2012 Summer Olympics
Encyclopedia
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
from 27 July to 12 August 2012. London will become the first city to officially host the modern Olympic Games three times
London Olympics
London has hosted the Olympic Games on two past occasions, in 1908 and 1948, with a third scheduled for 2012. The planned 2012 Olympics will make London the first city to have hosted the modern Games of three Olympiads...
, having previously done so in 1908
1908 Summer Olympics
The 1908 Summer Olympics, officially the Games of the IV Olympiad, were an international multi-sport event which was held in 1908 in London, England, United Kingdom. These games were originally scheduled to be held in Rome. At the time they were the fifth modern Olympic games...
and in 1948
1948 Summer Olympics
The 1948 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XIV Olympiad, were an international multi-sport event which was held in London, England, United Kingdom. After a 12-year hiatus because of World War II, these were the first Summer Olympics since the 1936 Games in Berlin...
.
London was selected as the host city on 6 July 2005 during the 117th IOC
International Olympic Committee
The International Olympic Committee is an international corporation based in Lausanne, Switzerland, created by Pierre de Coubertin on 23 June 1894 with Demetrios Vikelas as its first president...
Session in Singapore
Singapore
Singapore , officially the Republic of Singapore, is a Southeast Asian city-state off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, north of the equator. An island country made up of 63 islands, it is separated from Malaysia by the Straits of Johor to its north and from Indonesia's Riau Islands by the...
, defeating Moscow
Moscow
Moscow is the capital, the most populous city, and the most populous federal subject of Russia. The city is a major political, economic, cultural, scientific, religious, financial, educational, and transportation centre of Russia and the continent...
, New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
, Madrid
Madrid
Madrid is the capital and largest city of Spain. The population of the city is roughly 3.3 million and the entire population of the Madrid metropolitan area is calculated to be 6.271 million. It is the third largest city in the European Union, after London and Berlin, and its metropolitan...
and Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
after four rounds of voting. The successful bid was headed by former Olympic champion Sebastian Coe.
The Olympics prompted a redevelopment of many of the areas of London in which the games are to be held – particularly themed towards sustainability
Sustainability
Sustainability is the capacity to endure. For humans, sustainability is the long-term maintenance of well being, which has environmental, economic, and social dimensions, and encompasses the concept of union, an interdependent relationship and mutual responsible position with all living and non...
. While the budgetary considerations have generated some criticism, the Games will make use of many venues which were already in place before the bid, including Wembley Stadium
Wembley Stadium
The original Wembley Stadium, officially known as the Empire Stadium, was a football stadium in Wembley, a suburb of north-west London, standing on the site now occupied by the new Wembley Stadium that opened in 2007...
, Wembley Arena
Wembley Arena
Wembley Arena is an indoor arena, at Wembley, in the London Borough of Brent. The building is opposite Wembley Stadium.-History:...
, Wimbledon All England Club
All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club
The All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club , also known as the All-England Club, based at Aorangi Park, Wimbledon, London, England, is a private members club. It is best known as the venue for the Wimbledon Championships, the only Grand Slam tennis event still held on grass...
, Lord's Cricket Ground
Lord's Cricket Ground
Lord's Cricket Ground is a cricket venue in St John's Wood, London. Named after its founder, Thomas Lord, it is owned by Marylebone Cricket Club and is the home of Middlesex County Cricket Club, the England and Wales Cricket Board , the European Cricket Council and, until August 2005, the...
, The O2 Arena
The O2 arena (London)
The O2 Arena is a multi-purpose indoor arena located in the centre of The O2, a large entertainment complex on the Greenwich peninsula in London, England.With a capacity of up to 20,000 depending on the event, it is second largest...
, Earls Court Exhibition Centre
Earls Court Exhibition Centre
The Earls Court Exhibition Centre is an exhibition centre, conference and event venue located in west London, United Kingdom in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea . It is the largest exhibition venue in central London. It is served by two underground stations, Earl's Court and West...
, Weymouth and Portland National Sailing Academy
Weymouth and Portland National Sailing Academy
Weymouth and Portland National Sailing Academy is a centre for the sport of sailing on the Isle of Portland, Dorset, on the south coast of England, United Kingdom. The academy building is located in Osprey Quay on the northern tip of the island, and the waters of Portland Harbour and Weymouth Bay,...
, and the Excel Centre.
Bidding process
By the bid submission deadline of 15 July 2003, nine cities had submitted bids to host the 2012 Olympics. These cities were HavanaHavana
Havana is the capital city, province, major port, and leading commercial centre of Cuba. The city proper has a population of 2.1 million inhabitants, and it spans a total of — making it the largest city in the Caribbean region, and the most populous...
, Istanbul
Istanbul
Istanbul , historically known as Byzantium and Constantinople , is the largest city of Turkey. Istanbul metropolitan province had 13.26 million people living in it as of December, 2010, which is 18% of Turkey's population and the 3rd largest metropolitan area in Europe after London and...
, Leipzig
Leipzig
Leipzig Leipzig has always been a trade city, situated during the time of the Holy Roman Empire at the intersection of the Via Regia and Via Imperii, two important trade routes. At one time, Leipzig was one of the major European centres of learning and culture in fields such as music and publishing...
, London, Madrid
Madrid
Madrid is the capital and largest city of Spain. The population of the city is roughly 3.3 million and the entire population of the Madrid metropolitan area is calculated to be 6.271 million. It is the third largest city in the European Union, after London and Berlin, and its metropolitan...
, Moscow, New York City, Paris and Rio de Janeiro
Rio de Janeiro
Rio de Janeiro , commonly referred to simply as Rio, is the capital city of the State of Rio de Janeiro, the second largest city of Brazil, and the third largest metropolitan area and agglomeration in South America, boasting approximately 6.3 million people within the city proper, making it the 6th...
.
On 18 May 2004, the International Olympic Committee
International Olympic Committee
The International Olympic Committee is an international corporation based in Lausanne, Switzerland, created by Pierre de Coubertin on 23 June 1894 with Demetrios Vikelas as its first president...
(IOC), as a result of a scored technical evaluation, reduced the number of cities to five: London, Madrid, Moscow, New York, and Paris.
By 19 November 2004, all five candidate cities had submitted their candidate file to the International Olympic Committee
International Olympic Committee
The International Olympic Committee is an international corporation based in Lausanne, Switzerland, created by Pierre de Coubertin on 23 June 1894 with Demetrios Vikelas as its first president...
. The IOC inspection team visited the five candidate cities during February and March 2005. The Paris bid suffered two setbacks during the IOC inspection visit: a number of strikes and demonstrations coinciding with the visits and a report coming out that Guy Drut
Guy Drut
Guy Drut is an Olympic champion and politician who won gold at the 1976 Summer Olympics in Montreal in the 110m hurdles....
, one of the key members of the Paris bid team and IOC member, would face charges over alleged corrupt party political finances.
On 6 June 2005, the International Olympic Committee
International Olympic Committee
The International Olympic Committee is an international corporation based in Lausanne, Switzerland, created by Pierre de Coubertin on 23 June 1894 with Demetrios Vikelas as its first president...
released its evaluation reports for the five candidate cities. Although these reports did not contain any scores or rankings, the evaluation report for Paris was considered the most positive, now followed closely by London which had narrowed down most of the gap observed by the initial evaluation in 2004 regarding Paris. Also New York and Madrid obtained very positive evaluation reports.
Throughout the process and up to the vote at the 117th IOC Session
117th IOC Session
The 117th International Olympic Committee Session was held for the first time in Singapore from 2 July to 9 July 2005. The meeting was particularly significant as two important decisions were made through voting during the session - namely the selection of the hosting city for the 2012 Summer...
, Paris was widely seen as the favourite to win the nomination, particularly as this was its third bid in recent history. Originally London was seen lagging Paris by considerable margin; however, this started to improve with the appointment of Sebastian Coe as new head of London 2012 on 19 May 2004. In late August 2004, some reports started emerging predicting a London and Paris tie in the 2012 bid. In the final run-up to the 117th IOC Session, London and Paris appeared to be increasingly in a neck-and-neck race. On 1 July 2005, Jacques Rogge
Jacques Rogge
Jacques Rogge, Count Rogge , is a Belgian sports bureaucrat. He is the eighth and current President of the International Olympic Committee .-Life and career:...
, when asked who the winner would be, told the assembled press: "I cannot predict it since I don't know how the IOC members will vote. But my gut feeling tells me that it will be very close. Perhaps it will come down to a difference of say ten votes, or maybe less".
On 6 July 2005, the final selection was announced at the Raffles City Convention Centre
Raffles City
Raffles City is a large complex located in the Civic District within the Downtown Core of the city-state of Singapore. Occupying an entire city block bounded by Stamford Road, Beach Road, Bras Basah Road and North Bridge Road, it houses two hotels and an office tower over a podium which contains a...
in Singapore, where the 117th IOC Session was held. Here Prime Minister of the United Kingdom
Prime Minister of the United Kingdom
The Prime Minister of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the Head of Her Majesty's Government in the United Kingdom. The Prime Minister and Cabinet are collectively accountable for their policies and actions to the Sovereign, to Parliament, to their political party and...
Tony Blair
Tony Blair
Anthony Charles Lynton Blair is a former British Labour Party politician who served as the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 2 May 1997 to 27 June 2007. He was the Member of Parliament for Sedgefield from 1983 to 2007 and Leader of the Labour Party from 1994 to 2007...
was the only leader of the five candidate cities' countries to make a personal lobby (he had also been the only one to attend the 2004 Olympics). Moscow was the first city to be eliminated, followed by New York and Madrid. The final two cities left in contention were London and Paris. At the end of the fourth round of voting, London won the right to host the 2012 Games with 54 votes, defeating Paris's 50. Various French publications blamed the Paris loss on French President Jacques Chirac
Jacques Chirac
Jacques René Chirac is a French politician who served as President of France from 1995 to 2007. He previously served as Prime Minister of France from 1974 to 1976 and from 1986 to 1988 , and as Mayor of Paris from 1977 to 1995.After completing his studies of the DEA's degree at the...
's statements before the vote that "We can't trust people [the British] who have such bad food. After Finland, it's the country with the worst food." Two current members of the International Olympic Committee are from Finland. Several other news sources cited Bertrand Delanoë's complaint regarding Tony Blair's secret late night meetings with numerous (African) IOC representatives as having a more significant impact on final vote. When reporting London's win, British media covered the expectant crowds in both France and Britain (and in the other bid cities), and contrasted the jubilant reaction in London to the reaction of the crowd in Paris, where many had gathered in hope of a French win. However, the celebrations in London were overshadowed when London's transport system was attacked
7 July 2005 London bombings
The 7 July 2005 London bombings were a series of co-ordinated suicide attacks in the United Kingdom, targeting civilians using London's public transport system during the morning rush hour....
by terrorists less than 24 hours after the announcement.
