London takes on Olympic mantle with quirky party

By STUART CONDIE, AP Sports Writer 6 hours, 46 minutes ago

LONDON (AP)—Pop stars, choirs, dancing policemen and a boisterous singalong to “We Are The Champions.” After the orderly precision of the Beijing Olympics, organizers gave the world a first look Sunday at what they hope will be the fun of London 2012.

About 40,000 flag-waving people gathered in front of Buckingham Palace for a party to celebrate the hand over from Beijing, as the British capital got its first chance to show what it hopes will be a quirky, personal and fun approach to the games.

As music played from a huge stage erected next to the ornate gates of Queen Elizabeth II’s official London residence, even the police indulged in a brief, embarrassed dance when invited to by the master of ceremonies—a sight difficult to imagine in China.

The spectacle was short of the scale and coordination that has wowed athletes, officials and fans alike in Beijing over the past two weeks. But in terms of conveying what London has to offer to visitors when the Olympics arrives, the show did its job. Even the summer weather lived up to its reputation, providing warm sunshine and cooling showers in equal measure.

“Every city has had its big twist on the games, what they have that’s different to every other county,” said swimming star Michael Phelps, who was at the London show. “The Olympic movement is about bringing the world together. I’m not sure what that difference will be but I’m looking forward to seeing what it is and how this city develops.”

London organizers have long known they would be unable to match Beijing in terms of scale, not least because London’s Olympic budget is less than half of its predecessor’s.

But Sunday’s show—with its occasional awkward pauses, high spirits and relentless audience participation for dance-offs, competitions and the wave— suggested London is set on providing a total contrast to what has been described as Beijing’s “no-fun games.”

Even if that means mustering self-deprecating laughter at its shortcomings.

“We will draw on our wit, flair, imagination and ingenuity to build on what we’ve all witnessed in Beijing and deliver a fantabulous Olympics in what I consider to be not only my home, but the home of sport,” London mayor Boris Johnson said from Beijing. “Sport is coming home.”

In a city with a long history of music hall entertainment, it was appropriate the crowd was entertained by some of British television’s most popular entertainers.

While big screens showed Led Zeppelin guitarist Jimmy Page and football star David Beckham live at the official ceremony in Beijing’s Bird’s Nest Stadium, less internationally recognized names such as operatic quartet Il Divo, boyband McFly and Will Young—the first winner of Britain’s Pop Idol TV show—took to the stage in central London.

“I can’t believe they’re really here,” 14-year-old McFly fan Lisa Evans said. “This is the best thing about the Olympics.”

Many of the performers seemed as excited as the crowd.

“I’m London born and bred and I think it will do really big things for the city,” Sophie Ellis Bextor said after singing James Bond theme “Nobody Does It Better” over a backdrop of images depicting Britain’s 19 gold medals from Beijing.

Organizers have promised to hold a more relaxed Olympics, which was already on display in Beijing when Johnson was unable to contain his excitement as he prepared to receive the Olympic flag from IOC president Jacques Rogge. After saluting the crowd, Johnson stood clenching and unclenching his fists in a “give it to me” gesture as he waited to grab the flag.

The London crowd laughed appreciatively at the mayor, who is depicted in the British media as the latest in a long line of lovable bumbling figures of fun.

“The next Summer Games return to a country which I frequently boast has either invented or codified just about every major world sport,” Johnson said.

As Johnson waved the flag, more flags were raised at 650 buildings across Britain to mark London becoming the Olympic city. Another 80 were raised in British sites, such as embassies, around the world.

British cyclist Bradley Wiggins, who won two gold medals in Beijing, said Britain’s surprising fourth-place finish in the medal table helped contribute to a party atmosphere.

“When I left, it was all ‘recession, recession, recession’ and we’ve come back to a country overwhelmed by Olympic success,” Wiggins said. “There’s an overwhelming sense of people being excited by the next Olympics being in London.”

Phelps and Wiggins were cheered on stage, but some of the biggest response from the London crowd didn’t have anything to do with what was unfolding in their own Olympic city. They were reserved for Beckham’s appearance in Beijing.

“The eyes of the world have been on Beijing for the last two weeks as they have staged one of the most spectacular and uplifting Olympic Games ever,” London 2012 deputy chairman Keith Mills said. “For a short amount of time today, however, the world stopped and considered what’s coming next.”

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London has tough act to follow

By Martin Rogers, Yahoo! Sports 7 hours, 5 minutes ago

BEIJING – During his days as one of the world’s biggest track stars, Sebastian Coe constantly looked to push the realms of reality.

