Cambridge & London 2012

Wed 2 May 2012 - Sun 9 September 2012

Various Locations

Over 300 Olympians have been associated with the University as former students, academics and staff. To celebrate London 2012, the University is hosting a variety of events highlighting the City’s Olympic links and the cultural diversity of countries competing in the Games.

University Museums will be opening new exhibits either inspired by London 2012 or as part of the 2012 Cultural Olympiad. The Fitzwilliam Museum will display the largest collection of ancient royal treasures to come out of China. The Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology will be hosting a collaborative art exhibition between British and South African artists on a theme of human frailty and resilience, entitled ‘Unlimited Global Alchemy’.

As part of Cambridgeshire Competes, the Museum of Classical Archaeology will be exploring the classical Olympics of ancient Greece and the Sedgwick Museum of Earth Sciences will be explaining how raw materials can be made into Olympic and Paralympic equipment.

The Olympic Torch will pass through the city on its way to the capital, coinciding with the City’s Big Weekend. The University’s Public Engagement team will be holding hands-on science and sport activities for families in the Fun Lab on Parker’s Piece. King’s College Choir will premiere a new work composed to mark the arrival of the Torch the day before it arrives.

Dr Carenza Lewis, presenter of ‘Time Team’ will be taking part in ‘On Landguard Point’, a project about Home for the Cultural Olympiad. Dr Lewis will be inviting members of the public to participate in region-wide excavations, searching for traces of historical homes.

This year’s Open Cambridge will feature several sports themed events, including behind the scenes looks at sports at Sidney Sussex College and Christ’s College. Bridge the Gap, our annual charity walk, will engage in Olympic themed activities as well as music to mark the Bandstand Marathon at the end of the Olympic and Paralympic Games period.

On-going programmes include Maths and Sport: Countdown to the Games (http://www.sport.maths.org/content/), by the award winning Millennium Mathematics Project. Online educational resources and a Schools Roadshow will focus on the mechanics of sport and the statistics of the Games. And everyone can join in with a series of routes in Cambridge that draw attention to the City’s Olympic connections through the Walk Cambridge in 2012 (http://www.walkcam2012.co.uk/) website. There are routes for all the family, including those requiring level access.

To find out more, please search 'London 2012' in the What's On search bar.

Cost: n/a