Opening Ceremony London 2012: Let the Games begin

The stage is set and the athletes are primed as the seven-year countdown to the London 2012 Olympics reaches its finale with Friday's much-anticipated opening ceremony.The Opening Ceremony of the Olympics 2012 and the ranking rounds for Archery will be held in London today. PT takes in the mood at the world's biggest sporting event. 

Controversies and rows will take a backseat as the Big Games begin today. Every Olympian, sportsperson and sports-fan is looking forward to the Opening Ceremony of the London Olympics 2012 and the sporting events and competitions to follow. The mood is upbeat, Indian sportspersons and fervent fans have their eye on the gold. 

The players have been training well and hard, soaking in the spirit of the game at the Olympics Village in London. Some have been constantly keeping fans updated on the goings-on at the Village. Each representative of the different sports is a picture of confidence. Will they do the country proud? A determined 'yes' has constantly echoed from the players prior to their London departure. It will be an honour for them; a moment of high achievement for the country. 

Rewind to 2008 - the Beijing Olympics. India won a total of three medals. Shooter Abhinav Bindra bagged the first individual Olympic gold for the country; wrestling champ Sushil Kumar, who will be the flag-bearer at today's opening ceremony, won a bronze; and so did boxer Vijender Singh. This time round, there are many medal hopefuls. To start with, there's world No 1 woman archer, the young Deepika Kumari. The ranking rounds for Archery (both men and women individual and team) will be held today; most of the other competitions start on July 28. Deepika has come a long way from her humble background. Born in a small village near Ranchi, Deepika is the eldest daughter of an autorickshaw driver. Today, she is India's strongest contender for a medal at the Big Games. All eyes will be on her command over the bow and arrow. 

Racist 'Joke' 

A couple of days back, Greek athlete Voula Papachristou found herself expelled from the Games because of a racist "joke" on a social networking website. The champion triple jumper did apologise for hurting sentiments. She tweeted: '@papaxristoutj: I would like to express my heartfelt apologies for the unfortunate and tasteless joke I published on my personal Twitter account... I never wanted to offend anyone, or to encroach human rights. My dream is connected to the Olympic Games and I could not possibly participate if I did not respect their values. Therefore, I could never believe in discrimination between human beings and races.' 

Sporting Spirit 

But barring this one incident, there seems to be no sign of any discrimination between players. In fact, they seem to share a good camaraderie. Russian-born Kazakhstani tennis player Galina Voskoboeva recently tweeted: @g_voskoboeva: 'Today at OlympicsVillage between all the athletes I was meeting @MirzaSania every 10 min for 10 times)))) (sic).' A smiling Sania reciprocated by re-posting the picture. Tennis player Mahesh Bhupathi too seems to be enjoying the sportsman spirit at the Village. He too uploaded a picture of all the players dining together. @Maheshbhupathi: '830 breakfast call, jam packed at the Village this morning. Feels like all 10,000 eating together :) (sic).' Seems like we'll be witness to some healthy competition on the courts. After the long tennis row (between Bhupathi, Leander Paes, Rohan Bopanna, Sania Mirza), this comes as pleasant relief. Now, over to the Games.

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