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Celebrations mark 100 days until London 2012
April 18, 2012, Wednesday
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LONDON Olympic organizers will hold a series of events today to kick off the Games' 100-day countdown as preparations for the showpiece event enter the final straight.
The milestone will be marked across the country and internationally with a host of ceremonial activities and an array of test events to iron out any operational problems before the flame is lit on July 27.
London 2012 chief executive Paul Deighton insisted that preparations were on course with dress rehearsals for Wheelchair Rugby, Synchronized Swimming and Shooting all set to begin today.
Olympic fever will spread beyond Britain's borders as expats around the globe join in the countdown.
In the United States, former heavyweight boxing champion Lennox Lewis will lead one hundred cyclists and an open top London double decker bus on a ride down Miami's South Beach.
One hundred British Embassies and High Commissions will hold events with Turkey, Venezuela and New Zealand all entering into the Olympic spirit, Britain's Foreign Office revealed yesterday.
There will also be a series of 100 meter races at Berlin's Brandenburg Gate, the 1984 Olympic Stadium in Sarajevo and in the Palace Square in St Petersburg.
"I'm delighted that British Embassies around the world have come together to mark 100 days to go to the opening ceremony of the greatest show on earth," said Foreign Office Minister for the Olympic and Paralympic Games Jeremy Browne.
Organizer Deighton insisted the British capital was well-prepared to become the world's focal point.
"We are absolutely where we want to be with 100 days to go - we are ready to welcome the world to London," he said.
"Millions of people around the UK are getting ready to celebrate the biggest event in sport."
Queen Elizabeth II will open the Games, giving London the honor of being the first city in the modern era to host the Olympics three times, having already held them in 1908 and 1948.
The event is set to give Britain's ailing economy a much needed boost, but the general mood of austerity will be reflected in the Games, albeit to a far lesser extent than in 1948, when competitors were housed in military barracks and university dormitories.
Organizers conceded long ago that, despite a budget of ￡9.3 billion (US$14.8 billion), they would be unable to compete with the spectacle provided by the 2008 Beijing Olympics.
Instead, the opening and closing ceremonies will bring to together the country's most creative minds to produce a celebration of Britishness.
Responsibility for the opening ceremony lies with "Slumdog Millionaire" director Danny Boyle, who has promised a fitting curtain-raiser before 10,500 competitors from 204 countries do battle.
The milestone will be marked across the country and internationally with a host of ceremonial activities and an array of test events to iron out any operational problems before the flame is lit on July 27.
London 2012 chief executive Paul Deighton insisted that preparations were on course with dress rehearsals for Wheelchair Rugby, Synchronized Swimming and Shooting all set to begin today.
Olympic fever will spread beyond Britain's borders as expats around the globe join in the countdown.
In the United States, former heavyweight boxing champion Lennox Lewis will lead one hundred cyclists and an open top London double decker bus on a ride down Miami's South Beach.
One hundred British Embassies and High Commissions will hold events with Turkey, Venezuela and New Zealand all entering into the Olympic spirit, Britain's Foreign Office revealed yesterday.
There will also be a series of 100 meter races at Berlin's Brandenburg Gate, the 1984 Olympic Stadium in Sarajevo and in the Palace Square in St Petersburg.
"I'm delighted that British Embassies around the world have come together to mark 100 days to go to the opening ceremony of the greatest show on earth," said Foreign Office Minister for the Olympic and Paralympic Games Jeremy Browne.
Organizer Deighton insisted the British capital was well-prepared to become the world's focal point.
"We are absolutely where we want to be with 100 days to go - we are ready to welcome the world to London," he said.
"Millions of people around the UK are getting ready to celebrate the biggest event in sport."
Queen Elizabeth II will open the Games, giving London the honor of being the first city in the modern era to host the Olympics three times, having already held them in 1908 and 1948.
The event is set to give Britain's ailing economy a much needed boost, but the general mood of austerity will be reflected in the Games, albeit to a far lesser extent than in 1948, when competitors were housed in military barracks and university dormitories.
Organizers conceded long ago that, despite a budget of ￡9.3 billion (US$14.8 billion), they would be unable to compete with the spectacle provided by the 2008 Beijing Olympics.
Instead, the opening and closing ceremonies will bring to together the country's most creative minds to produce a celebration of Britishness.
Responsibility for the opening ceremony lies with "Slumdog Millionaire" director Danny Boyle, who has promised a fitting curtain-raiser before 10,500 competitors from 204 countries do battle.
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