The Olympic Legacy

[Meenzer 15716]

Legacy-wise, avoiding this kind of thing will be a start:

 

http://www.flavorwire.com/318267/fascinating-photos-of-abandoned-olympic-sites?all=1

[sammynb 3508]

• Make the UK a world-leading sporting nation
  
• Transform the heart of the East End of London
  
• Inspire a generation of young people to take part in local volunteering, cultural, and physical activity
  
• Make the Olympic Park a blueprint for sustainable living
  
• Demonstrate the UK is a creative, inclusive, and welcoming place to live in, visit, and for business
  

Living in a city that experienced the high of hosting an Olympics Games now 12 years ago it's interesting to read the five promises for London.

If you were to change UK to Australia and East End London to Homebush, Sydney the list is identical to what was the aims and goals of here.

And for about four years Sydney rode on the crest of the success as host and competitor - even to the point of excitement that Athens may fail in their preparations and Sydney could step up once more to host the 2004 Summer Games.

But then as time passes people forget, the sporting nation finds itself not as competitive as it thought it was.

The Olympic Village transforms to just another suburb filled with people grinding away to survive.

The volunteers, stop volunteering - the amount of "officials" shirts one would see on people walking the streets was phenomenal for a few years after the event but then people just stopped wearing them.

Inevitably things return to the same.

[sammynb 3508]

Legacy-wise, avoiding this kind of thing will be a start:

 

http://www.flavorwir...pic-sites?all=1

 

Including a post war Sarajevo is a bit harsh.

[Meenzer 15716]

Including a post war Sarajevo is a bit harsh.

 

Makes the others look really bad by comparison mind.

[luckyluke 2]

I've got to say that I don't think the games are going to really change London or the nation. Whatever national characteristics we have that separate us from other nations (if they exist) are based on years, decades, centuries of circumstance and habit. You simply cannot change this with a two week sporting tournament.

[Howmanheyman 33823]

I'm not sure if Chez is on the wind up with this thread and about to blow some unsuspecting average Joe Poster out the water with some economical insight he has but I'll raise my head up from the trench and say, 'The Olympics? So what?' What on earth difference has it made to anyone on here? If people enjoyed the Olympics then good for them and well done to the athletes as well but I personally couldn't give a fuck about it, not cos it's cool to be cynical or whatever, it just had no impact on my life whatsoever, I'm not into watching other sports and I just love the media telling me how I now feel and how proud I am etc. It's all spin for me, London? I care as much of the place as it cares for me. Coe will live off this for years and every politician will claim credit and talk an equal amount of shit about it.

 

Legacy?

 

Don't be fucking stupid.

 

All the fucking half wits tuning in to Essex, Geordie shore, Jeremy Kyle, Big Brother and Noels house party will continue to do so. The majority of people who don't watch it will continue to ignore these shows. Life will go on and the media will switch their attentions elsewhere. This was the 'in' thing, now it's not.

Edited August 14, 2012 by Howmanheyman

[ChezGiven 0]

I think these sort of events do have the power to change people (who make up a country, so I'll let you do the maths) but I was really just wondering if the event revealed a bit more about the national character. Maybe not but that national character is an elusive topic, only Meenzer has suggested an element of that character probably because it is so hard to pin down.

 

The other point was about the Scottish referendum is fairly boring but if the general reaction on here is so what, that puts the passion shown by the crowds during the games in an interesting light at least.

[ewerk 31195]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-19246044

 

54% believe that the Olympics will have a short term effect on the UK. I agree.

[JawD 99]

People saying footballers and fans should take an example from the Olympics. To me people who say that dont understand football.

[Gemmill 46018]

People saying footballers and fans should take an example from the Olympics. To me people who say that dont understand football.

 

Roy Hodgson said it.

 

People who say it about fans don't, but the footballers could definitely take a leaf out of the athlete's book. Particularly the perennially under performing national team who complain about how bored they are at World Cups.

 

If you're that fucking bored, here's an idea: practice some penalties, you cunts. Or finding a team mate with a pass.

 

Edited August 15, 2012 by Gemmill

[wykikitoon 20712]

Also stop complaining about being tired, you do a fucking part-time job you fucking fannies!

