Announcers drop NI reference

For the first time, the announcer at the Olympic Stadium yesterday was referring to the host nation as Great Britain and not Great Britain & Northern Ireland.

This is the first time in Olympic athletics history that this has happened and it comes as a result of the agreement which Lord Killanin, who later became President of the International Olympic Committee in succession to Avery Brundage, got through back in the 1950’s. Olympic Council of Ireland president Pat Hickey and now a member of the IOC Executive, ensured LOCOG complied with the agreement.

“Pat informed them that this was the official name,” an OCI spokesman confirmed. “He informed them by email and letter and they are abiding by the rule. We were making sure they were not going to make a mistake this time.”