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Olympic torch relay cost Leicester city £102,641

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More than £230,000 of public money was spent paving the way for the Olympic torch relay to pass through Leicester and Leicestershire last summer.

The famous flame was cheered through the streets during its 8,000-mile journey across the UK to the Olympic Park in London for the start of the 2012 Games.

Leicester City Council has now revealed how much it spent hosting the torch when it arrived in the city, in response to a Freedom of Information request.

The council said it footed a bill of £102,641 when the torch came to the city last July.

Most of that, £81,560, was spent on a giant party in Abbey Park, attended by about 20,000 people to celebrate the torch's arrival.

The rest was spent on closing the roads, crowd barriers, security, and first aid provision as the torch entourage passed through the city.

Leicestershire County Council told the Mercury it spent £29,600 on traffic management and staffing as the torch passed through the county in July and during a rehearsal for the relay in April.

Leicestershire Police said it cost them £103,629 in staffing and overtime to supervise the rehearsal event and the real thing.

Deputy city mayor Councillor Rory Palmer said the expense associated with the torch had been well worth it, and the celebrations had actually come in below their projected budget.

He said: "The Olympics was a once in a lifetime event, which Leicester had the great privilege to take part in. It not only injected spirit and enthusiasm into our city, it gave a real boost to the local economy.

"Having campaigned vigorously to bring the torch to Leicester, I was determined that the city would put on a show that no-one would forget.

"With £140,000 agreed within the council's budget, I was pleased we could host the celebrations well within that amount."

Paralysed former firefighter Kev Davies, from Shepshed, carried the torch for a leg of the relay from the National Space Centre.

The 42-year-old, who is wheelchair-bound after a motorcycling accident, said he thought the cost was worth every penny.

He said: "It sounds like a lot of money but I don't think you can really put a price on something like that.

"I set off on my stretch at 7.15am but there was still a massive buzz at the space centre with the torch coming in with a man in a jet pack.

"Gary Lineker was there and everyone was just having a great time. There is enough bad news in the world and the torch brought us a huge feel-good factor.

"We had huge crowds out in the streets waving flags. It was a wonderful, overwhelming and slightly surreal experience.

"After that we had an amazing Games and Paralympics. Some people might say we could have spent the money on something else but for me, and everyone I spoke to, it was just brilliant."

Relay organisers estimate some 170,000 people gathered to cheer the torch through the city, the county and in neighbouring Rutland.

The Mercury contacted the press office at Rutland County Council to ask how much it had spent on hosting the torch rally. Nobody responded.

Olympic torch relay cost Leicester city £102,641


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