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Published: July 29th 2015
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The overground train paused for a minute or two, as it waited for a platform outside Stratford Station, East London. The Olympic Stadium loomed on one side of the train, the Westfield Centre on the other. It didn’t seem 3 years ago that we were arriving for our first taste of Olympic London 2012 action. We had been in the vicinity more recently, but only to exploit the competitive rates available from the nearby Travelodge. The legacy of the Olympics has created a glut of accommodation options in the Stratford area.
It was early, but the train was busy. The Central Line approach was no doubt similar. The enthusiasm to see the new upgrades to the Stadium and the remains of the Olympic park was an opportunity being embraced by the masses. The weather looked like it would be kinder than the previous evening. It had rained cats and dogs. The pole vault had been postponed until this afternoon. Despite the weather, the Friday night crowd had got the dream ticket with both Mo Farah and the Lightening Bolt in action. The roof had kept the crowd dry, so on balance they got the better deal.
The train moved into Stratford Station and we alighted. We emerged from the station area near Marks & Spencer. It all looked familiar, but the route seemed much more constricted than it had at the Olympics. Maybe it was the mind playing tricks? The crowd was funnelled through the open perimeters of the Westfield Centre. A West Ham shop had popped up to allow “fans” to select their seats in their new home from 2016 / 2017 onwards for a small consideration. It appeared to be doing brisk business. A healthy percentage of the small children running around with their parents were dressed in the complete West Ham kits. How times change? The West Ham shop and others were possibly grateful of the extra footfall in front of their shops. The middle class athletics fans and those looking for a way to entertain the kids in the summer holidays probably make good customers. They might be less impressed next year, when a few football rivalries are played out along the shopping concourse.
We snaked past John Lewis and emerged into a bottle neck near the Olympic Aquatics Centre. The building looked much different without it’s seating
extensions that were only a temporary addition for the Olympic capacity. The outer cordon of security was not in place for the Sainsburys Anniversary Games. A few cameramen were filming generic crowd scenes. The Sainsburys helpers were making sure everybody knew where they were going. We paused to eat our lunch. It had been a long morning and I didn’t fancy losing the sandwiches to an over zealous security person on the gate. The entry procedure was in fact very relaxed. The usual conditions were in force and summarily ignored. No professional cameras allowed and a “professional” camera was deemed anything over a 70 mm lense. I left my SLR behind, but was not surprised to see at least 3 long lense models within 10 feet of our seats.
We were in the cheap seats in the upper tier behind the goal. I was pleasantly pleased by the view. It gave us a fighting chance with the home straight and also the long jump pit. The seats were far superior to our lower tier seat at the Olympics. The stadium was fairly full. The man with the PA announced a sell-out, although there was plenty of space
low down by the finish line. The visual impact of the Olympic Stadium is unchanged. The reality apparently is that the only remaining section of the original structure is the upper tier. The roof has been extended with a clear structure, the floodlights have been inverted into the new roof sections and the bottom tier has some form of retractable seating. You don’t seem to get a lot of change from £280 million. However, West Ham seem to have got a lot for their contribution of a mere £15 million. The other half announced she wouldn’t want to watch football there. I think she was referring to the sight lines, but it could have been aimed at West Ham. She remains scarred from a trip to Turin’s Stadio del Apli.
The athletics was live on TV. Gabby Logan was holding court with Scram et al near the hospitality area, standing out in her bright yellow attire. The star of the Saturday show was the return of Jessica Ennis-Hill, who was competing in both the long jump and 200 metres. The meeting was a warm up for to prove how competitive she could be in the upcoming World
Championships, after her maternity break. The crowd roared an Olympic champion, but victory against specialists in the events was always going to be elusive. She seemed encouraged and displayed a broad smile for the cameras. Santander were probably equally pleased with the publicity exposure. Shara Procter broke the GB long jump national record to claim victory. The other GB gold medal star, Greg Rutherford, looked out of sorts in the majority of the Long Jump competition. The PA kept reminding us that he had built a long jump run up and pit in his back garden to aid his preparations, so we went home happy knowing that he had a lengthy back garden. David Rudisha and Nigel Amos resumed their 2012 rivalry in the 400 metres with a different result. The star of the afternoon was undoubtedly to new sprinting hope, Dina Asher Smith, who edged under 11 seconds in the 100 metres heats to lower the GB national record. She has certainly grasped the 2012 opportunity, after carrying athletes clothes from the start line during the Olympics.
The athletics came to a close and we retreated back past the bottleneck by the Aquatics Centre.
It was all calm. The crowd was patient. We ducked into John Lewis to the 2
nd floor viewing window, which looks over the Olympic Park. The end bench was already occupied by 3 guys with clip boards, binoculars and stop watches – studying intently the crowd movement and the evacuation of the stadium concourse area. It will probably be a similar experience when the Rugby World Cup comes to town, but I bet they were writing their warnings for when the happy Hammers take up residence.
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Dancing Dave
David Hooper
Exquisite
Not quite sure what this is...No...I've got no idea what this is. No matter...it's pretty sensational. And if it's Olympic...yep...caught me!