It was not the point. Britain's Olympic revival has been one of the major themes of these Games and ought to be felt across every boxing gym and kayak club. Steve Redgrave, who held the team in Atlanta afloat, carried the flag into the Olympic Stadium last night like some redoubtable British officer who had survived a terrible onslaught and emerged at the head of a revitalised troupe. Eleven golds is the minimum Britain should expect, given their sporting history and economic clout. This ought to be only the start.
Australian zeal is now officially an infectious condition.
Body language alone suggested that many of Britain's 321 athletes drew strength from the force field which sustained these Games, and which turned the sky over Sydney last night into a radiant constellation of loudly exploding colour. A final scout round the erupting city on Sunday could produce nobody who thinks there has been a better sporting carnival. Some who remember la dolce vita in Rome in 1960 are prepared to enter a token debate. But it never lasts long. This was the slogan of the Games.