Posted Thursday, Jul. 26, 2012
By Gil LeBreton
glebreton@star-telegram.com
LONDON -- There will be sheep. And goats. And hey, Jude -- Paul McCartney is scheduled to sing.
But most of the rest of tonight's three-hour-long opening ceremony of the London Olympics has been kept zealously under wraps.
At Wednesday night's dress rehearsal, the audience was admonished to pay no attention to that man behind the curtain and "save the surprise."
McCartney? Coming.
James Bond? But of course.
Danny Boyle, who directed the Oscar-winning
Slumdog Millionaire, has had the unenviable assignment of opening the games with a ceremony fit for a queen.
And, yes, she will be there, too.
An Olympics, however, that was once viewed with characteristic British restraint, was greeted Thursday with rare patriotic fervor. Throngs lined the city's famous thoroughfares for the relay arrival of the Olympic torch. An estimated 80,000 welcomed the flame to Hyde Park.
Ceremony surprises remain, none more speculated upon than who will light the stadium's cauldron. Soccer star David Beckham and golden decathlon legend Daley Thompson appear to head the list of probables.
The most worthy Brit, though, likely already has enough to do tonight. Lord Sebastian Coe, a gold medalist himself, engineered the campaign to bring the Olympics back to London and has done a regal job as the spokesman and head of the Games organizing committee.
The dress rehearsal Wednesday, alas, did not include any probable cauldron lighters. A highly placed informant, however, whose name may or may not be longtime Cowtown marathoner Ron Isbell, told the
Star-Telegram that rumors about the ceremony including farm animals are true.
In other words, watch your step, Your Majesty.
Leading the U.S. delegation into the stadium will be two-time fencing gold medalist Mariel Zagunis. She was chosen in a vote by the captains of the U.S. team.
Zagunis called it, "the cherry on top of the pile of cherries that were already there."
She was a fitting choice. These Games are being held in the year of the 40th anniversary of Title IX, the law that brought equal opportunity in sports to American women. For the first time, U.S. women competing at this Olympics will outnumber the men.
The ceremony tonight will not be without controversy, however.
Two widows of victims of the 1972 Munich Olympics massacre have implored the International Olympic Committee to observe a moment of silence in commemoration of the 40th anniversary of their husbands' deaths. The IOC refused, saying it "wouldn't be fitting."
Fitting for who?
IOC president Jacques Rogge likely is worried that even a token Munich remembrance at the ceremony would be met unfavorably by the 50 mostly Muslim nations in the athletes parade.
Rogge must not remember the 2002 Salt Lake City Olympics, when conspicuous and frequent mention was made of the then-recent 9/11 attacks.
When the subject of a Munich moment of silence came up at a USOC news conference Thursday, CEO Scott Blackmun said the U.S. athletes are on their own on the issue.
A more benign topic was whether Zagunis would honor tradition and not dip the U.S. flag as she passed the main viewing stand. As legend has it, the U.S. flag bearer at the 1908 Olympics in London did not dip the flag as it passed King Edward VII, and team captain Martin Sheridan famously explained later, "This flag bows to no earthly king."
No offense is meant, Blackmun explained Thursday.
"What we learned is that there is no IOC protocol in regards to that," he said. "So, no matter what the athlete does, we don't intend it to show any disrespect or sign one way or another."
Blackmun seemed more than a little surprised that he was being asked about dipping the flag.
"It's not something that's consuming us, quite candidly," he said.
Indeed, there are meatier issues that will greet the athletes as they enter the Olympic Stadium. But Blackmun wasn't asked about Team USA's Made-in-China parade uniforms.
Some Olympic athletes reportedly do plan to stand in silent personal commemoration while Rogge gives his customary speech tonight.
McCartney and related surprises are expected to follow.
Let the Games and the sheep performing begin.
Gil LeBreton, 817-390-7697Twitter: @gilebreton
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