Chasing the Torch

Marlon Devonish with the torch at Crystal Palace

Welcome to 'The Search For Excellence', the London 2012 blog which will be taking you through the sports mania of the Olympics over the next three weeks. The name of this blog is taken from a fantastic quote by Australian triple-gold winning swimmer Dawn Fraser, who once said, 'The Olympics remain the most compelling search for excellence that exists in sport, and maybe in life itself.' This statement captures the essence of the excitement which is being felt around London at the moment, for sports fans and non-sports fans alike.

The torch leaves Crystal Palace park

Today I witnessed some of the Olympic fever which has been storming the country first hand with the Torch Relay on it's 66th leg, passing through Deptford and later Crystal Palace and Croydon in South London. Thousands of people were lining the street as a host of torchbearers including celebrities, charity workers and other do-gooders passed the Olympic Flame from torch to torch, along a route which must have been painstakingly devised to include all 33 London Boroughs during the final week after already visiting most of the country. But what is this ceremonial and time-consuming activity all about?

Devonish flashes a grin at Crystal Palace

Dating back to the ancient Olympic games held in Greece from 800 B.C to the 4th Century A.D the flame represented the theft of fire from the Greek god Zeus by the mythical heroic figure Prometheus (not to be confused the spaceship from the recent movie). However, it wasn't initially included as part of the modern Olympics when they launched back in 1896, instead it took 32 years before the Dutch brought it back for the Amsterdam Olympics. While the flame was present for the ancient Olympics and the the 1928 and 1932 modern editions, the relay idea was only introduced for the infamous 1936 Olympics which were held in Berlin, which was under Nazi control. Since then, the torch has been lit by a concave mirror in Olympia, the home of the ancient Olympics and transported by relay to the host city where it is lit in the Olympic Stadium at the opening ceremony of each tournament ( the legendary Sir Steve Redgrave is currently the favourite to light the flame this Friday). In the years since then the flame has gone under the sea near the Great Barrier Reef, travelled in Concorde, on a camel and was even bizarrely transmitted by radio signal and laser beam in 1976. 

The torch hits Croydon in the sunshine

But as the torch relay tradition has evolved, it has clearly become a powerful way of bringing the community together and drawing attention to the undeniable behemoth of sporting prowess that the Olympic games really is. I saw this first hand today when I arose at an unearthly hour to see Doreen Lawrence, the mother of murdered teenager Stephen Lawrence carrying the flame in Deptford. Lawrence has campaigned relentlessly since her son was killed in a racially-aggravated attack in 1993 and has achieved much with the Stephen Lawrence Charitable Trust and her work with Stop Hate UK. The 59-year-old  had suffered for many years as her son's murderers were only convicted in January of this year. Deservedly, there was a swelling of positive emotion as Lawrence carried the torch before passing it to 16-year-old Young Mayor of Lewisham, Kieran Lang and despite the early time, a large crowd was present. 

Devonish is in there somewhere, honest

A couple of hours later and I caught up with the torch again as it reached Crystal Palace Athletics stadium where it was handed to 2004 gold medal winner Marlon Devonish. The 36-year-old sprinter, who won gold alongside Darren Campbell in the 4x100m relay at the Athens tournament ran into the stadium where he was greeted by incredible numbers who were there to cheer him on as he ran along the athletics track before stopping to let fans and the media mob him for photographs and interviews. The venue, which recently hosted the Aviva London Grand Prix (where Team GB's Perri Shakes-Drayton and Mo Farah excelled) proved to be the perfect location to whet the appetite for track and field as many Londoners revelled in the sunshine. Devonish seemed in a great mood before passing the torch on as it continued South towards Croydon.

The inspirational Doreen Lawrence

It was there, in Croydon, where I again caught up with the flame, by now in scorching sunlight and with even more spectators than at the previous locations. Unfortunately it proved impossible to see Sir Patrick Stewart, the highly-respected actor, most famous for his role as Captain Jean-Luc Picard in Star Trek but the local heroes who bore the flame before him had the support of the crowd and the atmosphere was crackling as it truly dawns on people that the biggest sporting event to hit Britain since World Cup 1966 arrives in only four days time. The torch's journey then escaped my reach as it headed to Battersea dog's home with Michael Owen and to Wimbledon with Andy Murray. Yet while the Torch Relay is simply a warm up for the big event, the power it has to draw people from their homes and offices to unite in celebration of the collective achievements of the people of Britain is truly inspirational. Whether it is Sir Steve Redgrave, David Beckham, Roger Bannister or somebody else who lights the final flame on Friday evening, they will be marking the end of a fascinating journey and the start of something a whole lot bigger. Bring it on.



Check the blog on Wednesday 25th July for 'A potted history of the Olympic Games'.
And don't forget to follow James throughout the Olympics on Twitter @TSFE2012 

Photography by Helen Crane except for the Doreen Lawrence shot which was by the writer.