LONDON – As the Games of the 30th Olympiad take over this city steeped in so much history, London will be celebrating — while thumbing its nose at tradition.
World No. 1 Victoria Azarenka of Belarus practices at a decked out Wimbledon All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club. Historic Wimbledon will host Olympic tennis.
Beach volleyball and bikinis will appear not far from No. 10 Downing St. Hot pink will crash all-white Wimbledon. Marathoners will huff past Westminster Palace, the Tower Bridge and St. Paul's Cathedral. Equestrians will pass time at Greenwich Park on the meridian from which the world's time is set. Rowers will look to make history in the shadow of Windsor Castle, the oldest and largest occupied castle in the world.
Thanks to the city's iconic backdrop and a number of Olympic firsts, the London Games are poised to be unlike any other, providing fans across the world with real-time images and memories as indelible as the Games themselves.
"We got ding-donged by Big Ben during practice," Czech beach volleyball player Petr Benes said this week. "That was fantastic."
To celebrate the start of the Games today, Big Ben will chime more than 40 times during a three-minute span. At the same moment, thousands of bells — school bells, church bells, bicycle bells and door bells — will ring across the country as Britons recognize that their grand moment on the world stage has arrived, welcoming athletes and fans from more than 200 countries.
Queen Elizabeth will ring in these Games at today's opening ceremony, with a royal entourage that will include Prince Charles and Camilla, Prince William and Kate and Prince Harry. After the sterility of the 2008 Beijing Games, London is looking to achieve a different vibe, kicking off the evening with a three-hour extravaganza featuring Paul McCartney, David Beckham and a pastoral set at Olympic Stadium with scores of farm animals intended to paint for the world a picture of a quaint British countryside.
"We'll show the whole world not just that we've come together as a United Kingdom, but also we're extremely good at welcoming people from across the world," Prime Minister David Cameron said.
By Dave Martin, AP
Great Britain beach volleyball player Shauna Mullin practices near the historic Admiralty House.
The royal family promises to be avid participants in the Games. Kate is scheduled to attend gymnastics and synchronized swimming; William, Kate and Harry will be at the equestrian events; William has his eye on soccer; and that rakish Harry will be staking out the beach volleyball events, according to an official schedule.
"Any of the royal family would be fun," U.S. beach volleyball player Misty May-Treanor said.
"If they want to have tea, we're also available for that," fellow U.S. beach volleyball player Jennifer Kessy added.
America's love affair with all things British should make the Games alluring for the U.S. sports fan. As if the star power of the athletes wasn't enough (men's basketball's Dream Team, swimmer Michael Phelps and women's soccer's Hope Solo), the draw of the ever-popular royals and the familiar tourism venues make the Games a homecoming of sorts for the U.S. fan. Indeed, the USA is the No. 1 source of foreign travelers to London, with 1.8 million visits by U.S. citizens last year.
A shared history and camaraderie during wartime have cemented what Winston Churchill, a few years before London hosted its second Olympics in 1948, called the "special relationship" between the USA and the United Kingdom.
First lady Michelle Obama will represent the U.S. delegation in London. Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney and boxing icon Muhammad Ali— who lit the torch in a powerful moment at the 1996 Atlanta Games — will also attend the opening ceremony.
Familiar sports cathedrals
Much of London's Olympic charm lies in the fact that cathedrals of sport will host events.
Wimbledon was home to the Olympic tennis competition in the 1908 Games, but even at a place where time seems to stand still, change is in the air.
At the All England Club, Olympians won't be wearing the traditional all white. Expect to see a rainbow of national colors, from Spain's red and yellow combo to the red, white and gray stripes of Switzerland, to orange, the Netherlands' signature hue. The signage around the club is hot pink, the signature color of these Games, not the usual green. Instead of respectful applause or a polite hush, music will blast from the speakers as players walk to the court and during changeovers. Sadly, strawberries and cream (enjoyed by Wimbledon spectators for more than a century) do not have an Olympic sponsor.
