Memories of London : Part I

There was something about the London games which will not ever be replicated in the future , not least the number of stirring venues and backdrops – whether it be the football at Wembley , the Archery at Lords , the Tennis at Wimbledon or the road events finishing on the Mall with the backdrop of the Buckingham Palace. Tears were shed in joy and sorrow , dreams were fulfilled and dashed cruelly , pre-emptive boasts came up both justified and exceedingly hollow, stars and legends both,  engraved their names deeper in history and were extinguished without a final blaze, youthful pretenders , both made history and came up woefully short of the mark. To list out all the heroes and heroines at the games would probably entail another fortnight’s work – so right out of the hat , are the names (individuals and teams) of both the superstars in these games and those who left for home with disappointment and disquiet.

WINNERS

1. Michael Phelps & Usain Bolt :

As in Beijing, so in London, when the dust settles and the hullabaloo is long over , these are the 2 names that will linger on as the icons of these games. People wrote Phelps off and surprise, surprise , at the end of the Games , guess who stood atop the individual medal tally , both in gold medals (4 -  shared with Missy Franklin) and total medals (6). The legacy of Phelps is probably destined to go down as the closest thing to the statistically unmatchable in sport since Bradman’s 99.94.

As for Bolt – 6 Olympic events contested: 6 gold medals, 4 world records, 1 Olympic record. Wonder what the future holds in store if he decides to come back for the 400m and the Long Jump at Rio.

2. Team Great Britain : You got to be kidding me – 29 gold medals , 4 in track and field, 6 gold in a single day. Ahead of traditional powerhouse Russia and way ahead of Australia in the medal tally, GB will be hard pressed to reproduce even half of its tally in 4 years time. It diffucult to single out British athletes individually - From Chris Hoy to Mo Farah ,  from Jessica Ennis to Andy Murray , from Bradley Wiggins to Ben AInslie: this was a veritable dream team for the Brits : (Poor Mark Cavendish would be banging his brains out.).

3. David Rudisha : Not just because he set the first Track and field gold medal in the games – but the manner in which he won the 800m. There was no shadowboxing, no tail-gating , the Kenyan seized the lead early and simply demolished the field – the perfect example an athlete at the top of his game and

4. Russian Men’s volleyball Team : Winning the gold in a final which was easily the game of the entire Olympics (any event) . Firm favourites Brazil , leading by 2 sets to love and  22-19 in the third , offered themselves the luxury of  sending on injured captain Giba for the medal winning play. Whether the Russians took it as an insult and raised their game or whether it made the South Americans lose momentum is a matter of debate, but what followed was one of the greatest comebacks in the history of any team event in any sport. Seizing the 3^rd set 29-27 , the Russians proceeded to demolish a shell-shocked Brazil and claim their first volleyball gold since the days of the Soviet Union.

5. A multi-cultural trio of Women Swimmers : A teenage American named Missy Franklin who equalled Phelps’ haul of 4 gold medals) ; Ranomi Kromowidjojo , a Dutchwoman of Javanese Surinami origin who blitzed the pool in the blue riband sprints (the 50 and 100 m freestyle) and a 15 year old Chinese girl , Ye Shiven , whose performances in the medley swims were so astonishing that they promptly brought out accusations of doping. The best part is that all 3 ladies have age on their side and mere contemplation of what they might end up achieving by the end of their careers sets the pulse racing.

Kromowidjojo , Franklin and Shiwen : New Kids on the Block 

Honourable Mentions: US women’s relay teams (track and pool) , Chinese badminton and table tennis teams and the US basketball teams (for maintaining their fearsome monopoly) , all women boxers (medallists or otherwise) for winning a battle stretching over decades to have their event included in the games