LOCOG reveals Olympic Torch Relay route
The London 2012 Organising Committee (LOCOG) has revealed the route of the Olympic Torch Relay – with over 1000 cities, towns, and villages in the UK set to host the iconic torch.
The relay, which takes place between 18 May and 27 July next year, will see the Olympic Flame travel to within one hour’s travel of 95% of the UK population.
Eight thousand inspirational torchbearers will help carry the Flame approximately 8,000 miles, with modes of transport including horseback, steam train, tram, and bicycle.
The Flame will also get a taste of rowing in the UK, travelling in a rowing boat at Henley-on-Thames on 10 July, before visiting Eton Dorney – the 2012 Olympic rowing lake.
The 70-day relay will begin at Land’s End, Cornwall, on the morning of 19 May 2012. For an animated flythrough of the Olympic Torch Relay route, visit www.london2012.com.
‘I’m delighted that the Olympic Torch Relay will take the 2012 Games to almost every corner of the UK and that we have achieved our ambition to take the Flame to within an hour’s journey of 95% of the population,’ said LOCOG Chairman Sebastian Coe. ‘Now everyone is invited to plan their welcome and find out where they can go to be part of this historic occasion. The Olympic Games are coming to you as the Olympic Flame gives our people and places their moment to shine.’
The Olympic flame will be lit at a ceremony in Olympia, Greece, in May 2012, before being flown to the UK where it will arrive on May 18.
To encourage people across the UK to create their own celebrations along the Torch Relay route and throughout the London 2012 Games, LOGOC has also announced the launch of its Local Leader programme.
The programme provides ideas and advice for people planning Olympic-themed events in 2012, helping communities to become a part of the Olympic experience.
