So you will all know, if you saw my Olympic Team TIU Challenge that I was absolutely in love with and caught up in the Olympic Movement during and following the London 2012 Olympic Games. I was devastated that I didn't get to go to any events and listened with envy when my parents told me about their experiences at the rowing on 'Super Saturday' at Eton Dorney. As a family we've tried and tried to get hold of some Paralympic tickets but they are like gold dust! There are absolutely none available!
So imagine my surprise when my mum burst into my room at 10am on Saturday to tell me that she'd been given 4 Olympic Park Day Passes in recognition of her performance at work; thankfully the company she works for are one of the Olympic and Paralympic major sponsors. I couldn't believe it! I was so excited but then my next thought went to work - I was scheduled to do a 9-2 shift on Saturday and it was such short notice I thought there was no way I'd be able to take it off. Thanks to some miracle and some expert negotiation I was able to take a days holiday and we were off! The Edwards family were going to Olympic Park.
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| My Sister and I on the train (The Overground Underground!) |
First off, let me start by saying whoever had doubts about the London Transport System during the games, obviously never used the London transport system during the games! Both of our journeys to and from the park were faultless, quick and easy! The trains were clean, frequent and took you straight to the doors of the park.
As we stepped out of the station and my family ushered me past Forever 21 (more on that later - promise!) it was about a 5 minute walk to the security checks - think airport security but outdoors. We were met with smiles from the games makers (the volunteers), smiles from soldiers (who were handling a lot of the security) and pounding music to set the atmosphere (Rihanna's We Found Love had ALL of the soldiers dancing!) We cleared security in 30 seconds. No lie - it was amazing how quickly we got through!
Then there it was! We turned a corner and could see the poster image of the games; the Athletics Stadium. It was HUGE! We could hear roars coming from the crowd inside and you could feel your heart beating. This was what all the fuss has been about.
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| My parents and I in front of the Athletics Stadium |
We knew that our tickets had restrictions; we couldn't see any of the events at the Athletics Stadium, the Velodrome or the Aquatics Centre but that left a lot of stuff we could do! I kept comparing the Olympic Park to Disneyland! There was tonnes going on and things to see everywhere you looked! I'll mention the Games Makers again because everything you have heard about them is true. They were friendly, approachable, extremely knowledgable and they were all having a fantastic time!
We headed to the Copperbox arena first which is aptly named because it really is a box made out of copper! Here we saw Goalball, I'd never heard of Goalball before so wasn't sure what to expect but we got in at just the right time to see Brazil and Lithuania start a game. The noise within the arena was incredible but as soon as play began and for as long as the ball was in session the audience fell silent.
Goalball is a sport for the visually impaired. Players can have varying degrees of impairment but to level the playing field, all competitors wear blindfolds. The aim of the game is very similar to handball; you score by getting the ball in the goal which stretches the width of the court. There are three players per team and each half lasts 12 minutes. The ball is heavy and has a bell in it so the athletes can hear where it is as they, obviously, cannot see it. This is why the audience had to be silent until a goal was scored when we could, and did, go wild!
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| Goalball in the Copperbox Arena |
I was blown away by the Athlete's skill and teamwork. They couldn't see a thing but were on target every single time they took a shot. I was really struck by what the Paralympics promote; sport for all. Sport really does know no bounds and I was made extremely aware of this watching Goalball. It's not a well known sport; the arena wasn't very full but I was so engaged in the game! Brazil won and I was 100% blown away and inspired by their performance. It was incredible to witness the silence and the concentration shown by the athletes.
We then moved on to the Riverbank arena to watch the 7-a-side football (soccer). Team GB were due to play during the session so it was a really popular event. The rules are extremely similar to able-bodied soccer except for each team has 7 players, each with varying classifications of Cerabal Palsy, there is no offside rule and players must remain at least 7m away from a player taking a free kick or penalty. The first game was between Ukraine and the USA and I'm afraid to say the USA got absolutely destroyed! Ukraine scored in the first minute and that set the tone of the game which eventually finished 9-0 to Ukraine.
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| Team USA and Ukraine warming up (we got there early!) |
The next game was between Team GB and Brazil. The stadium was packed and mexican waves went around for 20 minutes! We were really excited to see Team GB perform. The atmosphere was amazing! Every time the commentator said the words 'Great Britain' the noise produced as a result was deafening! I couldn't help but feel extremely proud as the National Anthem was played before the game began. Unfortunately things went extremely downhill from there as Brazil went three up before half time and the atmosphere dwindled to nothing. Needless to say, it was incredible to see Team GB perform.
I'll leave it here for part 1 as I'm aware of how long this post is becoming! Part 2 coming soon!!
