How are the olympics being perceived abroad
Discussion
This is primarily aimed at our foreign contributors.
We are getting nothing but positive comments from the british media about the games (we are doing spectacularly well, and the organisation appears to have come off practically without a hitch, well done LOGOC)
Is this replicated around the world, what does everyone else think about london 2012 looking in. How was the opening ceremony received? how has transport been rated? facilities? etc etc etc
I'm just keen to hear about the view from outside the goldfish bowl!
We are getting nothing but positive comments from the british media about the games (we are doing spectacularly well, and the organisation appears to have come off practically without a hitch, well done LOGOC)
Is this replicated around the world, what does everyone else think about london 2012 looking in. How was the opening ceremony received? how has transport been rated? facilities? etc etc etc
I'm just keen to hear about the view from outside the goldfish bowl!
You can read foreign newspapers in English on line.
New York Times - very positive and regularly applauds the success of Team GB
Der Speigel - Doing a good job of ignoring the Olympics after rubbishing the organisation, venue and the UKs ability to host the games, before they actually started.
Times of India - Accusing the boxing referess of being biased - one of their boxers didn't get a medal.Otherwise quite neutral.
pp
New York Times - very positive and regularly applauds the success of Team GB
Der Speigel - Doing a good job of ignoring the Olympics after rubbishing the organisation, venue and the UKs ability to host the games, before they actually started.
Times of India - Accusing the boxing referess of being biased - one of their boxers didn't get a medal.Otherwise quite neutral.
pp
There is a delightful sense of optimism about the medal chances of some of the Malaysian athletes among my colleagues - I nearly snorted my coffee over one of them when they said they thought the Malaysian cyclist was a possible gold medal contender in the Men's individual sprint, despite having drawn against Jason Kenny in the first of the quarter finals...
But generally they're quite impressed by Team GB and how the olympics is going, and some thumbs up for the venues and how they appear on TV.
As for me (well, I *am* living overseas !), after a slow start I'm really getting into the games now, and have been staying up to catch some of the live sailing and cycling. And was cheering Andy Murray on !!
Makes me proud to be British !!
Us Kiwi's are loving the fact we're ahead of the Aussies in the Medal table. Yippee!
The Kiwi athletes have mentioned 'Go GB' can be translated at Go Kiwi - so keep shouting guys.
People I've been talking to like the events which aren't at the Stadium - Archery, Triathalon, Marathon as they get to see the sights for London.
'It's all good'
The Kiwi athletes have mentioned 'Go GB' can be translated at Go Kiwi - so keep shouting guys.
People I've been talking to like the events which aren't at the Stadium - Archery, Triathalon, Marathon as they get to see the sights for London.
'It's all good'
Well the Aussies are enjoying it but are celebrating any slight mishap by the Brits.
They were ragging on the poms about medal count and basically being piss takers after 2 days and stupidly didn't think there were a 'few more' days left. Now GB are smashing the tables the Aussies don't quite like it back up em?
I've got dual Aussie UK citizenship and the Australians are a f
king embarrassment when it comes to being able to take a joke when it's on them but they love giving it.
This Cocktard still can't let it go even when he knows he's wrong:
http://www.perthnow.com.au/sport/london-olympics/o...
They were ragging on the poms about medal count and basically being piss takers after 2 days and stupidly didn't think there were a 'few more' days left. Now GB are smashing the tables the Aussies don't quite like it back up em?
I've got dual Aussie UK citizenship and the Australians are a f
king embarrassment when it comes to being able to take a joke when it's on them but they love giving it. This Cocktard still can't let it go even when he knows he's wrong:
http://www.perthnow.com.au/sport/london-olympics/o...
In Ireland the support being offered by GB crowds to Irish athletes is being lauded. The Irish Times very slightly embarressed that it didn't feel the support would be so vociferously reciprocated if the geography was on Irish soil!
The decibel level during Katie Taylor's fight with Natasha Jonas (GB) hit 113.7dB - the highest recorded at London 2012 so far. Go wan. etc.