In December 2005, it was alleged by Alex Gilady, a senior IOC official, that London had won the right to host the Olympics only because of a voting error. A London 2012 spokesman dismissed this, saying "At the end of the day, it was a secret ballot. This is the opinion of one individual. The result is what matters and we are not going to be drawn into speculation."
| 2012 Summer Olympics bidding results | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| City | NOC | Round 1 | Round 2 | Round 3 | Round 4 | |
| London London 2012 Olympic bid London 2012 was the successful bid for the 2012 Summer Games, to be held in London with most events taking place in Stratford, Newham. The British Olympic Association had been working on the bid since 1997... |
 United Kingdom |
22 | 27 | 39 | 54 | |
| Paris Paris 2012 Olympic bid Paris 2012 was an unsuccessful bid for the 2012 Summer Olympic Games to be held in Paris. The bidding race was eventually won by the London 2012 bid after a 54-50 vote of the International Olympic Committee on 6 July 2005... |
21 | 25 | 33 | 50 | ||
| Madrid Madrid 2012 Olympic bid Madrid 2012 was one of the five short-listed bids for the 2012 Summer Games. Madrid and New York City were the only two cities that opted to hold the 2012 Olympics that had never held a Summer Olympics before... |
20 | 32 | 31 | — | ||
| New York City New York City 2012 Olympic bid The New York City 2012 Olympic bid was one of the five short-listed bids for the 2012 Summer Olympics, ultimately won by London 2012.New York City's Olympic Bid, run by the private non-profit organization NYC2012, was founded by Daniel L. Doctoroff, who was managing director of a successful private... |
19 | 16 | — | — | ||
| Moscow Moscow 2012 Olympic bid Moscow 2012 was one of the five short-listed bids for the 2012 Summer Games, and was to be held in Moscow, Russia. The capital city's Olympic plans were to build on top of the legacy created after the 1980 Summer Olympics. Moscow's River Plan called for every single competition to be staged within... |
15 | — | — | — | ||
Since the 2005 bid
The London Organising Committee for the Olympic Games was created to oversee the staging of the Games after the success of the bid, and held their first board meeting on 3 October 2005. The committee, chaired by Lord Coe, is in charge of implementing and staging the games, while the Olympic Delivery AuthorityOlympic Delivery Authority
The Olympic Delivery Authority is the statutory corporation responsible for ensuring delivery of venues, infrastructure and legacy for the 2012 Summer Olympic and Paralympic Games in London...
(ODA) is in charge of the construction of the venues and infrastructure. In April 2006 the Olympic Delivery Authority board was established.
The Government Olympic Executive
Government Olympic Executive
The Government Olympic Executive , a unit within the United Kingdom Department for Culture, Media and Sport, is the lead government body for coordinating the London 2012 Olympics. The GOE reports through the DCMS Permanent Secretary to the Minister for Sports and the Olympics, Hugh Robertson...
(GOE), a unit within the Department for Culture, Media and Sport
Department for Culture, Media and Sport
The Department for Culture, Media and Sport is a department of the United Kingdom government, with responsibility for culture and sport in England, and some aspects of the media throughout the whole UK, such as broadcasting and internet....
(DCMS), is the lead Government body for coordinating the London 2012 Olympics. The GOE reports through the DCMS Permanent Secretary to the Minister for Sports and the Olympics. It focuses on oversight of the Games, cross-programme programme management and the London 2012 Olympic Legacy before and after the Games that will benefit London and the UK. The organisation is also responsible for the supervision of the £9.3 billion of public sector funding.
In August 2011, some security concerns arose surrounding the hosting of the Olympic Games in London, due to the 2011 England riots
2011 England riots
Between 6 and 10 August 2011, several London boroughs and districts of cities and towns across England suffered widespread rioting, looting and arson....
, with a few countries expressing fear over the safety of the Games, in spite of the International Olympic Committee
International Olympic Committee
The International Olympic Committee is an international corporation based in Lausanne, Switzerland, created by Pierre de Coubertin on 23 June 1894 with Demetrios Vikelas as its first president...
's assurance that the riots will not affect the Games.
The IOC's Coordination Commission for the 2012 Games completed their ninth visit to London in October 2011. They concluded that London has been making excellent progress and that the 2012 games would leave a lasting legacy. The commission will make their final visit to London in March 2012. London was awarded the 2017 World Championships in Athletics
2017 World Championships in Athletics
The 16th World Championships in Athletics are scheduled to be held in 2017 in London, United Kingdom. London were officially awarded the Championships by the IAAF, in Monaco on 11 November 2011.-Bidding process:...
in November 2011.
Venues and infrastructure
The 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games will use a mixture of new venues, existing and historic facilities, and temporary facilities, some of them in well-known locations such as Hyde Park and Horse Guards Parade. Some of the new facilities will be reused in their Olympic form, while others, will be resized or relocated.The majority of venues have been divided into three zones within Greater London
Greater London
Greater London is the top-level administrative division of England covering London. It was created in 1965 and spans the City of London, including Middle Temple and Inner Temple, and the 32 London boroughs. This territory is coterminate with the London Government Office Region and the London...
: the Olympic Zone, the River Zone and the Central Zone. In addition to these are those venues that, by necessity, are outside the boundaries of Greater London, such as the Weymouth and Portland National Sailing Academy
Weymouth and Portland National Sailing Academy
Weymouth and Portland National Sailing Academy is a centre for the sport of sailing on the Isle of Portland, Dorset, on the south coast of England, United Kingdom. The academy building is located in Osprey Quay on the northern tip of the island, and the waters of Portland Harbour and Weymouth Bay,...
on the Isle of Portland
Isle of Portland
The Isle of Portland is a limestone tied island, long by wide, in the English Channel. Portland is south of the resort of Weymouth, forming the southernmost point of the county of Dorset, England. A tombolo over which runs the A354 road connects it to Chesil Beach and the mainland. Portland and...
in Dorset which will host the sailing events, some 125 miles (200 km) southwest of the Olympic Park. The football tournament will be staged at several grounds around the UK. Work began on the Park in December 2006 when a sports hall in Eton Manor was pulled down. The athletes' village in Portland was completed in September 2011.
In November 2004 the 500 acre Olympic Park plans were revealed. The plans for the site were passed in September 2004 by Tower Hamlets, Newham, Hackney and Waltham Forest. The redevelopment of the area to build the Olympic Park required compulsory purchase
Eminent domain
Eminent domain , compulsory purchase , resumption/compulsory acquisition , or expropriation is an action of the state to seize a citizen's private property, expropriate property, or seize a citizen's rights in property with due monetary compensation, but without the owner's consent...
orders of property. The London Development Agency and the London and Continental Railways had a dispute about the orders in November 2005. The LCR accused the LDA of killing off development in the area. The LDA planned alongside the Olympic Park to buy land for the Stratford City development project, which the 180-acre site of the former Stratford Rail Lands into a mixed-use development, including 4,500 new homes, office space, hotels and shops. This resulted in 2011 with the completion of the largest urban shopping centre in Europe being operated by Westfield. By May 2006 86% of the land had been bought as businesses fought eviction, this lead to an enquiry being set up. 206 companies had to relocate by July 2007. In addition, residents who opposed the eviction tried to find way to stop it by setting up campaigns. However they had to leave as 94% of land was bought and the other 6% bought as a £9 billion regeneration project started.
However, there were some issues with the original venues due to not being challenging enough or being financially unviable. For example, the road racing at the Olympics Games was originally scheduled to take place in Regent's Park and on Hampstead Heath. Instead the Olympic road races will start and finish on The Mall in central London and head out into Surrey to the south and include loops around Box Hill. The Olympic Mountain bike event will take place at Hadleigh Farm after the event was moved from Weald Country Park, after the UCI labeled the course at the park "too easy" in July 2008 It was touted that the course could be created in Wales. A location in Kent was also considered
The Olympic marathon course, which was set to finish in the Olympic stadium, was moved to the mall. The idea angered some members of the local community, stating that they had been left out of the Olympics despite it taking place in their back garden no events would take place in the boroughs. The change was made as closing Tower bridge would cause "gridlock" to London. North Greenwich Arena 2 was scrapped in a cost-cutting exercise, with Wembley Arena
Wembley Arena
Wembley Arena is an indoor arena, at Wembley, in the London Borough of Brent. The building is opposite Wembley Stadium.-History:...
being used for badminton and rhythmic gymnastics events instead.
Public transport
London's public transport was an element of the bid which was scored poorly in the IOC's initial evaluation, however they felt that if the improvements were delivered in time for the Games then London would cope. Transport for LondonTransport for London
Transport for London is the local government body responsible for most aspects of the transport system in Greater London in England. Its role is to implement the transport strategy and to manage transport services across London...
(TfL) carried out numerous improvements in preparation for 2012, including the expansion of the London Overground
London Overground
London Overground is a suburban rail network in London and Hertfordshire. It has been operated by London Overground Rail Operations since 2007 as part of the National Rail network, under the franchise control and branding of Transport for London...
's East London Line
East London Line
The East London Line is a London Overground line which runs north to south through the East End, Docklands and South areas of London.Built in 1869 by the East London Railway Company, which reused the Thames Tunnel, originally intended for horse-drawn carriages, the line became part of the London...
, upgrades to the Docklands Light Railway
Docklands Light Railway
The Docklands Light Railway is an automated light metro or light rail system opened on 31 August 1987 to serve the redeveloped Docklands area of London...
and the North London Line
North London Line
The North London Line is a railway line which passes through the inner suburbs of north London, England. Its route is a rough semicircle from the south west to the north east, avoiding central London. The line is owned and maintained by Network Rail...
, and the introduction of a new "Javelin" high-speed rail service, using the Hitachi Corporation
Hitachi
Hitachi is a multinational corporation specializing in high-technology.Hitachi may also refer to:*Hitachi, Ibaraki, Japan*Hitachi province, former province of Japan*Prince Hitachi and Princess Hitachi, members of the Japanese imperial family...
's "bullet" trains. In September 2011 it was discovered that the platforms at Stratford International station
Stratford International station
Stratford International station is a main line railway and Docklands Light Railway station located in Stratford in the London Borough of Newham in northeast London, United Kingdom...
were not at the right height for the Javelin trains. The platforms were raised with wood, which could be removed after the Games as the platforms were originally designed for Eurostar trains, and it is hoped that Eurostar would stop at the station after 2012. According to network rail an additional 4,000 train services will run during the Games, with train operators putting on longer trains during the day.
TfL also propose the construction of a £25 million cable car
Cable car
A cable car is any of a variety of transportation systems relying on cables to pull vehicles along or lower them at a steady rate, or a vehicle on these systems.-Aerial lift:Aerial lifts where the vehicle is suspended in the air from a cable:...
across the River Thames
River Thames
The River Thames flows through southern England. It is the longest river entirely in England and the second longest in the United Kingdom. While it is best known because its lower reaches flow through central London, the river flows alongside several other towns and cities, including Oxford,...
, the "Thames Gateway Cable Car", to link 2012 Olympics venues. It will cross the Thames river between Greenwich Peninsula
Greenwich Peninsula
Greenwich Peninsula is an area of South London, England, located in the London Borough of Greenwich.The peninsula is bounded on three sides by a loop of the Thames, between the Isle of Dogs and Silvertown. To the south is the rest of Greenwich, to the south-east is Charlton.The peninsula lies...
and the Royal Docks
Royal Docks
The Royal Docks comprise three docks in east London - the Royal Albert Dock, the Royal Victoria Dock and the King George V Dock. They are more correctly called the Royal Group of Docks to distinguish them from the Royal Dockyards, Royal being due to their naming after royal personages rather than...
, carrying up to 2,500 passengers an hour 50 metres in the air. It is designed to cut journey times between the O2 arena
The O2 (London)
The O2, visually typeset in branding as The O2, is a large entertainment district on the Greenwich peninsula in South East London, England, including an indoor arena, a music club, a Cineworld cinema, an exhibition space, piazzas, bars and restaurants...
and the ExCel exhibition centre – both of which are Olympic locations. The privately-funded
Private Finance Initiative
The private finance initiative is a way of creating "public–private partnerships" by funding public infrastructure projects with private capital...
system could provide a crossing every 30 seconds.
