The opening ceremony & Sprit of London 2012 Olympics
By Francis Saldanha
Bellevision Media Network
Part II
18 Jul 2012: The city of London is the host city of the XXX Olympic Summer Games in 2012. The London 2012 Games will be centered on the Olympic Park in east London, which will be the site of a number of new sports venues. Up to 180,000 spectators a day will enter the Park to enjoy the Games, making it the main focus of Olympic activity in summer 2012.
Olympics Games 2012 starting from 19 May to the 27 July 2012 the Olympic flame was lit in Ancient Olympia, Greece, on 10 May and handed over to the London 2012 Organizing Committee in Athens on 17 May before arriving in Great Britain on 18 May 2012. The Flame will be carried by 8,000 inspirational Torchbearers during the Olympic Torch Relay around Great Britain and will focus on the nation’s youth with a large percentage of the torchbearers being 18 years and under.
As it makes its way across the UK on its 70-day journey it will bring the excitement of the Games to everyone. On its voyage, the Olympic Flame is expected to travel to within 10 miles of 95 per cent of people in the UK, Isle of Man, Guernsey and Jersey.
The Olympic Torch Relay will help shine a light on the whole of the UK – from dynamic urban areas to places of outstanding natural beauty. Evening celebrations in towns and cities will show off the best of the local area, bringing people together to mark the Olympic Flame’s arrival.
Coca-Cola, Lloyds TSB and Samsung are the three Presenting Partners of the Olympic Torch Relay for London 2012.
A total of 15,000 well known artists will take part in the Olympic and Paralympics Opening and Closing Ceremonies watched by an estimated audience of four billion.
Opening Ceremony is a celebration showcasing the best of the Host Nation. It also features a parade of all competing nations and the highly anticipated entrance of the Olympic Flame, which ignites the Cauldron and signals the start of the Games.
The eyes of the world will be on London for the Opening Ceremony of the London 2012 Olympic Games. The Ceremony will provide an opportunity for the world to view the artistic expression of the Artistic Director (Danny Boyle) and his team, and the culture of the host city London and UK. There are certain elements that must feature in every Ceremony, as outlined in the International Olympic Committee (IOC) charter. The artistic performance of the Ceremony then gets underway and welcomes the world to the London 2012 Games.
The Head of State of the Host Country is received at the entrance of the Olympic Stadium by the President of the IOC. For the London 2012 Olympic Opening Ceremony, Her Majesty the Queen will be greeted by Jacques Rogge.
A procession of the participating teams in the Stadium, nation by nation. Teams enter in alphabetical order, according to the language of the Host Country, apart from the Greek team, which enters first for the Olympics, and the team of the Host Nation (in this case Team GB), who march in last.
Once all the nations have arrived into the Stadium, LOCOG Chair Sebestian Coe will give a speech, followed by Jacques Rogge. They will end their speeches by inviting the Head of State to officially declare the Games open.
Once the Games have been declared open, the Olympic Flag is then carried into the Stadium and hoisted into the air as the respective Anthem is played. The Olympic Charter states that each flag must fly for the entire duration of the Games – placed in a prominent position in the main Stadium.
A participating athlete, judge and coach from the Host Nation stand on the rostrum and, holding a corner of the IOC flag in their left hand and raising their right, take the Oath, vowing to compete and judge according to the rules of their respective sport,.
The big finale is the entrance of the Olympic Flame into the Stadium. It is passed through the athletes to the final Torchbearer, who will ceremoniously light the Cauldron, indicating the beginning of the Games. The Flame will continue to burn for the whole of the Games.
A host of world-class British directors and producers are leading the artistic team to stage the Opening Ceremony of the London 2012 Olympic Games.
Almost 15,000 performers will take part in the London 2012 Opening and Closing Ceremonies, which will be watched by an estimated audience of four billion.
Right from the very beginning of bid in 2003, London 2012 has been about what can be achieved through the inspiration and power of sport, using it as a catalyst for positive change and inspiration.
Now, after years of detailed planning and preparations, the foundations of for visions are firmly in place. As well as the physical legacy of the London 2012 Games, which is clearly visible in London’s magnificent new Olympic Park and the transformation of east London, new initiatives and programs are creating sustainable social, economic and sporting legacies at home in the UK and around the world.
As the London Olympics is only few days away, the organizers are aiming and trying to gain maximum achievements in the areas of Youth and Sport, People, Transformation, and to reach the pinnacle of the greatest sports event on earth so that the “Spirit of London” will move on to generation next.