School pupils set for London 2012 Olympic opening ceremony
The opening ceremony of London 2012 is set to feature a guard of honour composed of 2000 school children from Tower Hamlets.
The pupils will line the route down which 10,500 athletes from the 204 competing national teams will enter the ceremony, giving many of the sports men and women their first experience of London 2012.
The athletes will be greeted by lanterns and banners made by the pupils who have already began studying the different cultures represented at the Games to ensure they provide the athletes with a memorable welcome.
Among the schools participating are Cayley Primary School, Swanlea School, Marion Richardson Primary School, and Stepney Green Maths and Computing and Science college.
Mayor of Tower Hamlets Lutfur Rahman believes children in the borough deserve the opportunity to take part in London 2012.
He said: “This is a wonderful reward for the work that our schools have been doing, making the Games a once in a lifetime experience for our young people and the schools’ local community. I am delighted that so many of our schools have been chosen to take part in this prestigious event.”
The athletes will pass through the guard of honour in alphabetical order of nations, with the exception of Greece - which always enters the ceremony first - and Great Britain, which will comply with IOC custom by entering last.
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The children involved in the guard of honour will also have the opportunity to tour the Olympic Park site and some of the main venues for the games before the opening ceremony gets underway later in the day.
