Sunday, 22 July 2012

London Ready to Welcome Olympic Flame

London
The LOCOG has confirmed the arrangements for the Olympic Flame’s final journey down the River Thames on 27 July and a selection of highlights for its seven-day journey around the capital.

•    982 Torchbearers will carry the Flame around the capital during its seven day tour
•    18 Torchbearers on final day, seven of whom will travel down the Thames on Gloriana, The Queen’s Rowbarge

Sebastian Coe, Chair of LOCOG said: ‘Thank you to everyone who has cheered on the Torchbearers right around the UK and helped to build the excitement towards the start of the Games. With eleven days to go until the Olympic Flame the lights the cauldron at the Opening Ceremony it is great to see London ready to welcome the Flame and set to celebrate inspiring people and amazing places in each and every Borough.’

Given the huge and enthusiastic crowds that have followed the Olympic Torch Relay on its journey around the UK – as estimated 9 million people have cheered on the Torchbearers to date -  LOCOG and Transport for London (TfL) advise that the week when the Olympic Torch Relay is in London is expected to be exceptionally busy. Very large crowds are expected to line the London route and, alongside a number of road closures as the Olympic Flame visits all 33 London Boroughs from Saturday 21 to Friday 27 July, this will have an impact on traffic and transport networks in local areas.

London
As a result, at certain times and in certain places, London’s roads and public transport networks are expected to be much busier than usual.  LOCOG and TfL advise Londoners that, if possible, it would be best to stay local and try to view the Flame when it passes through the area nearest to home or place of work.  For route information please visit www.london2012.com/torch-relay. People will also be able to watch the arrival of the Flame live on the BBC.

On 26 and 27 July in particular, roads in central London will be exceptionally busy and there will be a large number of road closures necessary along the route. On 27 Friday July, those without a ticket for the Opening Ceremony or another event in the Stratford area are advised to avoid the area from 3.00pm.

For anyone travelling in London the advice is to check out the Torch Relay route and plan ahead.On Friday 27 July, the final day of the London 2012 Torch Relay will gather momentum at Hampton Court Palace where Torchbearers will carry the Flame around the grounds of the Palace and through the world’s oldest hedge maze.

At about 7.30am the Flame will be carried on board Gloriana, The Queen’s Rowbarge which was presented to and named by Her Majesty The Queen in a ceremony that took place earlier this year and will provide a lasting legacy to mark Her Majesty’s Diamond Jubilee. The Flame will light a ceremonial cauldron on board Gloriana and over the course of the morning seven Torchbearers will light a Torch from the cauldron and carry the Flame for about eight minutes each at selected areas that are viewable from the banks of the River. The Torchbearers for the last day of the Relay – all members of the public with personal best stories - will be confirmed shortly.

Each day’s celebrations will conclude with an evening celebration that features a variety of entertainment staged by the three Presenting Partners of the London 2012 Olympic Torch Relay - Coca-Cola, Lloyds TSB and Samsung and the host boroughs of Waltham Forest (Saturday 21 July), Bexley (Sunday 22 July), Wandsworth (Monday 23 July), Ealing (Tuesday 24 July) and Haringey (Wednesday 25 July). On the evening of Thursday 26 July, Coca-Cola is presenting the final evening celebration of the Torch Relay with an extended show at Hyde Park, Westminster.













No comments:

Post a Comment