The decibel level during Katie Taylor's fight with Natasha Jonas (GB) hit 113.7dB - the highest recorded at London 2012 so far. Go wan. etc.
The Germans I have had contact with just can't accept that we have done better than them. I had some light hearted banter with some Germans before the games started. They literally rolled on the floor laughing when I told them we would probably finish further up the medal table than Germany. When I announced that we had done better than them in Beijing, they were ready to have me sectioned.
They appear to be so preconditioned to think of us as underachievers that they just can't compute anything different.
pp
They appear to be so preconditioned to think of us as underachievers that they just can't compute anything different.
pp
I have several Aussie friends and have been chatting to them about their such poor performance in these games, there not happy but devastated by the fact New Zealand are ahead of them!!
In fact:- Doctors in Australia have diagnosed a new condition which they are calling "Olympic finger". Symptoms are pain in the index finger caused by repeated scrolling down to see Australia's position on the medal table.
In fact:- Doctors in Australia have diagnosed a new condition which they are calling "Olympic finger". Symptoms are pain in the index finger caused by repeated scrolling down to see Australia's position on the medal table.
Reading an Australian newpaper online a few days ago, they commented about how London has got the venues right, key being the Olympic Park, and Sydney got it so wrong.
http://www.theage.com.au/opinion/politics/where-th...
http://www.theage.com.au/opinion/politics/where-th...
The Age said:
"The genial garden-party feel of our Olympics was, therefore, a pleasant surprise. Less surprising, sadly, is the ongoing catastrophe of Homebush Bay.
London has comprehensively shown us up in this regard. At every strategic turn, where we made wrong decisions, they made right ones."
"It's not about architecture...... But the legacy depends far more on front-end strategy, connectivity decisions; location, urban fabric, transport.
It is not rocket science. Cities have always lived and died by connectivity. So it should be obvious that any Olympic legacy is only as good as its connectivity.
Yet Sydney, already tyrannised by distance, did everything possible to deny such connectivity, forever. An awkward, out-of-the-way site was surrounded with barriers, then planned so you could not even walk from the village to the park."
"Despite our best efforts, the place (Homebush)is a ghost town.
Whether it bespoke expedience, incompetence, or simple suburban habit, the strategy was lamentable, wasting both a massive $1.9 billion investment and a shot at lasting benefits for a city in need.
Barcelona used its Olympics to revitalise the Barceloneta waterfront and rebuild Ludwig Mies van der Rohe's Barcelona Pavilion, possibly the loveliest building ever. The Montjuic Stadium was built in 1929, as a people's alternative to Berlin's fascist 1936 Olympics, so can be excused.
London, though, did everything right. First, it identified a rust-pocket that was accessible but seedy, needing help. Then it built a Eurostar station, between London and Paris. Good move. Also a light rail station, linking to Docklands. Pretty hard to go wrong after that.
The east end was already becoming fashionable, but accessibility and social mix were further eased with Allies & Morrison's master plan, locating the Lend Lease Olympic Village right beside Olympic Park, and Ken Livingstone's requirement for 50 per cent social housing.
It does not stop there. Overflow events go not to Whoop Whoop but to the city centre. Hyde Park, Hampton Court, Greenwich, the Royal Artillery Barracks, Earls Court, the O2 Arena, ExCel and the Mall all host Olympic events. The Queen can watch cycling from a Buckingham Palace balcony, and the plebs can watch beach volleyball in Horse Guards Parade."
London has comprehensively shown us up in this regard. At every strategic turn, where we made wrong decisions, they made right ones."
"It's not about architecture...... But the legacy depends far more on front-end strategy, connectivity decisions; location, urban fabric, transport.
It is not rocket science. Cities have always lived and died by connectivity. So it should be obvious that any Olympic legacy is only as good as its connectivity.
Yet Sydney, already tyrannised by distance, did everything possible to deny such connectivity, forever. An awkward, out-of-the-way site was surrounded with barriers, then planned so you could not even walk from the village to the park."
"Despite our best efforts, the place (Homebush)is a ghost town.
