New York, U.S.A. – It’s been quite an exciting summer so far in Britain as the London 2012 Olympic Games have just come to a close. VisitBritain, the national tourism agency for England, Scotland and Wales, takes a look back at some of the most memorable and unforgettable golden moments.

The London 2012 Olympics opened with a bang as Queen Elizabeth became the newest Bond Girl and parachuted her way into Olympic Stadium for an unforgettable entrance. This year is the 50th anniversary of first Bond film, which began with Sean Connery in Dr No. The Barbican Centre is celebrating with an exhibition Designing 007: 50 Years of Bond Style and Beaulieu is celebrating with Bond In Motion, the largest exhibit of Bond vehicles ever staged. The newest Bond Girl wasn’t the only member of the British Royal Family that took part in and supported the London 2012 Olympic Games.

The Fab Five won the hearts of America as they took gold, so what better way for these women to celebrate than with a girlfriend getaway fit for champions. These women may now being carrying their own gold, but they won’t want to miss the special Diamonds: A Jubilee Celebration exhibition at Buckingham Palace that showcases diamonds worn by British monarchs over the past 200 years.

No girlfriend getaway is complete without shopping and London is a shopper’s paradise offering a wide variety of choice from East London’s Spitalfields and Sunday Upmarket to trendy stores like Topshop. Every fashion loving girl will want to have quintessential afternoon tea, but with a fashionista twist. Prêt-à-Portea at The Berkley London serves a fashion-inspired afternoon tea that changes every six months to following the latest fashion trends.

Team USA’s women’s soccer team is taking home the gold for the third straight summer Olympic Games and the women’s 4x100m relay team shattered the previous world record winning the first gold medal in 16 years, so these winning women certainly have reason to celebrate. After kicking the ball across Britainfrom Glasgow to Manchester to Newcastle Gateshead, the soccer women finally won the gold in London where the track stars also flew past their competition. Now it’s certainly time to party like champions.

There’s no better way for Michael Phelps to celebrate becoming the most decorated Olympic medalist than taking his girlfriend on a romantic vacation. The Royal Scotsman offers guests the opportunity to see the beautiful Scottish countryside in a luxurious setting. Trains depart from Edinburgh and make their way around the Scottish Highlands adding a bit of old world travel to a very romantic setting.

Ashton Eaton and Trey Hardee have officially been named the greatest athletes in the world having won gold and silver, respectively, in the decathalon, so now there’s no better way to celebrate being the best in a 10-event competition than experiencing the top 10 great British experiences in the UK.

Britain delivered its own golden moments as the host nation from the Olympic Stadium to cities across the UK hosting competitions and celebrations. With the mini remote-controlled MINIs retrieving the discusses and javelins bringing a bit of fun to the track and field competitions, visitors can have their own MINI fun when visiting London. Small Car, Big City offers visitors guided tours in true MINI style covering all the favorite sights including Big Ben, St Paul’s Cathedral, Buckingham Palace and more.

Fans from around the world watched as Misty May Treanor and Kerri Walsh bumped, set and spiked their way to their third gold medal on a beach with a truly unique and iconic British background. The temporary beach is built on Horse Guards Parade, which is right in front of the Prime Minister’s doorstep in London.  This is also the location of the Trooping the Colour event that takes place each year on the Queen’s official birthday.

Visitors from around the world took notice as the iconic Royal Mail red mailboxes started popping up goldas a new one was painted each time a Team GB athlete won a gold medal. Visitors who haven’t seen one in person yet still has a chance as the boxes will continue through the London 2012 Paralympic Games in honor of the Team GB champions. The Royal Mail is also honoring Team GB champions by creating a personalized Royal Mail stamp for each champion.

The Closing Ceremony ended the 17 day event in true British spirit. From British fashion to the best of British music including the reuniting of the Spice Girls the entire night rocked. It’s not too late to check out one of Britain’s many music festivals.

