A Year To Go!!

It's now a year to go until the 2012 Olympics -with the sailing events taking place in Weymouth and Portland.

To mark the 1 year countdown to the start of the London 2012 Games on 27 July 2012, members of the Weymouth & Portland 2012 Operations team organised for a giant banner to be displayed and photographed on Portland Bill Lighthouse.

The iconic landmark, overlooking the waters of Portland, the Jurassic Coast and Weymouth Bay where the London 2012 sailing events will be held, formed the perfect location to set the stage for the 1 year to go countdown.

The banner, which depicts a large figure 1 above the London 2012 logo, was signed by over 400 local Weymouth & Portland school children, attending a secondary college day at Weymouth College, with messages of goodwill to Team GB.

The Mayor of Portland, Cllr Ian Munro Price and the Deputy Mayor of Weymouth and Portland, Cllr Margaret Leicester put the final touches to the banner with their own messages of goodwill before it was hoisted.

Cllr Howard Legg, W&PBC Brief Holder for Special Projects said:

"It's great to see one of Dorset's and the Borough's most memorable landmarks being used as part of a national campaign - I hope that the images will inspire people to visit us and this beautiful part of Dorset in 2012 and encourage local residents to be a part of the historic event taking place within our community"

The Weymouth & Portland Operations team is now working with LOCOG to come up with ideas to extend the life of the banner; in the meantime if you would like to see it, it will be displayed off the RYA building, Portland House, Osprey Quay, on Wednesday 27 July.

To help celebrate the London 2012 Games coming to Dorset, Weymouth & Portland, a window sticker depicting a Team GB yacht in action, with the strapline 'Bring on the Games, Be inspired, Be part of it" is now available to anyone who wants to demonstrate their support for the Games.

Stickers are available free of charge from local newsagents and from Weymouth & Portland, Dorset and West Dorset Council offices.