1,000 days to go, millions joining in

The occasion is being marked by the news that more than five million people are currently participating in London 2012 Games-related projects.

Initiatives range from the Inspire programme, which has seen thousands of people take part in hundreds of community projects in sport, culture, business and sustainability, to the ‘Get Set’ education programme which has reached more than 11,000 schools and the London 2012 Cultural Olympiad.

London 2012 Chairman Sebastian Coe commented: 'Reaching 1,000 days to go gives us an opportunity to celebrate. Millions of people are already inspired by, benefiting from or delivering London 2012, from those who are taking part in sport participation projects inspired by the Games to the millions of National Lottery players who are helping to build the Olympic Park in east London.

'Over the next 1,000 days our teams will put their heart and soul into ensuring the Olympic Games and Paralympic Games in 2012 are a spectacular success and deliver a tangible legacy for future generations.'

To celebrate, the London Organising Committee of the Olympic Games and Paralympic Games (LOCOG) have marked the 1,000 days to go landmark with the launch of a Games-themed photographic exhibition alongside Tier One Partner BT at the National Portrait Gallery and an event at London’s iconic BT Tower.

The 'National Portrait Gallery/BT Road to 2012' exhibition will create 100 world-class photographic portraits celebrating the people, both high-profile and those working behind the scenes, who collectively are making the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games happen. See the photographs

Meanwhile, the London night sky will be transformed as the BT Tower will be spectacularly lit up with a fireworks display on Saturday October 31 and, for the first time ever, will display messaging at the top of the tower. The lighting of the tower will happen live on The National Lottery Draw Show between 8.45pm and 8.55pm on BBC One.

• Other London 2012 sponsors and licensees will also be celebrating 1,000 days to go. All British Airways pilots flying into London will welcome passengers with a message about the 1,000 days to go; the first London 2012 licensed toy goes on sale in Hamley’s – a Corgi-made replica London bus (as featured in the closing ceremony of the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games and Paralympic Games); and the Royal Mail’s first set of London 2012 stamps are now on sale. 
• Instructors and young sailors based at the Weymouth and Portland National Sailing Academy (WPNSA) have marked the 1,000 days to go milestone by sailing past Durdle Door, Dorset, in London 2012 branded Laser sailing boats. Together with the adjacent Portland Marina, the WPNSA is the sailing venue for the 2012 Games and the first venue to be fully completed.
• Meanwhile, in Glasgow, 60 young people are competing in a special 1,000 days to go heptathlon event run by scottishathletics.
• London 2012 has also surveyed people all over the country to find out what they will hope to achieve in the next 1,000 days, with results being broadcast on the London 2012 Live Sites across the country, including the four latest Live Sites in Dover, Edinburgh, Leicester and Woolwich. The Live Sites are a joint initiative between the BBC and LOCOG, with funding from BT, Lloyds TSB and the Olympic Lottery Distributor.
• The campaign has also been run on Twitter, with contributions being featured on london2012.com. Visitors to the website can upload photography and tell their own stories about what they hope to achieve in the next 1,000 days from Saturday. 
• The results of the London-wide London 2012 pin badge vote have also been announced, with local residents voting for a landmark in their borough to be immortalised in badge form. Tower Bridge in the City of London, the Globe Theatre in Southwark and Three Mills in Newham are among the chosen landmarks to be celebrated.

Read the full media release