micheal_warren Posted August 25, 2008 Report Share Posted August 25, 2008 yes everyone is on a high in the UK and thus not complaining about it... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr Tickle Posted August 25, 2008 Report Share Posted August 25, 2008 As a nation of whingers, even the most grumpy ones are finding it hard not to be beaming at the moment LOL. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ruling Czar Posted August 25, 2008 Report Share Posted August 25, 2008 I sorta agree with Michale Warren. It is almost unbelieveable that Beijing missed, once more, the opulence factor. That is so unlike the Chinese. The tower of people in the centre, echoed Moscow 1980 and that segment when they changed it into a stemm of opening flowers was the highlight of the show form me. I was pretty upset with vancouver's handover presentation in Torino but I think London may have equalled it. The striking thing is, London 2012 video was almost a carbon copy of Vancouver's in Torino! The best thing was the fireworks. Rogge Looked a bit worried to me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
baron-pierreIV Posted August 25, 2008 Report Share Posted August 25, 2008 Rogge Looked a bit worried to me. I think he was tired. Anyone working a Games is put under severe strains over those 17 days; and most of all Rogge, since he is the face of the IOC. Plus, he has to stay cool and diplomatic, focused and available to the world media over those 17 days. It is a strain. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Citius Altius Fortius Posted August 25, 2008 Author Report Share Posted August 25, 2008 I think he was tired. Anyone working a Games is put under severe strains over those 17 days; and most of all Rogge, since he is the face of the IOC. Plus, he has to stay cool and diplomatic, focused and available to the world media over those 17 days. It is a strain. Here in some newspapers it was "joked" that Rogge was visible three times during the 16 days only: 1 time at the Opening Ceremony, 1 time at the 100 m final and finally 1 time at the closing ceremony... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
baron-pierreIV Posted August 25, 2008 Report Share Posted August 25, 2008 Here in some newspapers it was "joked" that Rogge was visible three times during the 16 days only: 1 time at the Opening Ceremony, 1 time at the 100 m final and finally 1 time at the closing ceremony... I'm sure he was working behind the scenes. He gave a 3-part interview to NBC, and Bob Costas really threw pointed questions at him which he answered very assuredly and very forthwith. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Citius Altius Fortius Posted August 25, 2008 Author Report Share Posted August 25, 2008 I'm sure he was working behind the scenes. He gave a 3-part interview to NBC, and Bob Costas really threw pointed questions at him which he answered very assuredly and very forthwith. ohh, really? Do you have a link, where I can find this interview? I would love to read it... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
baron-pierreIV Posted August 25, 2008 Report Share Posted August 25, 2008 ohh, really? Do you have a link, where I can find this interview? I would love to read it... It was aired...so I dunno, Youtube? Otherwise, I don't know where you can find a transcript of it... Cna you access teh nbcolympics.com page? Maybe it's there...or the IOC page? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scotguy Posted August 25, 2008 Report Share Posted August 25, 2008 He also did an interview for the BBC in which he stated that London must not scale down the games Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Citius Altius Fortius Posted August 25, 2008 Author Report Share Posted August 25, 2008 (edited) I have to correct myself - I forgot that Rogge was in the "German house", too. baron - I looked on the nbcolympics-page, but I couldn't find it... Edited August 25, 2008 by Citius Altius Fortius Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Olympian2004 Posted August 27, 2008 Report Share Posted August 27, 2008 I watched my recording of the closing ceremony last night -- and I was really surprised how unspectacular and actually pretty bland it was. It really seems as if closing ceremonies (at least at the Summer Games) become more and more a very poor copy of the respective opening ceremony. Even the exstinguishing of the Olympic Flame had actually a good concept, but they botched it somehow so that it didn't become as emotional as it could have been. The flame died too quickly and it appeared pretty odd that they didn't use the very emotional theme song for the whole segment, i.e. including the pictures of the Games' highlights. I once said that it's actually impossible to create a flame extinguishing segment which is not terribly sad and moving -- well, Beijing proved me wrong. Already the artistic part at the beginning of the CC was pretty dull, especially compared with the impact created by the pictures at the opening ceremony. The flags and athletes segments were nothing special while the segment with the volunteers and the new members of the IOC athletes commission was rather embarrassing in my opinion, with those artificial broad smiles of everyone involved. Especially the children who accompanied the volunteers looked very tense. Also the Olympic Flag segment was a disappointment for me. I had hoped for an instrumental accompaniment