Torvil and Dean’s Bolero. Inspiring. Magical. Emotional. The finest ice dance the world will ever see. I could never stop the hairs standing up on the back of my neck while watching this. Proud that they were British. The best in the world. It just so happens that it was to become my mum’s all time favourite. It just so happens that it took place at the Sarajevo 1984 Winter Olympics. And how things have changed.
I remember watching the performance on TV. Barely. I would have been 6 years old, but I have a hazy memory of mum and dad’s excitement, which peaked when the famous duo took maximum points from all judges, a world first, which has never been repeated. I can’t watch that performance again without getting a little choked up at the thought of my mum saying something like; “oh ya little beauty”, or dad repeating “magic” with a teary grin on his face. It seems a lifetime away.
So too do the crowds of cheering onlookers during one of Sarajevo’s most notable achievements. The class of ’84 saw a peak of the world’s greats, and the city put on a show to match. Now all that remains are hauntingly derelict buildings, faded logos and crumbling memories. None less so than the surreal and eerie abandoned bobsled track, which dominates the Trebevic mountain overlooking the city. It was here that the powerhouses of bobsled and luge did battle for medals in 1984. It was here that Bosnian Serbs did battle for Sarajevo from 1992-1995. All around the track are clues to different kinds of action. Graffiti and undergrowth have taken over. Crumbling sections are claimed by nature. Echos of the past reverberate round ghostly curves and straights, with mortar and bullet damage usurping a spectacle of sport. War and peace in one forgotten place. When you close your eyes, the sounds you hear are very different indeed.
1984 Olympics
Torvil and Dean’s Bolero. Inspiring. Magical. Emotional. The finest ice dance the world will ever see. I could never stop the hairs standing up on the back of my neck while watching this. Proud that they were British. The best in the world. It just so happens that it was to become my mum’s all time favourite. It just so happens that it took place at the Sarajevo 1984 Winter Olympics. And how things have changed.
I remember watching the performance on TV. Barely. I would have been 6 years old, but I have a hazy memory of mum and dad’s excitement, which peaked when the famous duo took maximum points from all judges, a world first, which has never been repeated. I can’t watch that performance again without getting a little choked up at the thought of my mum saying something like; “oh ya little beauty”, or dad repeating “magic” with a teary grin on his face. It seems a lifetime away.
So too do the crowds of cheering onlookers during one of Sarajevo’s most notable achievements. The class of ’84 saw a peak of the world’s greats, and the city put on a show to match. Now all that remains are hauntingly derelict buildings, faded logos and crumbling memories. None less so than the surreal and eerie abandoned bobsled track, which dominates the Trebevic mountain overlooking the city. It was here that the powerhouses of bobsled and luge did battle for medals in 1984. It was here that Bosnian Serbs did battle for Sarajevo from 1992-1995. All around the track are clues to different kinds of action. Graffiti and undergrowth have taken over. Crumbling sections are claimed by nature. Echos of the past reverberate round ghostly curves and straights, with mortar and bullet damage usurping a spectacle of sport. War and peace in one forgotten place. When you close your eyes, the sounds you hear are very different indeed.