It was very good of Gordon Brown to throw a birthday party for me at Number 10. Well...I suspect he had bigger priorities, but it was great to meet two other people who also shared my birthday at the recent Number 10 reception for Talent and Enterprise.
I was there representing LOCOG to reinforce our commitment to talent in all its forms - and get people to consider working for us even though they don't have 'Games experience'.
The first guy I met was Phil Packer. Phil was injured in a rocket attack in Basra in February 2008 and lost the use of his legs. He completed the London Marathon on 26 April this year over a two week period on crutches. Within a year of his injuries, he rowed the English Channel in just over fifteen hours!
The second guy was Imran Hakim. Imran, 32, comes from a working class background in Bolton. He has established, and now runs, several businesses employing many people in the North West of England.
It's this kind of talent, which might not come in the form we expect it to, which we need to include in London 2012.
Oh, and it goes without saying that the performance by the dance group Diversity was sensational.
Every little helps per se. It is all Public Relations of making interesting and exciting on order to persaude for futuristic purposes - in is beneficial social inclusion.
Watching ´Diversity` at Number 10 is indeed a vivid metaphor for the modern British society - an exciting and vibrant one. It´s extraordinary to see them performing in front of this famous door because we usually see statesmen at this place.