Celebrate Etienne Stott's Gold Medal at Bedford's Olympic Homecoming Parade Today!
This afternoon Bedford has the chance to celebrate the contribution made by so many local people to the Olympic and Paralympic Games this summer, and in particular to congratulate our very own Olympic Gold Medallist, Etienne Stott, at a celebration parade through the town. The parade will be setting off from De Parys Avenue at 1pm, before setting off down the High Street and then along the Embankment. Following the parade will be the official re-naming of the Duckmill White Water Arena as the Etienne Stott White Water Arena.
The parade will also feature Games Makers and Torchbearers as well as volunteers who were involved in pre-games training camps in the borough. If you were a Games Maker or know someone who was, all the volunteers are encouraged to come and join the parade and be part of this celebration of our Borough's contribution to what was a fantastic summer of Olympic and Paralympic sport. Participants are encouraged to gather on De Parys Avenue from 12.30pm.
Local residents and visitors are invited to line the route and cheer all the borough representatives from the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games, and with the forecast looking good for this afternoon (fingers crossed!), people are also encouraged to bring a picnic to Mill Meadows and enjoy the celebrations.
The new Kayaking facility at Duckmill Weir is a tremendous development for canoeing and kayaking locally, and I know Viking Kayak Club have been making good use of it since it opened in its current form earlier this year. Viking is Etienne's club, and it is a vibrant club providing great opportunities for people of all ages to get on the water and enjoy kayaking and canoeing. The Duckmill facility was opened by Etienne, prior to the Olympics, and you can see a video interview with Etienne and I filmed on that day by clicking on this link. In the clip there's more information about how the facility was the result of partnership working between the Council, Viking Kayak Club and the Environment Agency, and Etienne talks about giving people new opportunities and encouragement to enjoy the sport, just as he has done since his inspirational gold medal triumph with partner Tim Baillie last month.
Etienne Stott's gold medal was obviously a proud moment for Bedford Borough, but the Borough's Olympic and Paralympic contribution also obviously extended beyond that in numerous ways. These included the incredible crowds in the rain for the torch relay, the remarkable number of teams hosted for pre-games training camps, the official Olympics Live Site at the Bedford International Athletics Stadium and of course the many local Games Makers and other volunteers. This afternoon provides an opportunity for us all to celebrate the many roles that Bedford Borough residents played in the Olympic and Paralympic Games this summer, and I hope to see another big turnout as we look to round off this fantastic summer together, and in fitting style.