Barcelona – Such a beautiful horizon
Barcelona – Like a jewel in the sun
So sang Freddie Mercury in the words of the song that he wrote as the theme for the 1992 Olympics, but tragically never got to perform at the event itself. I can’t vouch for the veracity of those lyrics, having never visited the city, but I do have some great memories of the Barcelona games.
For the first week or so, I was in France with my family visiting my aunt and uncle who gone to stay there earlier that year. We spent a lot of time in front of TV together watching events in Spain, and there were many highlights: the Olympic flame being lit by a flaming arrow; Magic Johnson, Michael Jordan et al in the Dream Team; Steve Redgrave winning his third consecutive gold medal; Derek Redmond finishing his 400m semi-final with the help of his dad after tearing his hamstring.
One night of athletics stays in the memory. Both families had travelled over the border into Switzerland to visit another Scottish couple who were working there. It was 1st August – Swiss National Day – and the plan was to have dinner and then visit a local fireworks display, but we took time out to switch on the telly and watch the final of the men’s 100m. Linford Christie, at the age of 32, won the gold medal for Britain in a moment that will live long in mind.
As I am writing this however, I recall that there was another memorable final that evening. In the women’s 100m hurdles, Gail Devers was favourite. She had already caused an upset by winning the flat sprint and had the recorded fastest time in the heats of her stronger event. As the race got underway, Devers stretched away from the rest of the field and seemed certain to win her second gold, but hit the final hurdle hard. She tumbled to the ground, staggering over the line in fifth place.
