Olympic and paralympic Games: THE IMPACT OF ... - Universities UK

Universities and the London 2012Olympic Torch RelayA number of the UK’s universities will be visitedby the Olympic Flame as it makes its way tothe Opening Ceremony of London 2012 on the70-day torch relay whilst scores of studentsand staff members from the higher educationsector have been confirmed as torchbearers.The Olympic Flame arrives in the UK on Friday18th May and will come within 10 miles of 95% ofpeople in the UK before arriving in the OlympicStadium on Friday 27th July. The University ofBath will be the first university on the route, asthe torch relay passes through the official pre-Games training camp base of ParalympicsGB onTuesday 22nd May.University staff and studentsbecome shining lightsOf the 7,300 members of the public confirmedas torchbearers, many of them are students andmembers of staff from the higher educationsector. Among them are:• Professor Ian Henry, Director of the Centre forOlympic Studies & Research at LoughboroughUniversity, will be carrying the torch throughthe East Midlands town on 3rd July• Professor Tom Ward, Pro-Vice Chancellor at theUniversity of East Anglia, will run with the torchin Norwich• Bharat Thakrar,a student at theUniversity ofPortsmouth, willcarry the torchthrough Hadleigh inEssex• Professor IanCampbell, Pro-ViceChancellor at BrunelUniversity, will bea torchbearer on21st July as theOlympic Flame visitsthe London hostborough of Newham• Three inspirationalsporting championshave been selectedby Sheffield HallamUniversity to carryMuaaz Khanthe Olympic torch• when it completes its route through thestreets of Sheffield on 25th June 2012. StudentStephen Birkby, Hallam Union Sports OfficerColan Leung and Head of Sport Services atSheffield Hallam University, Dan Porter, were allselected by the university to be official Olympictorchbearers as part of Samsung’s nominationprogramme for the London 2012 Olympictorch relay• A student and a staff member from theUniversity of Lincoln have been officiallynamed as torch bearers for the London 2012Olympic torch relay. They are Marketingand Recruitment Officer, Zoe Homes, andstudent and member of the British TaekwondoPoomsae Squad, Sophie Chatel• Priya Rajgor, a second-year undergraduatestudying International Business at theUniversity of Greenwich will be among thosecarrying the Olympic torch on 21st July.Priya was nominated by her father, Manoj, inrecognition of her fundraising and volunteeringfor charities• Thousands of nominations were received forLloyds TSB’s Olympic torch relay nominationcampaign, many of whom were universitystudents. They include Muaaz Khan, a studentstudying for a diploma in community and youthwork studies at the University of Manchesterwho has been chosen for his inspirational story.After having a kidney transplant aged 10, hehas gone on to run programmes to help youngchildren from disadvantaged backgrounds.48 SECTION nine : universities, students and volunteering