This has been a magnificent Olympics, for which credit and praise deservedly go to the Greek hosts. From the spectacular opening ceremony to last night’s joyous conclusion, the Games in Athens have far surpassed expectations, both in their smooth and almost faultless organisation and in the quality and excitement of the many sports on display. Greece reached out far above what many people thought its capacities in its bid to return the Olympics to their native land; in the end, it rose to the occasion, made a superhuman final effort and gave to the world two weeks of superlative sport in venues as good as any of the modern age.
For Britain, the success of the Olympics was particularly striking. This country had approached Athens with misgivings. Being one of the nations most deeply involved in the fight against terrorism, Britain was particularly nervous that terrorists would use the Olympics to stage some atrocity. There were fears, justified until the start of the Games, that the security was incomplete or untested. In the event, the Greeks handled this extra burden with aplomb, calling on Nato expertise and ensuring safety without intrusive restrictions or intimidating police presence. That said, a regrettable lapse in security in the Games’s final hours, may well have cost the Brazilian marathoner, Vanderlei de Lima, a gold medal.
Britain was also pessimistic about its sporting chances, especially after a record tally of gold medals at Sydney. There seemed to be no obvious stars who could live up to Sydney’s standards. But from the unexpected early success in synchronised diving to the glorious achievements of Kelly Holmes and Amir Khan in the final few days, Britain’s heroes emerged on the running track, at sea, in the rink and in the velodrome. The final tally of medals surpassed Sydney, and the television audience discovered an almost forgotten pride in sporting achievements.
As befitted the birthplace of the art, it was the drama of this year’s Olympics that captured the imagination. There was a full measure of hubris and tragedy: the bizarre disappearance of Greece’s two top athletes, Kenteris and Thanou, on the eve of the games brought acute embarrassment to the hosts. But Greece and the International Olympic Committee handled this and the other drugs incidents with exemplary severity. By showing such zeal in pursuing all drugs accusations, the organisers have made it less likely that cheats in future games will attempt to steal medals dishonourably.
There was also plenty of dramatic emotion, most poignantly for Britain in the tears of joy and of grief shed by Matthew Pinsent and Paula Radcliffe. Their visible emotions moved everyone; and if Pinsent was the iconic symbol of success, the nation identified itself no less with Radcliffe, who won sympathy in her devastation. Perhaps more significant than anyone, however, was the achievement of Khan. It was not only his youth, pluck, and humour that won an instant following, it was the identification of his whole extended family with the land to which they had emigrated, wrapping themselves in its flag and exolling its values. Khan’s story has done more for Muslim pride and race relations in Britain than any number of anxious government reports.
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If there was criticism, it was not directed at the hosts. The fearsome heat was too much for many, and was probably what kept so many spectators away. For this the IOC is to blame, and, more particularly, the television networks, which insisted the marathon be run in prime time and did not want the Olympics clashing with the football season. There were other niggles: the silly pro-Kenteris barracking that held up the 200 metres, for example. But these are minor complaints. Greece gave the world the first Olympics, the first modern revival and now a fitting reprise. For this, there is a Greek word of thanks: efkharisto!