The Official Olympic Thread

[Chazza]

Atlanta is regarded as how not to manage the Olympic transport and infrastructure. The drivers got lost athletes turned up minutes before events and it took them 8 hours to get everyone out of the main stadium

We are going to run that close

[dom9]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-18852034

Heathrow Airport is expecting its busiest day on record and on the main route out - the M4 - the first priority "Games Lane" is in operation.

Heathrow Airport is expecting to process as many as 236,955 passengers on Monday, which would surpass its previous record of 233,562 set on 31 July last year. This compares with 190,000 passengers through Heathrow on an average day.

Some 335 competitors are expected on Monday, as part of 1,027 so-called "Games Family" arrivals (including athletes and coaches) from more than 50 countries. Heathrow operator BAA expects the busiest day for arriving athletes to be 24 July.

"Today heralds the start of Britain's biggest peacetime transport challenge and Heathrow's busiest ever period," said BAA's head of Olympic and Paralympic planning, Nick Cole.

[Bender]

The G4 SECURITY IN TRAINING

[dom9]

[Alex]

Would the Olympics generate that much extra traffic to warrant their own road lanes?

Are they in effect 24/7, or just peak times?

Apparently the lanes are for the Officials and Athletes to get to the venue on time, with minimal time in Traffic Jams.

Its going to be mad. All of the Lanes are not in operation yet, there are 100 or so miles left to come in. £130 fine for driving in them too.

[Tee]

They should change the line 'Let the games begin' to 'Let the chaos begin'

[Bender]

They should change the line 'Let the games begin' to 'Let the chaos begin'

Along with the rain and other things it should be 'Let the games begin' to 'Let the chaos regin'

[dom9]

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/britain-flooded-with-brand-police-to-protect-sponsors-7945436.html

Britain flooded with 'brand police' to protect sponsors

Hundreds of uniformed Olympics officers will begin touring the country today enforcing sponsors' multimillion-pound marketing deals, in a highly organised mission that contrasts with the scramble to find enough staff to secure Olympic sites.

Almost 300 enforcement officers will be seen across the country checking firms to ensure they are not staging "ambush marketing" or illegally associating themselves with the Games at the expense of official sponsors such as Adidas, McDonald's, Coca-Cola and BP. The clampdown goes on while 3,500 soldiers on leave are brought in to bail out the security firm G4S which admitted it could not supply the numbers of security staff it had promised.

Yesterday, the Culture Secretary, Jeremy Hunt, refused to rule out that even more soldiers may be called upon to help with security, but dismissed the issue as merely a "hitch". However, as well as the regular Army, the Olympic "brand army" will start its work with a vengeance today.

Wearing purple caps and tops, the experts in trading and advertising working for the Olympic Delivery Authority (ODA) are heading the biggest brand protection operation staged in the UK. Under legislation specially introduced for the London Games, they have the right to enter shops and offices and bring court action with fines of up to £20,000.

Olympics organisers have warned businesses that during London 2012 their advertising should not include a list of banned words, including "gold", "silver" and "bronze", "summer", "sponsors" and "London".

Publicans have been advised that blackboards advertising live TV coverage must not refer to beer brands or brewers without an Olympics deal, while caterers and restaurateurs have been told not to advertise dishes that could be construed as having an association with the event.

At the 40 Olympics venues, 800 retailers have been banned from serving chips to avoid infringing fast-food rights secured by McDonald's.

Marina Palomba, for the McCann Worldgroup agency in London, described the rules as "the most draconian law in advance of an Olympic Games ever". The ODA and Locog (London Organising Committee of the Olympic Games) say the rules are necessary to protect brands.

"These rights are acquired by companies who invest millions of pounds to help support the staging of the Games," Locog said. "People who seek the same benefits for free – by engaging in ambush marketing or producing counterfeit goods – are effectively depriving the Games of revenue."

Some £1.4bn of the Games' £11.4bn budget comes from private sector sponsors. The International Olympic Committee's 11 global partners, including Coca-Cola, Visa and Proctor & Gamble, are contributing £700m while £700m comes from London 2012 partners, including Adidas, BT, EDF, and Lloyds TSB.

The scale of the brand enforcement squad is nonetheless likely to intensify criticism that the Olympics has become too corporate. Paul Jordan, an expert in brand protection at Bristows solicitors who advises firms on the rules, said they were almost certainly tougher than at previous Olympics. "No other brands would have people walking the streets being their eyes and ears, protecting their interests," he said.

A spokesman for the Olympic Delivery Authority, whose team of 286 enforcement officers have been seconded from 30 local councils, said it had a duty to ensure businesses were meeting the rules.

"We are using experienced local authority staff who currently enforce street trading and advertising legislation. They have all been fully trained," the spokesman said.

"Deliberate ambush offences will be dealt with using the full enforcement powers conferred on officers."

[Alex]

I intensely dislike these big events coming in and changing a countries laws. Fifa do it too and its not right.

[elrichio86]

The corporate sponsors also get large tax breaks during the games IIRC. Same with FIFA I think.

[baitman]

there was a great programme on the bbc [i think?] a couple of nights ago about three boxers from Liverpool, and their journey to make qualification.

and also a great programme about victoria pendleton, cycling totty;

http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b01l1yl4/Victoria_Pendleton_Cyclings_Golden_Girl/

[Gibbo]

Hoy left out of GB team for the sprint

[Muddled]

[Norbs]

Good luck to him


Anyone seen the short term weather forecast? 84 degrees by Tuesday, London's going to be a stinking sticky chaotic mess

[Tee]

Anyone else go and see the Olympic Torch Relay? Went to see it this morning in Crystal Palace and so many people turned out. Really great atmosphere and it now genuinely feels like the games are here!! Plus, I got to hold the torch for a few seconds!!