TSFE's Team GB 2012 Awards

Team GB's stars are truly deserving of this mural outside Adidas' Oxford Street store

Over seven years ago, London was announced as the host of the 2012 Olympics and a set of events was set in motion which resulted in the unparalleled glory and national fervour which has reverberated around the capital, and the rest of the country, for the past two and a half weeks. To mark the end of a truly remarkable tournament, I thought I would pinpoint some of the finest athletes, sports and moments of the thirtieth Olympiad. It would prove a near impossible task to cover the entire cast of this fantastic festival of sport, consisting of over 10,000 athletes from 204 countries so I have narrowed down The Search for Excellence's awards to those that are part of Team GB. After all, the British have had their greatest Olympic performance for over half a century, and on home soil as well. Here we go...


Best man -  Ben Ainslie (Sailing)

Ainslie nabbed his fourth gold in four Games

Also in contention: Sir Chris Hoy (Track Cycling), Mo Farah (Athletics), Alistair Brownlee (Triathlon), Andy Murray (Tennis).

The sailor, already assured a place in the pantheon of greats, made sure that what will probably be his final Olympics was one to remember. Pushed every step of the way by Danish rival Jonas Hogh-Christensen he showed up when it mattered most and defeated his opponent in the final medal race to claim his fourth successive sailing gold at different Olympic Games. The eight-times world champion is now 35 and also won a silver way back at Atlanta 1996 but victory in front of a home crowd at Weymouth is a truly majestic way to cap a magnificent career. Ainslie's success at multiple Olympiads, one tournament short of equalling Sir Steve Redgrave's five golds in a row, puts him ahead of the others in this category, although Sir Chris Hoy's double gold haul, which takes his total tally to six was mightily impressive. He will be much happier with the result of the next award...


Best sport- Track Cycling

The velodrome was the scene of much British success

Also in contention: Rowing, Boxing, Equestrian.

The velodrome was the scene of some of Team GB's finest victories with seven golds, a silver and a bronze claimed by our incredible cycling team. Before the indoor variety of cycling got underway, Team GB had already claimed three gongs on the road thanks to Bradley Wiggins' gold, Lizzie Armitstead's silver and Chris Froome's bronze but that achievement was blown out of the water by the utter domination seen under the roof of the 6,000 capacity venue. Established heroes Hoy and Victoria Pendleton embellished their reputations further at the tail-ends of their respective careers while a new generation arose led by newly-confirmed couple Laura Trott and Jason Kenny. Keirin, sprint, team sprint, team pursuit, omnium...you name it, Team GB won it. An exciting sport to watch and showcasing some of Britain's most likeable athletes, this track cycling effort will take some beating next time out in Brazil.

Biggest surprise success- Andy Murray

Murray exceeded expectations to defeat Djokovic and Federer

Also in contention: Peter Wilson (Shooting), Greg Rutherford (Long jump), Tim Baillie and Etienne Stott (Canoe Slalom)

Andy Murray has been one of the great enigmas of British sport over recent years. Love him or hate him, it is impossible not to share in his frustration as he repeatedly gets so far in tennis Grand Slams only to be slain by one of the holy trinity - Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal or Novak Djokovic. With Nadal out of the way at the Olympics because of injury, Murray still had a mighty task on his hands to get past Djokovic and Federer. Not only that but he had to juggle his men's singles schedule with a run to the final of the mixed doubles with team-mate Laura Robson, which meant he had to play multiple games in the same day and compete on eight of the nine days that the tennis tournaments ran for. To contend with this and still manage to despatch both Djokovic and Federer in straight sets is an achievement not to be shirked at. The silver earned with Robson was an added bonus but Murray conquered his Wimbledon demons as part of Team GB and will be looking forward to returning for next year's traditional tennis tournament.


Best support act - The Opening Ceremony

Boyle's ingenious works were in stark contrast to Beijing

Also in contention: The Games Makers, The Army (for their security work), Boris Johnson

It is hard to consider Danny Boyle's incredible show as a support act for the sport, as it so magnificently took centre stage on the opening night and will remain fresh in the memories of all those that watched it forever more. But the mood which was set on Friday 27th July echoed throughout the whole of the Olympics tournament and for Team GB in particular reminded fans and athletes alike why they are proud to be British. From the Queen to the Beatles and from Mr. Bean to James Bond, the cacophony of craziness which was broadcast to the world at the start of London 2012 truly reflected the good and the great of Great Britain's culture, and the inclusion of Sir Steve Redgrave, David Beckham and the seven young athletes who lit the Olympic flame made sure that the sporting ideals of the Olympics were never quite forgotten. The thousands of volunteers and security staff who have ensured the smooth running of the tournament also deserve recognition but of all the non-sporting achievements during these Games, Boyle's show was emphatically unbeatable.

