Thousands of votes were cast online to choose the winners of the Royal Horticultural Society (RHS) Olympic Park Great British Garden Competition.
Eleven-year-old Hannah from Malmesbury in Wiltshire won the young people’s section of the competition, with Rachel from Colchester winning in the adult category.
The competition invited green-fingered entrants to submit their own ideas for a 1,000sq m garden that shows off to the world the unique qualities of a British domestic garden.
Hannah said: ‘I was so excited I jumped up and down when Daddy told me the news! I'd like to say a thank you to all the people who voted for my design and I'm really looking forward to working towards the final garden.’
Rachel said: ‘It was fantastic to have been shortlisted and overwhelming to win. I'd like to say a massive thank you to everyone who supported my entry and voted for my design. I'm really looking forward to working with Hannah and the parklands design team to develop a garden in the Olympic Park which can be enjoyed by all during the Games and for years to come. To see the garden come to life will be amazing and it’s a real honour to be part of it.’
Prize winners Hannah and Rachel had a tour of the Park to see the area where their garden will be created ready to bloom into life for the London 2012 Games. They discussed their plans with Olympics Minister Tessa Jowell, Olympic gold medallist Jonathan Edwards and Olympic Delivery Authority Chief Executive David Higgins.
The winners
will now attend a series of workshops with the Park’s landscape team to design
a single garden that incorporates their ideas. The landscape work on the garden
will begin in 2010 and will be completed in 2011, allowing time for the garden to mature ready to
be enjoyed during the Games and beyond.
The competition is part of the London 2012 Inspire programme which creates new
opportunities to inspire young people and encourage the whole of the UK to join in and
be a part of the London 2012 project.
Read the full media release on the Department for Culture, Media and Sport website
