when one olympic host city passes the mantle on to the next， the new host usually unveils a celebration of national identity.
after 12 months of secret planning， london has finally revealed just what will happen at its handover performance： the unruly spirit of britain's "hoodie" culture will take center stage at beijing's olympic stadium.
the eight-minute performance will be led by the urban dance squad zoo nation， whose famous show， titled into the hoods， features a drug-dealing pimp and gangster rap music.
it doesn't make you dangerous – it keeps you warm
the hoodie， short for "hooded sweatshirt"， is a heavy upper-body garment with a hood. originally designed in the 1930s for laborers in the cold warehouses of new york， hoodies eventually became popular among young people.
in the uk， however， hoodies have been the subject of much criticism. some shoplifters have used the hood to conceal their identity from cctv cameras in shopping centers. a hoodie with a baseball cap has become a trademark of the "chavs" – young people from a low socio-economic class who are assumed often to engage in criminal activity.
so in may 2005， the bluewater shopping center in kent banned its shoppers from sporting hoodies or baseball caps.
gradually， however， people have begun calling for a tolerant attitude towards hoodies.
in 2005， coombeshead college in southwest england allowed the hoodie to become part of the boys school uniform. the principal， richard haigh， said the move would help to calm some of what he called the "hysteria" surrounding the garment.
in july 2006， david cameron， leader of the conservative party， said： "the hoodie is a response to a problem， not a problem in itself. hoodies are a way to stay invisible in the street. in a dangerous environment， the best thing to do is keep your head down， blend in."
the emergence of hoodie dancing has also helped people see hoodies in a positive light. dance shows like into the hoods by zoo nation and pied piper by boy blue entertainment have drawn a very diverse crowd to the theater.
"there were plenty of 'youths' in the auditorium， but no sign of anti-social behavior，" wrote a blogger at the guardian.
"we use dance to challenge the negative image of youth culture，" said boy blue choreographer kenrick "h2o" sandy. "many people have stereotypes and think that we're a threat just because we wear hoodies， but that's ridiculous. a hoodie doesn't make you dangerous – it just keeps you warm."
a spokeswoman for london's olympic organizing committee seems to agree with sandy， saying that the ceremony would reflect "the best of britain， with a range of talent showcasing london's creativity， diversity and youth".
