The Olympic effect only lasts for a while. The British knew it. A survey carried out by Sport England provides numerical confirmation, leaving little room for doubt. Last October, just two months after the London Games, England recorded 15,5 million "athletes", i.e. individuals aged 16 or over, practicing a sporting activity at least once a week, minimum 30 minutes per session. A record. In April 2013, six months later, this population had already lost 200 people.
An effect of weariness, nothing more. And, according to analysts, a direct consequence of a particularly cold winter in the United Kingdom. However, there are still 1,4 million more English people playing sport than there were in 2005, the year the IOC awarded London the 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games.
Above all, the detail of the figures reveals, without great surprise, that the most publicized Olympic disciplines benefited greatly from the Olympic effect. Conversely, sports not included in the program have lost licensees. With 2,9 million regular participants, swimming remains the sport most popular with the English. The number of swimmers increased by 2,39% between April 2012 and April 2013. With 1 million 960 000 followers, athletics is in second place. And, surprise, ahead of football by around 20 people. A form of revolution, easily explained by the historic results obtained by British athletes at the Games, Mo Farah and Jessica Ennis in the lead.
Highly visible at the London Games, especially in the second week, boxing fully benefits from the Olympic effect, particularly among women. Its workforce has increased by almost 8% (150) over the last 000 months. Conversely, golf (- 12%), squash (- 14,89%), cricket (- 8,32%) and rugby (- 10,36%) all pay quite expensively not to not having been invited to the high mass of the London Games.
In Great Britain, these results are the subject of very diverse comments. For the government, having more than 15 million regular athletes at the end of winter demonstrates that the Games left the country a legacy whose effects can be measured in terms of well-being and public health. The opposition, for its part, points out that 20 of the 29 sports concerned by the survey are seeing their numbers decrease in more or less significant proportions. Proof of the incapacity of public authorities to put in place a long-term strategy to benefit sustainably from the Olympic effect.
One thing is certain: organizing the Games results in a spectacular boom in sporting activity in all countries during the first months following the event. But it is up to the host country to anticipate the influx of new graduates, otherwise they risk losing thousands at the first cold spell.