They also plan to have 80% of athletes travel less than 20 minutes to their event. In addition the organisers planned to have 93% of athletes within 30 minutes of their event. The Olympic Park would be served by ten separate railway lines with a combined capacity of 240,000 passengers per hour. In addition the LOCOG planned for 90% of the venues to be served by three or more types of public transport. Two park-and-ride sites were off the M25 with a combined capacity of 12,000 cars 25 minutes away from the Olympic Park. Another park and ride site was planned in Ebbsfleet which would have capacity for 9,000 cars were spectators could board a 10 minute shuttle bus. To get spectators to Eton Dorney, four park and ride schemes were set up. Spectators would be dropped off at Windsor Racecourse
Windsor Racecourse
Windsor Racecourse, also known as Royal Windsor Racecourse is a thoroughbred horse racing venue located in Windsor, Berkshire, England. It is one of only two figure-of-eight courses in the United Kingdom, the other being at Fontwell Park. It abandoned National Hunt jump racing in December 1998,...
with a bridge going over the Thames linking the racecourse to the rowing venue.
Weymouth and Portland National Sailing Academy
Weymouth and Portland National Sailing Academy is a centre for the sport of sailing on the Isle of Portland, Dorset, on the south coast of England, United Kingdom. The academy building is located in Osprey Quay on the northern tip of the island, and the waters of Portland Harbour and Weymouth Bay,...
s at Portland are in an area with no direct motorway connection, and with local roads that are heavily congested by existing tourist traffic in the summer. However the Weymouth area did undergo a major upgrade on its road infrastructure. A £77 million relief road connecting Weymouth to Dorchester was built and opened in 2011. Some £16 million pounds was put aside for the rest of the improvements. Inaddtion the plans removed 5 roundabouts to ease congestion and replaced them with traffic lights But some residents were unhappy that the roundabouts were removed.
In January 2010, the South East England
South East England
South East England is one of the nine official regions of England, designated in 1994 and adopted for statistical purposes in 1999. It consists of Berkshire, Buckinghamshire, East Sussex, Hampshire, Isle of Wight, Kent, Oxfordshire, Surrey and West Sussex...
regional transport board criticised plans published by the Olympics Development Authority for not providing plans of a credible long term coach network saying "The ODA has been working on an extensive network of coach services... [but] the lack of reference to this work [in the plan] is both intriguing and at the same time concerning." On 15 February 2010, the ODA announced that FirstGroup was the preferred bidder for the provision of bus and coach services for the games. This will involve the provision of venue shuttle and park and ride services, services connecting peripheral park and ride sites on the M25
M25 motorway
The M25 motorway, or London Orbital, is a orbital motorway that almost encircles Greater London, England, in the United Kingdom. The motorway was first mooted early in the 20th century. A few sections, based on the now abandoned London Ringways plan, were constructed in the early 1970s and it ...
with the Olympic Park
Olympic Park, London
The Olympic Park in London is a new sporting complex currently under construction, adjacent to the Stratford City development in Stratford, Bow, Leyton & Homerton in East London for the 2012 Summer Olympics and Paralympics....
and Ebbsfleet
Ebbsfleet Valley
Ebbsfleet Valley is a new town and redevelopment area in Kent, South East England; and part of the Thames Gateway. It is located south west of Gravesend.It is named after the valley of the Ebbsfleet River, which it straddles...
, and a nationwide network of express coaches to the Olympic Park, and the Weymouth and Portland sailing venue
Weymouth and Portland National Sailing Academy
Weymouth and Portland National Sailing Academy is a centre for the sport of sailing on the Isle of Portland, Dorset, on the south coast of England, United Kingdom. The academy building is located in Osprey Quay on the northern tip of the island, and the waters of Portland Harbour and Weymouth Bay,...
. The services will require around 900 vehicles in total, although some will be sub-contracted.
Financing
The costs of mounting the Games are separate from those for building the venues and infrastructure, and redeveloping the land for the Olympic Park. While the Games are privately funded, the venues and Park costs are met largely by public money.On 15 March 2007, Tessa Jowell
Tessa Jowell
Tessa Jowell is a British Labour Party politician, who has been the Member of Parliament for Dulwich and West Norwood since 1992. Formerly a member of both the Blair and Brown Cabinets, she is currently the Shadow Minister for the Olympics and Shadow Minister for London.-Early life:Tessa Jane...
announced to the House of Commons a budget of £5.3 billion to cover building the venues and infrastructure for the Games, at the same time announcing the wider regeneration budget for the Lower Lea Valley budget at £1.7 billion.
On top of this, she announced various other costs including an overall additional contingency fund of £2.7 billion, security and policing costs of £600 million, VAT of £800 million and elite sport and Paralympic funding of nearly £400 million. According to these figures, the total for the Games and the regeneration of the East London area, is £9.345 billion. Then Mayor Ken Livingstone
Ken Livingstone
Kenneth Robert "Ken" Livingstone is an English politician who is currently a member of the centrist to centre-left Labour Party...
pledged the Games Organising Committee would make a profit.
The costs for staging the Games (£2 billion) are funded from the private sector by a combination of sponsorship, merchandising, ticketing and broadcast rights. This budget is raised and managed by the London 2012 Organising Committee. According to Games organisers, the funding for this budget broadly breaks down as:
- 64% from Central Government;
- 23% from National LotteryNational Lottery (United Kingdom)The National Lottery is the state-franchised national lottery in the United Kingdom and the Isle of Man.It is operated by Camelot Group, to whom the licence was granted in 1994, 2001 and again in 2007. The lottery is regulated by the National Lottery Commission, and was established by the then...
- 13% from the Mayor of LondonMayor of LondonThe Mayor of London is an elected politician who, along with the London Assembly of 25 members, is accountable for the strategic government of Greater London. Conservative Boris Johnson has held the position since 4 May 2008...
and the London Development AgencyLondon Development AgencyThe London Development Agency is the Regional Development Agency for Greater London, England. It is a functional body of the Greater London Authority...
On 18 August 2007, The Belfast Telegraph
The Belfast Telegraph
The Belfast Telegraph is a daily evening newspaper published in Belfast, Northern Ireland by Independent News & Media.It was first published as the Belfast Evening Telegraph on 1 September 1870 by brothers William and George Baird...
reported that jubilation over winning the right to stage the Olympic Games was becoming more muted as realisation dawns on the public of the enormous costs involved in creating facilities for the athletes. Grassroot sport cuts will fund the Olympics, government figures suggested on 19 August 2007.
In November 2007, Edward Leigh
Edward Leigh
Edward Julian Egerton Leigh is a British Conservative politician. He has sat in the House of Commons as the Member of Parliament for Gainsborough in Lincolnshire since 1997, and for its predecessor constituency of Gainsborough and Horncastle between 1983 and 1997...
MP, criticised the organisers for significantly under-estimating the cost of staging the games, suggesting they had either "acted in bad faith or were incompetent".
On 10 December 2007, Tessa Jowell announced confirmation of the budget announced earlier in 2007. In June 2007, the Ministerial Funders’ Group (established to manage the allocation of contingency to the ODA within the overall budget) met and agreed a first allocation of contingency to the ODA, being £360 million out of the £500 million of initial contingency announced in March, to enable the ODA to manage early cost pressures.
Following its second meeting on 26 November 2007, the Funders’ Group has now agreed a baseline budget and scope proposed by the ODA. The total budgeted base cost to be met by the public sector funding package remains at £6.090 billion including tax and excluding general programme contingency as announced in March. This includes the allocation to the ODA of the remaining £140 million from the initial £500 million contingency announced in March.
There have, however, been concerns over how the Olympics are to be funded. In February 2008, a London Assembly culture and sport committee report expressed concerns over the funding of the games taking away money from London's sports and arts groups. There have also been complaints that funding towards the Olympics has been to the detriment of funding other areas of the UK. In Wales
Wales
Wales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain, bordered by England to its east and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It has a population of three million, and a total area of 20,779 km²...
, there has been criticism from Plaid Cymru
Plaid Cymru
' is a political party in Wales. It advocates the establishment of an independent Welsh state within the European Union. was formed in 1925 and won its first seat in 1966...
about the games depriving Wales of money, by using UK-wide funding rather than English funding. The Wales on Sunday newspaper claimed former UK Prime Minister
Prime Minister of the United Kingdom
The Prime Minister of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the Head of Her Majesty's Government in the United Kingdom. The Prime Minister and Cabinet are collectively accountable for their policies and actions to the Sovereign, to Parliament, to their political party and...
Tony Blair
Tony Blair
Anthony Charles Lynton Blair is a former British Labour Party politician who served as the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 2 May 1997 to 27 June 2007. He was the Member of Parliament for Sedgefield from 1983 to 2007 and Leader of the Labour Party from 1994 to 2007...
broke his promise to not use National Lottery
National Lottery (United Kingdom)
The National Lottery is the state-franchised national lottery in the United Kingdom and the Isle of Man.It is operated by Camelot Group, to whom the licence was granted in 1994, 2001 and again in 2007. The lottery is regulated by the National Lottery Commission, and was established by the then...
funding for the Olympic games.
As at December 2009, the Delivery Authority had allocated £702 million of Programme and Funders’ contingency, largely to cover the decisions to publicly fund the Village and Media Centre after it became clear private funding could not be secured on acceptable terms during the 2008 to 2010 economic crisis. According to the Government Olympic Executive
Government Olympic Executive
The Government Olympic Executive , a unit within the United Kingdom Department for Culture, Media and Sport, is the lead government body for coordinating the London 2012 Olympics. The GOE reports through the DCMS Permanent Secretary to the Minister for Sports and the Olympics, Hugh Robertson...
and Olympic Delivery Authority
Olympic Delivery Authority
The Olympic Delivery Authority is the statutory corporation responsible for ensuring delivery of venues, infrastructure and legacy for the 2012 Summer Olympic and Paralympic Games in London...
risk assessments the remaining £1,270 million contingency is sufficient to manage risks to the Delivery Authority’s programme.
Also from May 2010, the Olympic budget will be cut by £27 million as part of the £6.2 billion cuts by the new Conservative-Liberal coalition government.
On 19 July 2011, Hugh Robertson, Sports & Olympic Minister,revealed that he expected the project to be delivered on time and under budget. "With one year to go to London 2012, the Games construction is 88 per cent complete and ahead of time and under budget. That is an extraordinary thing for a Government Minister to be able to say a year out from the Games."
Partners
To help fund the cost of staging the games the London Olympic organisers have agreed partnership deals with major companies. The companies have signed up into four categories, worldwide, tier one, tier two and tier three.Worldwide partners:
- Acer
- AtosATOSATOS is a high density railway transport management system of an unprecedented scale. The system has been continuously built up in stages after the online operation of its first station commenced in 1994 and successfully operating since then...
- Coca Cola
- Dow Chemical CompanyDow Chemical CompanyThe Dow Chemical Company is a multinational corporation headquartered in Midland, Michigan, United States. As of 2007, it is the second largest chemical manufacturer in the world by revenue and as of February 2009, the third-largest chemical company in the world by market capitalization .Dow...
- General ElectricGeneral ElectricGeneral Electric Company , or GE, is an American multinational conglomerate corporation incorporated in Schenectady, New York and headquartered in Fairfield, Connecticut, United States...
