Friday, August 03, 2012

Man on a wire

Well, we didn't think there'd be a spectacle at this Olympic Games sufficiently extraordinary and surreal to rival the opening ceremony, and yet there has - Boris Johnson, wearing a crash helmet and brandishing a pair of Union Jacks, suspended 20ft over Victoria Park. Following Jeremy Hunt's bell mishap, perhaps politicians should just heed the lesson and steer clear of getting too involved.

That incident has deflected attention from other more remarkable Olympic stories - such as the one about the Chinese diver who, having just won gold in her third consecutive Games, discovered she had been shielded from the news that her mother has cancer and her grandparents both died a year ago. Some price to pay for success.

Still, I suppose at least the Chinese can't stand accused of not taking Olympic competition seriously. Oh, hang on a minute - yes they can, along with some South Koreans and Indonesians. Viewers were left in no doubt as to the BBC commentator's disgust at the four pairs' deliberate attempts to lose badminton matches.

And from the spirit of the Olympics to the spirits of the Olympics. Anyone complaining about the fact that Bradley Wiggins celebrated his gold medal (and Tour de France victory) by - in his words - getting "blind drunk" is a pathetic, execrable specimen of humanity. Much like someone who might tweet a heartbroken 18-year-old Olympian homophobic abuse or suggestions that he'd let his late father down...

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