The Olympic Games may have concluded, but that doesn’t mean the 2012 fun and competition is over just yet. There are sure to be plenty more golden moments as the London 2012 Paralympic Games commence with the Opening Ceremony on August 29 and the London 2012 Festival has plenty more opportunities for visitors to take part in through September 9.

For more information and ideas for visiting Britain, please visit www.visitbritain.com.

Image Courtesy of  Diego Barbieri / Shutterstock.com

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Iran is forever in the news, whether for its bold statements on the West or its tête-à-tête with Israel. By courtesy of the Iranian Olympians, Iran is in the news for positive reasons right now. One should put aside the pre-Olympics hype over whether Iranian Olympians will face their arch rivals from Israel or not and focus on the contributions their athletes made to the spirit of the 2012 Olympics.

The country current ranks at 12th place in the Olympic table with a total of eight medals: four golds, three silvers, and one bronze. To celebrate their country’s accolades in Olympics, Iranians took to social networking sites to express their joy. One could argue that this Olympics has indeed exposed a rare side of Iran to the global audience.

Iran has participated in the Olympics since the 1948 London Games. This year, 45 men and eight women are participating from Iran in the London 2012 Olympics. However, this is the first time that Iran has won medals in athletic categories and their first-ever gold medal in Greco-Roman wrestling. Twenty-five-year-old Neda Shahsavari also made a history by becoming the first Iranian woman to qualify for women’s table tennis. Tuesday, August 7, was especially jubilant for Iranians as their Olympians won two gold and two silver medals.

Twenty-two-year-old Behdad Salimikordasiabi was bestowed with the title of strongest man after winning the gold medal on Tuesday in the 105kg weightlifting competition. Salimi said in a statement, “In Iran I know they’re all partying in the street already.” Salimikordasiabi’s final competitor was Russia’s European champion Ruslan Albegov, who lost by 1kg, allowing Salimikordasiabi’s lift of 455kg to become the champion. On his winning Salimikordasiabi told the media, “I’m very happy, I worked very hard for this and had a very hard schedule.”

Fellow Iranian 28-year-old Sajjad Anoushiravani took the bronze medal, with the silver going to Albegov. Anoushiravani said, “I’d have liked to be first but I’m happy with what I’ve got. God forbid if one day he is not able to compete, I will carry Iran’s flag for him. But the most important thing is that we both competed and both won a medal.”

In men’s athletics, Ehsan Hadadi won Iran’s first ever silver medal with a 68.18m discus throw on Tuesday with Kianoush Rostami winning Iran a bronze medal on August 3 in the men’s 85kg weightlifting.

Hamid Soryan, a 26-year-old wrestler from Tehran, won Iran’s first gold medal in 40 years in  the 55kg Greco-Roman wrestling on August 5 after defeating Azerbaijan’s Rovshan Bayramov 2-0 in the final. Another celebrated winner is defending world champion Omid Noroozi in men’s 60kg Greco-Roman wrestling, who defeated Georgia’s Revaz Lashkhi 1-0, 1-0 to give Iran its second gold medal.

Ghasem Rezai in men’s 96kg Greco-Roman wrestling gave Iran its third gold medal in many days by beating Russia’s Rustam Totrov 2-0, 1-0 on Tuesday. Rezai said in a statement, “I am very happy because I have made my people very proud. To see all the Iranians inside the stadium and back home, to bring smiles to their faces is the happiest moment of my life.”

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad congratulated the Iranian Olympians on Sunday, “I hereby congratulate the Iranian wrestlers, athletes and nation on Iran’s first gold medal at the London Olympics won by young and brave Greco-Roman wrestler Hamid Sourian. I pray to God for more victories by Iranian athletes in the London 2012 Olympic Games.”

Image Courtesy of  Boris Pamikov / Shutterstock.com

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Seattle, U.S.A. — After qualifying Wednesday for this weekend’s final in the men’s 5,000 meters, former Sudan Lost Boy Lopez Lomong is ready to use his Olympic fame to help kids back home in Africa. After Saturday’s final, Lopez will focus on a partnership with international Christian charity World Vision, including a trip, tentatively planned for early next year to Kenya and South Sudan to help children living in poverty.

