Overnight celebrations for the Olympic Torch procession through Lincoln on June 27, 2012 will be held at Yarborough Sports Ground, it has been officially announced.
The free event will take place exactly one month ahead of the opening ceremony in London, but there are few details over what the celebration will entail — set to be announced nearer the time.
The Olympic Flame will stay in Lincoln overnight before it leaves the city on Thursday, June 28 to continue its journey though Saxilby, Grantham, Stamford and Market Deeping.
The party at Yarborough’s 4,000m2 acre site will be led by the City of Lincoln Council, supported by organisations from across the county.
City Council Leader Ric Metcalfe said: “Playing host to the Olympic Flame is a great honour and we’re delighted to be welcoming it to Lincoln.
“Planning is already well underway to ensure the evening celebration brings out all that is great about this city.
“Yarborough is the city’s sports hub and the size and position of the site makes it an ideal venue for an outdoor event of this size and magnitude.
“We will be working with our partners to ensure that young people in Lincoln are central to this once in a lifetime opportunity to be part of 2012 Olympic legacy.”
Details about the timing of the event, how many people will be able to attend, who will be performing and how people can attend are currently being finalised.
Evening celebrations will be free of charge, and each event will be different, with locally-programmed content on the stage, as thousands more people are expected to celebrate along the route each day.
As part of the events LOCOG and the Olympic Torch Relay partners, Coca-Cola, Lloyds TSB/Bank of Scotland and Samsung, will stage entertainment shows where a cauldron will be lit from the Olympic Flame, marking the end of the day’s proceedings.
Sebastian Coe, Chair of LOCOG, said: “We have no doubt Lincoln will help to stage an Evening Celebration event that captures the excitement, passion and spirit of the Olympic Torch Relay as it comes to rest at Yarborough.”
Stuart Blackbourn, Contract Manager for Active Nation, who manage the Yarborough site, said he is delighted Lincoln has been chosen as the host for the Olympic Torch overnight:
“An event of this magnitude will be an exciting catalyst for kick-starting the buzz for sport and exercise locally in an Olympic year,” Blackbourn added.
Janet Inman, Chief Executive Officer at Lincolnshire Sports Partnership, said: “For many individuals it could be their only chance to see the Torch and the closest that lots of individuals will get to the Olympic Games.
“I hope everyone in the local area, and people from across the county will attend this inspiring event and be involved in the 2012 Games.”
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Marc Jones, the re-elected Conservative Lincolnshire Police and Crime Commissioner, said that his work is not done, as he’s looking forward to a further three years in the role.
Mr Jones won with a 57.9% majority of the poll from the first round of counting, with 102,813 votes from a 31% turnout. A total of 177,528 votes were placed county-wide.
The nearest candidate was Labour’s Rosanne Kirk, with a 19% share of the votes, with Lincolnshire Independent David Williams securing the third spot with 10%.
The breakdown of the votes cast on Thursday, May 6, and counted on Saturday, may 8, was:
Marc Jones (Conservative) – 102,813
Rosanne Kirk (Labour) – 34,310
David Williams (Lincolnshire Independent) – 18,375
Ross Pepper (Liberal Democrats) – 10,172
Peter Escreet (Reform UK) – 6,101
Marc Jones: “More work to do”
“It’s very gratifying to have concluded today on the first count, that was a really positive thing for what I’ve delivered so far,” said Mr Jones.
“But I’m under no illusions having spoken to many around the county there’s an awful lot more work to do.”
He said he wanted to assure the public that “nothing was taken for granted”.
Rosie Kirk – Labour – 2nd place
Labour’s candidate Rosie Kirk said she was “thrilled for her party” across all three elections that had taken place in Lincolnshire this week.
“The votes that we got was incredible. Our message got through and to actually come second in a Conservative county is really great,” she said.
However, she added that there were “lots of questions that still need to be asked” and promised to keep up her scrutiny of Marc in his role.
Ross Pepper – Liberal Democrats
Liberal Democrat candidate Ross Pepper said the result was not “entirely unexpected”.
However, he said he was proud of the three Liberal Democrat councillors that had won seats in the local elections at Lincolnshire County and City of Lincoln Councils.
“I’m ready to work with them for a better Lincolnshire and a better Lincoln,” he said.
“In a Conservative heavy county we did a really good job of getting the Liberal Democrat message out there… and we continue pushing that message through local campaigning in the future.”
David Williams – Lincolnshire Independents
David Williams, the Lincolnshire Independents PCC candidate congratulated Marc Jones on his victory but said it is “not a surprising outcome”.
“I’m really pleased to have run for the post, because if I hadn’t have had a go to do a job that I really would have relished then I would have looked back and regretted not having taking the opportunity.”
Peter Escreet – Reform UK
Peter Escreet, the Reform UK candidate also said the result “was as expected” but actually he was “pleasantly surprised,” saying that this is “just the start”.
“The real campaign is in three years’ time” where Mr Escreet wants to grow a majority.
Conservative Marc Jones has been re-elected to the Lincolnshire Police and Crime Commissioner role.
He won from the first round of counting with 102,813 votes from a 31% turnout.
The PCC oversees the strategy and finances of the force, and also hires and fires chief constables, who are responsible for the daily policing operations.
Mr Jones will be in the position for three years.
The breakdown of the results is:
Marc Jones (Conservative) – 102,813
Rosanne Kirk (Labour) – 34,310
Ross Pepper (Liberal Democrats) – 10,172
David Williams (Lincolnshire Independent) – 18,375
Peter Escreet (Reform UK) – 6,101
Here’s the live result announcement, the reactions and acceptance speech:
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