Haven’t we done well? 28 gold medals and it’s not over yet. All those British athletes on the podium, not forgetting those silver and bronze medal-winners as well, watching the Union Jack being raised while the National Anthem is played.
But it’s hard to let go of old habits, and there has been griping even about the best of the best at their moment of glory. I think many of us have seen Piers Morgan’s Twitter snipe at Bradley Wiggins for not singing the Anthem, and the Tour de France/Olympic Champion’s assertive reply. It’s easily found on Google if you haven’t. And Piers Morgan isn’t the only one who has complained about gold medal winners not singing.
I’ve been stewing about such criticism for a couple of days and here is what I want to say about it. First of all, where is the rule that they have to sing? Every single one of them, as far as I am aware, has stood respectfully and watched the flag. Is that not enough? Am I supposed to sing every time I hear “God Save the Queen”, and what will happen to me if I don’t?
Secondly, how much do we want from these people? They have trained, eaten properly and sacrificed so much for four years, sometimes a lot more, and then they have faced the incredible pressure of competing in front of a home crowd with the expectations of millions on their shoulders. They have then put everything into their event. Some of us know what it is like participating in a race, even when all you are looking for is a PB. When I stagger round a 10k race in more than twice the time it takes Mo, I have to calculate just how hard I can sprint at the end so I use all the energy I have but hopefully don’t throw up before the finish line. I reckon they feel like that but worse; after all, we couldn’t all collapse on the floor at the end of our fun runs, just think of the strain on St John’s Ambulance! Then they have a microphone shoved in their face and have to tell the world how they feel. And mostly, they are polite, eloquent and grateful. And after all that we’re not happy if they don’t sing?
Finally, believe it or not, some British people are republicans. Not that they wish the Monarchy any harm, but maybe singing the Anthem is a step to far. Do we want them to conform and keep us happy, or do we want them to be true to themselves and their principles? Someone who lip-reads told me that Andy Murray sang “long live the Queen” rather than “our Queen”. If that’s the case, it’s a considered compromise, but I, for one, would not have minded if he’d just stood there.
Our athletes have done so much for us. They’ve brought us together in many, many happy cheering crowds. They’ve shown us how you can have a dream and make it come true. They’ve participated in creating a new national image, something to be proud of that has nothing to do with our colonial past. They’ve helped us to celebrate miracles of excellence that we can all share in because, after all, we are human beings just like they are. But they don’t belong to us. Do we really want to turn them into celebrities like Katie Price or Simon Cowell? Thought not. So let’s not put them in that celebrity role which, strangely, seems to give us the authority to judge their every move. If they run, cycle, row or swim fast, and as long as they are polite and don’t lead our kids astray, that’s more than enough for me.
People here in the US get kind of worked up over things like this sometimes, though I don’t know that I’ve heard this specific complaint. (Certainly wouldn’t surprise me, though.) For myself, I don’t always sing along with our anthem when it’s played, and I can easily imagine that I might just be too numbed and awed by the entire Olympic experience to sing while on that podium. Or, I might be overcome with such national pride that I would burst it out loudly. I don’t really know. But I don’t think failing to sing along makes anyone less of a patriot or in any way diminishes their accomplishments.
I will tell you my one little bias, though: if someone is going to sing, they should know the words. I know, I know. Just like I might be too numb and awed to sing, that same state might make me mess up a word here or there, and I can even sort of get that. But I see some folks sometimes trying to mumble along, and I’d swear have never even *heard* the song before! That sort of bugs me.
This is so interesting. I had, of course, written this from a UK perspective, and having received some comments elsewhere, I am reminded that the relationship between individual and country differs from one nation to another. In the UK there is no pressure to be patriotic; we are not really brought up to feel like that, although those who serve the country are supposed to be loyal to “Queen and country”. We have a long history of treating other countries (including the US and our own home nations of Ireland, Scotland and Wales) very poorly so I feel that English people in particular have a very careful line to tread if we want to be patriotic. It’s something I’ve struggled with a lot, but that’s another blog post!
I think most people here know the words, but they really are not hard! We don’t hear the national anthem very often though, apart from royal weddings and jubilee celebrations like we have had in the last couple of years. It’s not part of daily life.
Great post! It comes as no surprise that the main gripers about the singers are at the ‘celebrity for celebrity sake’ end of our culture.
I love seeing a gold medal ceremony, I focus on the individual, and you know what I like seeing even more than someone singing? When they blub uncontrollably with emotion.
I think I’d sing, but who knows I would probably blub like a baby too, butI have no problem with those that don’t.
I also love the feedback to morgan that he is not exactly best placed to talk about respect!
Cheers, Gordon
I love the ceremonies too, and I try to imagine how they must be feeling. Nice to get a lump in the throat for a happy reason!