- McDonald'sMcDonald'sMcDonald's Corporation is the world's largest chain of hamburger fast food restaurants, serving around 64 million customers daily in 119 countries. Headquartered in the United States, the company began in 1940 as a barbecue restaurant operated by the eponymous Richard and Maurice McDonald; in 1948...
- Omega SA
- PanasonicPanasonicPanasonic is an international brand name for Japanese electric products manufacturer Panasonic Corporation, which was formerly known as Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd...
- Procter & GambleProcter & GambleProcter & Gamble is a Fortune 500 American multinational corporation headquartered in downtown Cincinnati, Ohio and manufactures a wide range of consumer goods....
- SamsungSamsungThe Samsung Group is a South Korean multinational conglomerate corporation headquartered in Samsung Town, Seoul, South Korea...
- VISAVisaVisa or VISA may refer to:* Visa , a document issued by a country's government allowing the holder to enter or to leave that country...
As of 9 September 2011, 44 companies have signed up for domestic sponsorship roles.
Domestic Tier One Partners:
- AdidasAdidasAdidas AG is a German sports apparel manufacturer and parent company of the Adidas Group, which consists of the Reebok sportswear company, TaylorMade-Adidas golf company , and Rockport...
- BMWBMWBayerische Motoren Werke AG is a German automobile, motorcycle and engine manufacturing company founded in 1916. It also owns and produces the Mini marque, and is the parent company of Rolls-Royce Motor Cars. BMW produces motorcycles under BMW Motorrad and Husqvarna brands...
- BPBPBP p.l.c. is a global oil and gas company headquartered in London, United Kingdom. It is the third-largest energy company and fourth-largest company in the world measured by revenues and one of the six oil and gas "supermajors"...
- British AirwaysBritish AirwaysBritish Airways is the flag carrier airline of the United Kingdom, based in Waterside, near its main hub at London Heathrow Airport. British Airways is the largest airline in the UK based on fleet size, international flights and international destinations...
- British Telecom
- EDF EnergyEDF EnergyEDF Energy is an integrated energy company in the United Kingdom, with operations spanning electricity generation and the sale of gas and electricity to homes and businesses throughout the United Kingdom...
- Lloyds TSBLloyds TSBLloyds TSB Bank Plc is a retail bank in the United Kingdom. It was established in 1995 by the merger of Lloyds Bank, established in Birmingham, England in 1765 and traditionally considered one of the Big Four clearing banks, with the TSB Group which traces its origins to 1810...
Domestic Tier Two Supporters:
- AdeccoAdeccoAdecco S.A. is a human resources company, based in Glattbrugg near Zurich, Switzerland. Adecco employs 700,000 temporary workers and contractors who are supplied to business clients, and has over 32,000 employees and 5,500 offices in 60 countries and territories around the world...
- ArcelorMittal
- Cadbury
- CiscoCiscoCisco may refer to:Companies:*Cisco Systems, a computer networking company* Certis CISCO, corporatised entity of the former Commercial and Industrial Security Corporation in Singapore...
- Deloitte
- Thomas Cook GroupThomas Cook GroupThomas Cook Group plc is a travel company created on 19 June, 2007 by the merger of Thomas Cook AG and MyTravel Group plc. At flotation on the London Stock Exchange 52% of the shares in the new company were held by the German mail order and department store corporation Arcandor and 48% owned by...
- United Parcel ServiceUnited Parcel ServiceUnited Parcel Service, Inc. , typically referred to by the acronym UPS, is a package delivery company. Headquartered in Sandy Springs, Georgia, United States, UPS delivers more than 15 million packages a day to 6.1 million customers in more than 220 countries and territories around the...
Domestic tier three providers and suppliers:
- AggrekoAggrekoAggreko plc is the world's largest temporary power generation company, and a major supplier of temperature control equipment. It is headquartered in Glasgow, Scotland, United Kingdom....
- Airwave Solutions
- Atkins
- Boston Consulting GroupBoston Consulting GroupThe Boston Consulting Group is a global management consulting firm with offices in 42 countries. It is recognized as one of the most prestigious management consulting firms in the world. It is one of only three companies to appear in the top 15 of Fortunes "Best Companies to Work For" report for...
- CBS OutdoorCBS OutdoorCBS Outdoor is the outdoor advertising division of media conglomerate CBS Corporation. It is the third largest outdoor media owner in revenue terms...
- Crystal CG
- EurostarEurostarEurostar is a high-speed railway service connecting London with Paris and Brussels. All its trains traverse the Channel Tunnel between England and France, owned and operated separately by Eurotunnel....
- Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer LLPFreshfields Bruckhaus DeringerFreshfields Bruckhaus Deringer LLP is a global law firm headquartered in London, United Kingdom and a member of the 'Magic Circle' of leading English law firms. It is the second-largest law firm in the world measured by revenues. In 2010-11 it achieved total revenues of £1.14 billion and profits...
- G4S
- GlaxoSmithKlineGlaxoSmithKlineGlaxoSmithKline plc is a global pharmaceutical, biologics, vaccines and consumer healthcare company headquartered in London, United Kingdom...
- Gymnova
- Heathrow Airport
- Heineken UK
- Holiday InnHoliday InnHoliday Inn is a brand of hotels, formally a economy motel chain, forming part of the British InterContinental Hotels Group . It is one of the world's largest hotel chains with 238,440 bedrooms and 1,301 hotels globally. There are currently 5 hotels in the pipeline...
- John LewisJohn Lewis (department store)-Recent developments:In June 2004, John Lewis announced plans to open its first store in Northern Ireland at the Sprucefield Park development, the province's largest out of town shopping centre, located outside Lisburn and from Belfast. The application was approved in June 2005 and the opening of...
- McCann Worldgroup
- MondoMondoMondo , may also refer to:-Currency:* Mondo , the possible name of a worldwide established currency-Culture and entertainment:Fictional characters* Mondo , a comic book character...
- Nature Valley
- Next
- The Nielsen Company
- PopulousPopulous-External links:*...
- Rapiscan SystemsRapiscan SystemsRapiscan Systems is a global privately held company that specializes in walk-through metal detectors, and x-ray machines for airport luggage and cargo screening...
- Rio TintoRio Tinto GroupThe Rio Tinto Group is a diversified, British-Australian, multinational mining and resources group with headquarters in London and Melbourne. The company was founded in 1873, when a multinational consortium of investors purchased a mine complex on the Rio Tinto river, in Huelva, Spain from the...
- TechnogymTechnogymTechnogym is a manufacturer of fitness equipment based in Cesena, Italy.It was founded in 1983 by Nerio Alessandri and now it is a world leader in the wellness and fitness fields.-History:...
- Thames WaterThames WaterThames Water Utilities Ltd, known as Thames Water, is the private utility company responsible for the public water supply and waste water treatment in large parts of Greater London, the Thames Valley, Surrey, Gloucestershire, Wiltshire, Kent, and some other areas of in the United Kingdom...
- TicketmasterTicketmasterTicketmaster Entertainment, Inc. is an independent American ticket sales and distribution company based in West Hollywood, California, USA, with operations in many countries around the world. In 2010 it merged with Live Nation to become Live Nation Entertainment...
- Trebor
- Westfield Group
On 7 September 2011, the LOCOG announced that they had reached their £700 million domestic sponsorship target. They signed their 44th partner Westfield shopping centres who signed as a tier three sponsor.
Ticketing
Organisers estimate that some 8 million tickets would be available for the Olympic Games, and 1.5 million tickets for the Paralympic Games. Ticket sign-up, in Great Britain, was launched on 22 March 2010 and the application website was opened on 15 March 2011 until 26 April 2011. Ticket prices range from £20 for many events to £2,012 for the most expensive seats at the opening ceremony. Ticket allocations for oversubscribed events was decided by a random ballot. For the first time in Olympic history the sailing events will be tickteted. The London Organising Committee of the Olympic Games and Paralympic Games (LOGOC) have admitted that further tickets, up to one million, will be released later in 2011 for events that have failed to sell out in the initial allocation. Over half the people who applied got no tickets in Great Britain. The second round of ticket sales took place over a 10 day period between the 23 June and 3 July 2011, with priority given to those who were unsuccessful in the first allocation process. At this point there were about 1.7 million tickets for football and 600,000 for other sports, including archery, hockey, football, judo, boxing and volleyball, among other sports with 1.5 million tickets priced between £20 and £50. Unfortunately due to the amount of people buying tickets and because the ticketmaster website did not update immediately, 15,000 had their application rejected, but 90% of people did get some tickets; as some events sold out in 15 minutes and by 8 am 10 sports had sold out. People who were successful in the first round of tickets were allowed to buy more during the period 8–17 July 2011. By this point 1.5 million tickets were available for football, 40,000 for Volleyball and 8,000 for freestyle wrestling on a first come first served basis. However by 10 July all the tickets for Volleyball had been sold, as 3.5 million tickets had been sold in total. Another round of tickets was promised to go on sale in 2012. To reduce traffic, ticket holders will be entitled to free use of London's public transportation network on the day of the event. It is estimated that 82% of available Olympic tickets and 63% of Paralympic tickets will be sold. LOCOG aims to raise £375–£400 million in ticket sales. There will also be free events: for example, the marathon, triathlon and road cycling. Tickets for the London Prepares series, the Olympic test events, started to go on sale in May 2011.There was a huge demand for tickets as 20 million tickets were bought by 1.8 million people, three times the 6.6 million tickets available in the first round lot, with 95% of the applications from Great Britain. More than 50% of the sessions went to a random ballot. A consumer group questioned the point of taking money out of people's bank accounts before they knew what tickets they had successfully purchased. Barclays Bank ended up declining its customers tickets, stating that it was a unusual purchase and looked like fraud, before they and LOCOG tried to process them for a second time. Many athletes and ex-Olympians also questioned the way the tickets were sold, with Triple Olympic Champion Bradley Wiggins
Bradley Wiggins
Bradley Marc Wiggins, CBE is a British professional track and road bicycle racer, currently riding for Team Sky. Wiggins' career began on the track, where he specialised in the pursuit and madison disciplines....
labeling the process a shambles. However, Lord Coe and the LOCOG insisted that the process was fair, and that there was no 'perfect' system.
In Russia people bought "Olympic vouchers" which one would have to redeem in London during July and August 2012, with people making their own accommodation and travel arrangements. In Brazil, the host of the 2016 Games, the ticket website did not work for three and a half days with people leaving disappointed as all their tickets appeared to sell out in a day, despite people having seemingly bought tickets. And the British government was asked to explain why it bought 9,000 tickets.
Free tickets were given to Military personnel and children were invited to 'win' tickets. Free tickets were also given to the survivors and families of those who died during 7 July 2005 London bombings
7 July 2005 London bombings
The 7 July 2005 London bombings were a series of co-ordinated suicide attacks in the United Kingdom, targeting civilians using London's public transport system during the morning rush hour....
.
Countdown
A digital clock, located in Trafalgar SquareTrafalgar Square
Trafalgar Square is a public space and tourist attraction in central London, England, United Kingdom. At its centre is Nelson's Column, which is guarded by four lion statues at its base. There are a number of statues and sculptures in the square, with one plinth displaying changing pieces of...
, commenced a countdown to the opening ceremony on 14 March 2011. However, less than 24 hours after it was switched on, it suffered a technical failure, and stopped—displaying "500 (days) 7 (hours) 06 (minutes) 56 (seconds)." It was quickly repaired.
