After retiring as Secretary of the Lawn Tennis Association, John was elected President of Tennis Europe in 2002 and has subsequently been a member of the Boards of the British Olympic Association and the British Olympic Foundation.
With less than a year to go before the 2012 London Olympic Games begin it was a fitting time to be addressed by someone with such authority.
Unusually, the presentation began on a fashion note when John arrived in his official Olympics two-piece pin-stripe suit interwoven with "going for gold" thread, shirt and tie all tagged "Team GB" (including underwear - we were told!). The jacket was then changed for an orange blazer "more suitable for a holiday camp host" which was worn at Olympic tennis events.
Team GB finished in fourth place in the medal table at the Beijing Olympics held in 2008, the highest position achieved since 1908. The hosts, China, were unsurprisingly in first place followed by the United States and Russia. Most Team GB medals were won in cycling, rowing and swimming but improved track and field performances should produce even better results in 2012. Thirty-four promising young athletes selected as part of the British Olympic Ambition 2012 programme also attended accompanied by previous British winners of Olympic gold medals including Denise Lewis.
Photographs of the opening ceremony brought back vivid memories of the TV coverage: the "bird's nest" stadium; 90,000 spectators; flowing female dancers; precision male drummers with fou drums; and the spectacular siting and lighting of the Olympic flame. Roger Federer (who went on to win a gold medal in the men's doubles tennis) carried the Swiss flag in the parade of athletes as he had done previously in the 2004 Athens Olympics. Remarkably, the Chinese organisers abolished the notorious Beijing "smog" during the 14 days of the Games!
John provided "behind the scenes" accounts based on experiences at three previous Olympic Games. The athletes' apartments in the Olympic Village in Beijing were very good but every effort is being made to provide even better accommodation in London. As in Beijing, facilities will include fitness rooms, recreational areas and lounges with restricted access limited to the athletes' immediate families. Food for 10,000 will be prepared each day, including ethnic dishes and special diets; MacDonald’s and Coca Cola, major sponsors of the Games, will also be on site.
Both Birmingham and Manchester made bids to hold previous Olympic Games but were unsuccessful possibly because they were not sufficiently attractive to foreign visitors. As with the Forbidden City within Beijing, London also has a long history that includes world-famous buildings which are attractive to tourists. There has been further criticism that the 2012 Olympic Games involve only London. However, teams from participating countries have affiliation with different UK cities where they will prepare for the Games using university accommodation and training facilities. Olympic football will not only be played in London at Wembley but also at Old Trafford Manchester, St James' Park Newcastle, Hampden Park Glasgow and the City of Coventry Stadium. Loughborough will be the centre for "kitting out" Team GB, rowing is at Eton Dorney in Berkshire, sailing in Weymouth Bay and Portland Harbour and Twickenham is on the cycling road race circuit.
Security will be a necessary part of the London 2012 Olympics. In Beijing every athlete and official was provided with an accreditation tag. In addition to a photograph of the bearer, it had a unique bar code and four digits signifying hierarchically the areas the holder was permitted to enter. Security checks were made before departing by coach to different Olympic venues and it was forbidden to leave the coach before it reached its destination. Transport arrangements in Athens 2004 were not good but in Beijing Olympic officials travelling by car from city centre hotels had exclusive use of one lane in a 3-lane road. Similar arrangements have been made for the London Olympics. The Chinese university students who acted as volunteers were very friendly and had excellent English but lacked authority particularly when local Chinese officials strode arrogantly through security checks.
Much has been made of the legacy of the London 2012 Olympics. In the Barcelona games held in 1992 Olympic money resulted in dramatic improvements to a depressed sea-front area. The Olympic site in London was a highly polluted and neglected industrial waste land. After the games the London Olympic Park will be the largest public park in Europe. The West Ham football club will use the Olympic Stadium and the Aquatic Centre and Velodrome will provide world-class swimming and cycling facilities. Other sports such as basketball and handball will also be given a shop window because host nations are allowed to enter teams in events for which they have not formally qualified.
The vote of thanks was given by Paul Sands who asked the Club's members to show their appreciation for a very entertaining and informative talk.