Torch leaves Suffolk briefly following celebrations in our county town

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The Olympic torch successfully completed the first leg of its three day tour of Suffolk yesterday, culminating in a spectacular evening celebration in Ipswich.

 

Olympic cauldron lit in Ipswich

Torchbearer Nicola Hunt lights the cauldron with the Olympic Flame following the Torch Relay journey between.

Tens of thousands of people lined the route as the torch visited Lowestoft, Wrentham, Reydon, Southwold, Kelsale, Saxmundham, Aldeburgh, Wickham Market, Ufford, Melton, Woodbridge and Felixstowe before coming to rest in Suffolk’s county town.

20,000 people attended the evening celebration, which saw a variety of entertainment acts including music from Morning Parade and a dance act Twist and Pulse. There was also performances by the Aldeburgh Young Musicians, Group A and DanceEast.

The last Torchbearer of the day was Nicola Hunt from Ipswich who was nominated because she is a talented archer and won her first individual international medal at the European Indoor Championships in 2008. In 2009 Nicky became the first Britain to win a World Cup stage and ended the World Cup Series ranked 1st. She won Individual and Team gold at the 2010 Commonwealth Games in Delhi - England's first archery gold medal at the Commonwealth Games for 28 years.

Today the torch leaves Suffolk in the early morning, before returning on Saturday afternoon to visit Haverhill, Bury St Edmunds and Newmarket.

Between 160,000 and 190,000 people are expected to line the route in what will be a opportunity to showcase Suffolk to the rest of the UK and the world.

 

Torch afloat in Ipswich

Torchbearer Ranvir Sandhu rides a boat as he carries the Olympic Flame on the waters around Ipswich, on Torch Relay journey between Felixstowe and Ipswich.

Everyone in the county lives a maximum 30 minutes from the route and of course, many people live significantly closer than that.

Why not check the route and come and share in this special moment?








A full list of the locations being visited (in order): 

Friday 6th July

Ipswich - departing Christchurch Park
(06:35 - 07:08).

Saturday 7th July

Haverhill
(14:30 - 15:15)

Bury St Edmunds
(15:30 - 17:10)

Newmarket
(17:20 - 17:52)

You can view the complete list of roads here

Twitter

Twitter during the torch relay

Suffolk’s councils and police are tweeting news and updates about the torch relay. Follow them at:

  • @SuffolkCC,
  • @IpswichGov,
  • @forestheath,
  • @stedsbc,
  • @waveneydc,
  • @SuffolkCoastal,
  • @SuffolkPolice

and please use #suffolktorch and #olympictorch in your own tweets.