Hospitality
The London Organising Committee of the Olympic Games and Paralympic Games (LOCOG) appointed Prestige Ticketing Limited to operate the London 2012 Prestige Ticketing programme. The Prestige Ticketing on-site hospitality packages includes top-category tickets, fine dining and entertainment. These hospitality tickets were on sale until 15 March 2011.Scheduling issues
Some representatives of Muslim countries have complained that the 2012 Olympic Games will take place during the month of RamadanRamadan
Ramadan is the ninth month of the Islamic calendar, which lasts 29 or 30 days. It is the Islamic month of fasting, in which participating Muslims refrain from eating, drinking, smoking and sex during daylight hours and is intended to teach Muslims about patience, spirituality, humility and...
, which in 2012 occurs from 20 July to 19 August. During Ramadan, Muslims are to fast from sunrise to sunset, which may put Muslim athletes at a disadvantage during the Games. Some Muslims have called for the Olympics to be rescheduled outside this period.
Logo
There have been two London 2012 logos: one for the bidding process created by Kino Design and a second as the brand for the Games themselves. The former is a ribbon with blue, yellow, black, green, and red stripes winding through the text "LONDON 2012," making the shape of the River ThamesRiver Thames
The River Thames flows through southern England. It is the longest river entirely in England and the second longest in the United Kingdom. While it is best known because its lower reaches flow through central London, the river flows alongside several other towns and cities, including Oxford,...
in East London. The latter, designed by Wolff Olins
Wolff Olins
Wolff Olins is a brand consultancy, based in London, New York City and Dubai. It employs 150 designers, strategists and account managers, and has been part of the Omnicom Group since 2001.-History:...
, was unveiled on 4 June 2007 and cost £400,000. This new logo is a representation of the number 2012, with the Olympic Rings
Olympic symbols
The Olympic symbols are icons, flags and symbols used by the International Olympic Committee to promote the Olympic Games. Some—such as the flame, fanfare, and theme—are more common during Olympic competition, but others, such as the flag, can be seen throughout the year.-Motto:The Olympic motto is...
embedded within the zero.
This will be the first time that the same essential logo is to be used for both the Olympic and Paralympic games.
The standard colours are green, magenta, orange and blue; however the logo has incorporated a variety of colours, including the Union Flag
Union Flag
The Union Flag, also known as the Union Jack, is the flag of the United Kingdom. It retains an official or semi-official status in some Commonwealth Realms; for example, it is known as the Royal Union Flag in Canada. It is also used as an official flag in some of the smaller British overseas...
to promote the handover ceremony. The flexibility of the logo has also enabled sponsors to incorporate their corporate colours into a personalised version, such as Lloyds TSB
Lloyds TSB
Lloyds TSB Bank Plc is a retail bank in the United Kingdom. It was established in 1995 by the merger of Lloyds Bank, established in Birmingham, England in 1765 and traditionally considered one of the Big Four clearing banks, with the TSB Group which traces its origins to 1810...
, British Airways
British Airways
British Airways is the flag carrier airline of the United Kingdom, based in Waterside, near its main hub at London Heathrow Airport. British Airways is the largest airline in the UK based on fleet size, international flights and international destinations...
, and Adidas
Adidas
Adidas AG is a German sports apparel manufacturer and parent company of the Adidas Group, which consists of the Reebok sportswear company, TaylorMade-Adidas golf company , and Rockport...
.
London 2012 has stated that the new logo is aimed at reaching young people. Sebastian Coe stated that it builds upon everything that the organising committee has said "about reaching out and engaging young people, which is where our challenge is over the next five years." One observer, a managing director of an advertising agency, noted that the logo bore a strong resemblance to the logo for the 1974–1982 children's television programme Tiswas
Tiswas
Tiswas was a Saturday morning children's British television series which ran from 5 January 1974 to 3 April 1982 and was produced for the ITV network by ATV Network Limited....
, commenting that appealing to young people is difficult, and that they will see right through attempts to patronise them.
Early public reaction to the logo, as measured by a poll on the BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
website, was largely negative: more than 80% of votes gave the logo the lowest possible rating. Several newspapers have run their own logo competitions, displaying alternative submissions from their readers. The Sun
The Sun (newspaper)
The Sun is a daily national tabloid newspaper published in the United Kingdom and owned by News Corporation. Sister editions are published in Glasgow and Dublin...
displayed a design by a macaque monkey
Macaque
The macaques constitute a genus of Old World monkeys of the subfamily Cercopithecinae. - Description :Aside from humans , the macaques are the most widespread primate genus, ranging from Japan to Afghanistan and, in the case of the barbary macaque, to North Africa...
. It was suggested that the logo resembles the cartoon character Lisa Simpson
Lisa Simpson
Lisa Marie Simpson is a fictional main character in the animated television series The Simpsons. She is the middle child of the Simpson family. Voiced by Yeardley Smith, Lisa first appeared on television in The Tracey Ullman Show short "Good Night" on April 19, 1987. Cartoonist Matt Groening...
performing fellatio
Fellatio
Fellatio is an act of oral stimulation of a male's penis by a sexual partner. It involves the stimulation of the penis by the use of the mouth, tongue, or throat. The person who performs fellatio can be referred to as the giving partner, and the other person is the receiving partner...
and others have complained that it looks like a distorted Swastika
Swastika
The swastika is an equilateral cross with its arms bent at right angles, in either right-facing form in counter clock motion or its mirrored left-facing form in clock motion. Earliest archaeological evidence of swastika-shaped ornaments dates back to the Indus Valley Civilization of Ancient...
. In February 2011, Iran
Iran
Iran , officially the Islamic Republic of Iran , is a country in Southern and Western Asia. The name "Iran" has been in use natively since the Sassanian era and came into use internationally in 1935, before which the country was known to the Western world as Persia...
complained that the logo appeared to spell out the word "Zion
Zion
Zion is a place name often used as a synonym for Jerusalem. The word is first found in Samuel II, 5:7 dating to c.630-540 BCE...
" and threatened to boycott the Olympics. Iran submitted its complaint to the International Olympic Committee
International Olympic Committee
The International Olympic Committee is an international corporation based in Lausanne, Switzerland, created by Pierre de Coubertin on 23 June 1894 with Demetrios Vikelas as its first president...
, describing the logo as "racist", asking that it be withdrawn and the designers be "confronted". The IOC "quietly" rejected the demands, and Iran announced it would not boycott the Games.
A segment of animated footage released at the same time as the logo was reported to trigger seizures in a small number of people with photosensitive epilepsy
Photosensitive epilepsy
Photosensitive epilepsy is a form of epilepsy in which seizures are triggered by visual stimuli that form patterns in time or space, such as flashing lights, bold, regular patterns, or regular moving patterns.-Symptoms:...
. The charity Epilepsy Action
Epilepsy Action
Epilepsy Action is a UK based charity providing information, advice and support for people with epilepsy.The organisation was founded in 1950 as the British Epilepsy Association and adopted Epilepsy Action as its working name in 2002....
received telephone calls from people who had had seizure
Seizure
An epileptic seizure, occasionally referred to as a fit, is defined as a transient symptom of "abnormal excessive or synchronous neuronal activity in the brain". The outward effect can be as dramatic as a wild thrashing movement or as mild as a brief loss of awareness...
s after watching the sequence on TV. In response, a short segment was removed from the London 2012 website. Ken Livingstone
Ken Livingstone
Kenneth Robert "Ken" Livingstone is an English politician who is currently a member of the centrist to centre-left Labour Party...
, then London Mayor, said that the company who designed the film should not be paid for what he called a "catastrophic mistake."
A blogger at the BBC said that "London 2012's new logo has got the country talking [although] not in the manner the organisers would have hoped." One employee at a design firm described it as "well thought out" and anticipated it would "become a source of pride for London and the Games."
In October 2008, it was reported that clothing branded with the logo accounted for 20% of sales at Adidas' flagship Oxford Street store, despite occupying just 5% of floor space.
Mascots
The official mascots for the 2012 Summer Olympic and Paralympic Games were unveiled on 19 May 2010; this marks the second time (after Vancouver) that both Olympic and Paralympic mascots were unveiled at the same time. Wenlock and MandevilleWenlock and Mandeville
Wenlock and Mandeville are the official mascots for the 2012 Summer Olympics and Paralympics being held in London, United Kingdom.The mascots were unveiled on 19 May 2010; this marks the second time that both Olympic and Paralympic mascots were unveiled at the same time...
are animations depicting two drops of steel from a steelworks in Bolton
Bolton
Bolton is a town in Greater Manchester, in the North West of England. Close to the West Pennine Moors, it is north west of the city of Manchester. Bolton is surrounded by several smaller towns and villages which together form the Metropolitan Borough of Bolton, of which Bolton is the...
. They are named Wenlock, after the Shropshire town of Much Wenlock
Much Wenlock
Much Wenlock, earlier known as Wenlock, is a small town in central Shropshire, England. It is situated on the A458 road between Shrewsbury and Bridgnorth. Nearby, to the northeast, is the Ironbridge Gorge, and the new town of Telford...
, which held a forerunner of the current Olympic Games
Wenlock Olympian Society Annual Games
The Wenlock Olympian Society Annual Games, dating from 1850, are a forerunner of the modern Olympic Games. They are held each year in Much Wenlock in Shropshire, England.-Overview:...
, and Mandeville, after Stoke Mandeville
Stoke Mandeville
Stoke Mandeville is a village and also a civil parish within Aylesbury Vale district to the south-east of Aylesbury in the county of Buckinghamshire, England. Although a separate civil parish, the village falls within the Aylesbury Urban Area...
, a village in Buckinghamshire where a forerunner to the Paralympic Games
Paralympic Games
The Paralympic Games are a major international multi-sport event where athletes with a physical disability compete; this includes athletes with mobility disabilities, amputations, blindness, and Cerebral Palsy. There are Winter and Summer Paralympic Games, which are held immediately following their...
were first held. The writer Michael Morpurgo
Michael Morpurgo
Michael Morpurgo, OBE FKC AKC is an English author, poet, playwright and librettist, best known for his work in children's literature. He was the third Children's Laureate.-Early life:...
wrote the story concept to the mascots, and an animation was produced; it is intended that this will form part of an ongoing series concerning the mascots in the run-up to the Games in 2012. Two stories have been created about the mascots: Out Of A Rainbow, the story of how Wenlock and Mandeville came to be, and Adventures On A Rainbow, which features the children from Out Of A Rainbow meeting the mascots and trying out many different Olympic and Paralympic sports.
Handover ceremony
The handover ceremony marked the moment when the previous games in Beijing in 20082008 Summer Olympics
The 2008 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XXIX Olympiad, was a major international multi-sport event that took place in Beijing, China, from August 8 to August 24, 2008. A total of 11,028 athletes from 204 National Olympic Committees competed in 28 sports and 302 events...
handed over the Olympic Flag to the new host city of London. Mayor of London
Mayor of London
The Mayor of London is an elected politician who, along with the London Assembly of 25 members, is accountable for the strategic government of Greater London. Conservative Boris Johnson has held the position since 4 May 2008...
Boris Johnson
Boris Johnson
Alexander Boris de Pfeffel Johnson is a British journalist and Conservative Party politician, who has been the elected Mayor of London since 2008...
received the flag from Mayor of Beijing Guo Jinlong
Guo Jinlong
Guo Jinlong is a politician of the People's Republic of China and Mayor of Beijing.- Biography :He graduated from Nanjing University Department of Physics in 1969 and joined the Communist Party of China in 1979, and was sent to work in Sichuan....
