Four years ago, the weeks running up to the London Olympic Games generated a carnival of British negativity. In the blink of an eye, London 2012 was suddenly the best Games ever; and the doomsters were routed. Before they started, the Rio games were loftily pronounced a disaster from afar. But the much larger reality is that the Olympic Games have proved once again that they genuinely capture the attention of the world. Memo to ourselves in 2020 and beyond: the Olympic Games will be fine, come what may.

Source: The Guardian August 15, 2016 18:00 UTC