Kate Allatt Speaker, Published Author, Fighting Strokes Charity Founder, shares her views on the Olympics. "This London Olympics has allowed us all to be budding ‘Pulitzer journalists’ as we Facebook and Twitter all the developments, as they happen,

Kate Allatt writes:

"Without question the London Olympics have been an incredible success! The BBC coverage has been outstanding.. Hats Off!

I don’t remotely worry about the overly patriotic nature of the BBC coverage of TeamGB. It’s been superb, and I am British and I happen to agree with Edwina Curry. (Bizarre as that sounds) I too also like hearing about people with character and ability, who I can identify with, and be entertained by, where they be British nationals, or not. For example, athletes like Bolt, David Rudisha, Phelps, Ennis, Rutherford, Mo Farah….

The focus, information and content of BBC programming has been simply awesome. I pay my licence fee, and the BBC got it right for me, a British viewer. (I just remind you of the Americans TV coverage in Atlanta!)

Personally, I hate all this societal political correctness. For example, how everyone should take part in school sports, as opposed to a encouraging a winning mentality! Competitiveness is good in my opinion, and it didn’t do me any harm, at all. Did it?

Is Bolt an arrogant, legend? Legend yes, but nit arrogant. He is über talented, quirky, determined, hard-working, full of self-belief, funny, focussed, grateful to his many fans, an individual, entertaining… I could go on..!

We have been brilliant at cycling, Hoy, Pendleton, Wiggins etc. We have had surprises in the womens rowing (Helen Glover), Womens Boxing, Dressage, Showjumping, Triathlon Brownlee brothers, Judo, Ennis…for God’s sake, lets celebrate what we have done!

Access to social media has allowed us all to participate in this monumental spectacle. Super Saturday, with our three golds, was superb! I was hugely entertained, involved, captivated and enthralled, as were many, many others.

This London Olympics has also allowed us all to be budding ‘Pulitzer journalists’ as we Facebook and Twitter all the developments, as they happen, second by second.

We are all sports pundits, commentators and experts but perhaps just lack the ‘spray tan’. We also are first to get athletes’ own insights, their reactions, pictures, analysis, gossip. Now, people seem more interested in the’spin-free’ D.I.Y journalism?

We love being patriotic, which you can tell from the rousing crowd noise at The Stratford, or Velodrome or Greenwich or Triathlon locations. The truth is that we have all taken part in these Olympics and enjoyed our natural and very exciting natural ‘upper!’

Social media, on the whole, hasnt been inane drivel, in my experience. It was powerful, far-reaching, instant, insightful, motivating… in the way it helped me recover from my brainstem stroke with locked in syndrome…

Sure there are some people who are motivated by cruelly mocking or being horrid to Tom Daly, or other presenters wives and kids. They are sick, sad individuals.

However, I personally loved tweeting Rowan Atkinson’s sketch from the Olympic Opening Ceremony itself, and telling the world how The Queen sky dived!

I even dedicate a whole chapter of my new book Gonna Fly Now! to this social media phenomenon.

I announced my return to ‘life’ on the nurses station computer in May 2010, after my forced 5 month Facebook absence. My First entry, “Sorry I’ve been away for a while, not been great recently.”

Then I was hit with a wave of public affection from face-to-face and virtual friends to encourage my attitude, spirits and recovery.

Every day I aimed to have something new to post on my Beating Locked In Syndrome Page, just so I would receive the encouragement, best wishes, motivation from my ‘friends’. Social media allowed me to compete with myself, which was what I totally needed. (There was no one like me on Osborne 4, Northern General Hospital at that time.) This gave me the inspiration to try to beat locked in syndrome. After my hospital bubble, I finally had access to the outside world and life as I knew it!

Social media gave me impetus and focus to improve my dreadful, ‘crippled’ state. I also had something to do for all the endless hours I spent alone. I guess social media gave me an opportunity to brag about my small progressions too, so that I could receive further encouragement. That encouragement was self-perpetuating, as I strived to beat the previous days achievements. (Afterall, googling Locked In Syndrome at that point was immensely distressing, especially along with the cheerful, uplifting and inspiring book I read in hospital, “The Diving Bell & Butterfly!” (Not)

My parting comment on this blog:

GET SOCIAL MEDIA IF YOU ARE POORLY.

(… & we have finally got something other than the 1966 World Cup to celebrate !!;0)"