The London 2012 Olympic Games have definitely not disappointed. Full of emotion, tears, delight, inspiration and truly amazing performances it’s been great watching it all. I think this is one of the few things that can genuinely bring together people from all over the world to celebrate and enjoy the same thing. The games give a sense of unity that is so global, you can’t escape it and, indeed, Nelson Mandela wasn’t kidding when he said that ‘sport has the power to change the world.’ This time last year London was in the headlines for rioting and looting – all the wrong reasons, but now, for the past two weeks, the world has looked to London as a place of celebration, hope and truly great sporting moments.

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There have been some great sportsmen and women that have stood out this year. Mo Farah, Jessica Ennis, Luke Campbell, Nicola Adams, Tom Daley, Usain Bolt and Yohan Blake are the stars of the London 2012 Olympic Games for me. Each one of their successes and personal stories have proved to be simply inspiring and it has been people like them that have made this years Games a pleasure to watch. These athletes are the best of the best – they push themselves physically and mentally to their ultimate that you can’t help but think that if they can do something as big as competing and winning at the Olympics, then really, we shouldn’t let anything stop us from being our best too.

I especially loved watching Luke Campbell and Nicola Adams victory to Gold in boxing (first woman to win Gold in boxing – what a title!). Boxing is one of those sports that has really helped so many people find a way to redirect their energy and boredom and keep them from getting into any serious trouble.  Places like boxing rings and gymnasiums are places that should be actively supported, advertised and encouraged in gaining members, support and funding. And so far so great – campaigns such as Nike’s Make It Count and Adidas’s Take The Stage have been truly inspiring, encouraging and positive that it would be great to see the government and schools around the country really continue this idea of inspiring a generation.

It’s a shame that the Olympics only happen once every four years. I would much rather hear about Jessica Ennis or Nicola Adams and how hard they train or Mo Farah and Usain Bolts personal stories than hear about Nicki Minaj and her ‘music’ (Yeah… after ‘Stupid Hoe’ all respect was lost for her!). They are what role models are made of and it’s great that young people in the UK (and around the world) have such strong, determined and genuine people that they can look up to – people that show ‘anything is possible… it’s just hard work and hard graft’ as Mo Farah stated in a BBC interview.  For anyone who has complained that there aren’t enough positive role models for them, they only have to look to those eight because these are the ones that should be encouraged in the media.  I couldn’t count the amount of times I’ve looked through my twitter feed or Facebook timeline to see people state how inspired they feel after these games or how much they want to get into a particular sport again and it’s going to be great to see all new comers for Rio 2016.

What have been your personal highlights of the London 2012 Olympic Games?