As we count down to London 2012, I have found myself comparing and contrasting the "greatest show on earth" with our real estate market.

The Olympic Games brought globalisation to sport. For two weeks in 2012, London will be the focus of the world's attention in rather the same way that it has been for ever greater numbers of overseas investors in real estate.

It is likely that the 2012 medal haul will further evidence the shift in power from west to east.

Team GB will have to plan meticulously and execute flawlessly to deliver success. I worry whether our education system is now capable of delivering talent in the numbers that UK plc will require in the future.

98 per cent of the Olympic facilities will have been delivered by UK companies, though.

The Olympic Games are big business. I am not sure that the mantra: "it's the taking part that counts" remains true any longer. Similarly, in business, does there remain a place any more for second best?

This hunger for success requires the authorities to be vigilant in the fight against cheats; antidoping in sport for example, and anti-corruption in the world of business. Those who use corrupt practices in sport or business and, in the latter case, those who fail to implement systems to prevent it, will be for the "high jump".

In these days of austerity, it is to private enterprise that the UK government looks to help revive the UK economy. It remains to be seen whether, like a weight lifter, it can achieve the necessary "clean and jerk", never mind whether it can subsequently lock its knees to prevent the economy from tumbling down.

The availability of debt remains an issue as banks struggle with impaired loans and changing capital adequacy requirements. In the absence of debt, the traditional investor model based on gearing is as hopeless as a pole-vaulter without a pole.

Success, whether in sport or business, is typically the culmination of a vast collaborative effort. I wonder who, amongst our 2012 Olympians, will emerge as champions to stand alongside our great Olympians of the past. And I speculate about whether new industry leaders will emerge from the crash to help drive UK plc forward and help London maintain its pre-eminent position as a place to do business.

Come on Team GB! Come on UK plc!

And to continue the competitive theme, I'll send a £50 Marks and Spencer voucher to the reader who e-mails me a list of the 10 greatest British Olympians which matches or most closely matches my own list—good luck!

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