Olympic run

FOUR Dorset Echo competition winners were among 5,000 members of the public who took on the Olympic Park Run.

Peter Fry, Susan O’Flanagan, Monica Edmonds, and Janet Hogen entered the Dorset Echo’s Olympic Park Run competition and won.

They were part of history in the making on Saturday when they were among the first people to cross the Olympic Stadium finish line.

The runners, who were picked at random from almost 43,000 entrants, raced for five miles around the Olympic Park, taking in landmarks such as the Velodrome and Aquatics Centre, before finishing inside the iconic Stadium.

Her Royal Highness Princess Beatrice and several celebrities took part in the unique race alongside former Olympians and Paralympians.

Find out more at nationallotteryrun.com

Seafood festival

DOUBLE Olympic gold medallist sailor Sarah Ayton will be officially opening this year’s Dorset Seafood Festival.

The Weymouth-based star will be in attendance when the annual two-day festival begins on Saturday, July 7 with a Weird Fish cross-harbour swim at 10am.

In honour of the Olympic and Paralympic year, The Dorset Seafood Festival 2012 will be the most ambitious to date.

It is one of the last Spirit of the Sea events before the Olympic ‘lock-down’, when Weymouth and Portland will be dressed as a host borough to the London 2012 Games.

There will be more than 100 stalls along Weymouth Harbourside and the Pavilion forecourt on the weekend of July 7 and 8.

Pommery Champagne corks will be popping once again as the festival’s title sponsor, celebrity chefs will also be in abundance, while other attractions will include a diving tank attraction and touch pools for children.

Meet the stars

DON’T miss your chance to meet Olympic heroes Iain Percy and Andrew Simpson next week in Weymouth town centre.

Clarks shoe shop in St Thomas Street will be offering shoppers the chance to meet the Sailing stars ahead of the 2012 Games.

Olympic, World and European Sailing Champions Percy and Simpson will be making an appearance at Clarks in Weymouth on Wednesday, April 11 from 3pm until 4pm.

To celebrate their long standing partnership with Clarks and to add a dash of excitement to the Olympic countdown, Percy and Simpson of Sherborne are visiting several of the company’s flagship stores, including shops in Plymouth, Southampton and London The duo, who won gold together at the last Games in Beijing, are sponsored by the company and have been testing out Clarks performance sailing collection in extreme sailing conditions.

Visitor trial

SIX hundred people are invited to play the part of ‘Olympic visitors’ to Nothe Fort on Saturday, April 21.

The afternoon dress rehearsal aims to prepare volunteer marshals for this summer’s Olympic sailing events when the fort will be opening its doors to ticketed spectators.

Organiser Jane Chandler said: “A huge amount of planning is required to give an enjoyable and safe visit to the fort for those people who have bought tickets to watch the sailing from the Nothe Gardens. “If you have a couple of free hours on this day please come along – everyone will be welcome.”

Participants are asked to assemble in Nothe Gardens between 1.30pm and 2pm, ready to be organised in a queue and taken around the fort as space becomes available.

Nothe Fort will be closed during the morning of the dress rehearsal.