Special congratulations go to alumni Alistair and Jonny Brownlee who took the Gold and Bronze medals in the gruelling Triathlon, Ashleigh Ball who helped the Women’s Hockey team take the Bronze medal, Claire Cashmore who took two Silver medals and a Bronze in the SB8 Women’s 100m Breaststroke, Women’s 4x100m Medley Relay and the Women’s 4x100m Freestyle Relay and Karen Darke who won Silver in the Women's Individual Handcycling H1-2 Time Trial.  Well done, too, to Classics student Jack Oliver who recorded a personal best in the Clean and Jerk Men’s Weightlifting.

The Olympics were also a great success for the University itself, which welcomed and accommodated eight Chinese teams, plus their coaches and support staff for their pre-Olympics training camp. In order to make the athletes feel at home, the University sent two of our chefs to Beijing where they learnt to cook Chinese food under the executive chef at the Chinese Olympic Committee’s headquarters. The University also played host to the Canadian Wheelchair Rugby team three times in the run up to the Paralympic games.

The Games provided a great opportunity for students and staff, with around 50 completing Games Maker roles in London, 65 students volunteering and helping with the Chinese training camp and seven students or colleagues carrying the Olympic torch. One staff member, Dr Hamish Jamson (Institute of Transport Studies), even refereed in the Olympic Hockey tournament.

Image credit: Nigel Farrow