, on behalf of London. The next section was entitled "From London, 'With a whole Lotta love."The handover ceremony featured the urban dance group ZooNation, the Royal Ballet and Candoco, a disabled dance group, all dressed as typical London commuters waiting for a bus by a zebra crossing. Whilst Olympic Champions Chris Hoy
Chris Hoy
Sir Christopher Andrew "Chris" Hoy, MBE is a Scottish track cyclist representing Great Britain and Scotland. He is a multiple world champion and Olympic Games gold medal winner...
, Victoria Pendleton
Victoria Pendleton
Victoria Louise Pendleton MBE is a British Olympic and world champion track cyclist. Her father, Max, was also a British national grass-track cycling champion.-Early years:...
and BMX World Champion Shanaze Reade
Shanaze Reade
Shanaze Danielle Reade is a professional British Bicycle Motocross racer and track cyclist whose prime competitive years began in 2002. She has won the UCI BMX World Championships three times...
; however due to Reade's broken wrist from her event Jamie Staff
Jamie Staff
Jamie Alan Staff MBE is an English racing cyclist and coach, formerly on BMX and later on the track. A World and Olympic champion, he has also won numerous other medals at World Championships, World Cups and at the Commonwealth Games....
replaced her; cycled around the stadium. A double-decker bus drove around the stadium to music composed by Philip Sheppard
Philip Sheppard (musician)
-Biography:Philip Sheppard trained in Cello and Composition at the Royal Academy of Music, during which time he specialised in contemporary music. He worked closely with Hans Werner Henze, Sir Michael Tippett and Luciano Berio during this time as a founder member of The Kreutzer String Quartet...
eventually stopping and transforming into a privet hedge featuring famous London landmarks such as Tower Bridge
Tower Bridge
Tower Bridge is a combined bascule and suspension bridge in London, England, over the River Thames. It is close to the Tower of London, from which it takes its name...
, The Gherkin
30 St Mary Axe
30 St Mary Axe, the Swiss Re Building , is a skyscraper in London's main financial district, the City of London, completed in December 2003 and opened at the end of May 2004...
and the London Eye
London Eye
The London Eye is a tall giant Ferris wheel situated on the banks of the River Thames, in London, England.It is the tallest Ferris wheel in Europe, and the most popular paid tourist attraction in the United Kingdom, visited by over 3.5 million people annually...
. Jimmy Page
Jimmy Page
James Patrick "Jimmy" Page, OBE is an English multi-instrumentalist, songwriter, and record producer. He began his career as a studio session guitarist in London and was subsequently a member of The Yardbirds from 1966 to 1968, after which he founded the English rock band Led Zeppelin.Jimmy Page...
and Leona Lewis
Leona Lewis
Leona Louise Lewis is a British singer and songwriter. Lewis first came to prominence in 2006 when she won the third series of the British television series The X Factor....
then performed the Led Zeppelin
Led Zeppelin
Led Zeppelin were an English rock band, active in the late 1960s and throughout the 1970s. Formed in 1968, they consisted of guitarist Jimmy Page, singer Robert Plant, bassist/keyboardist John Paul Jones, and drummer John Bonham...
classic Whole Lotta Love
Whole Lotta Love
"Whole Lotta Love" is a song by English rock band Led Zeppelin. It is featured as the opening track on the band's second album, Led Zeppelin II, and was released in the United States and Japan as a single. The US release became their first hit single, it was certified Gold on 13 April 1970, when it...
and David Beckham
David Beckham
David Robert Joseph Beckham, OBE is an English footballer who plays midfield for Los Angeles Galaxy in Major League Soccer, having previously played for Manchester United, Preston North End, Real Madrid, and A.C...
kicked a football into the crowd of athletes accompanied by violinist Elspeth Hanson
Elspeth Hanson
Elspeth Hanson is the violist of the all female string quartet, Bond.- Biography :Elspeth started learning the violin aged 12 and at 16 won a place as first violin with the National Youth Orchestra of Great Britain with whom she has toured the UK and played live at the BBC Proms.Previously she had...
and cellist Kwesi Edman.
For the London 2012 Games, 'Take Up The Challenge' is the leading contender to be the music that will inspire a new generation of athletes. The anthem was composed by Rob Cremona, an Anglo-Maltese trumpeter and multi-instrumentalist from Woking in Surrey. Meanwhile, the handover has been celebrated in a UK-wide series of events. The BBC broadcast "The Visa London 2012 Party" on BBC One and Radio 2, the free concert on The Mall
The Mall (London)
The Mall in central London is the road running from Buckingham Palace at its western end to Admiralty Arch and on to Trafalgar Square at its eastern end. It then crosses Spring Gardens, which was where the Metropolitan Board of Works and, for a number of years, the London County Council were...
in central London had 40,000 tickets available. In nations and regions around the UK there were live screens that showed the activities from Beijing, the Closing Ceremony and then the concert itself. Local communities around the UK also hosted their own events.
Year to go
On 27 July 2011, London celebrated the one year to the start of the games with a special event in Trafalgar SquareTrafalgar Square
Trafalgar Square is a public space and tourist attraction in central London, England, United Kingdom. At its centre is Nelson's Column, which is guarded by four lion statues at its base. There are a number of statues and sculptures in the square, with one plinth displaying changing pieces of...
. There were other events around the city such as Lord Coe and Colin Jackson
Colin Jackson
Colin Ray Jackson CBE is a British former sprint and hurdling athlete who specialised in the 110 metres hurdles. Over his career representing Great Britain and Wales he won an Olympic silver medal, became world champion three times, went undefeated at the European Championships for 12 years and...
cast their feet in clay at St Pancras Station, whilst the Aquatics Centre opened, with Tom Daly marking the event with a dive from the 10 metre platform. While in Trafalgar Square Jacques Rogge
Jacques Rogge
Jacques Rogge, Count Rogge , is a Belgian sports bureaucrat. He is the eighth and current President of the International Olympic Committee .-Life and career:...
invited the world to London. Prime Minister David Cameron
David Cameron
David William Donald Cameron is the current Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, First Lord of the Treasury, Minister for the Civil Service and Leader of the Conservative Party. Cameron represents Witney as its Member of Parliament ....
promised that London's games would be the greatest, whilst Boris Johnson comically called for a snap Olympics. The Royal Mail announced that it would produce special stamps celebrating every gold medal won by a British athlete.
Medals
In December 2010, it was announced that the Royal MintRoyal Mint
The Royal Mint is the body permitted to manufacture, or mint, coins in the United Kingdom. The Mint originated over 1,100 years ago, but since 2009 it operates as Royal Mint Ltd, a company which has an exclusive contract with HM Treasury to supply all coinage for the UK...
would produce the medals for the Olympic and Paralympic Games. The Royal Mint expected to produce around 4,700 medals for the games. The medals are 7mm thick and weigh between 375-400g. They are designed by David Watkins. Each medal will have the sport and the discipline engraved on the rim. Like the last few Olympic medal designs the front will once again have Greek goddess of victory, Nike
Nike (mythology)
In Greek mythology, Nike was a goddess who personified victory, also known as the Winged Goddess of Victory. The Roman equivalent was Victoria. Depending upon the time of various myths, she was described as the daughter of Pallas and Styx and the sister of Kratos , Bia , and Zelus...
, stepping from Parthenon. The reverse side has the Games logo, and a ribbon depicting the River Thames
River Thames
The River Thames flows through southern England. It is the longest river entirely in England and the second longest in the United Kingdom. While it is best known because its lower reaches flow through central London, the river flows alongside several other towns and cities, including Oxford,...
with a grid symbolising pulling together and radiating energy. The medals will have a purple ribbon attached to them which symbolises Royalty and protocol. The Princess Royal
Anne, Princess Royal
Princess Anne, Princess Royal , is the only daughter of Elizabeth II and Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh...
unveiled the design of the Olympic medals.
In a poll by the Telegraph just 66% of the people who voted liked the design. Designer David Watkins said "I knew it was a take it and love it design. If not – sorry. There was no plan B."
Test events
Many test events will be held throughout 2011 and 2012, either through an existing championship such as Wimbledon or as a specially created event held under the banner of London Prepares. Some events are closed to the public, others are ticketed. Basketball and BMX were the first events to be tested within the Olympic Park.Participating nations
Athletes from 204 NOCs are expected to participate. The Netherlands Antilles Olympic CommitteeNetherlands Antilles Olympic Committee
The Netherlands Antilles Olympic Committee, generally abbreviated NAOC was a member of the IOC from 1950 until 2011. It constituted the National Olympic Committee of the dissolved country Netherlands Antilles which consisted of the islands Aruba , Curaçao, Sint Maarten , Bonaire, Sint Eustatius...
, which had planned to continue functioning after the dissolution of the Netherlands Antilles, had its membership withdrawn by the IOC Executive Committee at the IOC session of June 2011
123rd IOC Session
The 123rd International Olympic Committee Session was held in July 2011 at the Inkosi Albert Luthuli International Convention Centre in Durban, South Africa...
. However, Dutch Antillean athletes who
qualify for the 2012 Olympics will be allowed to participate independently under the Olympic flag.
Listed below are NOCs who have qualified at least one athlete. As of 26 November 2011, 144 nations have qualified at least one athlete.
(Host)
Sports
The 2012 Summer Olympic programme features 26 sports and a total of 38 disciplines. The 2012 Paralympic Games programme has 20 sports and 21 disciplines. London's bid featured 28 sports, in line with other recent Summer Olympics, but the IOC voted to drop baseball and softballSoftball
Softball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of 10 to 14 players. It is a direct descendant of baseball although there are some key differences: softballs are larger than baseballs, and the pitches are thrown underhand rather than overhand...
from the 2012 Games two days after it selected London as the host city. The IOC reinforced its decision to drop both sports during the 2006 Winter Olympics
2006 Winter Olympics
The 2006 Winter Olympics, officially known as the XX Olympic Winter Games, was a winter multi-sport event which was celebrated in Turin, Italy from February 10, 2006, through February 26, 2006. This marked the second time Italy hosted the Olympic Winter Games, the first being the VII Olympic Winter...
after they lost votes for reconsideration. They will remain Olympic sports, despite being scheduled for the last time at Beijing in 2008
2008 Summer Olympics
The 2008 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XXIX Olympiad, was a major international multi-sport event that took place in Beijing, China, from August 8 to August 24, 2008. A total of 11,028 athletes from 204 National Olympic Committees competed in 28 sports and 302 events...
. Following the decision to drop the two sports, the IOC held a vote on whether or not to replace them. The sports considered were karate
Karate
is a martial art developed in the Ryukyu Islands in what is now Okinawa, Japan. It was developed from indigenous fighting methods called and Chinese kenpō. Karate is a striking art using punching, kicking, knee and elbow strikes, and open-handed techniques such as knife-hands. Grappling, locks,...
, squash
Squash (sport)
Squash is a high-speed racquet sport played by two players in a four-walled court with a small, hollow rubber ball...
, golf, roller sports, and rugby sevens
Rugby sevens
Rugby sevens, also known as seven-a-side or VIIs, is a variant of rugby union in which teams are made up of seven players, instead of the usual 15, with shorter matches. Rugby sevens is administered by the International Rugby Board , the body responsible for rugby union worldwide...
. Karate and squash were the two final nominees, but neither received enough votes to reach the required two-thirds majority. The IOC has given the approval for the addition of golf and rugby sevens for the 2016 games.
