Suffolk: Paralympic Flame Celebrations Continue

26 August 2012, 09:37 | Updated: 26 August 2012, 09:44

The celebrations continue in Suffolk today for the Paralympic Flame.

The Flame is part of the National Flame created on the summit of Scafell Pike on 22nd August by a group of Scouts who used a ferrocerium rod to strike against a rough steel surface to create the sparks.

It was collected by local Needham Market artist Amy Nettleton during a special ceremony at Trafalgar Square in London and transported back to Suffolk in a miner's lantern.

It visited Needham Market on Friday, where it was part of an afternoon festival of free entertainment and sport at the town's lake. There was also a lantern procession around the town, led by Suffolk Paralympic athlete Brian Alldis, and then a firework display back at the lake. 

Yesterday the flame visited disability sports events in Suffolk and there was a private event for local groups and clubs at the Sportspark at the UEA in Norwich.

Today the Flame will be visiting some more disability sports clubs in Suffolk including:

Ipswich Disability Sport Forum at Northgate Sports Centre, Ipswich -  A multi-sport taster event. (Sun 26 Aug, 09.30 - 12:00).

Exning Wheelchair Tennis Club in Exning - A wheelchair tennis demonstration. (Sun 26 Aug, 11:00 - 15:00).

Abbeycroft Leisure at Bury St Edmunds Leisure Centre - A multi-sport taster event. (Sun 26 Aug, 13:00 - 16:00).

The flame will move west again on Monday 27 August, where it will be on display at the Suffolk Lap of Honour exhibition at Moyse's Hall Museum in Bury St Edmunds. The free exhibition celebrates Suffolk's Olympic and Paralympic heritage.

Councillor Colin Noble, Suffolk County Council's cabinet member for sport and the Paralympics, said:

"Excitement is certainly building for the Paralympics with Suffolk, like the rest of the UK, currently in the grip of London 2012 fever.

It might not be that well know but Team GB came second in the medal table at the 2008 Beijing Paralympic Games - scooping 42 golds in their impressive 102 medal haul.

Suffolk is sending two Paralympians to the Games and hosting the flame over four days of exciting activities taking place across the county -  so I am confident that communities will join in the celebrations and will get behind Team GB over the coming weeks."

The Paralympic Flame will be created by uniting the four National Flames during a special ceremony at Stoke Mandeville, the spiritual home of the Paralympic movement, on Tuesday 28th August. The Flame will then be carried by Torchbearers, working in teams of five, during a 24 hour relay to the Olympic Stadium for the Opening Ceremony of the London 2012 Paralympic Games. For more information visit http://www.london2012.com/paralympics/torch-relay/  

Related Articles: 

http://www.heart.co.uk/norfolk/news/local/paralympic-flame-suffolk-norfolk/