LONDON OLYMPIC'S FIRST FALSE START

As soon as the new Olympic logo was presented to the public yesterday you some how knew it was going to be shrouded in controversy. No body however, could have envisaged that the scorn and derision would be so quick to emerge and so vehement in it’s tone. By 7 p.m. last night, an online petition calling for the logo to be withdrawn and changed had received 8000 signatures. Stephen Bayley, a leading design consultant and author, described the image in today’s Times as

“a puerile mess, an artistic flop and a commercial scandal. It is feeble. It was a wonderful chance to do something magnificent and it was a waste or resources.”

Other major designers have been less critical, but stopped at paying it any compliments. The most common phrase used as a description appears to be “brave”. Now whenever I have done anything brave, it has always involved a degree of stupidity, and I suspect that this is the general underlying feeling within the design industry.

In some ways, Wolff Olins, the design consultants responsible for the logo, were on a hiding to nothing; if they had produced a classic traditional image, they would have been accused of not moving with the times. As such their modern creation has had the critique thrown at it that it does nothing to acknowledge the Olympic heritage or traditional, and nothing to honour London’s historical nature. Personally, I agree with observation that it looks like urban hip-hop graffiti, a kicked in window or a Nazi swastika. Together with a price tag of £400,000, the logo that will be promoting the games for the next five years should not have this type or derision thrown at it.

The controversy of the image however, is systematic of the malice that surrounds the London games. Massively over budget and five more years of expenditure ahead, the Games are seen by many as an opportunity to line their pockets along the way at the public’s expense. As a runner Seb Coe was a great ambassador for both the sport and the country. I wonder however, how much he will personally make for overseeing the games and for being involved with companies doing related projects? I suspect it wont be buttons, which is all that will be left in the cash tin once this cash cow has been paid for.