The trip is part of long-term partnership between Lomong’s non-profit, 4 South Sudan and Team World Vision, a program sponsored by World Vision. Lomong hopes to help raise $500,000 to provide access to clean water, health care, education and nutrition.

According to the latest United Nations (UNHCR) estimates, there are more than 660,000 displaced South Sudanese as fighting rages between Sudan and its neighbor, South Sudan. Malaria and diarrhea run rampant in the overcrowded refugee camps. Nearly three children die of preventable illnesses in the camps every day.

At the age of six, Lopez was kidnapped from his Southern Sudan village and held captive as he was being prepped as a child soldier. Too small to undergo training, his fate would most likely have been starvation. But after three weeks, he managed to escape with the help of three other captives. After running three days and nights, they were captured by Kenyan troops and brought to a refugee camp where Lopez lived for 10 years.

He was supported by a U.S. family and brought to this country where he soon discovered he was the fastest kid in school. At track meets he then discovered he was the fastest in the state. Soon he would become one of the fastest in the nation. In 2008, Lomong qualified for the Beijing Olympics in the men’s 1,500 meters. He was voted by his teammates as the flag bearer in the Opening Ceremonies.

Lomong has a new book entitled “Running For My Life” (Thomas Nelson Publisher) http://www.thomasnelson.com/running-for-my-life.html

For more info: 4South Sudan : http://lopezlomong.com/foundation/

Team World Vision: http://support.worldvision.org/site/TR?px=1209501&fr_id=1790&pg=personal

Image Courtesy of   Maxisport / Shutterstock.com

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London, England — A massive audience of 6.2 million Canadians watched the world’s fastest runner win gold in the men’s 100m final Sunday, powering Day 9 (August 5) to be the most-watched day yet for Canada’s Olympic Broadcast Media Consortium at London 2012.

With an average of nearly 5 million viewers watching from 4:52 – 5:03 p.m. ET on CTV alone, Usain Bolt’s winning race is in line with the record-setting Top 10 (non-hockey) events from Vancouver 2010. Day 9 (Sunday, August 5) becomes the most-watched yet at London 2012 with 2.5 million viewers watching on average over 22 hours of coverage.

Canada’s Olympic Broadcast Media Consortium confirms that audiences for London 2012 continue to out-run Beijing 2008, with viewing increasing by an impressive 87% during Days 7-9. An average of 2.3 millionviewers tuned in throughout the consortium’s 22 hours of daily coverage from Aug. 3-5, including an average audience of 2.9 million viewers in prime time.

Additionally, a whopping 3.6 million viewers tuned into OLYMPIC DAYTIME during Days 7-9, with 4.3 million viewers tuning in to Sunday’s daytime broadcast alone. On CTV, the tape-delayed prime time coverage averaged 2 million viewers, up 43% over CBC’s prime time live/tape-delayed coverage of Beijing 2008 (1.4 million) for the same time period.

From the start of the 2012 Games to date, an incredible 30.5 million Canadians – or 90.7% of the population – has watched some coverage on Consortium channels. Additionally, London 2012 continues to be a wide-reaching event with 92% of all women, 91% of all men and 87% of all children experiencing some part of the 2012 Games on television.

In addition to the men’s athletics 100m final, the top events of London 2012 on the Consortium networks all took place over the weekend. On Canada’s golden Saturday, an average of 2.1 million viewers tuned in as Rosie MacLennan won Canada’s first gold medal of the 2012 Games during the women’s trampoline final.

The men’s 1500m freestyle swimming final averaged 2.8 million viewers as Canada’s Ryan Cochranewon a silver medal, while the women’s team pursuit cycling averaged 2.2 million as Canada won bronze. Additionally, Michael Phelps’ last Olympic race, the men’s 4x100m medley relay, garnered an average audience of more than 2.9 million on Saturday.

