Well it’s tough to write about anything but the Olympics right now. At last the day has come and the competition is on for more than 10,000 athletes from 205 countries. And so far it’s every bit as exciting as we’d hoped.
Did you see the opening ceremony? We organised a small event on Friday night in co-operation with the British Chamber of Commerce in Hungary for a few business and political contacts and the ceremony was shown on a big screen. I thought it was fantastic. I loved the human tone and the sense of humour that flowed though the show. And, of course, the highlight was the Queen’s appearance alongside Daniel Craig as James Bond. There was a cheer at our party when she turned round and you could see it was really her. I also liked the blend of tradition and high tech, culture and innovation which the director, Danny Boyle put together. And, of course, the music from the 80s and 90s which he used. My music era. Of course you can’t please everyone: one of our guests at the party said they should have used Depeche Mode.
And now I’m glued to the coverage. There are sports I’ve competed in myself (at a modest level) like swimming, tennis, fencing and rowing which I’m enjoying. But I’ve also got into the gymnastics and the cycling. In fact I’m becoming an Olympo-holic. I get excited by pretty much any of the Olympic sports. It’s great to see such talented, disciplined and dedicated people compete at this level. An inspiration to us all. Of course I’m cheering for the Hungarian athletes. Nearly as loudly as I do for Team GB. And Hungary is ahead of Britain in the medal table at the moment after that sensational fencing gold.
I didn’t see it myself, but I understand there was a problem with the playing of the Hungarian national anthem when that gold medal was presented. But the Hungarian Olympic Association have been in touch with the Games Organisers, who promised to sort it out immediately. And I look forward to hearing the Hungarian national anthem many times over the next two weeks of Olympics and the following two of Paralympics.
Hajrá magyarok!