Boxing legend Muhammad Ali to take part in London 2012 opening ceremony

[TheLastLazyGun]

Boxing legend Muhammad Ali is to lead a parade of sporting greats at the London 2012 opening ceremony on Friday. The parade will include David Beckham and long distance runner Haile Gebrselassie.


Spectators attending the opening ceremony rehearsals. They have been asked to keep tight-lipped over ceremony secrets although it is known that the British countryside has been recreated inside the Olympic Stadium for the event.



Movie A-listers Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie, Prince Harry and the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge and Posh and Becks are all due to attend Olympic charity events this week.

America’s First Lady Michelle Obama will be at the opening night and is to meet 1,000 kids at a London event.


Actors about to take part in the opening ceremony dress rehearsal

US basketball legend Michael Jordan, British rowing great Sir Steven Redgrave, gymnasts Larisa Latynina – the most successful Olympian ever with 18 medals – Nadia Comaneci, Olga Korbut, and swimmers Mark Spitz and Michael Phelps could also all play a part in the ceremony.

The Royal Family will also attend the opening ceremony. Princess Anne, the president of the British Olympic Association (BOA) has been tipped as a contender to light the cauldron at the event. Organisers want a former Olympian to have the honour. The Princess Royal took part in equestrian in the Montreal Games in 1976.

Great Britain's Olympic team will be the largest at London 2012 with 542 members, followed by the USA with 530 and then Russia.

London 2012 will be the first Olympics ever in which every team taking part has women athletes.


Big Ben is to chime non-stop for three minutes to help ring in the London 2012 Olympics

London 2012 photos:


Olympic Park flowers in full bloom: The wild flowers in the Olympic Park have sprung into full bloom just in time for the start of the London 2012 Olympic Games


Archery Training at Lord's Cricket Ground: Sung Jin Lee of South Korea warms up for the Olympics at Lord's Cricket Ground where that event is to be held


Beach Volleyball training at Horse Guards Parade: Marie-Andree Lessard of Canada prepares for the Olympic Beach Volleyball at Horse Guards.


10km Marathon Swimming training at Hyde Park: Open water swimmer Colin Hill swims past the Serpentine Pavillion, as he tests the 10km Marathon Swimming course at Hyde Park


Troops on guard at the entrance to the Park


Colourful path, Olympic Stadium and The Orbit


Basketball and handball arena




Testing the BMX arena


Here are some pictures of the Olympic Village at the Olympic Park in east London, which many of the athletes who have been arriving over the last week from around the world have described as the best there has ever been.

The London mayor took a tour of the athletes' village. The village has 2,818 apartments in 11 accommodation blocks, a 225x80m hall that can seat 5,000 at a time and will be open 24 hours a day, and recreation areas. About 16,000 men and women from 204 countries will converge on the village during the Games


Outdoor seating, with the Velodrome in the background


The Olympic rings in front of the open park area


Decorated balconies of athletes' rooms


The beds have London 2012 quilt covers


One of the bedrooms


The village gym


Bar and lounge area


Recreational area

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A performance area for speakers and singers


The world's biggest dining room for the athletes


Detailed nutritional information is displayed above the food


Inside the world's biggest McDonald's restaurant


The mayor visits the salon, where staff have been trained to paint fingernails in all off the flags of the 204 competing nations


A giant Connect 4 game in the recreational area






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[TheLastLazyGun]

London 2012 has just got under way with the first event of this Olympics: Great Britain vs New Zealand in the women's football.

Watch it live here: BBC Sport - London 2012 Olympics

[Lachlan09]

How about North Korea v Colombia ? That South Korean flag flying beside the North Korean footballers' photos on the big screen ? Talk about red rag to a bull ?! Priceless !

[aNonnyMoose]

Notice London trying to avoid the blame for that one, Lachlan... First reports stated that official said they had just played what London sent them to play (i.e. the mistake was made there, not at Hampden). These changed within an hour or two to "investigations are under way to establish what went wrong", neatly avoiding any mention that the mistake was made in London - not Glasgow.

I did find it rather amusing, having said that. The Team GB football result against the mighty Senegal also raised a wry smile...

[TheLastLazyGun]

Originally Posted by Lachlan09

How about North Korea v Colombia ? That South Korean flag flying beside the North Korean footballers' photos on the big screen ? Talk about red rag to a bull ?! Priceless !

Yeah, and it happened in Scotland.

[TheLastLazyGun]

Originally Posted by aNonnyMoose

I did find it rather amusing, having said that. The Team GB football result against the mighty Senegal also raised a wry smile...

Will you still be smiling if they get through to the semi-final tonight?

And Great Britain are doing well, aren't they? Third in the medals table with ten gold medals - two golds coming in the space of just half an hour earlier today- with Our Jess almost guaranteed to get a gold medal in the pentathlon.

Go GB!!

[Lachlan09]

Third place with 14 gold medals is excellent for the British team. Well done England !

Re-the N Korean flag gaffe, according to BBC World News, the Glasgow stadium only displayed what was sent to them from down South. Ho hum.

The GB footie team out at Q Finals. I guess Mr Posh-Spice will be able to say "Serves you right"

I've not been able to see much Olympics action. I wish I could see the Ladies Beach Volleyball, it must be a good sport to watch as it's always sold out, with apparently a lot of men going to watch. These men must be keen spectators, as they even wear their plastic macs and raincoats in case it rains, but seem camera-shy for some odd reason. There's lots of noise, shouting and whistling etc, but strangely no clapping ! The commentator said something about not easy to clap with only one hand, but I don't understand that.