London 2012 Olympics, one year to go: live

There are 366 days to go until the London Olympics 2012, and this is going to be one of the busiest. We’ll keep you up to date with all that’s going on 

click here for the full blog: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/olympics/8664866/London-2012-Olympics-one-year-to-go-live.html

Let there be light: David Cameron sparks Olympic Stadium into life for the first time

By Daily Mail Reporter

From: http://www.dailymail.co.uk

 David Cameron marked a historic moment for Britain last night when he turned on the lights at London's 2012 Olympic Stadium for the first time.

The Prime Minister, flanked by London Mayor Boris Johnson and Games organising chief Lord Coe, pushed the button to switch on the floodlights during a special ceremony at the snow-covered stadium.

It was the first time that all 532 bulbs had been lit together - in a scene that will be repeated during the 2012 Games.

Light show: The Olympic Stadium floodlights are officially switched on by Prime Minister David Cameron

Mr Cameron joked that the £537million stadium in Stratford, east London, looked more like a winter Olympic venue with ski-jumper Eddie the Eagle expected at any moment rather than the setting for the London 2012 summer Games.

But he told the 400-strong invited crowd, which included 2012 builders and a choir of local schoolchildren, at the site that 'the biggest show on earth' will be coming to east London in one year, seven months and seven days.

'It is being delivered on time and on budget thanks to British genius and many of the people here,' he added.


Introductions were carried out by Mr Johnson, who did not seem aware that the lights take up to eight minutes to reach full power.


'They are coming, they are coming,' he told the crowd before all the lights had phased in.

Biggest show on earth: Mr Cameron spoke to schoolchildren alongside London Mayor Boris Johnson who couldn't find anywhere to sit inside the stadium which was covered in snow

 
He described it as a 'wonderful and historic evening', while also joking that with plans so advanced, including 75 per cent of building work complete, London 2012 might consider holding a snap Olympics now 17 months before the Games 'to catch the world napping'.

There are 14 lighting towers reaching 70m (230ft) above the sports area.
Mr Cameron also spoke of changes to unpopular plans to cut £162million from school sport.

Earlier, the Education Department announced it will fund School Sport Partnerships to the end of the summer term 2011 at a cost of £47million, ensuring they can run until the end of the academic year.

Waiting game: The Olympic Stadium is set to be fully delivered next year for completion

Works goes on... The stadium is currently ahead of schedule leading Mr Cameron to joke London should hold a snap Olympics to 'catch the world napping'

A further £65million has been earmarked to enable every secondary school to release one PE teacher for a day a week in the school year 2011-12 and in 2012-13. This recognises the considerable impact the current network of School Sport Co-ordinators have had on PE and school sport throughout the country over the past decade.
The Department also announced it will fund the Youth Sport Trust (YST) to expand its Young Ambassadors programme so that every secondary school and some primary schools can create more Young Ambassadors ahead of London 2012.
The Government also restated its commitment to a nationwide school sport competition.

Once finished the Olympic Stadium will dominate the skyline in the east of the the capital

New pictures show London is on track for 2012 Olympics

By Daily Mail Reporter
From: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/

When Delhi hosted the Commonwealth Games in October, they cut preparations so fine that they were still laying turf in the athletics stadium hours before events were due to start.

Tied in with a bridge collapse and filthy conditions in the athletes’ village the games looked destined to be remembered more for events off the track rather than on it.

But, as these newly released aerial photos of the London 2012 site show, it appears there will be no such panic when the capital hosts the games.

Taking shape: The Olympic stadium, the centre-piece of the park, is nearing completion - with seats installed and the outline of the track clearly visible

Bird's eye view: The rest of the city stretches into the background as the stadium and aquatics centre dominate the Stratford skyline

Regeneration: The entire Olympic Park and beyond can be seen here, with the media and broadcast centre in the foreground and various venues nearing completion

Eighteen months before competiton gets underway, nearly 75 per cent of construction is now complete, with main venues due to be finished next year ahead of test events.

The pictures were released to tie in with another half-yearly inspection by the International Olympic Committee Co-ordination Commission for London.

Already, from the outside at least, buildings including the media centre, handball and basketball arenas are looking complete.

Distinctive: The iconic roof of the aquatics centre may appear complete, but the scaffolding suggests otherwise

Speed freak: Great Britain will hope to build on its cycling success in the velodrome

And the athletes’ village, the source of so many problems in Delhi, already appears to be catching up with the Indian capital as the high-rise blocks which will house an estimated 10,500 athletes take shape.

Inside the showpiece stadium in Stratford, east London, seats are already installed in some parts while the outline of the track and field can be seen clearly in the mud.

However the curtain wrap that was expected to encase the stadium will now no longer form part of the construction.