Best woman- Nicola Adams (Boxing)

Adams' smile is arguably the best seen since footballer Dwight Yorke

Also in contention: Jessica Ennis (Heptathlon), Katherine Grainger (Rowing), Laura Trott (Cycling)

Many at London 2012 have legitimate claims for making history but for the women's flyweight boxer from Leeds, that claim is extra strong. Adams is the first ever woman to win a gold medal for boxing at the Olympics, as this was the first time the sport was ever included in the schedule for the Games. The 29-year-old fought hard not only to claim her gold medal but also to promote a sport which was only truly accepted in Britain in the late 1990s. The first ever woman to represent England in boxing, back in 2001, she has now become a national icon and is likely to have played a key role in London 2012's aim of 'inspiring a generation'. Boxing, and the women's version in particular, went down extremely well at the Excel arena, and people will be looking forward to women's boxing becoming more prominent in future. Adams herself is almost always seen sporting a huge grin and after her incredible victory, she certainly deserves to be smiling.

Best moment- Ennis, Rutherford and Farah's 46 minute hat-trick (Athletics)

Ennis, Farah and Rutherford will never forget the 4th August 2012

Also in contention: Grainger and Glover bring home Team GB's first gold (Rowing), Gemma Gibbons emotional semi-final victory (Judo), the Brownlee brothers both reach the podium (Triathlon)

On the middle weekend of London 2012, excitement peaked for Team GB when in one golden hour three British athletes stormed the Olympic Stadium like never seen before. First, Jessica Ennis confirmed her utter domination of the heptathlon event, finishing first in the final event, the 800m, to end the standings over 300 points clear of second place. Then, almost immediately, the unheralded Greg Rutherford claimed Great Britain's first long jump gold since 1964 to send the crowd crazy. And it got even better as everybody's favourite British distance runner Mo Farah stormed to glory in the 10,000m race, one of the hardest track and field events. Timing his run to perfection Farah stormed ahead towards the end of the 25 lap race and proved uncatchable.  Dubbed the finest moment in the history of Great Britain's athletics team, it is hard to imagine another sporting hour ever capturing the heart of the public in quite the same way again.

Best team-  Nick Skelton, Ben Maher, Scott Brash and Peter Charles (Men's Show Jumping - Equestrian)

Age wasn't a barrier for this generation-spanning quarter

Also in contention: Laura Trott, Dani King, Joanna Rowsell(Women's Team Pursuit - Cycling), Andy Triggs Hodge, Pete Reed, Alex Gregory, Tom James (Men's Coxless Fours - Rowing), Sam Oldham, Louis Smith, Dan Purvis, Kristian Thomas, Max Whitlock (Men's Team - Gymnastic)

One of the most dramatic team successes saw GB take the gold in equestrian show jumping, the first time the Brits have achieved a medal of any colour in this event for 60 years. With two men in their 50s and two in their 20s making up the quartet, it was a triumph of great teamwork and team ethic as the Dutch were defeated in a high pressure jump off at the fantastic Greenwich Park venue. The Irish-British 52-year-old Peter Charles sealed the success with a flawless round but this medal was one which reflected the efforts of a genuine team and another medal which wouldn't have been expected before the tournament began.

Best coach - Alberto Salazar (Mo Farah)

Salazar is sandwiched by his apprentices Galen Rupp and Farah

Also in contention: Ivan Lendl (Andy Murray), Toni Minichiello (Jessica Ennis), Charles van Commenee (head coach of UK Athletics)

Mo Farah is one of the greatest success stories of London 2012. Not only did he storm to the 10,000m gold but he added the 5,000m title a week later. However, back in Beijing 2008, the then 25-year-old didn't even make the final of the 10,000m. So how did things turn around so much? Much credit has to be given to the 54-year-old American coach Alberto Salazar. Farah himself claimed that his success was down to Salazar's 'brilliant tactical nous' but his coach says one of the major factors is getting the runner to work out more in the gym. 'I got him lifting weights...You can't win races at this level without upper body strength' says Salazar. Whatever he has been getting Farah to do in training, it is certainly doing the trick as his apprentice is now one of the true British Olympic greats.

