London 2012 blog

Yesterday I was at BAFTA for the unveiling of the UK's favourite Olympic Champions and a new National Lottery Scratchcard.

It was great. Sports presenter Hazel Irvine was hosting, representatives from the National Lottery plus Tessa Jowell were also on hand to explain how much money has been raised by the special London 2012 National Lottery Games and what the money is being used for.

Hazel revealed the six champions, as voted for in a special poll, in the style of 'A Question of Sport', with a massive picture you don't see all of until the last square. As they were revealed one by one they came on stage to reveal the next one.

So who were they?!

First to be revealed was Triple Jump champ Jonathan Edwards…cooking baked beans! He came on stage and revealed the second, rowing supremo Sir Steve Redgrave. Third – hurdler Sally Gunnell – looking very glam. Fourth was swimmer Duncan Goodhew dressed as a fencer. After him, athlete Dame Kelly Holmes, in a pair of killer heels. And then the final champion – we kind of guessed it might be – was our very own athlete, Seb Coe. Kelly revealed him piece by piece, though he peeked out before he should’ve so a bit ruined the surprise!

Seb with Hazel Irvine, with his Scratchcard in the background. L-R on the stage Dame Kelly Holmes, Duncan Goodhew, Sally Gunnell, Sir Steve Redgrave, Jonathan Edwards:



Each of the athletes spoke a bit about what they've been doing since they competed. They're all raising their own families as well as mentoring other kids into sport in different ways. Kelly, for example, has her 'On Camp with Kelly' – which she'd already started before her gold medals in Athens.

Duncan Goodhew is also doing a lot of work around swimming, especially campaigning for better facilities in the UK. He began swimming at the age of five and continued as a way of dealing with dyslexia and a hair loss condition. He competed at the Montreal 1976 Games and won a gold medal at Moscow 1980. Winning was a turning point for him and he's committed to making sure others have that opportunity in sport too.

As well as the Olympic Champions, we saw some favourite moments from previous Games – again as voted by the public. It was a real trip down memory lane, reminding me what first inspired me about the Games and the competitors.

The National Lottery have so far raised £300m for London 2012, which will contribute towards infrastructure and legacy. It's fantastic – and what they're doing will help us create the inspiration for future generations when they're watching in 2012.