[LoveTheBobby 1]

"I'm a huge fan of all of our Olympians but I struggle to understand the low opinion most people have towards footballers. -- michael owen (@themichaelowen)"

 

To be fair to him he seems to be engaging in debate since posting this but the fact he came out with it initially proves how most of them just don't get it .

[Gemmill 46018]

Some of those Olympians actually apologised for picking up silver medals ffs. Full of grief at the fact that they could only be the second best in the world, and couldn't deliver gold to an expectant public/backroom team.

 

Meanwhile Michael Owen leads a team to relegation and just disappears into the ether. Not a word out of him until he turns up in a Manchester United shirt.

 

What a clueless prick.

[Park Life 71]

I think these sort of events do have the power to change people (who make up a country, so I'll let you do the maths) but I was really just wondering if the event revealed a bit more about the national character. Maybe not but that national character is an elusive topic, only Meenzer has suggested an element of that character probably because it is so hard to pin down.

 

The other point was about the Scottish referendum is fairly boring but if the general reaction on here is so what, that puts the passion shown by the crowds during the games in an interesting light at least.

 

Are you loosely talking about hope and national identity and so on....?

[ChezGiven 0]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-19246044

 

54% believe that the Olympics will have a short term effect on the UK. I agree.

One of the points of that article is to highlight how little vision people have. Lord Coe has vision and is probably one of the 36% who believes it will have a long term impact. In a random sample of 2000 people, half of them will be below average intelligence.

[Gemmill 46018]

46% surely?

 

And aye, Coe is a smug cunt (deservingly atm), but I think he's one bloke you can trust with the Legacy Ambassador role.

[Gemmill 46018]

Ah sorry, I see there was a third option.

[ewerk 31195]

I'd say the half with lower than average intelligence are more likely to be riding the Olympic wave of optimism.

[LoveTheBobby 1]

Some of those Olympians actually apologised for picking up silver medals ffs. Full of grief at the fact that they could only be the second best in the world, and couldn't deliver gold to an expectant public/backroom team.

 

Meanwhile Michael Owen leads a team to relegation and just disappears into the ether. Not a word out of him until he turns up in a Manchester United shirt.

 

What a clueless prick.

 

He seemed to then go down the route that it is because footballers are always in the public eye and athletes not so .

 

The Olympic standard cunt .

[ChezGiven 0]

Like before the Olympics when everyone thought it was going to be shit? Those people?

[PaddockLad 17643]

Ask Owen if he's proud of how he played Jan-May 2009 and he may get a moment of enlightenment. What a fuckin cunt.

[ewerk 31195]

Like before the Olympics when everyone thought it was going to be shit? Those people?

 

Everyone?

[Park Life 71]

Coe is part of the establishment. Top uni, middle class background etc..His 'vision' is going to be very different from the average Joe in most cases. The O were a very energising and uplifting event, I certainly enjoyed them (especially cause we won a lot of golds), but the impact will be short term. If there is a boost it will be for the next gen of athletes if there is proper follow up. As a spectacle it will soon be forgotten and replaced by the next entertainment hiatus.

 

The long term gains will be with the branding exercise and the multinationals (the whole thing about McDonalds chips/fries notwithstanding). The subtext will remain one of corporate alliances with the state as the circus moves onto the next victim host country.

 

All meaning is lost when put through the prism of nationhood.

[ChezGiven 0]

 

 

Everyone?

People's perceptions changed massively from before to after the event according to the poll. My point is simple, people in general don't have the sort of vision required to see how things will turn out. Having broad insightful strategic vision is not a common characteristic otherwise we'd all be CEOs.

[PaddockLad 17643]

He seemed to then go down the route that it is because footballers are always in the public eye and athletes not so .

 

The Olympic standard cunt .

 

He didnt need to do adverts before major championships he appeared in, that may have kept him out of the public eye....developing a stable of horses and inviting skysports to a tour around it to publicise it may have been a bad move for the shy, retiring Michael too. Plenty of brilliant footballers are virtually anonamous...Paul Scholes springs to mind, and a lot of the foreign players seem well balanced people too, but honestly, if self delusion was an Olympic sport Owen would be in the Michael Phelps category.