We were just seconds from international humiliation

As his thrilling new novel goes behind the scenes at the 2012 Olympics, Jeffrey Archer reveals some of the THIRTEEN dramatic incidents from protest to sabotage that could have scuppered the London Games

- By Jeffrey Archer

WHAT do you remember most about the London 2012 Olympics? Is it that the British could still organise an international event involving 204 countries from Algeria to Zimbabwe, competing in 39 disciplines as diverse as Greco-Roman wrestling to archery? Or was it that the Games were viewed by an astonishing 3.64 billion people who watched in awe and admiration at Britain’s ability to stage the greatest show on earth.

HEY have also been responsible for supplying an expert in particular fields, depending on what subject I selected for the next book, be it murder, drug trafficking, art fraud, royal protection or an attempt to steal the crown jewels (Traitors Gate).

However, when I decided that End Game, the final book in the William Warwick series, would be set against the backdrop of the London 2012 Olympics, I already thought I knew who my expert would be. I turned to my old friend and colleague in the House of Lords, Sebastian Coe, to advise me.

The following week I travelled to Monaco to visit him at his office (he is president of World Athletics), in the hope he would regale me with stories of Olympic near-misses.