Reflecting the exclusivity that often marks this quadrennial event, there won't be the famous Wimbledon queue, in which thousands of fans camp overnight in Wimbledon Park, hoping to gain tickets to matches the next day. The tickets to the Olympic tennis events were snapped up as quickly as they were released.
"It's going to be different, but we have to be open to change," said American Serena Williams, who won the Wimbledon title this month and has two gold medals for women's doubles. "It's exciting to be back so soon. Usually, we have to wait 12 months to walk back on Centre Court."
Soccer matches will be played at Wembley Stadium— which hosts the FA Cup final and the European Cup finals — and Old Trafford, the home of Manchester United since 1910. With a capacity of 90,000, Wembley will host the men's and women's gold medal games. The U.S. women, who opened Olympic play Wednesday with a 4-2 win vs. France, are strong contenders for the gold.
"We've grown up watching (English Premier League games), and it will be very cool to play on the same pitch," U.S. veteran Heather O'Reilly said.
London 2012 chairman Sebastian Coe said the plan was to combine the new with the old.
"When you've got beach volleyball in Horse Guards Parade and you've got a new Olympic Stadium and aquatic center that will serve Londoners for years to come, I think you've probably covered the waterfront," Coe said.
Olympic firsts
London might be an old pro when it comes to staging an Olympics — it's the only city to host three Games — but from today through the Aug. 12 closing ceremony, expect plenty of firsts. The city's previous two Olympics set the standard for today's Games, ushering in traditions that have survived the test of time.
The 1908 Games — London's first — gave the Games their first swimming pool. Those Games also marked the first time athletes marched into the stadium by nationality at the opening ceremony, a tradition that has continued to this day.
Another milestone: U.S. runner John Taylor became the first black athlete to win an Olympic gold.
In the city's 1948 Olympics, starting blocks were introduced for track events, and swimming was held in an indoor pool — another first. The BBC became the Games' premier host broadcaster, televising 60 hours to 50,000 homes.
The digital revolution of the past decade will ensure that these Games are like no other.
For the first time, all Olympic events will be available for live viewing — 5,535 hours of coverage — on NBC and its networks.
More than a billion people are expected to see today's opening ceremony. The Games also will be officially broadcast on YouTube, allowing fans living in countries without television deals (42 sub-Saharan territories and some Asian nations) to watch live events online. And then there's the proliferation of social media, with tweets — scandals and all — bringing the Games to the world in real time.
In a sports world racked by doping scandals at the highest levels of competition, London has sent a swift message, as more than 100 athletes have been barred from the Games. World Anti-Doping Agency President John Fahey says these will be the most thoroughly drug tested Olympics in history.
And, of course, there is the ever-present threat of terrorism. Already London has spent more than $2.5 billion to ensure that the Games — taking place seven years after a terrorist attack here killed 52 civilians and injured hundreds more — are among the safest.
The monumental task of securing a modern city in an age of terrorism was met with the largest peacetime security operation in Britain's history.
Women at the Games
Though every Olympics makes its own history with record-breaking performances or moments that simply take your breath away, barriers away from the fields of competition have fallen — specifically when it comes to women.
For the first time in Olympic history, nearly all 205 countries participating will send at least one female competitor.
Brunei, Qatar and Saudi Arabia are sending women for the first time. For the U.S. team, more women will be competing than men, another first for a country with — well — more women than men in the overall population.
Two-time Olympic fencing champion Mariel Zagunis, who will carry the U.S. flag in the opening ceremony, said she was thankful to all the women who came before her to bring about such change.
"For me, it wasn't, 'Will I go to the Olympics?' It was, 'How many Olympics will I go to?' " she said Thursday. "I was born in the right generation to have these opportunities be there."
It's fitting, she said, that the U.S. team will have a woman leading the way into a Games that could be unlike any other. "The cherry on top of a pile of cherries," she said.
Contributing: Christine Brennan, Gary Mihoces and Jeff Zillgitt in London; Kitty Bean Yancey in McLean, Va.
By Clive Brunskill, Getty Images
World No. 1 Victoria Azarenka of Belarus practices at a decked out Wimbledon All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club. Historic Wimbledon will host Olympic tennis.
