The London Organising Committee of the Olympic Games announced today that an Olympic Handover Flag will be raised at the Town Hall in Ipswich to celebrate the moment when London becomes the official Olympic Games Host City, on Sunday 24 August.
A first in the history of the Olympic and Paralympic Games, the iconic London Olympic Handover Flag will be raised in Ipswich simultaneously with regions around the UK. Ipswich's Ambassador for Sport, swimming legend Karen Pickering, will join the Mayor, David Hale, local sports stars and Team Ipswich and Borough Council officials to help raise the Olympic Handover Flag.
The flag-raising event will also kick off Ipswich's Community Carnival. The Carnival Parade will open with a welcome performance at the Wolsey Theatre at 2.00pm, before moving on to the Cornhill. Here a 30-piece children's Chinese Drum Ensemble will play the Beijing Olympic theme as the Mayor welcomes the Olympic Handover Flag to Ipswich at 2.15pm. The parade will then continue from the Cornhill to Christchurch Park, arriving at 3.00pm with samba and Indian taul drummers playing.
The Flag in Ipswich will be one of more than 500 flags delivered to locations, including HM Armed Forces, embassies around the world, city halls, British Council offices and Foreign and Commonwealth offices.
Councillor Judy Terry, Ipswich Borough Council's Arts, Culture & Leisure portfolio-holder, said: "This is a huge moment for Ipswich and we are very proud to have been chosen for this key ceremony. We have built up the Team Ipswich sports programme with local businesses in order to help aspiring sportsmen and women and to promote Ipswich as a training venue for 2012."
The Chairman of the London 2012 Organising Committee, Sebastian Coe said: "When the Mayor of London accepts the Olympic Flag on 24 August, the eyes of the world will turn to London and the UK as the next Summer Host City. It is a very important and exciting moment for us, and we want as many people as possible to join in the Handover celebrations. We are delighted that so many local authorities share our excitement and are proudly displaying the Olympic Handover Flag to mark this very special moment on our journey to 2012."