That wraps things up for The Search for Excellence. Thank you to everybody who has read these articles throughout the Olympics, hopefully they were enjoyable. James will now return to @jfaphillips on Twitter (still the same account, just under a different name from @TSFE2012) and you can continue to read his work on his football blog Born in an Offside Position at jfaphillips.blogspot.com. Expect that to return later this week. Here's to Rio 2016!

Britain's Brownlee brothers serve up triathlon treat

Alistair,left, and Jonny show off their medals in Hyde Park

I took to Hyde Park yesterday for one of the Olympics' most exciting sports - the men's triathlon. It turned out to be a fantastic day for Team GB as not only did Alistair Brownlee take the gold in style, his younger brother Jonny overcame a 15 second penalty to claim a bronze medal for his efforts. The crowds had turned out in huge numbers, reportedly over 300,000, to surround the Serpentine where the first swimming leg of the event took place, as some of the cycling leg and much of the running. While the massive crowds meant it was difficult to see much of the action that well, an electric atmosphere, influenced by the fact Great Britain fans knew they were in with a great chance of at least one medal, made it a more than worthwhile visit. In fact, despite having vast stretches of unticketed areas alongside the triathlon course, it was still the most over-subscribed event with approximately 500,000 people applying for the 5,000 paid seats which were available in a grandstand north of the Serpentine.

5,000 people had seats in the grandstand but plenty more turned up anyway

Triahlon, is in fact a relatively new addition to the Olympic programme, having been included for the first time at Sydney 2000. The sport itself was only properly invented in the 1970s in the USA, although there were some similar three sport events held in France during the early part of the 20th century. Triathlons can vary in distances and rules but Olympic triathlons consist of a 1.5km swim followed by a 43km bike ride before a 10km run. Alistair completed the event in 1 hour 46 minutes 25 seconds, including a running time of 29 minutes 7 seconds, only 97 seconds slower than Mo Farah ran when he claimed gold in the 10,000m event on Saturday night. Brownlee's incredible running time has even led to calls for him to try out his luck on the track, as he would certainly be able to perform competitively without swimming or cycling beforehand. The elder Brownlee brother has in fact gone on record to say he would consider taking to the track for the 2014 Commonwealth games, and that would certainly be some story.

Alistair crosses the finish line holding a Union flag which was thrown from the crowd

The Brownlees are true role models amongst the athletes at London 2012. Alistair,24, only recently came back from a serious achilles injury which ruled him out for five months earlier this year, although he proved his fitness by taking first place in the World Cup event in Kitzbuehel, Austria back in June. Meanwhile Jonathan, the 22-year-old, managed to achieve a 2.1 in his History degree from Leeds University, and in the last year wrote his 10,000 word dissertation on Richard III, who hails from Yorkshire, the brothers' home county. The Brownlees enjoy Yorkshire so much, in fact, that they chose to stay there until the weekend immediately before their race. The duo spent the first week of the Olympic Games training and enjoying their mother's home-cooking in their home village on the outskirts of Leeds. However, now the hard work is over Jonny has made it clear they plan to make the most of life in the Olympic village.

The men line up ahead of the swimming leg of the triathlon

Jonny, is targeting overhauling his brother in time for Rio 2016, where at 26 he will be in his prime. The 15 second penalty which was inflicted upon him was the first of his triathlon career and was given due to his mounting of the bicycle slightly too early in the transition period between swimming and cycling. The younger Brownlee chose to take the penalty just before the final lap of the running section of the event, despite his coaches advising him to take it earlier, but he appreciated the recovery time it allowed him. Javier Gomez, the Spanish former world champion finished 20 seconds ahead of Jonny and while the Brit feels he probably wouldn't have been able to catch the Spaniard anyway, it is a shame that we will never know if there could have been a British sibling top two at London 2012. Nevertheless, two brothers on the same podium is an achievement to be proud of. With both athletes still the right side of 25, there is plenty of potential for them to achieve much more in their careers. In an Olympic tournament where Great Britain is performing better than ever seen in recent decades, the Brownlee brothers success in Hyde Park genuinely stands out as one to remember.

James will return to Hyde Park tomorrow to watch Keri-Anne Payne attempt to claim gold in the 10km marathon swim event so make sure to return for more Olympic articles. And in the mean time follow James on Twitter @TSFE2012