World No. 1 Victoria Azarenka of Belarus practices at a decked out Wimbledon All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club. Historic Wimbledon will host Olympic tennis.
Beach volleyball and bikinis will appear not far from No. 10 Downing St. Hot pink will crash all-white Wimbledon. Marathoners will huff past Westminster Palace, the Tower Bridge and St. Paul's Cathedral. Equestrians will pass time at Greenwich Park on the meridian from which the world's time is set. Rowers will look to make history in the shadow of Windsor Castle, the oldest and largest occupied castle in the world.
Thanks to the city's iconic backdrop and a number of Olympic firsts, the London Games are poised to be unlike any other, providing fans across the world with real-time images and memories as indelible as the Games themselves.
- [h=3]MORE: USA TODAY's guide to London[/h]
- [h=3]PHOTOS: A look inside the Olympic Athletes' Village[/h]
"We got ding-donged by Big Ben during practice," Czech beach volleyball player Petr Benes said this week. "That was fantastic."
To celebrate the start of the Games today, Big Ben will chime more than 40 times during a three-minute span. At the same moment, thousands of bells — school bells, church bells, bicycle bells and door bells — will ring across the country as Britons recognize that their grand moment on the world stage has arrived, welcoming athletes and fans from more than 200 countries.
Queen Elizabeth will ring in these Games at today's opening ceremony, with a royal entourage that will include Prince Charles and Camilla, Prince William and Kate and Prince Harry. After the sterility of the 2008 Beijing Games, London is looking to achieve a different vibe, kicking off the evening with a three-hour extravaganza featuring Paul McCartney, David Beckham and a pastoral set at Olympic Stadium with scores of farm animals intended to paint for the world a picture of a quaint British countryside.
- [h=3]SCHEDULE: Sport-by-sport schedule for the 2012 Games[/h]
"We'll show the whole world not just that we've come together as a United Kingdom, but also we're extremely good at welcoming people from across the world," Prime Minister David Cameron said.
Great Britain beach volleyball player Shauna Mullin practices near the historic Admiralty House.
The royal family promises to be avid participants in the Games. Kate is scheduled to attend gymnastics and synchronized swimming; William, Kate and Harry will be at the equestrian events; William has his eye on soccer; and that rakish Harry will be staking out the beach volleyball events, according to an official schedule.
"Any of the royal family would be fun," U.S. beach volleyball player Misty May-Treanor said.
"If they want to have tea, we're also available for that," fellow U.S. beach volleyball player Jennifer Kessy added.
America's love affair with all things British should make the Games alluring for the U.S. sports fan. As if the star power of the athletes wasn't enough (men's basketball's Dream Team, swimmer Michael Phelps and women's soccer's Hope Solo), the draw of the ever-popular royals and the familiar tourism venues make the Games a homecoming of sorts for the U.S. fan. Indeed, the USA is the No. 1 source of foreign travelers to London, with 1.8 million visits by U.S. citizens last year.
A shared history and camaraderie during wartime have cemented what Winston Churchill, a few years before London hosted its second Olympics in 1948, called the "special relationship" between the USA and the United Kingdom.
First lady Michelle Obama will represent the U.S. delegation in London. Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney and boxing icon Muhammad Ali— who lit the torch in a powerful moment at the 1996 Atlanta Games — will also attend the opening ceremony.
Familiar sports cathedrals
Much of London's Olympic charm lies in the fact that cathedrals of sport will host events.
Wimbledon was home to the Olympic tennis competition in the 1908 Games, but even at a place where time seems to stand still, change is in the air.
At the All England Club, Olympians won't be wearing the traditional all white. Expect to see a rainbow of national colors, from Spain's red and yellow combo to the red, white and gray stripes of Switzerland, to orange, the Netherlands' signature hue. The signage around the club is hot pink, the signature color of these Games, not the usual green. Instead of respectful applause or a polite hush, music will blast from the speakers as players walk to the court and during changeovers. Sadly, strawberries and cream (enjoyed by Wimbledon spectators for more than a century) do not have an Olympic sponsor.
