Close-Up: So who were the real winners at the Olympics?

Savvy brands waxed, basking in the glory of media exposure; others waned, through faults of their own, Chris Thomas says.

The first winners were the athletes. I flew to Beijing on the same plane as the US swimming team. Sprawling out in business class feeling tired, overfed and underexercised among these remarkable physical specimens was a humbling experience. Their enthusiasm and vibrancy was palpable - years of training paying off in self-esteem and pride.

The second winner was China. I had just spent a week in the UK. The negative press in the lead-up to Beijing was top of mind: smog, pollution, spitting, Tibet and so on. As I arrived in Beijing, all I could notice was the huge smiles of welcome and genuine excitement on the faces of the volunteers as the athletes arrived. Miraculously, the air cleared and China held its head very high on the world stage.

What about the brands? The most important lesson of all - great product innovation is unbeatable - came to mind. In the events leading up to the Olympic Games, swimmers in Speedos had already broken 50 records. No advertising could beat such a powerful demonstration of product superiority.

Usain Bolt's startling sprints dominated the second week. His running shoes, christened 'Lightning Bolts', were a huge, but missed, product opportunity. In a survey of 40 teenagers who passed through the Thomas family barbeques during the Olympics, all of them ...