The International Olympic Committee executive board met on 13 August 2009 and approved the addition of women's boxing to the programme. The International Boxing Federation
International Boxing Federation
The International Boxing Federation or IBF is one of four major organizations recognized by IBHOF which sanction world championship boxing bouts, alongside the WBA, WBC and WBO.- History :...
has proposed that 40 athletes compete in five different weight classes.
Murad Qureshi
Murad Qureshi
Murad Qureshi is a British Labour Party politician, and a Member of the London Assembly.-Background:Qureshi was born in May 1965 in Stockport, Cheshire, but he was brought up in Westminster, London, when his parents moved in July 1965...
, a member of the London Assembly
London Assembly
The London Assembly is an elected body, part of the Greater London Authority, that scrutinises the activities of the Mayor of London and has the power, with a two-thirds majority, to amend the mayor's annual budget. The assembly was established in 2000 and is headquartered at City Hall on the south...
, is pushing for a Twenty20 cricket showcase tournament to be included in London. Twenty20 cricket did originally bid for inclusion in 2012, but was not one of the finalist sports. Netball
Netball
Netball is a ball sport played between two teams of seven players. Its development, derived from early versions of basketball, began in England in the 1890s. By 1960 international playing rules had been standardised for the game, and the International Federation of Netball and Women's Basketball ...
is being drafted as a possible demonstration sport
Demonstration sport
A demonstration sport is a sport which is played to promote itself, most commonly during the Olympic Games, but also at other sporting events.Demonstration sports were officially introduced in 1912 Summer Olympics, when Sweden decided to include glima, traditional Icelandic wrestling, in the...
at the 2012 games. This idea was backed by then British prime minister
Prime Minister of the United Kingdom
The Prime Minister of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the Head of Her Majesty's Government in the United Kingdom. The Prime Minister and Cabinet are collectively accountable for their policies and actions to the Sovereign, to Parliament, to their political party and...
Gordon Brown
Gordon Brown
James Gordon Brown is a British Labour Party politician who was the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Labour Party from 2007 until 2010. He previously served as Chancellor of the Exchequer in the Labour Government from 1997 to 2007...
, suggesting that it would encourage more girls and young women to play sports. The IOC eliminated demonstration sports following the 1992 Summer Olympics. However, special tournaments have been run for non-Olympic sports during the games, such as the Wushu tournament
Wushu Tournament Beijing 2008
Wushu Tournament Beijing 2008 was a wushu competition which was held from August 21 to 24, 2008 at the Olympic Sports Center Gymnasium in Beijing, China....
at the 2008 Summer Olympics. There has been speculation that the London Sevens
London Sevens
The London Sevens is an annual rugby sevens tournament held at Twickenham in London each year. It is part of the IRB Sevens World Series. The current titleholders are Australia, who beat South Africa in the final at Twickenham on 23 May 2010.- External links :...
tournament held at Twickenham
Twickenham Stadium
Twickenham Stadium is a stadium located in Twickenham, in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames. It is the largest rugby union stadium in the United Kingdom and has recently been enlarged to seat 82,000...
as part of the IRB Sevens World Series
IRB Sevens World Series
The IRB Sevens World Series, known officially as the HSBC Sevens World Series as of the 2010-11 season, through sponsorship from banking group HSBC, and also sometimes called the World Sevens Series, is a series of international rugby union sevens tournaments organised for the first time in the...
could be put back to coincide with the Olympics.
Following the awarding of the 2012 Olympic Games to London, the government announced that special dispensation would be granted to allow the various shooting events to go ahead, as had been the case previously for the 2002 Commonwealth Games.
- Aquatics
- CanoeingCanoeingCanoeing is an outdoor activity that involves a special kind of canoe.Open canoes may be 'poled' , sailed, 'lined and tracked' or even 'gunnel-bobbed'....
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SprintCanoeingCanoeing is an outdoor activity that involves a special kind of canoe.Open canoes may be 'poled' , sailed, 'lined and tracked' or even 'gunnel-bobbed'....
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- Cycling
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BMXBMX racingBMX racing is a type of off-road bicycle racing. The format of BMX was derived from motocross racing. BMX bicycle races are sprint races on purpose-built off-road single-lap race tracks. The track usually small a starting gate for up to eight racers, a groomed, serpentine, dirt race course made of...
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Mountain bikingMountain bikingMountain biking is a sport which consists of riding bicycles off-road, often over rough terrain, using specially adapted mountain bikes. Mountain bikes share similarities with other bikes, but incorporate features designed to enhance durability and performance in rough terrain.Mountain biking can...
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RoadRoad bicycle racingRoad bicycle racing is a bicycle racing sport held on roads, using racing bicycles. The term "road racing" is usually applied to events where competing riders start simultaneously with the winner being the first to the line at the end of the course .Historically, the most...
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TrackTrack cyclingTrack cycling is a bicycle racing sport usually held on specially built banked tracks or velodromes using track bicycles....
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Field HockeyField hockeyField Hockey, or Hockey, is a team sport in which a team of players attempts to score goals by hitting, pushing or flicking a ball into an opposing team's goal using sticks...
(2) - Gymnastics
- Artistic Gymnastics
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Artistic gymnasticsArtistic gymnastics is a discipline of gymnastics where gymnasts perform short routines on different apparatus, with less time for vaulting . The sport is governed by the Federation Internationale de Gymnastique , which designs the Code of Points and regulates all aspects of international elite...
(14) - Rhythmic Gymnastics
_pictogram.svg.png)
Rhythmic gymnasticsRhythmic gymnastics is a sport in which individuals or teams of competitors manipulate one or two pieces of apparatus: rope, clubs, hoop, ball, ribbon and Free . An individual athlete only manipulates 1 apparatus at a time...
(2) - Trampoline
_pictogram.svg.png)
TrampolineA trampoline is a device consisting of a piece of taut, strong fabric stretched over a steel frame using many coiled springs. People bounce on trampolines for recreational and competitive purposes....
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Calendar
The final official schedule was released on 15 February 2011.Broadcasting
The London 2012 Olympic Games will be the tenth Olympic Games (counting both Summer and Winter Games) where Panasonic's digital technologies will be used as the official recording format, dating since the Barcelona 1992 Olympic Games. The official international video will be produced and distributed from the International Broadcast Centre (IBC) in London Olympic Park, in 1080/50i High-Definition (HD) format. Panasonic announced that DVCPRO HD will be the official recording format for capturing the Games. Olympic Broadcasting Services London (OBSL), the Host Broadcaster, will use P2P2 (storage media)
P2 is a professional digital recording solid-state memory storage media format introduced by Panasonic in 2004, and especially tailored to electronic news-gathering applications. It features tapeless recording of DV, DVCPRO, DVCPRO25, DVCPRO50, DVCPRO-HD, or AVC-Intra streams on a solid-state...
HD series equipment to support the broadcast of the competition. The cameras that will be used are the AG-HPX250, the company’s first P2 HD handheld camcorder with AVC-Intra recording and two new AVCCAM HD handheld camcorders, the AG-AC160 and AG-AC130, with Full HD imagers and a new, wider 21X HD zoom lens.
Continuing the IOC's commitment to providing over-the-air television coverage to as broad a worldwide audience as possible, London 2012 is scheduled to be broadcast by a number of regional broadcasters. The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is the home broadcaster for the Olympics and Channel 4
Channel 4
Channel 4 is a British public-service television broadcaster which began working on 2 November 1982. Although largely commercially self-funded, it is ultimately publicly owned; originally a subsidiary of the Independent Broadcasting Authority , the station is now owned and operated by the Channel...
the home broadcaster for the Paralympics. The BBC aims to broadcast by various channels all 5,000 hours of the Olympic Games. Much of the actual broadcasting is originated by the Olympic Broadcasting Services
Olympic Broadcasting Services
Olympic Broadcasting Services is an agency of the International Olympic Committee, established in 2001 to be responsible for host broadcasting - the world feeds provided to all international broadcasters of the Olympic Games from 2008 on, and provide continuity in Olympic coverage from one Games...
(OBS). The United States television rights currently owned by NBC
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
account for over half the rights revenue for the IOC. Many television broadcasters granted rights to the games have bureaux and studios in London, but since at least the 1988 Olympic Winter Games
1988 Winter Olympics
The 1988 Winter Olympics, officially known as the XV Olympic Winter Games, were a winter multi-sport event celebrated in and around Calgary, Alberta, Canada from 13 to 28 February 1988. The host was selected in 1981 after having beat Falun, Sweden and Cortina d'Ampezzo, Italy...
in Calgary, rights-holder operations are hosted in the dedicated International Broadcast Centre
International Broadcast Centre
The International Broadcast Centre is a temporary hub for broadcasters during major sport events.-FIFA World Cup:During the 2006 FIFA World Cup, in Germany, the IBC in Munich was host to journalists from around 190 countries. The centre was based at the Munich Fair, in what was formally Munich...
(IBC). London's IBC is planned to be inside the security cordon of the Olympic Park
Olympic Park, London
The Olympic Park in London is a new sporting complex currently under construction, adjacent to the Stratford City development in Stratford, Bow, Leyton & Homerton in East London for the 2012 Summer Olympics and Paralympics....
.
Social media will be important for the Games. Online technology is being developed for the London 2012 Olympics and YouTube will stream highlights of the Games to countries all over the world as part of an IOC deal.
Olympic flag
On 26 September 2008 the Olympic and Paralympic flags were raised outside City HallCity Hall (London)
City Hall is the headquarters of the Greater London Authority which comprises the Mayor of London and London Assembly. It is located in Southwark, on the south bank of the River Thames near Tower Bridge...
formally mark London becoming host city for the 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games. Beijing Gold medalist Christine Ohuruogu
Christine Ohuruogu
Christine Ijeoma Ohuruogu MBE is an English athlete, who specialises in the 400 metres; the event for which she is the current Olympic and former World and Commonwealth Champion...
raised the Olympic flag, whilst Paralympic Champions, Helene Raynsford
Helene Raynsford
Helene Raynsford is a British rower who competed at the 2008 Summer Paralympics.She trained at the Royal Ballet School before an injury ended her chances of becoming a professional dancer. At university Raynsford studied biochemistry but a head injury at the age of 21 left her needing the use of a...
and Chris Holmes
Chris Holmes (swimmer)
Chris Holmes MBE is a former British swimmer. Prior to the 2008 Summer Paralympics, he was "Britain's most successful Paralympic swimmer", having won a total of nine golds, five silvers, and one bronze medal at the Paralympic Games. Holmes represented Great Britain at four Paralympics, from 1988 to...
raised the Paralympic flag.
Eco-policy
The Olympic ParkOlympic Park, London
The Olympic Park in London is a new sporting complex currently under construction, adjacent to the Stratford City development in Stratford, Bow, Leyton & Homerton in East London for the 2012 Summer Olympics and Paralympics....
will incorporate 45 hectares of wildlife habitat, with a total of 525 bird boxes, and 150 bat boxes. Local waterways and riverbanks are to be enhanced as part of the process.
Renewable energy will also feature at the Olympics. It was originally planned to provide 20% of the energy for the Olympic Park and Village from renewable technologies; however, this may now be as little as 9%. Proposals to meet the original target included large-scale on-site wind turbines and hydroelectric generators in the River Thames. However, these plans were scrapped for safety reasons. The focus has since moved to installing solar panels on some buildings, and providing the opportunity to recover energy from waste.
