Olympic flame hopefuls gather in Winchester (From Hampshire Chronicle)
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Olympic flame hopefuls gather in Winchester
4:20pm Thursday 10th November 2011 in North Winchester
Olympic torch hopeful Aaron-Joseph Moraghan on his marks, joined by Team GB runner Louise Damen, and Winchester civic dignitaries and other shortlisted torch carriers at the Bar End running track
THEY are on their marks and set to carry the Olympic flame through Hampshire.
Route organisers have revealed that it will pass through Winchester and Kings Worthy on its way to London next summer.
The action will take place on July 11 as the torch heads from Basingstoke to Andover via Winchester.
While the route is agreed, there remains the equally vital issue of who will carry the iconic flame.
Organisers have asked people to nominate community stalwarts worthy of the honour.
The shortlist of carriers has now been revealed, of which one in six will make the final list of runners.
Several Winchester district councillors have put names forward and some were present at a launch event on Monday (November 7).
It was held at the city’s running track in Bar End, which is amongst the list of training venues being offered to Olympic teams.
The torch hopefuls included Westgate School pupil Aaron-Joseph Moraghan.
The 14-year-old of Highcroft Road in Winchester said: “I was taken aback when I heard I’d made the shortlist because I knew so many people had been nominated.”
Also in the frame is Rosemary Kenyon from High Street in Southwick near Wickham who chairs the village’s community association.
The 76-year-old said: “My grandchildren think it’s wonderful and they said it’s a bit of history and told me to ‘go for it nan’.”
Also hoping to carry the flame is 85-year-old Sydney Dean from Hill Pound in Swanmore.
An organiser of several community events in the village, he hopes to make the final list of carriers.
“I was delighted to make the shortlist and I’m in it to win it,” he said.
The other nominees include Hermione Goulding, 75, of Christchurch Road in Winchester. She has carried out fund-raising for several charities and tackled community work at Winchester Prison.
The event on Monday was also attended by Winchester-based Team GB marathon runner Louise Damen.
City council leader Cllr George Beckett, whose daughter Julia is a Commonwealth silver-medallist swimmer, was there too.
He said: “This is a great opportunity for local people to be part of the spectacle of the Olympic Torch Relay.”
He added: “We hope people will come in large numbers to join in a day of fun, drama, colour and friendship.”
The final list of torch carriers is due to be released ahead of the flame arriving in Britain next May.
Its 8,000-mile route through the UK is expected to take 70 days to complete.
