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Published: August 14th 2012
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A day at the Olympic park was certainly a day to remember. This summer, London has been buzzing with Olympic fever in every corner. Needless to say I was very excited to be part of it, and heading to the games themselves.
With tickets in hand, I went with my Mum to the Olympic park in Stratford. The journey was fine and not overcrowded. Previously there had been many concerns over the transport capabilities of London, in particular the London Underground, but in my experience, it was fine.
The heroic army were there upon arrival at the park to do the security checks before we went into the park itself. The Olympic stadium was directly in front, behind a giant welcome gate and to the side was the oddly shaped orbit which is a viewing platform. We spent a while wandering the long park, crossing over the river running through it a couple of times. The flowers all around had been especially chosen to bloom at the time of the Olympics. It all looked very impressive. There were official London 2012 merchandise stores, food stands, a pin swap shop, and some other commercial stands. At random moments, entertainers would
perform in the open spaces around the park and music was played over loud speakers. We saw the media centre, copper box, basketball arena, velodrome, aquatics centre, and heard screams from the riverside hockey arena, until it was our turn to watch some sport!
We had tickets for water polo, and this year the water polo competition had its own arena. We had great seats at the centre of the pool and were treated to two exciting games of this rough sport. First up were Australia and Italy who fought out a close game, Italy coming out victorious. Second game involved the world champions Serbia and the Olympic champions Hungary, so there was a very strong rivalry. This was definitely the more aggressive game. The referee can only really see what goes on above the surface of the water, but those underwater cameras reveal a lot more aggression beneath the surface! It was great to watch such high-class sport and their strength and skills were very impressive, even if they were a bit rough! Luckily there were lots of Hungarian and Serbian supporters in the crowd, which made the atmosphere very exciting! It was a tense game, but Serbia
came out victorious. Despite this, the Hungarians were the most lively crowd, singing and dancing together as we came out of the arena, in the true spirit of the games! Proud Hungarians uniting together for the crowds in London. Even though they lost the game, they had a great time!
Once we had left the water polo arena we went to watch some of the BBC coverage on the giant screen in the Olympic park. Once again there was a great atmosphere because everyone was enjoying watching the same thing, no matter where they were from or how old they were, everyone was there to enjoy the games. We saw Rebecca Adlington win a bronze medal in the 400m freestyle, so of course everyone was cheering her on! The gold medal went to a young Lithuanian girl (Meilutyte) and it just so happened that there was a couple from Lithuania next to us, so as we cheered, they cheered and we congratulated each other. That kind of thing doesn't happen very often, but it is nice when you all have something in common and you can celebrate with strangers.
For me, one of the great things I experienced
during the games was the friendliness and sportsmanship of everyone. Even though on the sports field there was competitiveness and rivalry, everywhere else, it was just a celebration of world sport. I really felt that as the essence of the games, and it was real.
I was sad to leave the park, after having been immersed in world class sport and Olympic buzz for the whole day! I just wanted to keep coming back for more! The slogan for the Olympics was “Inspire a generation” and I think it was certainly living up to that. It is very inspiring to watch all those athletes over so many disciplines. It is hard not to be inspired!
JHG
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Dancing Dave
David Hooper
BUT ONCE EVERY 4 YEARS
The Olympics...but once every 4 years...different country each time...and you can tell your grandkids one day "I went to the Olympics"...thanks for sharing.