July 27 XXX Summer Olympics started in London, where 205 nations are participating in more than 300 events.
In addition to the British capital, Havana, Rio de Janeiro, Leipzig, Moscow, New York, Paris, and Madrid claimed to be host cities. In advance of the Olympics, we decided to gather some interesting facts and events associated with this important sporting event.
- London will become the first city in the history of the Olympics, which will host Summer Olympic Games for the third time. Olympics have already been held in London twice – in 1908 and 1948.
- The organizers of the 2012 Olympic Games in London seek to make them more environmentally friendly. During the preparation, about half a million new trees were planted. 75% of all buildings will remain and will be used for habitation. The participants will be arriving by subway, not by autos.
- Most of the waste will be reused and the remaining material, not amenable to recycling, will be used to generate electricity.
- The 2012 Olympics Logo designed by Wolff Olins costs 400,000 pounds sterling. It has been repeatedly criticized because some people believed that it resembles swastika. Iran announced that it would boycott the Olympic Games in London because the logo resembles the word “Zion”, a synonym for the city of Jerusalem.
- London Games mascots are one-eyed characters Wenlock and Mandeville, who were born from the “last drops of steel” of the Olympic stadium. The organizers had rejected the proposed set of mascots, such as an animated teapot, fluffy lions, Trafalgar Square pigeons, and Big Ben with arms and legs, giving the advantage to one-eyed creatures. However, some believe the selected characters are very frightening.
- This year, for the first time the Olympics include women’s boxing. Tennis reappeared among the mixed pairs (the latter was at the 1924 Olympics). Softball and baseball have been eliminated.
- If you find yourself in London during the Olympics, and you will not have tickets for the event, then you can watch three sports – triathlon, marathon and cycling – for free. Why not take advantage of this opportunity?
- 4700 medals will be released for the London Olympics and Paralympics. The 2012 Olympic medals will be the heaviest in the history of the Olympic Games. Their weight will be up to 400 grams.
- But the weight of medals is compensated by the lightness of the stadium, which is the lightest one in the Olympic history. The Olympic Stadium in London is designed for 80,000 seats. About 10,000 tons of steel were used in its construction, making it 75 percent lighter than the Olympic stadium in Beijing.
- During the awards ceremony and the athletes’ appearance at the stadium, we will hear the official song of the Olympic Games – Survival by the famous British band Muse.
- The most senior participant of the 2012 Olympic Games is the 70-year-old Japanese, Hiroshi Hoketsu, who will compete in equestrian sport.
- Attention to all strickers – those who like to take off all of their clothes and run naked in public places. Such tricks during games will be punished by a large fine – up to 20,000 pounds.
- In the London National Portrait Gallery there opened an exhibition Road to 2012, dedicated to the well-known local athletes and the Olympics. In the Tate Gallery, you will be able to see posters created by contemporary British artists specifically for the 2012 Olympics.
- The enchanting closing ceremony will feature legendary British artists and models Kate Moss, Naomi Campbell, Lily Cole, Stella Tennant, and Georgia May Jagger. The supermodels will pay a tribute to British fashion, walking up the catwalk in the costumes from Vivienne Westwood and Sarah Burton to the hits by David Bowie. Elle Macpherson will open the show, appearing on a giant bridge with the video camera, which was shooting the events at the 2000 Olympic Games in Sydney.
As we see, the organizers of the 2012 Olympics have grand plans not only for the next two weeks, but for the whole summer!
