London 2012: Olympic torch relay route through Norfolk revealed

The places the Olympic torch will visit in Norfolk prior to London 2012 have been revealed by the Games' organisers.

Entering the county in King's Lynn, the torch will make its way to Norwich for an overnight stop on 4 July.

The next day it will continue to Great Yarmouth before crossing the Suffolk border at Lowestoft.

An evening event to mark the torch's arrival in Norwich will take place at Chapelfield Gardens. The city council said plans had yet to be organised.

About 30 local people were expected to run through the streets of Norwich with the flame before a cauldron in the gardens was set alight.

After leaving the city, London 2012 organisers said the torch would go to Hethersett High School to mark the village's "enormous contribution" to the Games' Open Weekend celebrations in the past few years.

'Once-in-a-lifetime'

Street-by-street detail of the route will be confirmed by the London Organising Committee of the Olympic and Paralympic Games (Locog) next year.

Commenting on the route, Norfolk County Council's cabinet member for cultural services, James Carswell, said: "This announcement is great news for Norfolk and follows a lot of hard work to ensure that the Olympic torch relay doesn't pass us by.

"This really is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to see the Olympic torch being run through Norfolk and I'm sure not just the communities en route, but residents from right across Norfolk, will be very excited by this news."

He added that the council would be looking to get as many people as possible involved in the torch relay and would look to help communities set up their own events to mark the occasion.

The torch has already visited the county a couple of times this year, being on show at Chapelfield Plain and the University of East Anglia in Norwich.

A nomination process is currently under way to pick the 8,000 torchbearers who will carry the Olympic flame around Britain.

The Norfolk route forms part of the torch's journey from Land's End, Cornwall, to London for the start of the Olympic Games on 27 July 2012.

Locog said the route provided a chance to showcase Britain's towns, areas of outstanding natural beauty and sporting and cultural landmarks.