Meanwhile, despite only two days of coverage, athletics (16.3 million) is now a close second to swimming (18.6 million) in terms of most-watched sports by unique viewers.

Additional Highlights for Days 7-9:

• Sunday’s men’s athletics 100m final is the top event on both CTV (4.9 million) and V (854,000) of the 2012 Games to date
• TSN achieved its highest audience of the 2012 Games to date on Friday with the Canada/Great Britain women’s soccer quarter-final averaging 841,000 viewers and reaching 2.7 million viewers
• Sportsnet achieved three of its Top 5 most-watched events of the 2012 Games on Days 7-9, led by the women’s athletics 100m semifinal on Saturday with 417,000 viewers
• RDS had four of its Top 5 events of the 2012 Games on Sunday including the women’s 3m springboard final (446,000) and men’s athletics 100m final (426,000)

As Canadians left work for the long weekend, they stayed with Consortium digital coverage of London2012 as Days 7-9 brought 4.3 million video views, 20% higher than the same three days during Vancouver2010. By the end of Day 9, total page views to CTVOlympics.ca, RDSolympiques.ca, and the CTV Olympics London 2012 and RDS olympiques pour Londres 2012 Apps reached 129 million views, pacing 17% higher than Vancouver 2010.

The mobile story continues, as Saturday and Sunday saw the highest days of mobile traffic to digital platforms with almost 70% of digital traffic coming through mobile devices.

Image Courtesy of  José Goulão

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Oxford, England — With the Games well under way this summer, businesses have been given a unique opportunity to evaluate the way they communicate internally and externally in the face of challenging outside influences. It has been reported that some of the busiest commercial districts in London have been unrecognisable during the last week – not because of increased footfall but because they are so much quieter than usual.

This is down to an improvement in the way companies in the capital have dealt with important communications in adverse conditions – such as the hosting of a major international sporting event. A large number of businesses trading in the capital have made full use of the technology supplied by telecommunications experts like MeetingZone Ltd.

In the run-up to the Games inquiries came flooding in to meetingzone.com from companies eager to assess how their in-house communications systems could be enhanced using cutting edge technology in preparation for a testing time in the capital. The solutions supplied have enabled many businesses to keep operating at the optimum level in spite of the forecast difficulties many have had to face in terms of travel and logistics.

Improved communications in the form of web conferences and telephone conference calls make it possible to gather a team in order to solve problems, meet with partners, clients and suppliers and discuss strategies, even when external conditions make it very difficult for businesses to succeed in this capacity, especially when they are limited to less up-to-date modes of communication.

How well businesses have dealt with the unique conditions supplied by London’s hosting of the Games is likely to determine how they move forward with their own communications strategies in the future.

In order to deliver solutions to more businesses in need of advice in the field of communications, Meeting Zone has teamed up with Cheshire SEO agency Just Search – the aim being to enhance the online presence of the company so that more enterprises can make use of their individually-tailored packages and services.

Image Courtesy of   Bikeworldtravel / Shutterstock.com

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Russian high jumper Ivan Ukhov won a gold medal on August 7, but had to struggle with an untimely issue. The 26-year-old lost his uniform t-shirt between his third and fourth jumps, and had to use the one of his compatriot and 2008 Olympic champion, Andre Silnov. He then pinned his number to the shirt and successfully cleared the 2.33 meter.

“I had put it in my bag as I always do after each attempt but it disappeared. Someone might have stolen it,” he told the Russian media on Wednesday.

Although he was afraid of being disqualified, pressure was not an impediment for Ukhov to win. He accomplished the gold medal with a leap of 2.38 meters. “I was afraid I could be disqualified for not wearing a proper uniform but in the end it turned out just fine. It was symbolic that I won gold in Silnov’s shirt. I guess Andrei being the 2008 champion just passed me the good luck,” Ukhov said.

The Russian is very grateful to his compatriot, who could not get a medal, and also to judges, who waited for him to find a replacement uniform.