Reflecting the exclusivity that often marks this quadrennial event, there won't be the famous Wimbledon queue, in which thousands of fans camp overnight in Wimbledon Park, hoping to gain tickets to matches the next day. The tickets to the Olympic tennis events were snapped up as quickly as they were released.
"It's going to be different, but we have to be open to change," said American Serena Williams, who won the Wimbledon title this month and has two gold medals for women's doubles. "It's exciting to be back so soon. Usually, we have to wait 12 months to walk back on Centre Court."
Soccer matches will be played at Wembley Stadium— which hosts the FA Cup final and the European Cup finals — and Old Trafford, the home of Manchester United since 1910. With a capacity of 90,000, Wembley will host the men's and women's gold medal games. The U.S. women, who opened Olympic play Wednesday with a 4-2 win vs. France, are strong contenders for the gold.
"We've grown up watching (English Premier League games), and it will be very cool to play on the same pitch," U.S. veteran Heather O'Reilly said.
London 2012 chairman Sebastian Coe said the plan was to combine the new with the old.
"When you've got beach volleyball in Horse Guards Parade and you've got a new Olympic Stadium and aquatic center that will serve Londoners for years to come, I think you've probably covered the waterfront," Coe said.
Olympic firsts
London might be an old pro when it comes to staging an Olympics — it's the only city to host three Games — but from today through the Aug. 12 closing ceremony, expect plenty of firsts. The city's previous two Olympics set the standard for today's Games, ushering in traditions that have survived the test of time.
The 1908 Games — London's first — gave the Games their first swimming pool. Those Games also marked the first time athletes marched into the stadium by nationality at the opening ceremony, a tradition that has continued to this day.
Another milestone: U.S. runner John Taylor became the first black athlete to win an Olympic gold.
In the city's 1948 Olympics, starting blocks were introduced for track events, and swimming was held in an indoor pool — another first. The BBC became the Games' premier host broadcaster, televising 60 hours to 50,000 homes.
The digital revolution of the past decade will ensure that these Games are like no other.
For the first time, all Olympic events will be available for live viewing — 5,535 hours of coverage — on NBC and its networks.
More than a billion people are expected to see today's opening ceremony. The Games also will be officially broadcast on YouTube, allowing fans living in countries without television deals (42 sub-Saharan territories and some Asian nations) to watch live events online. And then there's the proliferation of social media, with tweets — scandals and all — bringing the Games to the world in real time.
In a sports world racked by doping scandals at the highest levels of competition, London has sent a swift message, as more than 100 athletes have been barred from the Games. World Anti-Doping Agency President John Fahey says these will be the most thoroughly drug tested Olympics in history.
And, of course, there is the ever-present threat of terrorism. Already London has spent more than $2.5 billion to ensure that the Games — taking place seven years after a terrorist attack here killed 52 civilians and injured hundreds more — are among the safest.
The monumental task of securing a modern city in an age of terrorism was met with the largest peacetime security operation in Britain's history.
Women at the Games
Though every Olympics makes its own history with record-breaking performances or moments that simply take your breath away, barriers away from the fields of competition have fallen — specifically when it comes to women.
For the first time in Olympic history, nearly all 205 countries participating will send at least one female competitor.
Brunei, Qatar and Saudi Arabia are sending women for the first time. For the U.S. team, more women will be competing than men, another first for a country with — well — more women than men in the overall population.
Two-time Olympic fencing champion Mariel Zagunis, who will carry the U.S. flag in the opening ceremony, said she was thankful to all the women who came before her to bring about such change.
"For me, it wasn't, 'Will I go to the Olympics?' It was, 'How many Olympics will I go to?' " she said Thursday. "I was born in the right generation to have these opportunities be there."
It's fitting, she said, that the U.S. team will have a woman leading the way into a Games that could be unlike any other. "The cherry on top of a pile of cherries," she said.
Contributing: Christine Brennan, Gary Mihoces and Jeff Zillgitt in London; Kitty Bean Yancey in McLean, Va.