Let the London Games begin

London 2012 schedule released as the Olympic countdown continues

It seems like another lifetime ago that London was first awarded the Olympic games for the summer of 2012. It was way back in 2005 when Londoners and celebrity personalities associated with the bid filled Trafalgar Square to the brim, all waiting and praying for positive news from the International Olympic Committee in Singapore.

Now, six years later and with the games just 17 months away, the official schedule for this historic summer of sport has been released and athletes, media and the general public can start to plan their visits to London. Suddenly, after years of waiting, the Games seem a great deal closer.

Strangely, the Games officially kick off before the grand opening ceremony at the Olympic Stadium in east London. The women's and men's football competitions begin on Wednesday 25th and Thursday 26th July in stadiums up and down the country. Then, on the Friday, the eyes of the whole world will be cast upon London as the official opening ceremony - complete with a spectacular dance, music and fireworks show - takes place, raising the curtain on the Games of the XXX Olympiad, to give the event its official title.

Then, on Saturday 28th July, the events will start to take place. On the first day of the Games, 12 of the 302 gold medals will be won in competitions such as the women's 10m air rifle at the Royal Artillery Barracks in Woolwich and the six-hour men's cycling road race, which traverses the streets of London, down into the Surrey countryside (via Richmond Park and Bushy Park) and then back into the capital for a finish in front of Buckingham Palace.

The sheer scale of just how much sport needs to be crammed into two weeks is underlined by the fact that on the opening day, the action will begin at around 8am and finish at around midnight. And the first day also sees some iconic London venues come into play: the tennis competition begins at the world-famous Wimbledon Lawn Tennis Association, the men's team archery gets underway at the picturesque setting of Lord's Cricket Ground and, perhaps most interestingly, Horse Guards Parade stages the opening rounds of the beach volleyball competition.

The next few days sees some of Team GB's heroes from the Beijing Games in 2008 take centre stage. Nicole Cooke, Rebecca Adlington and Tom Daley are all aiming to bring further success to the host nation in their respective sports of cycling, swimming and diving, and the British sailing team will be looking to make 2012 the fourth Games in a row in which they've dominated the medal honours.

At the halfway point, the Games begin to heat up with the start of the track and field athletics competitions. Team GB poster-girl Jessica Ennis will be immediately under the spotlight as she attempts to master the 100m hurdles, high jump, shot put and 200m sprint all in one day, as part of her assault on the heptathlon title. Saturday 4th August is likely to be one of the Games' most noteworthy dates, with a jam-packed schedule of events and a whopping 25 gold medals to be won. It's also the day where Londoners will get a first glimpse of sensational Jamaican sprinter Usain Bolt, the star of the 2008 Games.

The following day sees Paula Radcliffe attempt to bring home the gold medal in the gruelling marathon, which finishes in grand style for the winner down The Mall. It's a day of great potential for Team GB: Ben Ainslie could wrap up gold in the sailing down in Weymouth, tennis star Andy Murray could be in with a shot at the men's singles medal with the final at Wimbledon, and Christine Ohuruogu will attempt to retain the women's 400m, an event she memorably won in Beijing in 2008.

The remainder of the week sees the Games start to wind down but the action will be no less compelling. Sir Chris Hoy and Victoria Pendleton will be the main centres of attention as Team GB attempts to make it another wildly successful year in the velodrome. At the idyllic Greenwich Park, the team show jumping final will take place and, over at the Olympic Stadium, the nation will be willing on the colourful Phillips Idowu in the men's triple jump, as he hopes to go one better than his silver medal in Beijing. Hyde Park hosts the women's 10k open water swim and the football finals will take place at Wembley Stadium.

On Sunday 12th August, after 16 days of events, the curtain finally comes down on the London Games with another lavish ceremony, in which the Olympics bid farewell to London and the countdown to the next event, in Rio de Janeiro, begins. Any sadness amongst Londoners at the passing of the Games should be tempered by the fact that they will have just hosted an incredible and inspiring festival of sport that should leave a lasting legacy on the city and the country.

London 2012 chairman Lord Sebastian Coe has claimed the announcement of the schedule is a landmark moment for the Games, calling them "the greatest tickets for the greatest show on Earth". He said: "This is a really big moment, a huge moment. In my own experience as a competitor this is the point that it suddenly becomes very real. I remember this point in the build-up to Los Angeles, and suddenly realising I was going to be running seven races in nine days. We are now getting to the business end of the project and we know from the number of people who have signed up for ticket information that there is a real hunger from all parts of the country to be there."

It seems certain that whatever happens in the various sporting arenas, the Games are likely to be a grand success for the city of London and for the whole nation. There'll doubtless be plenty of memories to treasure for the eight million or so people to be fortunate enough to have had the chance to experience the Games at first hand and, for two weeks, the entire city will be aglow with sporting fever. If that enthusiasm is translated into success on the track, in the pool or on the field, it could be an extremely profitable fortnight for British sport.

London clubs close in on Europe

The sporting theme continues, and with the Champions League final set to be held at Wembley Stadium this year, it seems London's participating football clubs are doing all they can to make sure the city is represented on its home turf. In the first leg of the second round of the tournament, both Arsenal and Tottenham defied the odds to record victories against sides that were expected to overcome them. Spurs travelled to Italy and pulled of a mightily impressive 1-0 win over league leaders AC Milan before Arsenal came from a goal down to secure an excellent 2-1 win over Barcelona, widely regarded as the best side in the world. With Chelsea expected to overcome FC Copenhagen in the coming weeks, the prospect of an all-London final, however unlikely, remains a distinct possibility.

Squatters snatch Ritchie's home

The London Evening Standard has reported that a group of squatters that moved into a £6 million house in Fitzrovia belonging to film director Guy Ritchie have finally been evicted. A large group of at least 12 people had occupied the Grade 1 listed property and claimed that they planned to convert the building into a free school. But a judge ruled in the Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels director's favour and the group have been forced into nearby disused pub. Perhaps not surprisingly, local residents such as Gary Kemp, from the 1980s pop band Spandau Ballet, and comedian and TV presenter Griff Rhys-Jones, have been unavailable for comment.

Zoo keeps eye on the tiger

London Zoo has launched a campaign to help save tigers from extinction. The Zoological Society London (ZSL) is aiming to raise around £2 million in order to build a conservation headquarters at the Zoo in Regent's Park. The SOS appeal will also fund ZSL work in Indonesia where local staff work to save tigers in the community. The Zoo has said it aim to open the new centre by 2013 and that it will provide a new home for the Zoo's Sumatran tigers, Raika, 15, and Lumpur, 13.

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