377 replies to this topic

[SkiFreak]

It'd be fun going down that whitewater course on an inner tube.

[Jim856796]

Boxing, Fencing, Judo, taekwondo, Table Tennis, Weightlifting, and Wrestling are all placced to take place at the ExCeL Exhibition Centre. The bid originnally proposed four sports halls inside the exhibition centre to accommodate the sports. Now, because Fencing events were moved there from the Olympic Park, a fifth sports hall (or possicly a sixth hall) may be needed. ExCeL recently had an expansion completed.

[Citius Altius Fortius]

I just checked the travel time to the venues for canoeing and canoe slalom and had to recognise that it is quite far outside of London and it takes appr. 2 hours resp 1 hour to Dorney Lake resp. Lee River Slalom Center...

Does anybody know if there will be shuttle services resp. a better service during the Games?

[Rafa]

There is mention of transport if you go through those brochures about the slalom venue.

Alternatively go to London2012.com and find the transport documents which provide brief info on the venues and the transport services.

[Citius Altius Fortius]

Mo Rush, on 22 August 2010 - 04:16 PM, said:

There is mention of transport if you go through those brochures about the slalom venue.

Alternatively go to London2012.com and find the transport documents which provide brief info on the venues and the transport services.

I used the official journey planner of the "tube-website" - if the public transportation system in London doesn't introduce special services for the venues you will need a lot of time to go to these venues...

[RobH]

From Prongle on Flickr:

[The Tower Bridge Fox]

Great picture.

I don’t want to alarm any one but Old ford lock was bombed in the war and some of the waterways near by looked like they hadn’t been dredges since the war, don’t worry I’m sure there is time to remove the unexploded bombs. Between now and the Olympics.

[RobH]

Couple of new stories from today, the first about the triathlon, the second about the marathon:



Ducks beware: 2012 triathlon heads to Hyde Park

Triathletes at the 2000 Olympics had to negotiate Sydney's shark-infested harbor, so the ducks and geese of London's Hyde Park seem unlikely to cause much fear in 2012.

Revealing their plans for the first "downtown" triathlon since the event's debut at the Sydney Games, London 2012 Olympic organizers also promised that the park's thriving wildlife would not be unduly disturbed either.

"We have no plans to round up the ducks and geese," Royal Parks chief executive Mark Camley said. "They'll waddle off in their own way."

Hyde Park is set to provide a picturesque backdrop to two of the games' more grueling events: the triathlon and the marathon swim. Its central location, close to Knightsbridge and Marble Arch, could also make those events some of the most popular with the public.

Half a million people lined the streets to watch the triathlon in Sydney. In 2012, a temporary stand overlooking the start-finish line by Hyde Park's Serpentine lake will hold 3,000 spectators, but thousands more will be able to watch along the course.

London 2012 sports director Debbie Jevans described it as "ultimately a free-ticket event."

"It's right in the middle of London, you look around you and it's just a wonderful venue," said British marathon swimmer Cassie Patten, a bronze medallist at the 2008 Beijing Games. "I got goosebumps when I arrived this morning, butterflies in my stomach.

"I've swum at Albert Dock in Liverpool in front of maybe 50 people, so to swim in London in front of a home crowd is going to be unreal. Every day when I wake up, it's in the back of my mind, but you've just to keep training as if it wasn't there because you could become overwhelmed by it."

Patten had to contend with being stung by jellyfish as she captured silver at the 2007 swimming world championships in Melbourne.

Nothing so dangerous lurks in the Serpentine, and the lake's size is likely to provide the main challenge.

"The water here is a really nice quality, a good temperature," she said. "Normally, we do four laps of 2.5 kilometers, here we'll be doing six laps, which obviously means there are more turns.

"But with open water swimming, you have to embrace the fact that no event will be the same as the one before, and we've got two years to get used to it."

Link

---

London 2012 Olympics: The Mall set to be marathon centrepiece [possibly]

The route for the marathon at the London 2012 Olympic Games is likely to start and finish at The Mall in a departure from tradition, though a final decision has yet to be made.

Several different courses are under consideration and it is hoped the consultation process will be completed by the end of the month.

However, the London Organising Committee of the Olympic and Paralympic Games (LOCOG) are understood to have a strong preference for the proposal that uses The Mall as its centrepiece.

Running from Buckingham Palace to Trafalgar Square and featuring Admiralty Arch, LOCOG believe the ceremonial route will provide the marathon with an iconic backdrop.

Traditionally the event has finished at the Games' main stadium and the original plan plotted a path from Tower Bridge to the Olympic Stadium in Stratford, east London.

But LOCOG are eager to incorporate as many London landmarks as possible and favour The Mall, which is also the finish line for the annual London Marathon.

LOCOG director of venues and infrastructure James Bulley, however, today stressed discussions over the course are still ongoing.

