Hundreds of people across Staffordshire have 'Olympic Moment' as part of the London 2012 Open Weekend

 

Hundreds of people from across Staffordshire had their very own ‘Olympic Moment’ at a series of events from 23 to 25 July that took place across the County as part of London 2012 Open Weekend.

 

Marking the beginning of the countdown to two years to go until the start of the 2012 Games, London 2012 Open Weekend is an annual event and the UK’s largest celebration of cultural, sporting and educational activity. This year, London 2012 Open Weekend saw literally hundreds of arts, sports, family and educational events taking place right across the UK.

 

This year’s theme was ‘challenge yourself’ and each event included a challenge to members of the public to try or learn something new as part of the activity. From a Triathlon Challenge, to a re-enactment of a Saxon battle, a Community Games and a fun day, there was literally something for everyone whatever their age, ability or background, as part of Staffordshire’s London 2012 Open Weekend programme.

 

Some of the highlights included:

• A 2012 Triathlon Challenge in Newcastle with the aim being to cover the distance to the Olympic venues in London without leaving North Staffordshire. Leisure centre customers were encouraged to take part as part of their normal workouts in the gym on the treadmills & bikes. Swimmers could complete their mile or more as part of their normal visit or in a special mile swim session. Over 150 people took part and covered 441 miles between them.

• At Tamworth Youth Centre a series of challenges were on offer including a climbing wall, a chance to complete a community mural, a robotic table tennis player (Robopong), Fun Sports, a chance to broadcast live on radio with TCRFM and lots more. Various partners were on hand to support including Connexions, Tamworth Amateur Radio Society, Tamworth Judo Club and others. A fun day was had by all and many people were prepared to “Take the Challenge” including the Mayor of Tamworth - Lee Bates who also presented certificates to young people who had completed various awards throughout the last year.

• The Anglesey Community Games on Saturday 24 July was organised by East Staffordshire Borough Council and was a fun filled day for all of the local community. There was a range of traditional games and also the opportunity to try more diverse events such as riding the rodeo bull and a knitting competition. There was also the chance to come along and try different cuisines, as all different cultures were invited to bring various foods to offer to those attending.

 

• ‘Celebrating Staffordshire’ was a tremendously successful event, attracting approximately 2,000 members of the public to Stafford Market Square – and over 900 visitors to the Shire Hall Gallery’s ‘Sense of Place’ exhibition. Burton Youth Dance performed several contemporary street dance routines, drawing a large crowd and staging an impromptu dance-off with some passing tourists. Live music was provided by young people participating in the Make Some noise ‘Soundcheck’ project, who did a 40 minute set of crowd pleasing rock and indie covers and had many visitors singing and dancing along, and the afternoon was brightened up by Art Brasil from Stoke on Trent who brought along a carnival atmosphere with drums, whistles and samba dancing. The star attraction was Albert, the red deer but there were also a number of very popular activities, including a chance to try on armour with the Ancient High House Stafford and Tudor costume from Tamworth castle, plate painting with the Wedgwood museum and creative activities with artists Naomi Greaves and Adrienne Francis. Inside the Shire Hall Gallery, artist David Gleeson was painting live and photographer Rick Barks was talking about his work. The event was also used to launch ‘Every Object Tells a Story’, a partnership project between ten of Staffordshire’s museums participating in the BBC History of the World project and had stalls from www.enjoystaffordshire.com, Staffordshire Wildlife Trust, the Family Information Service Staffordshire, Staffordshire Library Service and Staffordshire Youth Services.

• The Aerra Lida Festival at Lichfield Cathedral, which celebrated the Staffordshire Hoard, was attended by thousands of people. From face painting and battle skirmishes, to cathedral tours and music making workshops, people young and old enjoyed the Anglo Saxon inspired day.

In addition to these events there were also: 

• Closer to Home – circular walks in Burslem Park
• Away Pitch – the launch of the touring exhibition combining art and sport
• Charity It’s a Knockout Competition
• Culture Cubed project launch – people were invited to create a work or art about their community that fitted into a cube 2012mm square
• Wildflower Meadow Safari – guided walks at Park Hall Country Park
• Wild Steps – walks at Apedale Country Park
• Staffordshire Hoard Torchlight Night – exploring new additions to the Staffordshire Hoard by torchlight at the Potteries Museum and Art Gallery

Chris Kirkland
Staffordshire Co-ordinator for the 2012 Games
T: 01785 854595
M: 07773 791118

E: chris.kirkland@staffordshire.gov.uk