The Flame will be carried through the following communities: Ipswich, Colchester, Hatfield Peverel, Heybridge, Maldon, Rayleigh, Southend-on-Sea, Hadleigh, Basildon, Grays, Herongate, Brentwood and Chelmsford.
• 138 Torchbearers will carry the Flame, including Olympian Mark Foster
• Evening celebration to take place at Hylands House, Chelmsford
• Images from today can be downloaded here
Highlights for today include:
6.37am – The Torch Relay starts with a photo opportunity on the balcony of the Christchurch Mansion House in Ipswich where the Flame will be transferred from the lantern to the first Torch of the day. Promising young athlete, Emily Rogers, 18, from Bury St Edmunds is the first Torchbearer of the day. She is a dedicated member of the West Suffolk Athletics Club and has had much success at a Suffolk county level and in the English Schools competition. She was nominated through the LOCOG campaign.
Emily will then hand the Flame on to Kevin Curtis, 51, from Kesgrave in Ipswich who was nominated by Ipswich Borough Council through the LOCOG campaign for winning gold at the World Disabled Sailing Championships in Barcelona, and a sailing gold in the 1996 Atlanta Paralympic Games. Kevin remains dedicated to sport - he is a Trustee of the East Anglian Sailing Trust (EAST), a charity founded to provide boating opportunities for adults with disabilities and sits on the board of the British Olympic Association and the Sports Advisory Group for LOCOG.
2.25pm – At the Hadleigh Farm Mountain Bike course the Flame will be attached to a bicycle with a photo opportunity held at the start / finish line of the course for the London 2012 Olympic Games. The Torchbearer for this moment is Kim Axford, 43, from Canvey Island a fitness instructor from Essex, who was nominated through the Lloyds TSB campaign for encouraging and making it possible for others to lead healthier and more active lifestyles.
3.46pm – Marc Grayston, 27, from Basildon will carry around the Basildon Sporting Village. Marc who was nominated through the Lloyds TSB campaign for establishing and growing a local karate club will carry the Flame along the side of the swimming pool, out onto the playing field and into the middle of the athletics track.
6.50pm – The last Torchbearer of the day will be John Bowman, 45, from Little Dunmow, who will carry the Flame into the Evening Celebration on the Hylands House site. John is carrying the Flame in memory of his wife Kirste who was selected through the LOCOG campaign for inspiring everyone who met her, her dedication to marathon running and her fundraising for breast cancer research charities despite suffering from breast cancer herself.
The London 2012 Olympic Torch Relay Evening Celebration will take place at Hylands House in Chelmsford between 5pm and 7.30pm as part of the Sparks will Fly: Essex Finale. Doors open at 3.30pm and the overall event concludes at 10.30pm.
The evening celebration will feature a variety of entertainment staged by LOCOG and the three Presenting Partners of the London 2012 Olympic Torch R elay - Coca-Cola, Lloyds TSB and Samsung - with support from Chelmsford City Council.
The line-up includes music from Morning Parade, a dance troupe who will provide a unique fusion of street performance, theatre and sport and dance act Twist and Pulse. There will also be entertainment from local acts including specially choreographed performances by Pinpoint Create and Walk the Plank involving Chelmsford community groups and large-scale audience participation.
Towards the end of the London 2012 Torch Relay show, the last Torchbearer of the day – John Bowman - will light a celebration cauldron on stage at the event which will enable the Olympic Flame to be seen by the audience.
Following the Torch Relay Evening Celebration, the audience will be invited into an adjacent area of the event site to feast, drink and play. A huge variety of refreshments will be available to purchase including the best of Essex food and drink. As the sun begins to set, the Sparks will Fly: Essex Finale event that concludes the evening’s festivities will take place.
James Williams, Director, Olympic Torch Relay, Coca-Cola Northwest Europe & Nordics, said: ‘Today, more Coca-Cola Future Flames will help us celebrate the forty-ninth day of our amazing journey, including Amber Ferguson and Rachel Aston who carry the Olympic Flame in Heybridge and Maldon. We will also get everyone to Move to the Beat tonight as we bring Morning Parade to the stage in Chelmsford.’
