Olympic 2012 Torch Relay – North East of England Photos and Comments
The Olympic Torch arrived in our region on Thursday 14 June and is due to leave on Wednesday 20 June where it will leave Barnard Castle heading west towards North Yorkshire and then crossing into Cumbria.
During this time it will have passed through 62 villages, towns and cities in the North East.
The torch came to my area in Roker on Saturday. Standing across the road down from the Wolsey Pub dozens and dozens of spectators stood eagerly waiting. First came the police cars and bikes closing off the roads, giving high 5s to the spectators and sounding their sirens, this created an amazing atmosphere!
A few buses then past by, Coca cola (giving out free bottles), free GB flags, Samsung bus, Loyds tsb bus (several of the olympics official sponsors) and more.
Photo by Adrian Jackson
The Official Torchbearer bus arrived and dropped off torchbearer Claire Paczko, 36, from Newcastle. Whilst she awaited the arrival of the flame she was interviewed along with BBC Look North weather girl Hannah Bayman.
Claire has raised thousands of pounds on behalf of many various charities and she spends her free time helping Cancer Research UK, Macmillan Cancer Support, Crisis and St Oswald’s Hospice in Newcastle.
Claire told us “Fabulous street support, awe-inspiring Torchbearer stories, there are no words which can paint the emotional picture…it was an incredibly well oiled machine, the London 2012 team were professional & encouraging.”
With only a few days of the torch relay left in the region I strongly recommend you go along and see it! A very historic moment for the North East.
See our previous blog for details of where it’s heading on Monday here olympic-2012-torch-relay-north-east-of-england-guide.
Below is a slide show of a collection of photos taken by us and several local photographers Adrian Jackson, Leah Pattem and Amblenorthumberland in Amble, Alnwick, Whitley Bay, South Shields, Roker and Newcastle (more to be added).
Your Comments
“Went to see it near my home and then at evening celebration i think the whole experience is amazing and I am proud of how the north east welcomed the torch amazing looking forward to volunteering in london during olympics. I am very passionate about london 2012 words just can’t describe my excitement also part of a friendship group who are all very vey excited to be involved in the games as volunteers over many different roles and locations” Claire Wynarczyk, 22 from Ashington
Photo by Leah Pattem
“I’m a Photographer and on Friday afternoon I was actually on a shoot in Whitley Bay, so I had my camera on me anyway and got the go-ahead to run down to the sea to catch the torch passing! Actually I didn’t even get a shot of the torchbearer coming, I wanted to watch that bit without looking through a lens for once! But what I got the most out of at the event was the atmosphere – from kids with their little paper torches and Gran’s wrapped in blankets, to the vast number of cameras clicking away and the people cheering and chatting away behind them! Certainly in my lifetime, I’ve never felt Whitley Bay buzz so much!”Leah Pattem, 27 from Whitley bay.
“Fantastic atmosphere, Deerness gymnasts were awesome, whole communities out in force to welcome the torch to Durham” Allison Piper, Durham
“The Torch Relay was a once in a lifetime event – an amazing sight and an honour for Amble to be a part of. Although the weather was cold + wet, many local people turned out to support Logan Jones and Lisa French who carried the torches.” AmbleNorthumberland
“Fantastic turnout in Hexham. Difficult for little ones to be patient or understand the importance. Great to see it!” Peter Davies with wife an 3 year old son Ralph from Hexham
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Please send your comments and photos to us on our facebook page, twitter or email [email protected] and we will try to add as many as we can, thanks!
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