Farewell Beijing, hello London. The UK looks foward to hosting the 2012 Olympics.

London 2012 handover blow to British pride. During Beijing’s closing ceremony, Britain had an eight-minute window of opportunity to invite the world to London 2012, as the breathless BBC commentators put it. And guess what? We blew it spectacularly. — The Telegraph

We’re attempting to define the indefinable for 2012. As our collective toes start to curl in anticipatory embarrassment, to remain locked in that position until the pageant of Britishness which will kick off the 2012 London Olympics, perhaps we ought to start to ask with some urgency what these games are going to mean to those of us who pay very little attention to sport in general. — The Independent

How can London follow Beijing? As Beijing ended its Games in a blaze of colour all eyes turned to London, leaving Britain’s media feeling more than a little twitchy. The Independent’s front page screamed “Over to you Boris” and claimed it was hard not to feel “a shiver of sympathy” as the London mayor was handed “maybe the heaviest baton ever passed on.” — The Guardian

Lessons for London. The next Olympics cannot afford to imitate the ones just ended, nor does Britain wish to convey the same political message as China. — Times