Sally Hancock, Director, London 2012 Partnership at Lloyds TSB, said: ‘The Olympic Torch Relay has had a phenomenal reception in each community is has touched over the last seven weeks and Lloyds TSB is continuing to create as many opportunities as possible for the people of Essex to get involved as the Olympic Flame passes their doors. We’re calling on everyone to cheer on their local Lloyds TSB Torchbearers, including our Torchbearer team from the FitzWimarc School, who will carry the Flame in Rayleigh. Our troupe of performers, the Flame Followers, are lighting up the celebrations along the route ahead of the Relay before their Flame Followers Spectacular in Chelmsford tonight.’
Sunny Hwang, Vice President & Head of Global Sports Marketing, Samsung Electronics, said: ‘Samsung is delighted to be a Presenting Partner of the Olympic Torch Relay as it has given us the perfect opportunity to encourage everyone from all around the world to be involved in the Olympic Games.’
Torchbearer highlights:
Mark Foster will carry the Flame in Southend-on-Sea. Mark who has competed in five Olympic Games (Beijing 2008, Sydney 2000, Atlanta 1996, Barcelona 1992 and Seoul 1988) and who is one of Britain’s most successful swimmers was selected to carry the Flame by Lloyds TSB because of his contribution to swimming and inspiring young athletes through his support of Lloyds TSB National School Sport Week.
Sacha Sewell, 38, from Chelmsford will carry the Flame in Hadleigh. Sacha was nominated through the LOCOG campaign for her coaching work at Chelmsford Sport and Athletic Centre where she coaches children, adults, able-bodied and disabled participants alike. Aside from her exercise classes she also educates children about the importance of having a healthy lifestyle, has raised £900 for the Columbus School & College which supports children with severe disabilities and visits sheltered accommodation to teach Otago to elderly people.
Amber Ferguson, 13, from Chelmsford will carry the flame in Heybridge. Selected through the Coca-Cola Future Flames programme, Amber is a keen ice-skater and is the Number 1 Young Pairs Skater in the UK. Her goal is to show other people that no matter who you are or where you're from you should still aim to be 'the best you can be'! As an Essex Ambassador, she is about to visit schools where she will be talking to teenagers about sports and the opportunities available to them. Amber aims to inspire young people to become active and to find something to be passionate about.
Dena Al-Nakeeb, 24, from Bungay will carry the Flame in Southend-on-Sea. Nominated through LOCOG’s campaign for her work at the local Open Academy where she arranges a mix of activities focused on community work, educational workshops and visits to the community. Having volunteered for the programme, Dena mentors the young people group and encouraged them to take part in positive activities designed to increase self-esteem and respect for others and themselves. Dena has also made four donations of her bone marrow.
Mark Clifford, 40, from Brentwood will carry the Flame in Southend-on-Sea. Mark who was nominated through the Samsung campaign climbed Kilimanjaro for Macmillan in 2011 and raised over £11,000. He`s now found a passion for combining challenges and charity work and hopes to raise thousands more for Macmillan. Future challenges include a John O’Groats to Land’s End cycle ride and Everest Base Camp is being mulled over for 2013.
-Ends-
For further information please contact the London 2012 Press Office on +44 (0)203 2012 100 or visit the website at www.london2012.com. Find out the latest from London 2012 HQ on our blog http://blog.london2012.com or follow us on Twitter http://www.twitter.com/london2012
Notes to editors:
Each day two short packages of broadcast footage will be made available. The packages will be available via the Footage library – accessible from the Media Centre on london2012.com and direct from this link http://footagelibrary.london2012.com. Media will need to register for access in advance. Registration is free.
The broadcast of the Olympic Torch Relay is provided for Editorial Use Only. There can be no commercial association, no third party association and no commercial/ad superimposition on the video footage, unless the prior written consent of the IOC is acquired.
About the London 2012 Olympic Torch Relay Presenting Partners:
As the longest standing Presenting Partner of the Olympic Torch Relay, Coca-Cola will be using its heritage and experience to spread excitement across the UK ahead of London 2012. Coca-Cola's national nomination campaign - Future Flames – has focused on finding inspirational young people from across the country to have the once in a lifetime opportunity to carry the Olympic Flame. This summer Coca-Cola will celebrate these Future Flames: young people who use their passions in areas like sport and physical activity, music and dance, and community and the environment; to spread happiness in their local communities. Find out more at: www.coca-cola.co.uk/olympic-games
As the only National Presenting Partner of the London 2012 Olympic Torch Relay, Lloyds TSB will be taking the inspiration and excitement of the Olympic Flame right to the heart of communities across the UK. As part of Lloyds Banking Group, Bank of Scotland will be the National Presenting Partner in Scotland. We are creating as many opportunities as possible for communities the length and breadth of the UK to get involved as the Flame travels past their front doors.
