Sport for all

The Olympic flame arrived in Britain last week ready for the London 2012 Olympics.  It is now on a journey round the British Isles that will take it within reach of the vast majority of the country’s population.  The message is clear: Sport for All.

The flame was lit in Ancient Olympia where the tradition of world games started in 776 BC.  The Games were always accompanied by a truce in which warring parties would lay down their arms for the duration of the games.

So the games have always symbolised more than just sport.  And more than just winning medals.  The founder of the modern Games Pierre de Courbetin made clear that the most important thing was not the winning, but the taking part.

That maxim applies to all sport, not just every four years.  Sport for all ages brings health, well-being, companionship, teamwork and the pride and dignity of representing your club, town or country in competition.

That pride was displayed dramatically last week when we unveiled the Jordanian Olympic and Paralympic teams for this year’s games.  With the help of the Jordan Olympic Committee and in the presence of HRH Prince Faisal, HRH Prince Raad and HRH Prince Rashid.  All the Jordanian athletes came onto the stage to be presented to the audience and to the cameras.

The pride in their faces and the excitement in their voices as they looked forward to their journey to London said it all.  Competition at the highest level would be the fulfilment of their dreams.  It is an honour for them to represent their country on the world stage and to strive to do their best.  And it is equally clear that their country is proud of them.

Pride in participation in sport was also manifest when I visited two schools whose playgrounds we had refurbished.  In a project linked to the London Olympics, and in collaboration with Al-Joud and G4S we provided the equipment for football and basketball at a boys’ school in Zarqa and a girls’ school in Umm Al-Hiran.

As I gave out the medals and cups, I found an enthusiasm and youthful vigour about playing sport in their neighbourhood.  And they made the link to the United Kingdom.  The boys had named their new playground “Manchester” and were anxious to show me that they wanted Chelsea to win Europe’s Champions’ League (and they were proven right).

The greatest festival of sport is now coming to London.  All the facilities are ready for a magnificent celebration of physical achievement and excellence.  It should provide the inspiration to everyone to have a go and improve their own health and ability to play.

The Games should also be a diversion from the conflicts that inflict pain around the world.  The Olympic Truce symbolised the priority of sport over conflict.  And last year the UN General Assembly adopted the Olympic Truce resolution with the sponsorship of all 193 countries.

The contrast with our daily woes is caricatured by a quote from American jurist Earl Warren: “I always turn to the sports pages first.  The sports page records people’s accomplishments.  The front page has nothing but man’s failures.”