Men's football was due to take centre-stage at the Olympics on Thursday as officials blamed human error for the blunder which prompted a North Korean protest on the opening day of competition. The greatest sporting show on earth will officially get under way on Friday, when around 80,000 VIPs and spectators will flock to the Olympic Stadium for an opening ceremony staged by Oscar-winning British movie director Danny Boyle.
However the sporting action was launched with the opening matches of the women's football tournament at venues across Britain on Wednesday, with their male counterparts entering the fray later Thursday. The highlights will include the first appearance by a British men's team at an Olympics for 52 years when the host nation take on Senegal in frount of around 70,000 fans at Old Trafford, the home of Manchester United.
Britain's participation in the football tournament followed protracted wrangling between the English Football Association and the Scottish, Welsh and Northern Irish federations, who opposed fielding a unified team. Britain's match kicks off at 8pm local time (1900 GMT), with tournament favourites Brazil and Spain also in action elsewhere.
British Prime Minister David Cameron and International Olympic Committee President Jacques Rogge meanwhile played down the flag mix-up which prompted North Korea's protest ahead of their game with Colombia on Wednesday. The North Koreans were furious after their players were introduced on an electronic screen alongside an image of the South Korean flag.
"This was an honest mistake, honestly made," Cameron said at a press conference at the Olympic Park in east London. "An apology's been made and I'm sure every step will be taken to make sure these things don't happen again. We shouldn't inflate this episode. It was unfortunate, it shouldn't have happened, and I think we can leave it at that." Rogge said the incident was "most unfortunate" but was confident there would be no repeat.
Meanwhile, two of the superstars of the Olympics - US swimmer Michael Phelps and Jamaican sprinter Usain Bolt - will shed light on their preparations in separate press conferences later Thursday. Most interest will surround the appearance of reigning 100m and 200m champion and world's fastest man Bolt, who has kept a low profile since arriving in Britain ahead of the Games.
Bolt has had a troubled build-up, losing to compatriot Yohan Blake twice in the Jamaican trials and suffering a "slight injury" which forced his withdrawal from a meeting in Monaco last week. Other athletes meanwhile were coming to terms with the news that their Olympic campaigns were already over after being kicked out of the games for doping offences.
Turkish weightlifters Fatih Baydar and Ibrahim Arat and Greek world indoor high jump champion Dimitris Chondrokoukis were suspended after failing drugs tests while Hungarian discus thrower Zoltan Kovago was ousted after refusing to undergo a doping control.
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