SEPTEMBER 29 - A SERIES of events were held across the country over the weekend to mark the start of the Cultural Olympiad, including a spectacular firework display in Kent along the seafront and on the White Cliffs next to Dover Castle (pictured).

well over the 5,000 expected and it gave a boost to the town's bid to be the starting point for the Olympic

said to agencies at a regional and a national level there is no better place than Dover to welcome the Olympic

singer Billy Bragg playing an open-air busking session at the Royal Festival Hall in London, a bandstand marathon

  SEPTEMBER 27 - HAILE GEBRSELASSIE (pictured) plans to win the Olympic marathon title in London in

  The brilliant Ethopian, the 1996 and 2000 Olympic 10,000 metres champion, made his prediction on

the eve of the Berlin Marathon, where he will be chasing his own world record.  

  SEPTEMBER 26 - SEAN KELLY, the coach of Olympic medallists Kerie-Anne Payne and Cassie Patten (pictured

  Kelly coached marathon swimmers Payne and  Patten to silver and bronze medals at the Beijing Olympic

It follows the announcement last week that Dave McNulty, who guided Jo Jackson to an Olympic bronze medal

"This will enable us to further challenge for more future Olympic success.  

“Over the last two Olympic Games Sean has produced three Olympic medallists and a raft of national team

  SEPTEMBER 16 - CADBURY are in talks with London 2012 officials to become a multi-million pound sponsor, it was reported today.

athletes it used to promote its association with the Commonwealth Games were Denise Lewis, the 2000 Sydney Olympic

heptathlon champion, and Paula Radcliffe, the world marathon record holder.  

- GOLD medals are proving to be as tough to win for Britain's Paralympics team as they were for the Olympic

Weir had hoped to win a record five titles in distances ranging from 400m up to the marathon but has

Last month in the same Stadium, the Olympic team had only Christine Ohuruogu's gold medal in the 400m

SEPTEMBER 12 - BRENDAN FOSTER (pictured), the founder of the world's biggest half-marthon, is hoping that his latest venture which launches tomorrow will help him achieve his goal of using the 2012 Olympics to encourage more people to take up sport.

joins an already impressive portfolio organised by Nova that includes the Great North Run, the half-marathon

other road running events across the country that are held over a variety of distances.Foster, the 1976 Olympic

Others taking part include Mark Foster, who carried the flag for Britain during the Olympic Opening Ceremony

an event such as this because he has such an inspiring story having survived leukaemia to become an Olympic

 SEPTEMBER 11 - HAILE GEBRSELASSIE (pictured), Kenenisa Bekele and Paul Tergat, three of the greatest runners in history, have joined forces to lead a campaign to get cross-country reinsteated into the Olympics.

 The trio, who between them have won five Olympic gold medals, 16 World Cross-Country titles and own

every world record between 5,000 metres and the marathon, have written a joint letter to the Presidents

of the International Olympic Committee(IOC) and International Association of Athletics Federations (

"In the 1924 Olympic Games in Paris, cross-country running was so far seen for the last time with the

 SEPTEMBER 11 - HAILE GEBRSELASSIE (pictured), Kenenisa Bekele and Paul Tergat, three of the greatest runners in history, have joined forces to lead a campaign to get cross-country reinsteated into the Olympics.

 The trio, who between them have won five Olympic gold medals, 16 World Cross-Country titles and own

every world record between 5,000 metres and the marathon, have written a joint letter to the Presidents

of the International Olympic Committee(IOC) and International Association of Athletics Federations (

"In the 1924 Olympic Games in Paris, cross-country running was so far seen for the last time with the

 SEPTEMBER 10 - DAVID WEIR'S drive for five golds at the Paralympics hit the skids in the Bird's Nest Stadium tonight but Ireland celebrated their first gold medal of the Games thanks to Belfast teenager Michael McKillop (pictured).

He said: "Like [boxer] Paddy Barnes in the Olympic.  

Weir is a multiple world champion and three-time winner of the London Marathon but has never won a Paralympic

here in what he had hoped would be the first of five gold medals at distances ranging from 400m to the marathon

 SEPTEMBER 6 - ZIMBABWE are holding a review to see how they can improve for the 2012 Olympics on their performance in Beijing where, thanks to Kirsty Coventry (pictured), they enjoyed their best ever Games.

ZImbabwe have won eight medals since they made their Olympic debut at Moscow in 1980, seven of them by

Robert Mutsauki, the president of the Zimbabwe Olympic Committee, said they want to begin preparations

missed a medal by a centimetre in the long jump while Mike Fokorani was the 11th best finisher in the marathon

 SEPTEMBER 6 - A HAUNTING song by a blind singer and a dazzling dance performed by 320 hearing impaired dancers wearing brilliant white dresses helped open the Paralympic Games in the Bird's Nest Stadium in Beijing tonight.

included Natalie du Toit, the South African swimmer who also carried the flag for her nation at the Olympic

wheelchair racers Saul Mendoza of Mexico and Francesca Porcellato of Italy, previous winners of the London Marathon

The ceremony played on the Olympic Games slogan of One World, One Dream.

In a marked difference from the Olympic opening ceremony, the Paralympic athletes entered the stadium

Lui Qi, president of the Beijing Olympic organising committee, said the Paralympics will raise the profile

  SEPTEMBER 5 - BRITISH JUDO has launched a £1 million programme in partnership with G4S Security Services (UK) in an effort increase children’s participation in the run-up to London 2012.

G4S’ substantial investment will also help grow the sport in the lead-up to the 2012 Olympic Games by

G4S has joined some of Britain’s biggest companies in teaming up with Olympic sports to try and improve

The BOA is very keen to ensure that all Olympic sports have a long-term future.  

It is the latest venture into Olympic sports by G4S.  

two-time Olympic 10,000 metres gold medallist and world marathon record holder Haile Gebrselassie.

  SEPTEMBER 5 - BRITISH JUDO has launched a £1 million programme in partnership with G4S Security Services (UK) in an effort increase children’s participation in the run-up to London 2012.

G4S’ substantial investment will also help grow the sport in the lead-up to the 2012 Olympic Games by

G4S has joined some of Britain’s biggest companies in teaming up with Olympic sports to try and improve

The BOA is very keen to ensure that all Olympic sports have a long-term future.  

It is the latest venture into Olympic sports by G4S.  

two-time Olympic 10,000 metres gold medallist and world marathon record holder Haile Gebrselassie.

  SEPTEMBER 5 - SIR KEITH MILLS' Team Origin have joined forces with Sir Richard Branson in an attempt to break the transatlantic sailing record.

It follows the announcement that it is to take over sponsorship of the London Marathon in 2010 in a deal

consectutive gold medal by triumphing in the Finn while Iain Percy, Team Origin's tactician, won hissecond Olympic

  SEPTEMBER 4 - SEBASTIAN COE (pictured), the two-time Olympic 1500 metres champion, announced today

The former world record holder, now 51, hopes to recruit a number of other Olympic athletes to have won

Coe, who won the Olympic 1500 metres title in Moscow in 1980 and Los Angeles in 1984, said: "I'm not

will present The Great North Run cultural programme, celebrating the challenges of the region’s half-marathon