Poor Boroughs Have Pride Too
This is an easy one for the mayoral candidates. The Olympic marathon in 2012 was going to be run from Tower Bridge, through City and Westminster, with the last leg through the East End for the traditional finish at the stadium in Stratford. The Olympic Committee have moved it away from the East End, with the three rounds of central London finishing at Pall Mall, citing traffic constraints. Objectors claim the East End has been rejected for not being pretty enough. I'm inclined to believe the objectors, though I understand why the organisers would prefer the cameras to be pointed at Buckingham Palace and other famous landmarks.
Every politician in the neighbourhood has spoken up in favour of retaining the original route but London's Mayor Boris Johnson isn't budging. He said,
“With the massive regeneration that is going to be injected into east London, I don’t think 80 runners not proceeding through east London for 20 minutes is going to be the end of the world.
“I thought it would not be the greatest disappointment, given that £9.2 billion is being pumped into east London.”
First, I think it's a case of wait-and-see as to whether the poorer residents of this borough will significantly benefit from the Olympics. Second, this leaves Tower Hamlets as the only one of the five Olympic Boroughs without an Olympic event. Boris Johnson and the London Olympic Committee have lost sight of the fact that it's not only about money, it's about pride too.
Every politician in the neighbourhood has spoken up in favour of retaining the original route but London's Mayor Boris Johnson isn't budging. He said,
“With the massive regeneration that is going to be injected into east London, I don’t think 80 runners not proceeding through east London for 20 minutes is going to be the end of the world.
“I thought it would not be the greatest disappointment, given that £9.2 billion is being pumped into east London.”
First, I think it's a case of wait-and-see as to whether the poorer residents of this borough will significantly benefit from the Olympics. Second, this leaves Tower Hamlets as the only one of the five Olympic Boroughs without an Olympic event. Boris Johnson and the London Olympic Committee have lost sight of the fact that it's not only about money, it's about pride too.