How do you carve up the elephant? You have to break it down into workable pieces and apply the best ideas, not just from previous games, but from other walks of life.” Paul Deighton is trying – probably for the 1,000th time since he was appointed in 2006 to organise the London Olympics – to sum up the challenge he and his team have faced.
By now, with 3 days to go until the opening ceremony, he and others closely involved in managing the games have a well-rehearsed ability to respond to questions about the job they are doing. Their answers invariably touch on the importance of the games’ legacy; the diversity of the team running the event; the priority given to sustainability; and, above all, the unique nature of London 2012.
Mr Deighton, a former Goldman Sachs partner, has long emphasised the difference between the role of a banker – doing the same jobs again and again for different clients – and that of a games organiser, with a single chance to produce one product, on a set date, perfectly.