London Olympics 2012 be wowed FEATURE

Forget about the London 2012 Olympic logo - get ready to be wowed! We look at what the forthcoming games have in store for both athletes and Londoners, detailing some of the venues that will be used for the games, the events that will be held, and what the city will be lifet with after the London Olympics have finished.

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By the time the Olympic Flame arrives in the UK on 18 May 2012, there should be few people in Britain who aren't familiar with the London 2012 Olympics logo and this time let's hope it'll be for all the right reasons. Controversy surrounded the games' logo on its unveiling in 2007. Some opponents said it bore too much of a similarity to a swastika while others scoffed at the cost of design (reportedly 400,000). But London may just about be forgiven for the Olympics logo if it can pull off what it promises with the 2012 games.

While the city is hoping to stage a world-class sporting event in the summer of 2012, as well as a number of cultural festivals, it's also hoped that the Olympics will bring Londoners lasting benefits. A number of these have already begun, including the regeneration of the Lower Lea Valley, jobs and skills training, and business support initiatives. In addition, the London 2012 Olympics will leave a number of top-class sporting facilities, such as swimming pools, cycling facilities, and tennis courts, in the hope of fostering future generations of Olympic champions.

As to the games themselves, London wants the opening and closing ceremonies to act as a welcome to the rest of the world and show them the diversity of the UK while setting the tone for the event. The ceremonies will be held in the Olympic Stadium, situated south of the Olympic Park in east London on an island surrounded by waterways. Capacity at the Olympic Stadium is 80,000, with access via five bridges connecting the stadium to the surrounding area. All athletic events (both for the Olympic and Paralympic games) will be held in the Olympic Stadium. After the games, it's planned to scale back this venue to a capacity of 25,000 and use it for sporting, cultural, and community events.

The Olympic Park will create a green backdrop to the games and provide a space for the community once the games have finished. During the event, the southern part of the park will be used to celebrate the festival atmosphere of the games and accommodate riverside gardens, markets, cafes, and bars, while the northern end will be a quieter space providing habitat for hundreds of species of wildlife, from kingfishers to otters.

Not all Olympic venues are in London; there are a number located outside the city. For example, the City of Coventry Stadium in the centre of England, and Hampden Park in Scotland, will both host some of the football games. Weymouth Bay and Portland Harbour, both on the southern coast of the country, will be the venue for the Olympic and Paralympic sailing competitions.

There are 26 sports featured in the London 2012 Olympics, from archery to wrestling.

Given how well Great Britain's athletes performed at the Beijing Olympics in 2008, hopes are mounting for similar success on home soil. According to the Daily Telegraph, the following UK athletes are among the ones to watch: Hollie Avil (triathlon), Aaron Cook (taekwondo), David Daniell (track cycling sprint), Paul Drinkhall (table tennis), Daniel Keatings (gymnastics), Gordon Reid (wheelchair tennis), Perri Shakes-Drayton (athletics, 400m hurdler), Elizabeth Simpkin (paralympic swimming), Megan Sylvester (diving), and Stephanie Twell (athletics, 1500m runner).

From planting out the London 2012 Garden, which will stretch for half a mile along the River Thames between the aquatics centre and the Olympic Stadium, to organising the 70,000 games markers (volunteers) for the event, London is busy making sure it gives the world a show worth seeing. And if it does, then who's going to care about an odd-looking logo?

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