America’s Erik Kynard took silver with a 2.33 jump, and Britain’s Robbie Grabarz won the bronze. He later tweeted: “I don’t have Ukhov’s shirt, but I do have an Olympic bronze!”

It’s not the first time Ukhov has drawn attention to himself with his misadventures. In 2008, he was drunk when competing at a Laussane event.

The gold has now given Ukhov the redemption that he was looking for, after he was called out with a strong warning from the IAAF for the incident.

This has not been the first time an athlete has found clothes to have disappeared during the London Olympics. British cyclist Bradley Wiggins had his shorts stolen while he was using the shower, following his gold-medal performance in the men’s time trial race last week.

Image Courtesy of Erik van Leeuwen, attribution: Erik van Leeuwen (bron: Wikipedia). (http://www.erki.nl/pics/main.php?g2_itemId=33703) [CC-BY-SA-3.0], via Wikimedia Commons

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Crawley, England, – British Airways will be rewarding customers who stay in the UK to cheer on Team GB and Paralympics GB. The cashback rewards on holidays are for travel after the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games and in line with specific athlete wins.

British Airways will feature a new offer based on a chosen athlete, valid for a limited period and in line with their schedule in the London 2012 Games. Each offer will also have a money back incentive dependent on the performance of the athlete.

Customers can book an offer via the dedicated campaign page on ba.com and later if the featured athlete wins a medal, cashback will be given on the booking in relation to the medal won. A maximum cashback reward is given based on the highest medal won.

For a Gold medal the cashback will be GBP100 per booking, for a Silver medal GBP75 per booking and for a Bronze medal GBP50 per booking.

The airline is currently supporting Jessica Ennis, World and European heptathlon gold medalist and if customers book an all-inclusive Caribbean holiday for seven nights they can win cashback on their holiday if she wins a Gold, Silver or Bronze medal.

Twenty-five favourite all-inclusive Caribbean holidays are on offer with flights plus seven nights all-inclusive accommodation. Holidays in Cancun including flights and seven night’s all-inclusive accommodation are included for travel on selected dates between September 10 and October 14, 2012 (travel dates vary by offer).

Many other destinations are also on offer including Dominican Republic, St Lucia, Antigua, Barbados, Tobago and Grenada.

The Caribbean holiday deals are available to book until July 24, 2012. Visit ba.com/winningdeals for more information.

About British Airways

British Airways plc offers a wide range of worldwide destinations – including holidays in Venice and holidays in Los Angeles, as well as flights to New York, hotels, car rental with Avis, and experiences. Customers can save time and money with ba.com when booking ATOL protected holiday packages, ATOL number is 5985. Passengers are offered added peace of mind to their holiday plans and the security of travelling with British Airways. British Airways plc constantly seeks to exceed customers’ expectations, both in terms of the value for money and quality of the service provided.

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London, UK – London & Partners launches new SMG Insight / YouGov research which shows London fever has spread around the world.

London is set to inspire the world over the next 4 months in the run up to London 2012 according to new research launched by London & Partners which shows the extent of international excitement about the Olympics and the host city, London.

In central London, outside the Olympic Park, a celebration of cultures will be hitting the streets, with National Olympic Committees creating a festival atmosphere by offering opportunities for fans from around the world to show their support for their athletes. Over 40 nations will be represented through official NOC Houses situated around London. The NOC houses will offer fans an opportunity to experience the national entertainment and culture, watch sports on big screens and join in celebrations during athlete appearances.

London 2012 is also creating a lasting global sporting legacy with over one-in-four people from sampled nations inspired to take up swimming and one-in-five considering taking up cycling this year. To capitalise on this interest plans are already in place to launch a new world-class cycling event in the city following the Games – cycling’s equivalent of the London Marathon.

Such is the excitement about the Games in China that two-thirds of the Chinese population, the hosts of the 2008 Olympics, are inspired to participate in Badminton during 2012 and over half intend to take up table tennis.

