Memories of The Games

It's hard to argue with the widespread view that the London 2012 Olympics and Paralympics have been a resounding success. We've had so many memorable performances, an even better than expected showing from the home team and very few administrative cock-ups or other embarrassments for the organisers: cue a justified feeling of a job well done among all those involved.

For me, a couple of memories stand out. Firstly, there were the crowds and the atmosphere at the two events we attended. The number of people up Box Hill for the men's cycling Road Race was amazing. It's not an easy place to get to, especially when all the surrounding roads are shut for the day. But the great British public turned out in force and thoroughly enjoyed themselves. Even the police joined in the relaxed, celebratory spirit of things, with some of the boys in blue even high-fiving the crowds lining the route from their passing motorbikes.

Similarly at the Paralympics, the main stadium was packed and the support never anything but totally wholehearted. As at the Road Race, the loudest cheers were reserved not just for the winners but for those doing their very best at the back of the field. An Iranian cyclist who trailed the peleton by a bigger and bigger gap on each of the nine laps of Box Hill received a bigger and bigger dose of vocal support each time he passed us. A runner from Djibouti who took over 11 minutes to complete the 1500 metres brought the Olympic Stadium to its feet in applause.

Maybe there is something in the British psyche that makes us love the underdog, or maybe it's just human nature. Either way, it was a warm and rather moving way to show that doing your best is really all you can do, that winning gold isn't everything and that, despite the fervour for Team GB, we welcome all comers to these shores.

One unmistakably British ingredient in the Olympic mix was the Opening Ceremony. My expectations of it were so low, but what an extraordinary thing it was. Thoughtful and thought-provoking, radical and vibrant, I loved it. Beyond the sheer spectacle and ingenuity of it, the show won me over with its focus on some the things that make Britain what it is: the pioneering resourcefulness that kick started the industrial revolution, our singular creative output, our sense of humour, even our national health service.

If the opening ceremony opened a few people's eyes to some of the things that are uniquely British in our past and our present - things that we should treasure or in some cases try to rediscover - then it was a few million quid well spent. Indeed I hope that a bit more national self-confidence will be one positive legacy of The Games. If nothing else, surely we've shown that we can design, build and run a hugely complex event with great panache. And surely the oft-voiced, defeatist assumption that stuff in Britain tends to go wrong now sounds more than a little hollow.