Olympians should be our inspiration

What a great Games! The host city’s performance has been eccentrically uneven, from a party-themed opening ceremony to pools that turned parakeet green. But Team GB has truly stolen the show. Its fast dash up the medals table is a tribute to talent and perseverance – and a challenge to those of us watching at home.

The achievements are inspiring. Think of Nick Skelton, the 58-year-old showjumper who became the oldest Olympic champion in 108 years. Mr Skelton retired 16 years ago after breaking his neck in two places but, thankfully, decided to return. “I always knew in the back of my mind that I could do it,” he said of this year’s triumph, putting some of it down to his horse, Big Star.

The audience can share the emotional joys of victory, as when Team GB’s female hockey players celebrated gold following a nail-biting penalty shootout. There is catharsis, too, in witnessing glories missed. Lutalo Muhammad broke down in an interview after taking silver for Taekwondo, losing out in the very last second of his bout. Most of us would be perfectly content with a silver – but Mr Muhammad represents a class of sportsmen for whom second place is never enough. To see him come so close and not quite make it was devastating.

Another, surprising, hero of the Olympics has turned out to be Sir John Major, who is finally receiving recognition for directing national lottery money towards sport. As The Daily

Telegraph noted yesterday, UK Sport’s strategy has been to focus cash on individuals and categories with a record of winning – and deny it to those which fail. The approach is ruthless, but it is also efficient and effective. The fact that bigger, more bureaucratic countries have failed to match our medal total indicates that there are advantages to Britain’s highly individualist and competitive sporting culture.

But is that enough? There is good evidence of a decline in participation in physical exercise, which fits with a sharp rise in childhood obesity since the Nineties. One Youth Sport Trust study found that the average number of minutes of PE offered to schoolchildren in England has dropped to below two hours per week – despite promises made by the last government to capitalise upon enthusiasm for the 2012 London Olympics. On the contrary, school playing fields continued to be sold off under the coalition.

Theresa May signalled last week that she’d like to move in a different direction: school sports will be central to the Government’s new anti-obesity strategy. But we cannot and should not rely upon Whitehall to make us into healthier people. The Olympians show what men and women can achieve when they put their minds to it.

For that reason we enthusiastically endorse next Saturday’s I Am Team GB national sports day, when Britons are encouraged to come out to support returning athletes and explore ways to get fitter themselves – to evolve from being spectators to being participants. There will be free sailing classes in Penrith; hockey classes in Glasgow; and a mini-triathlon in Manchester. Even ITV has promised to go dark for one hour. Who knows? This one day of national activity might create future stars. Mighty oaks from little acorns grow.