Elsewhere, the curved roofs of the velodrome and aquatics centre stand out on the skyline, although the scaffolding around the pool shows there is still work to be done.

Slam dunk: The basketball arena, with its squidgy looking exterior, already appears ready for players and officials

Copper load of this: The roof of the handball arena has been made out of the metal

Speaking about the project, Olympic Delivery Authority Chairman John Armitt said: 'This year is the toughest in terms of construction and we are at our busiest.

‘We will enter 2011 with the confidence that more than three quarters of the construction project is complete and that all milestones to date have been achieved.

‘We remain on schedule and within budget but are not complacent about the challenge that lies ahead.’

Despite their still being some way to go with construction on some parts of the Olympic Park, the latest A-Z of the capital has included the 500-acre site in its pages.

The new map of the east end site shows the aquatics centre, velodrome and main stadium as well as updated rail links at Stratford international.

Home to the athletes: Like a small town springing up, the competitors' village will house around 10,500 participants during the Games

And London 2012 chairman Lord Sebastian Coe said: ‘East London is being transformed. Its regeneration is creating a legacy of new communities, new housing, and state-of-the-art sporting facilities that will be used for many years to come.

‘Over the next year, we look forward to seeing the changing London skyline as the Park vision become a reality.’

On the map: The new edition of the London A-Z clearly shows the Olympic Park's 500-acre site

The inspectors will be in the capital between Wednesday and Friday, and with the venues in good shape, are expected to concentrate on the huge amount of operational detail such as ticketing, transport, culture and volunteers as well as the test events.

They will also look for reassurances that the changes to the marathon route are now in place and that organisers are trying to patch up relations with East End councils.

The decision to move the end of the marathon from the Olympic Stadium to the Mall in central London was done with the blessing of the IOC, but Tower Hamlets council is seeking a judicial review of the decision to change the route which has led to their borough missing out.

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1330290/London-2012-Olympics-New-pictures-stadiums-nearly-ready.html#ixzz15f7PjV8k

Britain's biggest piece of public art, but is this £19m tower of twisted metal a fitting monument for the London 2012 Olympics?

By Paul Harris

From http://www.dailymail.co.uk/

It looks like a catastrophic collision between two cranes on the Olympic site.

But this towering, twisted mass of metal will be Britain's lasting monument to the nation's role in hosting the 2012 games.

Turner Prize-winning artist Anish Kapoor unveiled his design for the £19million sculpture yesterday, a ruby red, helter skelter-style structure that, at 377ft, will stand more than twice as tall as Nelson's column.

Scroll down for our video report

Enlarge

Landmark: The tower has been dubbed the 'Hubble Bubble' by London Mayor Boris Johnson

It was instantly nicknamed the Eyeful Tower - and likened enthusiastically by London Mayor Boris Johnson to a giant 'hubble-bubble' shisha pipe.

But contributors to Twitter and similar internet sites took only minutes to criticise the work. One described it as 'a rollercoaster that costs £19million a go'. Other early phrases included 'twisted spaghetti', 'horrific squiggles' and 'Meccano on crack'.

Work on the officially-named ArcelorMittal Orbit, which will house a restaurant and viewing platform, has yet to start - and it still needs planning permission.

About 700 visitors an hour will be able to visit the site next to the 193 feet high Olympic stadium. The tower will have a viewing platform and an outdoor walkway.

At its unveiling today, Kapoor, 56, said it was 'thrilling' to be offered the chance to create for the capital something on a par with what Gustave Eiffel made in Paris

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Britian's biggest piece of public art: At 115 metres high, the steel tower will be taller than the Statue of Liberty in New York

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'It would be terribly arrogant to compete with Eiffel who spent his entire life making that thing,' said Kapoor. 'What we’re trying to make is the best thing we can do'.

The artist sees his looping, deep red-coloured tower as 'an eccentric structure that looks as if it’s going to fall over'.

It is being created with the aid of Cecil Balmond, deputy chairman of Arup engineers, with whom Kapoor created the red trumpet, Marsyas, for Tate Modern’s Turbine Hall in 2002.

Financing deals have been signed between principal backer Lakshmi Mittal, the steel magnate who is the fifth richest man in the world, who has committed £16million towards the £19.1million cost, and Mr Johnson, who dreamed up the project.

Bemused: Boris Johnson tries to make sense of the tower, which he likened to a shisha pipe

It is hoped work will begin within weeks on what officially will be called the ArcelorMittal Orbit.

Mr Johnson said: 'Some will say we are nuts - in the depths of a recession - to be building Britain’s biggest ever piece of public art.

'But Tessa Jowell [the Olympics minister] and I are certain that this is the right thing for the Stratford site, in Games time and beyond.'

Mr Mittal, whose company will supply much of the 1,400 tons of steel, said he had wanted to give 'a lasting gift' to the 'wonderful” city' where he has lived since 1997.