Lloyds Banking Group is Britain’s biggest corporate investor in UK communities and in 2011 invested £85 million and as part of the Group’s Community Investment Programme, we’ve launched the Lloyds Banking Group Community Fund to give back to the communities in which we operate and pass through on our journey with the Olympic Flame. We’re inviting everyone to visit the Lloyds TSB stand at each Evening Celebration to vote for a community project in their area that inspires and supports young people. By voting at the Evening Celebration members of the public will automatically enter a draw to win four tickets to London 2012. The two projects that receive the most votes at each locality will each win a £5,000 grant from Lloyds Banking Group. At the Lloyds TSB site members of the public will also have the opportunity to have their photo taken with the Olympic Torch, meet Lloyds TSB Local Heroes – the future stars of Team GB and ParalympicsGB – and get up close to our Flame Followers. To find out how you can join in the celebrations with Lloyds TSB (in your community please visit www.lloydstsb.com/london2012
As a Presenting Partner of the London 2012 Olympic Torch Relay, Samsung aims to encourage everyone to be part of the greatest show on Earth to make London 2012 ‘Everyone’s Olympic Games.’ We aspire to offer new and memorable experiences for everyone around the world through our own innovative and smart wireless technology. Samsung is providing 1,360 Torchbearers, who have “gone the extra mile” by contributing to the local communities, through its worldwide public nomination campaign. In total over 25,000 nominations were received. Samsung will support towns and cities to celebrate the exciting moment of the Torch Relay and help showcase Great Britain’s cultural landmarks to provide a more enjoyable experience to everyone. The evening celebrations that will be staged by Samsung in 66 towns and cities throughout the Olympic Flame’s journey across the UK, will allow Samsung to entertain the community they are visiting. The Samsung caravan, complete with LED screen on the side showcasing runners and goodwill messages, will follow the Torchbearers around the UK cheering up everyone to celebrate the Torch Relay with music and interaction with local communities. It is Samsung’s ambition that London 2012 will be an event that reaches and involves more people than on any other Olympic Games occasion. To learn more about Samsung’s London 2012 Olympic programme, please visit www.samsung.com/london2012
The BBC will be providing extensive coverage of the Torch Relay on television, radio and online. This will include special Breakfast shows on every BBC local radio station, and extended live coverage of an evening celebration event in every Nation and English Region. Full details of the coverage will be at bbc.co.uk/2012.
The Supporters of the London 2012 Olympic Torch Relay are:
Worldwide Olympic Partners Procter and Gamble and Visa, Tier One Partners adidas, BMW, BP, British Airways, BT and EDF, Tier Three Providers Aggreko, Holiday Inn and NATURE VALLEY.
London 2012 Games partners:
The Worldwide Olympic Partners who support the London 2012 Olympic Games and the National Olympic Committees around the world are Coca-Cola, Acer, Atos, Dow Chemical Company, GE, McDonald’s, Omega, Panasonic, Procter and Gamble, Samsung and Visa.
LOCOG has seven domestic Tier One Partners - adidas, BMW, BP, British Airways, BT, EDF and Lloyds TSB. There are seven domestic Tier Two Supporters – Adecco, ArcelorMittal, Cadbury, Cisco, Deloitte, Thomas Cook and UPS.
There are now twenty-eight domestic Tier Three Suppliers and Providers – Aggreko, Airwave, Atkins, Boston Consulting Group, CBS Outdoor, Crystal CG, Eurostar, Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer LLP, G4S, GSK, Gymnova, Heathrow Airport, Heineken UK, Holiday Inn, John Lewis, McCann Worldgroup, Mondo, NATURE VALLEY, Next, Nielsen, Populous, Rapiscan Systems, Rio Tinto, Technogym, Thames Water, Ticketmaster, Trebor and Westfield
