As the curtain falls on the London 2012 Paralympic Games, our Executive Director, Jon Morgan, shares with us the highs and lows of the ‘greatest ever Paralympic Games’.
The 4.45pm train back from London to Swansea was an oasis of relative calm following 11 days of unbelievable sport in what surely is now regarded as the 'greatest ever Paralympic Games'.
There have been times over the past two weeks when I have
wanted to climb to the top of the Orbit tower in Olympic Park and yell ’I told
you so’ in reference to the sheer brilliance and remarkable theatre that is
paralympic sport. Of course my urge to do this is now dampened given the way
the Games has awakened a new generation to what paralympic sport is all about.
There has been almost daily front page coverage on national newspapers, where
previously paralympic sport has been consigned to a paragraph between the
weather and the crossword, more than 1.3million tweets with the word
‘paralympic’ used and a demand for tickets that even the canniest of ticket
touts couldn’t have satisfied.
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| Aled Sion Davies winnig his gold medal is sure to be one of the highlights of the games. |
My own emotions have swung violently during the Games from
over-whelming joy, to at times, utter despair as we have followed the journeys
of our athletes. There have been moments when I have wanted to scream ‘did you
see that’ as an athlete has taken their performance to a new high, and other
times when I have quietly thought to myself ‘I can’t believe this is happening!’
But that’s the thrill and unpredictability of high performance sport. If it
were scripted it would be boring and in that sense the Paralympic Games are no
different to any other competition.
From a performance perspective, the Games have been
successful from both a British and a Welsh perspective. ParalympicsGB won 120
medals, 18 up on our total in Beijing. Our own Welsh athletes winning 15
medals, across more sports (athletics, swimming, table tennis and cycling) and
with more individual medallists, 11, than in Beijing (8). True, ParalympicsGB
did slip to third in the overall standings in the medal table but I view that
as positive sign that competition is maturing – and anyway, I know we will
bounce back in Rio!
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| Rhys Jones (centre) is one of the athletes on the Road to Rio. |
But in 4, 8 or 12 year’s time I suspect it won’t be the
number or colour of the medals that we’ll remember. Medals and medal winners will
only part of the London story. What will burn really bright in the memory of
everyone who has been touched by these Games will be the remarkable performance
of the athletes and the statement they have made about their individual ability.
The tennis player who flicked his feet to serve the ball, the blind long
jumpers that silenced an 80,000 seater Stadium so that you could hear the sound
of their assistants clapping to help them stay on the runway or the Thai boccia
player who mesmerised spectators with his level of skill, not to mention his memorable
victory celebrations. These athletes and the many that have gone before, since
the first Games way back in Stoke Mandeville 1948, have strived not only to be
the best they could be, but also to ensure that their Games receive the recognition
and respect that they so readily deserve. On this occasion I think they have
achieved it.....
oh yeah.....and I did tell you!
Follow Jon Morgan on Twitter: @JonnyMogs
