Few people could deny being gripped and enthralled by the awesome sporting spectacle served up over the past fortnight. Following a seven-year build up, the Games finally came, London delivered and now the athletes and fans have returned home and the blaze of the Olympic flame has been extinguished.
Barring some admittedly not inconsiderable last minute teething problems regarding the provision of security staff, the games have been largely heralded a success both here and in the foreign press. The triumph of the games is in no doubt in part due to the immense effort and dedication exhibited by 70,000 games maker volunteers and a further 8,000 London Ambassadors.
Although the Paralympics is still to come, talk has already turned to that of legacy, in particular how the popular enthusiasm for sport and for giving one’s time for free can be continued. The initial signs certainly seem encouraging, with thousands of sports clubs across the country set to take part in a weekend of events from 18 August.
The weekend is part of an initiative by the Join In Trust, an independent charity set up to encourage people into volunteering and supported by £2m of Cabinet Office funding. Meanwhile a Cornwall-based volunteering charity has said that the number of people seeking to become volunteers between April and July this year is up 40 per cent on the same period last year, something it credits to the inspiring impact of the Games and its build up.
Yet while everyone continues to ride the feel-good wave of Olympic elation, inconvenient truths remain lurking just below the surface.
Research has consistently shown that attempts to sustain increases in volunteering have ultimately proved unsuccessful. Many of those who gave their time during the Games, no matter how selflessly, would have been partly motivated to do so by the once in a lifetime allure of London 2012.
The trick that needs to be pulled off is how to maintain the momentum generated by large-scale events such as the Olympics and make it permanent. To do this, government and organisations within the sector need to act fast.
Ensuring that information and access to further volunteering opportunities are available is potentially as important as financial support, as is retaining the high praise and profile afforded to volunteers for their efforts over the past two weeks.
The Games have delivered and now it is time for those responsible for fostering a lasting volunteering legacy to do the same.