Is Boris the first big hitter of London 2012?
The London Olympics is yet to get its first star, but for the moment Boris Johnson is dominating all things 2012.
The London Mayor attracted a full house as he faced MPs on the Select Committee for Culture, Media and Sport on Tuesday.
At one stage, he couldn't remember the old saying of 'cutting your coat according to your cloth' and turned to his adviser Neale Coleman for help... prompting lots of laughter in the Margaret Thatcher room in Westminster's Portcullis House - which for a select committee is a rare event!
When someone can forget a cliché and still get laughs, you know he is a star.
Boris was keen to emphasise that he is determined to keep costs in check, make sure that the budget of £9.3 billion is not exceeded, stop London rate payers paying a penny more than agreed and at the same time stage a Games just as good as Beijing, at less than a quarter of the cost.
Not easy.
In the process he praised Beijing but also described it as intimidating, claiming London would prove a great spectator experience, with fans entering the London Olympic Park getting a handheld device, or to use Boris's phrase, "a gizmo", to tell them what is happening and where.
His most revealing comments came when asked about the post-2012 use of the Olympic stadium and the whether the media centre might be temporary, in order to claw back some of the £400m allocated for it.
Two weeks ago when I wrote that possible Premiership use by West Ham was back on the table and talks were ongoing, there were a lot of denials.
But Boris confirmed that all options were being looked at, that a Premier League club using the Olympic stadium was certainly an option, but also that it was difficult to square the circle of athletics use with Premier League football.
It is the London Development Agency, run by the Mayor, that is responsible for legacy and it knows the Premier League is the only paying option for the Olympic stadium.
When an MP asked about housing the media in vacant office buildings instead of a new media centre, Johnson did warn that this might not be practical. Not wise he said to upset the media (he knows he is still one of us) - "remember how they rubbished Atlanta", he said. "We don't want that."
But he did not rule out the possibility that the media centre might be temporary, an idea that has been floated, and in the wake of the credit crunch, is back on the agenda. Something which is worrying local authorities who are becoming increasingly concerned about the legacy benefits the Games will bring them.
It would be tempting to conclude that Boris offers up these little gems of information as a result of intense grilling by MPs, but that would be wide of the mark.
The MPs in general showed an alarming lack of sporting knowledge, their questions more concerned with their personal gripes and, of course, what they see as the concerns of their constituencies.
He may have made the odd faux pas on Olympic matters in the past, but here Boris seemed well briefed and well informed when compared to those charged with cross-examining him.
At one point, he was actually asked to go into battle with the International Olympic Committee (IOC) to make the Games country rather than city-based. An unrealistic challenge he politely declined.
But he did also make clear he is not fazed by the strictures of the IOC and not bothered about previous undertakings made on behalf of London.
Given that his predecessor, Ken Livingstone, signed a Host City contract with the IOC minutes after London had won the Games in Singapore back in 2005 on the basis of the promises made in the bid book, that is quite a statement.
Boris versus the IOC - that would be one contest certainly worth watching.
I'm 
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A good article there Mihir.
I really do hope Boris gets the legacy stuff right.
The most interesting thing for me was the little hint about handheld devices when inside the game village. As someone who is going to be at the front of the que for tickets and hopefully will do some volounteering too this is very exciting. They have something called Kangaroo TV in F1 which is great although expensive. Something like that would be great.
I just truly feel sorry for the que of people on the blog who will moan about cost. The lack of ambition shown by so many people is depressing to me and others my age(I'm 23) and younger. We will revel in this truly amazing and once in a lifetime event
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LOCOG if your reading this, don't waste money on giving out "a gizmo", to tell spectators what is happening - save money and instead utilise the fact that most people now have a mobile phone and can access information off the internet - all they will need to do is download a bit of software off the web! So a) save the environment by not producing 'gizmos' and and b) save money!
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will Boris be policing it now ?
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How much interest did he have in the Olympics before coming Mayor of London?
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I can't wait for the games in London but after Beijing I think going back to a more basic games where sport rules over propaganda would be best. I agree with gcom27, so many ppl moan about the price of this, very much like hosting the World Cup 2018, however it will bring in so much publicity and money after that. My main hope is that Londoners come across as friendly as the Chinese.
Concering legacies, sports ppl make them and ppl remember games for them (check err Usian Bolt)
I have one hope, see Bolt run in at least one race, even if its just a heat.
The kangaroo tv thing sounds like a great idea though, seen it used for f1 and it is very good.
One thing about the stadium though - I have never got why they aren't just using Wembley. It was good enough for 1948 and still has the running track on it, and is built.
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I do hope its a success and want it to make people feel good about London rather than worry about how much debt we might be in and if the stadiums will be ready on time!
Beijing was a great success story in the main for our athletes anf whilst we cannot compete with China as a host country I want us to have that same pride that sporting/Olympics fans did for those 2 weeks.
Understand fully its not everyones cup of tea and there are other more important issues that need sorted but that is not the fault of the athletes or public.
Its up to the Government and people liek Seb Coe to produce the goods.
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Mihir, yet again you put the rest of the BBC Sport reporters to shame with this great Blog.
Whats the worry about the Media Centre, surely we dont need a spectacle that was Beijings MC.
I dont think anyone would mind a temporary one (as long as they arent port-a-kabins).
