Confusion over Olympic Flame visit to Battle

The torch will be visiting Battle Abbey on a date yet to be confirmed, as the Abbey is considered by the organisers to be a place of interest.

But the official Torch Relay route, which was revealed earlier this week, appears to bypass Battle completely, instead passing through Bexhill, Hastings and Rye before heading into Kent.

It is not yet clear if members of the public will be able to see the spectacle when it visits the 1066 Battle Abbey and Battlefield.

A spokesperson for English Heritage, which runs the site, said: “It’s a little early to say for sure, one way or another.

“We will need to firm up details of the visit later on.”

The London Organising Committee of the Olympic and Paralympic Games (LOCOG) is responsible for preparing and staging the 2012 Games.

A spokesperson from LOCOG said the Olympic Flame would be visiting a number of landmarks and places of interest around the country.

She said she could not confirm when it would visit Battle Abbey, but confirmed that Battle was not on the Torch Relay route.

She said: “That is the final route in terms of towns and cities we will be visiting.

“At this stage I am not able to confirm any details.”

Further details about the Battle Abbey visit will be revealed next year.

Speaking about the visit, Dawn Champion, English Heritage’s manager at Battle Abbey, said: “This is fantastic news and we are delighted to welcome the Olympic torch to Battle Abbey, built to commemorate the most famous date in English history.

“London’s winning bid to host the 2012 Olympic Games stressed the rich heritage across the country and the torch relay is a wonderful opportunity to show the world the special historic places that are waiting to be discovered.”

The Olympic Flame will be lit in Olympia in Greece in May 2012 and will arrive into the UK from Greece on May 18 2012.

The 70 day Olympic Torch Relay will start at Land’s End, Cornwall on the morning 19 May 2012 and will travel roughly 8,000 miles around the UK.

The street by street detail of the route will be confirmed next year.

Log on to www.london2012.com/olympic-torch-relay-map to see the route the Torch Relay will take.