A memorable Olympiad

Air pollution was a big issue in the build up to the Beijing Olympics, with concerns raised by several high-profile athletes, many of whom had asthma, that competing in the city’s smog might damage their health.   

Award winning BBC journalist Jon Sopel, who has asthma, covered the Games and shares his experiences of smoggy - but memorable - 29th Olympiad.  

In the build up to Beijing there was a lot of controversy about the city’s pollution levels and how they might affect the athletes. Did you see any evidence of that and, as someone with asthma, did it have any effect on you?

You absolutely could see evidence of pollution in Beijing - there were times when you could barely see a hundred metres in front of you. Our live broadcasting position overlooked the Bird’s Nest stadium and sometimes it was a complete blur because the air was so thick. It smelt dirty and felt uncomfortable.

There was a dispute over whether this was down to smog, which I suspect it was, or whether it was mist, which is what the Chinese authorities said it was.

Having said that, with the exception of one day my asthma was absolutely fine. On the bad day there was a really big change in the air quality. There had been a very heavy downpour and suddenly the air was quite dry; before that the conditions had been moist, humid and sweaty. With the change in atmospheric conditions I suddenly felt tired and needed to use my inhaler.

However, the conditions didn’t seem to affect the athletes. Before the Games everyone was speculating that, because of the humidity and poor air quality, not many records would be broken. That proved to be nonsense! The world records were tumbling.

 
What did you make of the organisers’ efforts to try and improve air quality? 

They went to incredible lengths. As well as traffic control measures they also slowed economic growth – they stopped factories producing. A whole part of industrial China slowed down for the Olympics, which is an extraordinary commitment on their part to try getting the air clean.

I think part of what they achieved was through rigorous management and the other part of it was luck. There was heavy rain and that really cleared the air – you felt it. There were 24 hours when we had really heavy rain and it was horrible - you couldn’t walk across the street without getting drowned. But the air really cleared up so I think it was a mixture of good management and luck on their part.

 
Do you think the organisers succeeded in creating a more positive image of China to the outside world?

People came away dazzled by the games. The Chinese people could not have been more welcoming, open or accommodating to all of us and I think that most people who went would have come away with a better view of China.

However there are still issues - of human rights and political freedom, that will be of concern, of course there will be. It would be interesting to see whether the more open and welcoming side of China that we saw during the Olympics will continue. 

I’d love to get back to in six months time and see whether certain websites that were unblocked are still unblocked, and whether they’re still caring about the air quality for their citizens as much they were during the Olympics - those are things that you can only judge over the course of time.

But in terms of what they achieved I think most people would have come away wowed at the change that has taken place in China, wowed by the organisation and the sheer friendliness and enthusiasm of the people we met.

 
What was your highlight of the games and how do you think it compares to other big sporting events that you’ve covered?

The highlight was Usain Bolt winning the 100m and breaking the world record. I was in the stadium and by the finishing line and I thought, ‘what a privilege to be here, watching this man just tear the record apart’. He was almost showboating down the track – he stopped running and he still broke the world record and I thought ‘God, I’ve seen something extraordinary here’.

The final hour of broadcasting I did was at London House for the London 2012 party. In the space of 40 minutes I interviewed Leona Lewis, David Beckham, Jimmy Page, Boris Johnson, Gordon Brown, Tessa Jowell, Sir Steven Redgrave and Kelly Holmes. It was just unbelievable. For someone who normally does politics or disasters, mixing in that group was a lot of fun!

 
How do you think the organisers of the London Olympics are feeling post-Beijing? Do you think it’s left them daunted or excited about hosting in 2012?

Both. What Britain will do is something more engaging, fun, livelier.  The Bird’s Nest stadium in Beijing is just awesome. The Water Cube... fantastic! Those buildings were stunning. But that is not what London is after. China had to show itself, to prove itself as a world player and a global superpower - and it achieved that. But it spent a lot of money getting there. Britain has other things to prove - that as a nation it can be fun, self-deprecating and a bit more easy-going. That’s what the organisers of the 2012 Games have to achieve.

 
Team GB’s success generated a real feel good factor in the UK. Did you get a sense of that in Beijing and the kind of impact it had on the team as a whole?
 
There was a fantastic atmosphere. Everyone was very high, very optimistic, very up. They weren’t intimidated by the challenge. I think they couldn’t quite believe it themselves. There was a weekend where on the Saturday we won four gold medals and on the Sunday we won four gold medals and on the Monday, we were saying ‘we’ve only won one gold medal today - this hasn’t been a very good day’. That was a sure sign Team GB had moved into fantasyland. There was a great atmosphere and a sense of nations coming together and camaraderie. And obviously there was a pure delight of finishing above Australia in the medal table!

 
Several Team GB members, including Paula Radcliffe, Bradley Wiggins and Jo Pavey have asthma but have not let it stop them achieving their dreams. Has asthma ever been an obstacle for you in your career?

Only when I’ve been an idiot and not managed it properly. Asthma is a real nuisance but if you prepare and plan it shouldn’t get in the way. I may have to take my puffer with me but I always manage to do the job regardless. The key things for me are to prepare for it, be equipped to deal with it and know my own limitations. And if I feel onset signs I don’t fight them, I deal with them.

 
You’ve covered everything from natural disasters, to sporting events to war zones. How do you prepare for such a varied career?

What I try to do is think of what the people at home want to know, and if it’s complicated how do I express it in simple terms so they say ‘I get that, I can see the relevance of that’. And that’s the same whether you’re dealing with an earthquake, a tsunami, a war, an Olympic Games or the Chancellor’s budget. You think ‘right, where does this effect ordinary people’s lives; how do I make it relevant?’ And that’s how you prepare for an assignment. 
 

 
Has there been anyone you’ve ever interviewed that has really taken you by surprise?

I hope you don't take this a glib answer, but the people that always surprise me most are the ordinary people - the generosity of spirit and sheer humanity that you sometimes come across that just moves you to tears.

Sometimes you meet people who haven’t eaten for days and they’ve just got food rations off the back of a lorry - which is what happened to me when I was in East Sri Lanka last year for the tsunami - and they want to share their one packet of biscuits with you even though you’re staying in a place where you’ve got food and water. That just moves me to beyond description. Often you come across situations where people are behaving in a barbaric way towards each other, other times you just come across the sheer humanity and humility of ordinary people - and that establishes the story.