Music, culture and outdoor spaces are also important for international visitors to London. London’s river, squares and parks are an important attraction for visitors with almost 6-in-10 stating that they intend to visit London’s famous outdoor spaces. In these spaces, BT will be hosting BT London Live sites where medal events will be shown on the big screen and a daily schedule of cultural and arts showcases from around the world will be shown.

Retail will also experience a significant boost with over 40% of visitors planning to go to world famous shopping locations such as Harrods, Selfridges and Oxford Street.

Iain Edmondson, Head of the Major Events team at London & Partners, said: “During the Games, there will be a festival atmosphere filling the streets of London with numerous opportunities for the public to experience the spirit of the Games even if they don’t have tickets. After 2012 people will be able to turn the inspiration of the Games into participation, by entering London’s world-class mass-participation events such as the London Marathon, London Triathlon and new road cycling event.”

Key results from the London Sport Global Inspiration Survey show that:

•   28% of adults are inspired to take up swimming during 2012. 20% inspired to take up cycling.
•   Both modern and historic sporting locations are the most inspiring Olympic venues. 23% want to see the Olympic Stadium, 18% Olympic Aquatic Centre and 18% Wimbledon
•  23% of those surveyed favour watching Rafael Nadal and Michael Phelps. Rising stars such as basketball player Jeremy Lin (20%) and cyclist Mark Cavendish (13%) also feature as inspirational figures around the world. Usain Bolt is the most popular athletes for UK residents, with 28% stating that they are inspired to watch him.
• 69% of the Chinese population are inspired to watch basketball during 2012. Nearly a third (30%) of the international survey is inspired to watch athletics/running.
• Half of visitors to London are inspired to visit a museum or historic building. Slightly more (53%) will visit a tourist attraction such as Madame Tussauds and 57% will visit a park, river or public space.

The full report can be viewed and downloaded from here:

http://vlstatic.com/l-and-p/assets/events/london-sport-global-inspiration-survey-report.pdf 

For the full list of NOC houses available to the public and what’s going on in London throughout 2012 go to http://www.visitlondon.com/2012 

Image Courtesy of   Pete Niesen / Shutterstock.com

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Ronaldinho, the former face of international soccer and the prime representation of Brazilian soccer throughout the world is back and wants to play in the 2012 Olympics.

The Brazilian mid fielder who dazzled fans during the peak of his career is now 31 years old and is looking for one final run at glory in the tournament, which is an under-23 event. Ronaldinho would be the lone player over that required age, as the rules allow for one player to play over that age limit.

Ronaldinho previously appeared in the 2008 summer Olympics after being traded from his club team to Milan. He scored one goal in the under-23 tournament in which Brazil left with the Bronze medal. Many thought that would be final stroke of the gifted Brazilian on the international stage as a competitor.

However, he has regained his form, or what’s left of it, and is now looking to lead the next generation of Brazilian footballers at the next Olympic season. As we have seen with young Brazilian Neymar, soccer in this carefree, creative style will continue even after Ronaldinho decides to leave the game for good.

It is important to note that his ‘ultimate goal’, if all goes well through the London Olympics, is to make the team for the 2014 World Cup — at which point, he will be 34 years old. Ronaldinho is quoted for saying, “I want to go step by step,” eventually landing him a home-hosted, last world cup.

The soccer star did not make the team for the 2010 World Cup. In fact, the last time we saw Ronaldinho on the world stage taking part in a big tournament was all the way back in the 2006 World Cup. The tournament did not end well for the Brazilians and he did not play as well as he would have liked.  Brazil was sent packing after the unexpected loss in the quarter finals to France.

The former two-time FIFA Player of the Year in 2004 and 05 and one-time European Footballer of the Year in 05 is now playing in a Brazilian club called Flamingo; a contract that will expire in 2014. After having won every tournament he has competed in throughout his career, this is his final test, his final challenge as footballer.
muzsy / Shutterstock.com

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