The wait is almost over! Seven years after being awarded the Olympic Games, London is making its final preparations for the world's largest sporting event.

Despite fears over infrastructure and business during the Games, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) confirmed on Friday that the city is ready to welcome the world's best athletes and Olympic and Paralympic fans this summer.

Said chairman of the IOC's Coordination Commission, Denis Oswald, "With only 119 days to go until the Games begin, London is ready to welcome the world this summer.

The London Organising Committee of the Olympic and Paralympic Games (LOCOG) has confirmed places for over 7,300 inspiring people who will be carrying the Olympic Flame as Torchbearers in the London 2012 Olympic Torch Relay.

The London 2012 Organising Committee (LOCOG) has announced details of the lighting of the Olympic Flame and its arrival into the UK.

The Flame will be lit in Greece on 10 May and travel on board a special gold-liveried aircraft to Cornwall ahead of the Torch Relay, which starts on the 19 May.

The Olympic Village site was handed over to the London Organising Committee of the Olympic and Paralympic Games (LOCOG) last week, six months before the Games begin.

The handover signals the start of the huge task of fitting out the new apartments before the arrival of athletes and officials from around the world in six months' time.

Schools and colleges across the UK are being encouraged to celebrate the athletes and cultures of the world as part of London 2012 World Sport Day, which will take place on Monday 25 June 2012.

The celebration, which will open National School Sport Week in England and Wales, will give thousands of young people across the UK the chance to learn about the athletes and cultures of the world.

For the next three weeks, Africa will come to a standstill. The Cup of Nations, the continent's most celebrated football competition, kicks off on Saturday, and will capture the attention of millions of fans around Africa.

With London 2012 now just 200 days away, the London Organising Committee of the Olympic and Paralympic Games (LOCOG) hosted the first Cabinet meeting of 2012 at the Olympic Park and unveiled a pioneering scheme aimed at promoting participation in the event. 

 

The official handover of the Olympic Park to to LOCOG was welcomed by Prime Minister David Cameron, who spoke at in the Aquatics Centre today.

The latest aerial shots of the main Olympic Park are a sight to behold, and bring good news in the run-up to the 2012 Games. The site is now over 90% complete, with the Olympic Delivery Authority on track to hand the site over to LOCOG early next year.

The handover of the Olympic Park is one of a number of  key dates and milestones that will take place in the final months ahead of the Games including:

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