Whether it bespoke expedience, incompetence, or simple suburban habit, the strategy was lamentable, wasting both a massive $1.9 billion investment and a shot at lasting benefits for a city in need.
Barcelona used its Olympics to revitalise the Barceloneta waterfront and rebuild Ludwig Mies van der Rohe's Barcelona Pavilion, possibly the loveliest building ever. The Montjuic Stadium was built in 1929, as a people's alternative to Berlin's fascist 1936 Olympics, so can be excused.
London, though, did everything right. First, it identified a rust-pocket that was accessible but seedy, needing help. Then it built a Eurostar station, between London and Paris. Good move. Also a light rail station, linking to Docklands. Pretty hard to go wrong after that.
The east end was already becoming fashionable, but accessibility and social mix were further eased with Allies & Morrison's master plan, locating the Lend Lease Olympic Village right beside Olympic Park, and Ken Livingstone's requirement for 50 per cent social housing.
It does not stop there. Overflow events go not to Whoop Whoop but to the city centre. Hyde Park, Hampton Court, Greenwich, the Royal Artillery Barracks, Earls Court, the O2 Arena, ExCel and the Mall all host Olympic events. The Queen can watch cycling from a Buckingham Palace balcony, and the plebs can watch beach volleyball in Horse Guards Parade."
Pommygranite said:
Well the Aussies are enjoying it but are celebrating any slight mishap by the Brits.
They were ragging on the poms about medal count and basically being piss takers after 2 days and stupidly didn't think there were a 'few more' days left. Now GB are smashing the tables the Aussies don't quite like it back up em?
I've got dual Aussie UK citizenship and the Australians are a fking embarrassment when it comes to being able to take a joke when it's on them but they love giving it.
This Cocktard still can't let it go even when he knows he's wrong:
http://www.perthnow.com.au/sport/london-olympics/o...
Indeed. My brother is out in Sydney, and the amount of GB bashing regarding the Olympics is supposedly quite incredible.They were ragging on the poms about medal count and basically being piss takers after 2 days and stupidly didn't think there were a 'few more' days left. Now GB are smashing the tables the Aussies don't quite like it back up em?
I've got dual Aussie UK citizenship and the Australians are a f
king embarrassment when it comes to being able to take a joke when it's on them but they love giving it. This Cocktard still can't let it go even when he knows he's wrong:
http://www.perthnow.com.au/sport/london-olympics/o...
Pickled Piper said:
The Germans I have had contact with just can't accept that we have done better than them. I had some light hearted banter with some Germans before the games started. They literally rolled on the floor laughing when I told them we would probably finish further up the medal table than Germany. When I announced that we had done better than them in Beijing, they were ready to have me sectioned.
They appear to be so preconditioned to think of us as underachievers that they just can't compute anything different.
pp
They do know we beat them twice, don't they? Underachievers. They appear to be so preconditioned to think of us as underachievers that they just can't compute anything different.
pp
I received an email from a supplier in Romania, congratulating me on how good the Olympics is and how well we're doing, seems like they're enjoying it.
Who cares?
The whole event has been superb from the start - unless of course you take the French point of view which is 'we have won considerably less than you & your cyclists might be cheating'!!!!
We have shown the world that when we put our minds in the correct frame we do things better than anyone.
London 2012 has been an unqualified success & i dare anyone to say otherwise with the exception of the ticketing fiasco.
I very much doubt that Rio in 4 years time will be as good as London 2012 & i also doubt that any games of the future will be anywhere as good.
We have, i think, produced a spectacle that will probably never be bettered in Olympic history.
London 2012. Superb.
The whole event has been superb from the start - unless of course you take the French point of view which is 'we have won considerably less than you & your cyclists might be cheating'!!!!
We have shown the world that when we put our minds in the correct frame we do things better than anyone.
London 2012 has been an unqualified success & i dare anyone to say otherwise with the exception of the ticketing fiasco.
I very much doubt that Rio in 4 years time will be as good as London 2012 & i also doubt that any games of the future will be anywhere as good.
We have, i think, produced a spectacle that will probably never be bettered in Olympic history.
London 2012. Superb.
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