On This Day 2012: Olympic Torch Relay Comes To The City
Thanks to former CCFPA committee member Dean Nelson for reminding us that on this first day of July in 2012 the Olympic torch relay arrived in Coventry and thousands packed the Memorial Park.
Debbie makes sure the Olympic flame shines
Torchbearer Kanu
It was estimated that 42,000 people saw the Olympic Torch in Coventry. 
The Olympic Games for that year had been handed to London and the city of Coventry had a big part to play as one of the host cities in the UK. Nigerian international and Arsenal, West Brom and Portsmouth footballing star Nwankwo Kanu held the torch in procession down Kenilworth Road in Coventry before handing over to Debbie Horton to light the cauldron.
A full description below is excepted from Coventry City Council’s post-games tribute publication -‘Coventry 2012 Legacy Brochure’ which you may still be able to download online
Back in March 2012 the London 2012 Olympic football tournament was also officially launched in Coventry by former Olympic athlete Jonathan Edwards. Both the men’s and women’s tournaments started before the Olympic opening ceremony, making football the first action of the 2012 Games.
The Ricoh (aka City of Coventry’ Stadium
The Ricoh Arena, renamed ‘The City of Coventry Stadium‘ first hosted the official Olympic test event on 23 April, a qualification match for the last place in the men’s competition and then went on to host a dozen matches, both male and female, during the games and 170,596 spectators came to watch! The football programme at the City of Coventry Stadium began with the two openers on July 25th, both women’s games (Japan v Canada & Sweden v S.Africa) and was then completed with the women’s bronze medal play-off match on August 9th. In that game Canada beat France 1-0 in front of 12,465 fans. The women’s competition was won by the United States beating Japan 2-1 at Wembley.
Other matches were also held in London (Wembley), Newcastle (St James Park), Manchester (Old Trafford), Cardiff (Millennium) and Glasgow (Hampden Park). But it was especially another memorable sporting year for Coventry!
Thanks to CCFPA’s Mike Young (& Dean Nelson) for sourcing the images