"No final decision over the marathon has been made at this point," said Bulley.

"We're still working with the international federation and various technical bodies to understand exactly what will be best for London 2012.

"A number of different routes and scenarios are being examined at the moment.

"We have some preferred scenarios and we're working those through with the international federations.

"We have to strike a balance between factors such as the implications for traffic and road closures on the day and getting people around to other events.

"We also want to use as many iconic locations in the route as possible and, of course, it has to work well for all the athletes.

"The fact it traditionally finishes at the stadium is a consideration. The stadium has been designed to accommodate it and finishing there remains one of the options."


Link

[The Tower Bridge Fox]

RobH, on 02 September 2010 - 12:11 PM, said:

Couple of new stories from today, the first about the triathlon, the second about the marathon:



Ducks beware: 2012 triathlon heads to Hyde Park

Triathletes at the 2000 Olympics had to negotiate Sydney's shark-infested harbor, so the ducks and geese of London's Hyde Park seem unlikely to cause much fear in 2012.

Revealing their plans for the first "downtown" triathlon since the event's debut at the Sydney Games, London 2012 Olympic organizers also promised that the park's thriving wildlife would not be unduly disturbed either.

"We have no plans to round up the ducks and geese," Royal Parks chief executive Mark Camley said. "They'll waddle off in their own way."

Hyde Park is set to provide a picturesque backdrop to two of the games' more grueling events: the triathlon and the marathon swim. Its central location, close to Knightsbridge and Marble Arch, could also make those events some of the most popular with the public.

Half a million people lined the streets to watch the triathlon in Sydney. In 2012, a temporary stand overlooking the start-finish line by Hyde Park's Serpentine lake will hold 3,000 spectators, but thousands more will be able to watch along the course.

London 2012 sports director Debbie Jevans described it as "ultimately a free-ticket event."

"It's right in the middle of London, you look around you and it's just a wonderful venue," said British marathon swimmer Cassie Patten, a bronze medallist at the 2008 Beijing Games. "I got goosebumps when I arrived this morning, butterflies in my stomach.

"I've swum at Albert Dock in Liverpool in front of maybe 50 people, so to swim in London in front of a home crowd is going to be unreal. Every day when I wake up, it's in the back of my mind, but you've just to keep training as if it wasn't there because you could become overwhelmed by it."

Patten had to contend with being stung by jellyfish as she captured silver at the 2007 swimming world championships in Melbourne.

Nothing so dangerous lurks in the Serpentine, and the lake's size is likely to provide the main challenge.

"The water here is a really nice quality, a good temperature," she said. "Normally, we do four laps of 2.5 kilometers, here we'll be doing six laps, which obviously means there are more turns.

"But with open water swimming, you have to embrace the fact that no event will be the same as the one before, and we've got two years to get used to it."

Link

---

London 2012 Olympics: The Mall set to be marathon centrepiece [possibly]

The route for the marathon at the London 2012 Olympic Games is likely to start and finish at The Mall in a departure from tradition, though a final decision has yet to be made.

Several different courses are under consideration and it is hoped the consultation process will be completed by the end of the month.

However, the London Organising Committee of the Olympic and Paralympic Games (LOCOG) are understood to have a strong preference for the proposal that uses The Mall as its centrepiece.

Running from Buckingham Palace to Trafalgar Square and featuring Admiralty Arch, LOCOG believe the ceremonial route will provide the marathon with an iconic backdrop.

Traditionally the event has finished at the Games' main stadium and the original plan plotted a path from Tower Bridge to the Olympic Stadium in Stratford, east London.

But LOCOG are eager to incorporate as many London landmarks as possible and favour The Mall, which is also the finish line for the annual London Marathon.

LOCOG director of venues and infrastructure James Bulley, however, today stressed discussions over the course are still ongoing.

"No final decision over the marathon has been made at this point," said Bulley.

"We're still working with the international federation and various technical bodies to understand exactly what will be best for London 2012.

"A number of different routes and scenarios are being examined at the moment.

"We have some preferred scenarios and we're working those through with the international federations.

"We have to strike a balance between factors such as the implications for traffic and road closures on the day and getting people around to other events.

"We also want to use as many iconic locations in the route as possible and, of course, it has to work well for all the athletes.

"The fact it traditionally finishes at the stadium is a consideration. The stadium has been designed to accommodate it and finishing there remains one of the options."


Link

This all sounds very promising ,

As I hoped the marathon could include more landmarks like the Albert memorial
And Natural history museum , Victoria and Albert museum. Piccadilly circus why not.

[daveypod-less]

All the 2012 marathons will start and end in the Mall, the rumour is true. Bit contravertial.

http://www.london201...to-start-an.php

Edited by daveypodmore, 04 October 2010 - 11:07 AM.