Food packaging at the Olympics will be made from compostable materials – like starch and cellulose-based bioplastics – where it cannot be re-used or re-cycled. This will include fast food wrappers, sandwich boxes and drink cartons. After they have been used many of these materials will be suitable for anaerobic digestion
Anaerobic digestion
Anaerobic digestion is a series of processes in which microorganisms break down biodegradable material in the absence of oxygen. It is used for industrial or domestic purposes to manage waste and/or to release energy....
(AD), allowing them to be made into renewable energy.
Tourism and the 2012 Games
The 2012 Games park near Stratford is attracting new tourists to the area. The upgraded Greenway cycle and walking path provides an ideal viewing point for the park while the site remains closed to the public.There are daily public walking tours running alongside the 2012 site led by qualified Blue Badge tourist guides. The guided walks – which leave from Bromley-by-Bow tube station at 11 am – are attended by over 1000 people each month. They are run by guides who are specifically trained to talk about the 2012 Games and the history and traditions of the local area.
In 2010, Blue Badge Guides led 220 visits from colleges and schools to the 2012 Games site and nearby Olympic venues. During summer they guided over 1000 new visitors and tourists a day around East London’s 2012 sites.
In 2011, a new initiative to bring tourists and visitors into the area will involve a public waterbus ‘hop-on hop-off’ route, from Limehouse Basin to waterways near the Olympic Park.
Cultural Olympiad
The Olympic CharterOlympic Charter
The Olympic Charter, last updated March 21, 1992, is a set of rules and guidelines for the organization of the Olympic Games, and for governing the Olympic Movement. Adopted by International Olympic Committee , it is the codification of the Fundamental Principles, Rules and By-laws. French and...
, the set of rules and guidelines for the organization of the Olympic Games and the governing the Olympic Movement states that
"The OCOG shall organise a programme of cultural events which must cover at least the entireLondon's Cultural Olympiad includes 500 events spread over four years and culminating in the London 2012 Festival. The cost of the events is around £40 million and funding has been provided by Arts Council England
period during which the Olympic Village is open."
Arts Council England
Arts Council England was formed in 1994 when the Arts Council of Great Britain was divided into three separate bodies for England, Scotland and Wales. It is a non-departmental public body of the Department of Culture, Media and Sport...
, Legacy Trust UK
Legacy Trust UK
Legacy Trust UK is a charitable trust in the United Kingdom, established in 2007 to support a range of cultural and sporting activities in connection with the 2012 Summer Olympics and 2012 Summer Paralympics in London, with the aim of creating a lasting cultural and sporting legacy from the Games...
and the Olympic Lottery Distributor
Olympic Lottery Distributor
The Olympic Lottery Distributor is a Non-departmental public body in the United Kingdom set up by Parliament to use money raised by the National Lottery to fund the London Olympic Games and Paralympic Games in 2012....
.
Those announced as being involved in the festival, which will run from 21 June to 9 September 2012, include Oscar winning actress Cate Blanchett
Cate Blanchett
Catherine Élise "Cate" Blanchett is an Australian actress. She came to international attention for her role as Elizabeth I of England in the 1998 biopic film Elizabeth, for which she won British Academy of Film and Television Arts and Golden Globe Awards, and earned her first Academy Award...
, director Mike Leigh
Mike Leigh
Michael "Mike" Leigh, OBE is a British writer and director of film and theatre. He studied theatre at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art, and studied further at the Camberwell School of Art and the Central School of Art and Design. He began as a theatre director and playwright in the mid 1960s...
, musician Damon Albarn
Damon Albarn
Damon Albarn is an English singer-songwriter and record producer who has been involved in many high profile projects, coming to prominence as the frontman and primary songwriter of Britpop band Blur...
and artists including David Hockney
David Hockney
David Hockney, CH, RA, is an English painter, draughtsman, printmaker, stage designer and photographer, who is based in Bridlington, Yorkshire and Kensington, London....
, Lucian Freud
Lucian Freud
Lucian Michael Freud, OM, CH was a British painter. Known chiefly for his thickly impasted portrait and figure paintings, he was widely considered the pre-eminent British artist of his time...
and Rachel Whiteread
Rachel Whiteread
Rachel Whiteread, CBE is an English artist, best known for her sculptures, which typically take the form of casts. She won the annual Turner Prize in 1993—the first woman to win the prize....
.
The Cultural Olympiad has been criticised for its refusal to include Cornish language
Cornish language
Cornish is a Brythonic Celtic language and a recognised minority language of the United Kingdom. Along with Welsh and Breton, it is directly descended from the ancient British language spoken throughout much of Britain before the English language came to dominate...
, sport
Sport in Cornwall
Sport in Cornwall includes two sports not found elsewhere in the world, except in areas influenced by Cornish culture i.e. the Cornish forms of wrestling and hurling...
and culture amongst celebrations within its South West region. University College Falmouth
University College Falmouth
University College Falmouth is a British university college in Falmouth, Cornwall. Founded in 1902, it had previously been the Falmouth School of Art and then Falmouth College of Arts until it received taught degree-awarding powers in March 2005...
had put a bid in for funding from the Legacy Trust for an event, An Gwary Meur (The Great Play), combining theatre and sport, participant and audience, story-telling and physical endeavour. This was backed by a wide range of partners including the Cornish Pilot Gig Association
Cornish Pilot Gig Association
The Cornish Pilot Gig Association is a body which governs the sport of Cornish pilot gig racing. As of August 2006 the association consists of 44 clubs and 115 registered gigs...
, Cornish Wrestling Association
Cornish wrestling
Cornish wrestling is a form of wrestling which has been established in Cornwall, an area of southwest Britain for several centuries. The referee is known as a 'stickler', and it is claimed that the popular meaning of the word as a 'pedant' originates from this usage...
, Cornwall Rowing Association, Cornwall Rugby Football Union, the Cornwall Cultural Partnership and the Cornish Language Partnership
Cornish Language Partnership
The Cornish Language Partnership is a representative body that was set up in Cornwall, United Kingdom in 2005 to promote and develop the use of the Cornish language in Cornwall...
. The refusal of this application has been viewed as "a direct barrier to people in Cornwall celebrating their distinct Cornish identity
Cornish people
The Cornish are a people associated with Cornwall, a county and Duchy in the south-west of the United Kingdom that is seen in some respects as distinct from England, having more in common with the other Celtic parts of the United Kingdom such as Wales, as well as with other Celtic nations in Europe...
."
Stamps
In August 2009 the Royal MailRoyal Mail
Royal Mail is the government-owned postal service in the United Kingdom. Royal Mail Holdings plc owns Royal Mail Group Limited, which in turn operates the brands Royal Mail and Parcelforce Worldwide...
commissoned artists and illustrators to create 30 stamps which were released in batches of 10 during 2009 to 2011. The 30 stamps symbolise that the Games take place during the 30th Olympiad. Each stamp featured an Olympic or Paralympic sport and in addition had the London 2012 logo on each stamp. The Royal Mail had initially approched photographers to be included as well but this was abandoned as the photos would have to be of dead people as the only living person allowed to feature on stamps in the United Kingdom is the Queen. Stamps with an Olympic theme go back to the very first games in Athens 1890; when the organisers commissoned the sale of stamps in order to balance the books and construct the last four venues. When London first held the Games in 1908 no stamps were commissoned. On that occasion and for the 1912 are the only time when stamps were not issued. When London last held the Games in 1948, just four stamps were issued. On 22 July 2011 the last of the 30 stamps were released.
Merchandise
On 21 July 2009 the LOCOG announced that Hornby PlcHornby Railways
Hornby Railways is the leading brand of model railway in the United Kingdom. Its roots date back to 1901, when founder Frank Hornby received a patent for his Meccano construction toy. The first clockwork train was produced in 1920. In 1938, Hornby launched its first 00 gauge train...
had won the license to develop and market a range associated with the Games. The license allowed the company to sell products across its Corgi, Hornby, Scalextric and Airfix brands. Airfix will have kits for all of the main venues, including a 1:500 scale Olympic Stadium. The centre piece of the Scalextric collection will be a cycling Velodrome set. The collection was launched by British cyclist Lizzie Armitstead
Lizzie Armitstead
Elizabeth Mary Armitstead is a world champion British track and road racing cyclist. She is a member of British Cycling's Olympic Academy and has represented Great Britain internationally...
in Hamleys
Hamleys
Hamleys is one of the world's largest toy shops. Its flagship store is in Regent Street, London. Major stores worldwide are in Dublin, Dubai, Amman, Glasgow, Mumbai and Chennai....
toy store in June 2011, Hornby staggared the release of the collection with the Scalextric velodrome released in September. In March 2011 the LOCOG commissioned and published a series of traning guides. The merchandise was sold online and in five shops known as "The London 2012 Shop," in Heathrow Airport, Stansted Airport, St Pancras International Station, Paddington Station and in John Lewis on Oxford Street. In addition Addidas sold its London 2012 range in its flagship store on Oxford Street and selective Next stores sold their 2012 range. Sainsburys as Official sponsors of the Paralympics also sold merchandise within their stores.
Criticism
The IOCInternational Olympic Committee
The International Olympic Committee is an international corporation based in Lausanne, Switzerland, created by Pierre de Coubertin on 23 June 1894 with Demetrios Vikelas as its first president...
has drawn criticism for its social media guidelines which, commentators argue, appear to infringe on athletes' right to free speech. The guidelines appear to prohibit athletes from commenting on other participants, promoting their own sponsors, or using the word "Olympic" (with certain specific exceptions) on their personal websites. Further criticism has been levelled at the IOC's creation of a website intended to allow the reporting of suspected breaches of the guidelines.
See also
- 2012 Summer Olympics torch relay2012 Summer Olympics torch relayThe 2012 Summer Olympics torch relay will be run from 19 May 2012 until 27 July 2012, prior to the 2012 Summer Olympics. Plans for the relay have been further developed in 2010/11, with the torch bearer selection process announced on 18 May 2011....
- 2012 Summer Paralympics2012 Summer ParalympicsThe 2012 Summer Paralympic Games will be the fourteenth Paralympics and will take place between 29 August and 9 September 2012. The Games will be held in London, United Kingdom after the city was successful with its bid for the Paralympics and Summer Olympic Games.Even though 2012 will be London's...
- 2012 Winter Youth Olympics2012 Winter Youth OlympicsThe 2012 Winter Youth Olympic Games, officially known as the I Winter Youth Olympic Games , will be an international multi-sport event for youths that will take place in Innsbruck from 13 to 22 January 2012. They will become the inaugural Winter Youth Olympics, a major sports and cultural festival...
- International Olympic CommitteeInternational Olympic CommitteeThe International Olympic Committee is an international corporation based in Lausanne, Switzerland, created by Pierre de Coubertin on 23 June 1894 with Demetrios Vikelas as its first president...
- IOC country codes
- List of Olympic Games broadcasters
External links
Official- London 2012 from the International Olympic Committee
- London 2012 iPhone and iPad Application
- London 2012 Official Homepage
- Official mascots homepage
- London 2012 Official Recruitment Homepage
News media
- 2012 London Olympics at NBCNBCThe National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
- London Olympics Business at The TelegraphThe Daily TelegraphThe Daily Telegraph is a daily morning broadsheet newspaper distributed throughout the United Kingdom and internationally. The newspaper was founded by Arthur B...
- Beijing 2008 – London 2012 Olympic Games official Handover ceremony video