world to me and that day was the best day of my life. The rings, the flame, the glory – winning gold would mean everything to me and although I would’ve liked Cardiff to win the cup, the self-satisfaction I’d gain from winning gold in Beijing just tips the balance.

comment by HamchesterUnited: I just have one quick question about the “Water Cube” in Beijing. Have you seen the ceiling? Do you think this will be a problem for the Backstroke swimmers?

I haven’t seen the ceiling but the back-stroke guys are well practised outdoors where there’s no ceiling so I’m sure they could cope. I know the atmsophere inside will be electric and it’ll be a pleasure to swim inside the cube.

comment by medina14: Do you feel that the open water swimming has altered your stroke mechanics? I have noticed some differences from the Athens bronze performances. I know swimming open water can have a drastic effect on pool technique and I do feel that these differences have decreased the technical “smoothness” of the stroke you had?

My stroke hasn’t changed; the stroke rhythm, tempo and technique hasn’t changed. All of my training is done in the pool and my training hasn’t altered at all as I train for the 1,500m. For the 10k I don’t prepare for it, I just turn up on the day.

comment by kingslandroar: Do you iPod pre race? And if so which of the great Welsh bands do you like?

Yeah I’m always listening to my iPod. I just updated it before I left home with some fast dance stuff to get me pumped up like Chemical Brothers etc. I listened to Eminem’s ‘Lose Yourself’ to pump myself up before the 2004 Athens Olympic final. The lyrics really got me going and I’ll probably listen to that again in Beijing. I love indie music so there’s some Stereophonics, Oasis etc on my iPod too.