for the Olympic Hymn this time, but it seems as if a cappella versions are currently very en vogue at the Olympics. Also, I was surprised that possibly for the first time in Olympic history, the flag wasn't solemnly carried out of the stadium but simply folded. The London handover ceremony, however was maybe the best since Sydney's handover in Atlanta. It had a very nice, down-to-earth touch and wasn't cheesy at all. Only Boris Johnson's sloppy appearance and stupid facial expression while waving the Antwerp/Seoul Flag was an absolute show stopper. That guy is simply not presentable, especially not in front of a huge global audience. I hope he isn't in charge anymore by the time of London's CC. And then there was yet another stupid CC concert mostly with songs which mostly didn't touch you (maybe besides the OK "Beijing, Beijing" song) and with surprisingly bad acoustics. Thank God that they didn't make a whole marathon out of it, unlike the guys in Athens. I think Athens produced the better CC -- at least if you take the artistic and ceremonial parts into consideration. They were more catchy and also more moving than Beijing's counterparts. And for me, both CCs are topped by Sydney's, despite that wasn't a perfect CC either. I think that the winter closing ceremonies are simply classier (in Torino, the CC was even better than the OC), which is probably due to the fact that they are staged in stadia which are open for rehearsals during the Games. So my personal ranking of the closing ceremonies I've completely seen so far: 1.) Lillehammer 2.) Salt Lake City 3.) Sydney 4.) Torino 5.) Nagano 6.) Atlanta 7.) Athens 8.) Beijing So sorry, Beijing -- but especially after that opening ceremony, your closing ceremony was a big disappointment. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
baron-pierreIV Posted August 27, 2008 Report Share Posted August 27, 2008 /\ /\ And on the heels of that 'CC is always a 2nd class citizen to its OC,' Vancouver has come out with its 'lower scaled' prices to the CC vs. the premium prices for its OC. So VANOC has, another first for them, it seems become sensitive to the undercurrent talk amongst Ceremonies groupies that why pay OC prices for the CC when it is always a far inferior show. Makes sense, especially also, since it will be in an enclosed stadium, and you, as the ticket buyer, will NOT have the benefit of a spectacular fireworks show which, in many CCs, SORT OF made up for the lack of content and visual splendour that are packed into an OC but are depleted come CC time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lexus Posted August 28, 2008 Report Share Posted August 28, 2008 I'm not really a fan of the handover segment, i think it takes away from the atmosphere and momentum the host has created. I thought Athens did well by keeping it simple and not detracting too much attention from the atmosphere Sydney had created for their CC. I think I'd like to see handovers in the future as a small video, a couple of minutes, under the direction of the committee, showcasing the city to the world. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lexus Posted August 28, 2008 Report Share Posted August 28, 2008 I think I'd like to see handovers in the future as a small video, a couple of minutes, under the direction of the committee, showcasing the city to the world. Oooh, and live cross overs to the future host city, I love those - we didn't get one of London here in Greece, I think they did in Germany. Who organises that? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mattygs Posted August 28, 2008 Report Share Posted August 28, 2008 I think the problem is that closing ceremonies have changed over the last few Olympiads. Zhang Yimou pretty much came out and said that there was no room, time or rehersal capacity to have a performance with thousands of performers. I think we have to face that opening ceremonies have become bigger, and closings more athlete friendly compared to the likes of Barcelona or Atlanta. Future host cities are just trying too hard to convey everything about their city or nation in the space of 8 minutes. While they have been able to have a shot of attempting that on a huge athletics field - it is impossible on a small stage which they have to work with if the last decade is anything to go by. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
baron-pierreIV Posted August 28, 2008 Report Share Posted August 28, 2008 (edited) New IOC rule: Closing Ceremonies MUST from hereon BE GRANDER than Openings so that the Olympic Games will close on a big bang!! Athletes? Who are they? They've had their bit to mess up the Opening. They're NOT needed for the Closing. THey can watch from their rooms or outside the stadium. Only the flags and medal-winners who have stayed on, will be present. The Handover Segment will at least be 30 minutes long, and must be rehearsed 3x at the actual stadium. Other requirements: - new original songs - minimum cast of 500 - must include the services of at least 1 diva (choice of Celine Dion, Gloria Estefan or Sarah Brightman -- whoever has not been signed up for the other portions of the Closing). - one boy band allowed, provided they are not prettier than the boy band of the outgoing host... - must do a dove or new logo formation Let's see, what else? Edited August 28, 2008 by baron-pierreIV Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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