Council to pay for mementoes for Olympic torchbearers

OLYMPIC heroes across Warwickshire are to be presented with a unique memento of their once-in-a-lifetime moment.

The county council has stepped up and offered to buy the Olympic torch souvenir on behalf of the 23 torchbearers in the county who do not have the commercial sponsorship to enable them to buy it themselves.

Games organisers have made the torches available to each torchbearer to buy once they have completed their relay leg. The torches are £199 to buy, and would cost the county council nearly £5,000 in total.

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The torch, which features 8,000 small cut-out circles, is manufactured in Warwickshire by Bedworth’s Premier Sheet Metal.

County council leader Cllr Alan Farnell said: “The eyes of the world will be on Warwickshire when the Olympic flame arrives on July 1 and it promises to be a truly memorable occasion.

“We want our torchbearers to have a special memento of their own Olympic moment and are proud to sponsor our local heroes who have been chosen because of their valued contribution to society.

“As a county council, our ambition is to have a lasting legacy of the Games and many torchbearers have promised to take the torch into their communities and share their experiences with others.”

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Among them is 65-year-old Graham Fulford, of Warwick, who runs a charity promoting the awareness of prostate cancer.

He said: “It is a great honour to be chosen to carry the torch through my home town and I am hugely excited. Warwickshire County Council has shown fantastic commitment to the local torchbearers by supporting us.”

The torch will travel through Warwick, Leamington and Kenilworth on Sunday July 1. For full details, visit www.warwickshire.gov.uk/olympics