In a rivalry with compatriot Steve Ovett that took chunks off the world 800- and 1500-meter records, Coe would trick his own mind in order to conquer pain and push his body in search of greater achievements.

However, in his new role as chairman of the 2012 London Olympic Organizing Committee, Coe is in no mind to blindly chase the impossible.

The impossible, in this instance, is trying to copy Beijing.

“I have been asked many times how we can live up to Beijing, which has been a phenomenally successful Games,” Coe said. “That is not what we are trying to do. We will be trying to create our own unique Olympic experience, and we are confident of showing the world something very special indeed.”

Any attempt by London to replicate the extraordinary exhibition staged by the Chinese capital would ultimately be doomed to abject failure.

The 2008 edition was the kind of Olympics that is only possible if you have the world’s biggest collection of humanity at your obedient disposal.

Few other countries have the kind of political control needed to order factories to temporarily shut down to reduce smog, or forbid half of all car owners from taking to the road on any given day.

London will not shut down for the Olympics, but it will embrace the event. The backdrop, while a world removed from Beijing, will be spectacular nonetheless.

The Great Wall and Tiananmen Square were featured as part of the cycling road race and marathon, but London will rely even more on its icons to present a stunning backdrop.

Lord’s, where cricket has been played for nearly 200 years, will host the archery competition. For tennis, Wimbledon offers a venue that is impossible to match. Cycling will be held through Regent’s Park.

The Olympic bug will bite London, no doubt about it. Tickets will be snapped up eagerly and early.

An inherent obsession with soccer will not prevent the nation’s sports fans from coming out in full force. London’s status as one of the world’s biggest transport hubs and the growing flight industry means there may be more overseas visitors than for any previous Olympics.

They won’t find it cheap, though. London accommodations, dining and taxis are all expensive, and may be prohibitively so for many.

Fans will travel from all parts of Britain, too. Much of the increased domestic interest will be spawned by the success of Great Britain in Beijing. A haul of 19 gold medals – behind only China, the United States and Russia – represents enormous improvement.

In Atlanta 12 years ago, there was just one gold, for rowers Steven (now Sir Steven) Redgrave and Matthew Pinsent.

“The platform created by athletes from Great Britain in Beijing has been fantastic,” Coe said. “It has done a lot to excite the media and young people. We need to build on that over the next four years.”

The organizers hope that the sporting regeneration that has taken place will be matched in the traditionally underdog area of east London, where the Olympic Park will be based.

But cost will be a big talking point. London Mayor Boris Johnson says he wants to bring an “intimate” Games to the city at under the projected cost of $18.6 billion.

One of the biggest challenges facing London is on its streets, where knife crime among teenagers has reached a record high. Claims of a “broken society” may be premature, but international Olympic chiefs will hope for greatly reduced crime ahead of the Games.

When hosting a major international event, it is always easier to follow a failure than a triumph. London, unlike Beijing, will not have the luxury of coming after a bust.

Early preparations for London have not been seamless, but they generally seem to be moving in the right direction.

Countless predictions will be made as to the likely success or failure of the London Olympics. Such attempts at foresight are invariably inaccurate.

Beijing surpassed all expectations with its enthusiasm and organization, and it put together a magnificent extravaganza. Can London do the same?

Only four years until we find out.

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Phelps says London will be his farewell Games

Aug 24, 8:48 am EDT

By Alan Baldwin

LONDON (Reuters) - Michael Phelps had some comforting news for demoralized rivals on Sunday when he declared the 2012 London Games would be his final Olympics.

“I told myself I would never compete past the age of 30,” the 23-year-old American swimmer told a news conference after flying in from Beijing, where he won a record eight golds in the Water Cube pool.

“I’m not sure if I’ll go a few more years after the (London) Olympics. I don’t know why I picked 30 but I told (coach) Bob Bowman that I’m not swimming past the age of 30 so don’t get any ideas.

“He said ‘Well, that’s good because I don’t want to coach you past the age of 30.”’

Phelps surpassed compatriot Mark Spitz’s 1972 record of seven golds in a single Games in Beijing with victories in freestyle, butterfly, individual medley and relays.

The Baltimore swimmer has said he wants to take up new events, with the 100 freestyle a prime target along with individual backstroke.

However he assured Japan’s Kosuke Kitajima, the double Olympic breaststroke gold medalist, that he would not be moving into his territory in the quest for new challenges.