Amusing: Businessman Lakshmi Mittal (right) jokes with Mr Johnson at City Hall before unveiling a scale model of the proposed ArcelorMittal Orbit tower

Towering: Architect Anish Kapoor with the scale model of the tower. The full-size structure will be sited next to the Olympic stadium for the 2012 games

Pole Dancers Thrust for Olympic Status

By Kyle Munzenrieder
From: http://blogs.miaminewtimes.com/

via Crave Online

​
The Winter Olympics may be getting dismal local ratings, but if the pleas of poll dancers across the world to have their "sport" recognized by the Olympics are heeded, we've got a feeling ratings would shoot through the roof.

"After a great deal of feedback from the pole dance community, many of us have decided that it's about time pole fitness is recognized as a competitive sport, and what better way for recognition than to be part of the 2012 Olympics held in London," British pole dancer KT Coates writes in an email to the Associated Press.

Apparently top pole dancers train like Olympic athletes, and once you remove the g-strings and sweaty dollar bills, is it really that much different than things like ice dancing and rhythmic gymnastics?

Pole dancing has taken off as a fitness craze lately, too, but even though there is a U.S. Pole Dance Federation which hosts championships (which, hello, Miami really needs to work on hosting someday) there's still a need to standardize scoring and technique.

Pulling off an Elevated Booty Clap might net you big points in Miami, but places like Los Angeles tend to value moves like the Fake Titty Twister 360.

Plus, the AP article doesn't even breech whether or not the competition would be open to both sexes (maybe Johnny Weir can win Gold after all...)

We doubt we'll see it in the Olympics anytime soon. Just like we doubt we'll ever see Miami ever host an Olympics, but if that ever does happen we sure as hell wouldn't mind seeing it at least featured as an exposition sport.

Michael Phelps will not defend all eight medals at London 2012 Olympics

American swimmer Michael Phelps, who made history when he won eight gold medals at the Beijing Olympics, will not attempt to repeat the feat when he competes at London 2012.

By Steve Wilson and agencies

Taking it easy: Michael Phelps will not compete in eight events at the London 2012 Olympics as he did in Beijing last year Photo: REUTERS

Phelps became the most successful athlete at an individual games in China, beating fellow swimmer Mark Spitz’s record of seven gold medals set in 1972.

In one of the stand-out performances of any games, the 23-year-old set seven world records, eight American records and eight Olympic records in the process of becoming the most decorated male Olympian of all time with a total of 16 Olympic medals, including 14 golds - the others having been won in Athens in 2004.

His achievements were recognised by the United States Olympic Committee, which named Phelps its Sportsman of the Year for 2008, but the swimmer insisted he would not try and repeat his epic achievement in London or anywhere else.

“I’ll never swim eight events at a major competition again,” Phelps said.

“I’m almost positive that my last eight-event meet was Beijing.”

Phelps said easing back on his competitive schedule would allow him to enjoy the Olympics in London much more than he had at previous Games.

“I think I will have more time to take in all the experiences,” he said, “possibly being in the stands and cheering.

“You know, I haven’t had that experience since, I guess, 2001 at my first world championships. So, really being a part of the team more.

“When you’re swimming so many events, all you do is eat, sleep, swim; eat, sleep, swim; eat sleep swim. You never get to be in the stands.

“I was always warming up, warming down, going back and forth to the pool, eating at the village and then going to sleep.

“So that’s something I’m looking forward to and it’s something that should be fun.”

Phelps, who revealed he had returned to serious training on Tuesday with long-time coach Bob Bowman, was delighted with this latest award which followed being named Sports Illustrated Sportsman of the Year for 2008.

“I think this year as a whole, being over in Beijing and being SI Sportsman Of The Year and now being USOC Sportsman of the year, it’s all really been a dream come true and things just keep on getting better.

“I’ve just recently started getting back into the water and training a little bit with some kind of ‘official’ days with Bob and everything that has happened this year has just been something that will be with me forever.

“It is really is an honour to receive the USOC Sportsman of the year award.”

Sky says 2012 London Olympics could be in 3D

by Darren Murph

Europe still isn't the place to be for limitless HD content, but London in particular could be a 3D extravaganza come 2012. The host city for the next Summer Olympics may be coming to your living room like never before, as Brian Lenz, head of product design and innovation at Sky, proclaimed that "there is a very good chance you'll see the London Olympics in 3D." The satcaster has already confessed to filming events in 3D, and given that the wide distribution of the 2008 Beijing Olympics in HD was all the rage, we suppose the third-dimension is the next logical step forward. Mirroring our own hopes and dreams, Lenz stated that what it really wanted was "glasses free technology." Here's hoping we inch closer to that at CES 2009.

[Thanks, Ben]