I remember of a picture from the cricket in New Zealandv Englnad earlier in the year which saw temporary comm boxes on top of each other.....this is what London may have to do!
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Did he mention the destruction of Hackney Marshes? That part of Londons only green space being turned into supermarket depots? No? Surely thats an important part of the 'legacy' too?
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gcom 27 - 'once in a lifetime events' have a habit of happening quite frequently.
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Boris a star.....don't make me laugh he is a bumbling upper class buffoon.
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I hope Boris addresses the absurdities of the swimming construction programme. The planned Aquatics Centre is scheduled to cost upwards of £240million, and will certainly end up higher, and will be reduced from 17,500 spectators to 2,500 after the Games to be used as a community pool.
The World Short Course Championships were held at the MEN in Manchester - ordinarily a concert venue - in March 2008 in a temporary pool installed specifically for the event. It cost £600,000 to build, and £4.2million to install and dismantle, and it looked fantastic. Australia has, on several occasions, installed a world class 50m pool in the same Rod Laver arena where they host the Australian Tennis Open, including for the World Championships. What they can do with temporary world class pools is really quite amazing.
It would be fantastic to see something similar undertaken in London for 2012 (O2 Arena?), with the £200+ million saved being ploughed back into the construction of dozens more 50m pools across the country. London currently has 2x50m pools, in Ealing and Crystal Palace, neither of which is of Olympic standard, and both of which are scheduled to be closed. Paris has 17. Berlin has 18. I live in Hampshire, one of the largest counties in England, with major population centres in Southampton, Winchester, Basingstoke and Portsmouth to name a few. How many 50m pools in the county? One, at the Army Garrison in Aldershot.
I'm with Adrian Moorhouse. We don't need a £240m Aquatics Centre for a one off event anything like as badly as we need a load more 50m pools across the country for the same money
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I thikn the O2 is being used for other events Harrry but I can see your point.
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matt1ill - the original Wembley Stadium was demolished years ago. The new stadium is designed for football, does not have a running track and isn't big enough for one.
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#10
It's interesting how it's okay to attack the upper class but not the lower class.
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Boris is the ' Face of London'.....so the Lord help us on all accounts.
He looks ridiculous and needs a complete makeover, proper haircut and a dose of common sense and humility.
He is a poor example of a good upper class upbringing and education.
Alongside his peers from Eton like the Leigh Pemberton boys he is third rate and a buffoon.
Good luck London, you'll need it !
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save money and instead utilise the fact that most people now have a mobile phone and can access information off the internet
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Nice idea in theory, but have you ever tried using mobile internet in a foreign country? It's prohibitively expensive.
Also, while 99%+ of UK folk have mobile phones, I'm not sure what that statistic would be internationally, and I'd be a little miffed if I'd paid thousands for tickets, flights over here, hotels etc, only to find I was getting a sub-standard experience because I didn't own a phone that accepted internet connections overseas.
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What are the odds on the olympics being staged in 2013 ?
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In getting the legacy right, we have to make sure we engage with the communities most greatly affected by the building works. The local residents should be encouraged to open the restaurants, bars and convenience stores required to support the area during the games.
In offering them low ground rents, training and funding packages, they can develop a sustainable micro economy that will thrive long after the games have gone.
The sporting spectacle will look after itself and the historical backdrop of London will enhance any venue, it's the organisation and above all the local people that will make the games special.
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Johnson is a Tory. He was elected due to the London public's dissatisfaction with politics and their desire to have an entertainer as mayor rather than someone with any competence.
He is a Tory.
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To the naive Olympic enthusiast who posted the first comment -
There are many older people forced out of their homes and gardens on the 2012 site for whom it is sadly NOT a once in a lifetime experience. This last one was 60 years ago.
And don't pretend to speak for young people. All those I know here in East London are intelligent enough to know when they're being lied to and manipulated for political and commercial gain.
And to foxinredsox, the real local people living on or next to the games site feel treated like dispensable nonentities.
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Are you a fan of them thought as a sporting event?
I can see why people near the Olympic site are worried and clearly the costs are going to hit the taxpayer hard.
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Am i the only englishman that has any kind of optimism?
What is with us english, we're so pessimistic "it costs too much", "it won't be ready on time" "he's an upper class twit". Why don't we have any pride in anything, in OURSELVES? so he may be the first politician who has humour, who is at least honest and who is capable of being put on the spot holding his hands up and saying, you know what i don't know.
The olympics in london will be fantastic, even if our logo is awful and cost too much...it's too late, it's been done, the money is spent...Get over it.
I am proud to be english, i don't care if it goes 100m pounds over budget, thats less than two pounds per person.
Can we, the english, not embrace something for once? We're so reserved and correct, that we forget to have passion, pride and most of all a bit of fun.
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Wembley stadium is capable of holding athletics events as the seats can be changed. That would be more cost effective and would only take a couple of weeks to install. Unfortunately, that will never happen due to the insistance of having an olympic park and a capacity would be below the Olympic Stadium. Also, construction has started on the facilities so it's too late.
What London now has to do is build the facilities on time and not have another wembley fiasco. When the Olympics come around in four years hopefully most of the doom and gloom will be replaced with optimism, like when London decided to bid for the Olympics.
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