“It’s going to be no breastroke, no distance swimming and no open water, so at least those guys will still be my friends,” he said.

SINGLE MEDAL

Mobbed by photographers as he held up just one of his Beijing medals at the appearance for sponsors Visa, Phelps was in London to kick off the countdown to 2012 as Beijing handed over the baton.

“I’ve no idea what I am really going to do over the next four years but I’m looking forward to trying some new events and swimming some events that I haven’t really had the opportunity to swim,” said the American.

“Bob said to me that he’s going to put everything that he’s done coaching me and just throw it out the door and do something completely different, just to see how it works.

“If it’s successful then great, if not we can go back to what we’ve been doing.”

Phelps has never competed in London, where he enjoyed behaving like a regular tourist on Sunday by standing in the summer rain outside Buckingham Palace to watch the changing of the guard.

He said he hoped to catch a soccer game, preferably involving Manchester United or West Ham United, and looked forward to 2012 where he expected Britain to field an “amazing” team in the pool.

“We’ve all had some races here and there and they (Britain) have improved so much over the last four years and I’m just looking forward to seeing how much faster they can go.”

With a record 14 career Olympic gold medals, Phelps will have to contend with a new level of celebrity and fortune but he saw no choice between fame and success in the years ahead.

“I’m having fun and I think that’s really all that matters,” he said. “You can do anything. I think one of the biggest things I’ve learned over the last four years is that anything is possible if you set your imagination.

“Whatever you dream of, you can do. For me, the sky’s the limit. I have some pretty lofty dreams in my head and those goals are going to stay there until they are accomplished.

“It’s not going to be easy getting there and there are going to be some bumps in the road … I don’t think it’s going to be perfect but it’s going to be fun over the next few years while I finish off my career.”

(Editing by Jeremy Laurence)

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Phelps looking ahead to 2012 London Olympics

By STUART CONDIE, AP Sports Writer Aug 24, 10:58 am EDT

LONDON (AP)—Look out London, Michael Phelps is coming to the 2012 Games and he’s thinking about adding events to his repertoire.

“I am looking forward to trying some new events, some events I’ve never really had the opportunity to swim since my schedule is always so crowded,” Phelps said Sunday while taking part in the British capital’s handover celebrations.

Phelps, fresh from the Beijing Olympics where he won a record eight gold medals, said he’s never competed in a backstroke event at a major international meet or in the 100-meter freestyle.

“No breaststroke, no distance swimming, no open water swimming,” Phelps said. “At least those guys will still be my friends.”

The 23-year-old American also confirmed that the 2012 games will be his last Olympics.

“I’ve never wanted to go beyond 30,” he said. “I may go a few years beyond the Olympics. I said to my coach, ‘Don’t get any ideas because I don’t want to compete beyond 30,’ and he said, ‘That’s good because I don’t want to coach you past the age of 30.’”

Phelps has said Michael Jordan and Tiger Woods are the two superstars he’d most like to meet following his exploits in China, and he could be emulating one of them already.

Woods took time at the pinnacle of his career to remodel his swing to renew his dominance, and Phelps is speaking of completely switching the training program he has followed for the past decade.

Phelps said the changes suggested by coach Bob Bowman could help rejuvenate him mentally and physically after what he described as the most grueling period of his life.

“Bob said to me that he’s going to take everything he’s done coaching me and throw it out the door and try something completely different, just to see how it works,” Phelps said. “We’ll try a bunch of new things. If we’re successful, great. If not, we can go back to what we’ve been doing.”

Only a supremely confident athlete would contemplate moving away from a program that has brought a record 14 Olympic gold medals, an unprecedented eight at one games and the unofficial title of history’s greatest swimmer.

But “confident” sums up Phelps pretty well.

Despite arriving in London late Saturday, Phelps posed good-naturedly with one of his medals through 10 minutes of blinding camera flashes—adopting each of the artificial poses requested of him with an easy manner and enthusiasm.

Phelps said he was enjoying his celebrity status, but deflected suggestions that the rock star treatment could distract him from being as dominant in 2012 as he was in 2008.

“If you’re having fun, that’s really all that matters,” Phelps said. “You can still do everything and still be successful. You can do anything and everything. One of the biggest things I’ve learned over last four years is that anything’s possible.

“I’ve had some pretty lofty dreams in my head. Those dreams and those goals are going to stay until they’re accomplished,” Phelps added. “It’s not going to be easy getting there, there are going to be some bumps in the road here and there, but everyone has bumps in the road and it depends how you get over them.”

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