OLYMPIC AND PARALYMPIC GAMES LONDON 2012 - By. Leandro Paipó

OLYMPIC GAMES LONDON 2012

The 2012 Summer Olympics, officially the Games of the XXX Olympiad, and also more generally known as London 2012, was a major international multi-sport event, celebrated in the tradition of the Olympic Games, as governed by the International Olympic Committee (IOC), that took place in London, United Kingdom, from 27 July to 12 August 2012. The first event, the group stages in women's football, began two days earlier, on 25 July. More than 10,000 athletes from 204 National Olympic Committees (NOCs) participated.

Following a bid headed by former Olympic champion Sebastian Coe and then Mayor of London Ken Livingstone, London was selected as the host city on 6 July 2005 during the 117th IOC Session in Singapore, defeating bids from Moscow, New York City, Madrid and Paris. London was the first city to officially host the modern Olympic Games three times, having previously done so in 1908 and in 1948

Construction in preparation for the Games involved considerable redevelopment, particularly themed towards sustainability. The main focus was a new 200-hectare (490-acre) Olympic Park, constructed on a former industrial site at Stratford, East London. The Games also made use of venues which were already in place before the bid.

The Games received widespread acclaim for their organisation, with the volunteers, the British military, and public enthusiasm praised particularly highly. The opening ceremony, directed by Danny Boyle, also received near-universal acclaim. During the Games, Michael Phelps became the most decorated Olympic athlete of all time, winning his 22nd medal. Great Britain achieved its highest tally of gold medals since 1908, finishing third in the medal table. Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Brunei entered female athletes for the first time, meaning every currently eligible country has sent a female competitor to at least one Olympic Games. With women's boxing included, the Games became the first at which every sport had female competitors.

Video - Opening Ceremony London 2012

Video- Opening Ceremony London 2012 - Olympic Cauldron is lit at the Olympic Stadium for the London 2012 Olympic Games

PARALYMPIC GAMES LONDON 2012

The 2012 Summer Paralympics, the fourteenth Summer Paralympic Games, and also more generally known as the London 2012 Paralympic Games, was a major international multi-sport event for the disabled governed by the International Paralympic Committee, that took place in London, United Kingdom from 29 August to 9 September. These Paralympics were the second-largest multi-sport event ever held in the United Kingdom after the 2012 Summer Olympics, and were the largest Paralympics ever: 4,294 athletes from 164 National Paralympic Committees participated. 

The games marked the return of the Paralympic movement to its spiritual birthplace: the British village of Stoke Mandeville first hosted an athletics event for disabled British veterans of the Second World War to coincide with the opening of the 1948 Summer Olympics in London. Known as the Stoke Mandeville Games, they were the first ever organised sporting event for disabled athletes, and served as a precursor to the modern Paralympic Games. Stoke Mandeville also co-hosted the 1984 Summer Paralympicswith Long Island, New York after its original host, the University of Illinois, pulled out due to financial issues.

Organisers expected the Games to be the first Paralympics to achieve mass market appeal, fuelled by continued enthusiasm from the British public following the country'ssuccessful performance at the Summer Olympics, awareness of the United Kingdom's role in the history of the Paralympics, and growing media coverage of Paralympic sport. The games ultimately met these expectations, breaking records for ticket sales, heightening the profile of the Paralympics in relation to the Olympics, and prompting IPC president Philip Craven to declare them the "greatest Paralympic Games ever."

Video - Opening Ceremony London 2012 Paralympic Games