We can join immortals says Lions’ Biggar
There is a real end-ofterm feeling in the Olympic village now the Games are almost done, and the illegal parties are properly starting to kick into gear. There was quite a lot of fuss in the media about some of the Australian team partying before they flew home, but I am not sure why it was such a big deal, because everyone is at it. My room-mate went to a party last night in the Cuban block and got pretty drunk.
They had a room that, I guess, was empty because everyone had already moved out, so that is where the party took place. I did not go, but apparently there were people from Italy, France, Cuba and a whole bunch of countries.
We found out the other day that Uber Eats works here, so that has changed everything.
We wanted something different to eat, so a friend and I ordered from there. There is a spot just outside the village where you can collect it.
Then, once we had ordered food, one of the guys realised it also worked for beers. So, everyone ordered beers and were drinking them in the physio room.
The athletes who smoke (yes, some of them do) were smoking, and everyone was just enjoying themselves and letting their hair down after they had finished competing. The funny thing is that no one has any idea what they are ordering because it is all in Japanese, so my flatmate picked drinks that looked like beers, but when they arrived they were all sorts of different things. One of them looked disgusting and stank of tequila.
People have also realised they can leave the village, which is something we are not meant to be able to do. It has happened bit by bit. I went a few metres outside the village to collect my Uber Eats order, and then we realised that if you keep walking a bit further you can get to the supermarket without anything happening.
I have not gone further than half a mile down the road, but other people have. You just put your normal clothes on, take your accreditation off and away you go. Then, when you come back, you can just walk in without any problem. I do not know if anyone has gone into Tokyo properly yet, but my flatmate is keen to have a proper night out in town before he leaves. I think he just wants to let his hair down. He is also desperate to hook up with someone, but has not managed it yet. I still do not know of anyone who has, but I think it will definitely happen before the end because the parties are getting crazier. It feels like the last couple of nights will have some pretty big ones.
I do not think any of the athletes feel guilty about breaking the rules. Considering how many people there have been in the village and how few Covid cases there have been, it does not feel like anyone going into Tokyo would be putting the locals in danger.
Everyone in the village is tested every day anyway – it is probably more dangerous the other way round because the Covid numbers are higher in Tokyo than inside the village. The only fear athletes have is not being able to get back into the village, because that is your free ticket home. I think the only reason people would stay in their rooms is fear of getting in trouble.
The village itself is starting to feel very empty. The majority of people have cleared out, there are fewer people walking around, and it was notable how much space there was at breakfast.
Athletes’ diets are not great at the best of times, but now that most people have finished competing they are just eating what they want. Pancakes, French toast, croissants, pastries, everything.
You cannot get away with eating like that for very long, even if you are training.
Depending on how big your team is, some countries have entire blocks to themselves, some blocks are split between a couple of countries and the much smaller countries share with loads.
One of the great things about the village is just seeing all different walks of life and totally opposite physiques. You will say hello to someone in the lift, ask them what sport they do and when they say skateboarding, you will be like: “Obviously, because you’re wearing skate shoes, long socks, and have loads of tattoos and long hair.”
The basketball players are quite easy to pick out.