2012 Project365 (Day 196)

Categories: guernsey, project365-2

Tags: Olympics, project365, Manny Helmot, Guernsey

Date: 15 July 2012 20:42:05

The Olympic Flame RelayToday The Mister and I went down to St Peter Port to see the Olympic Flame Relay. I kind of wanted to see it but at the same time I was aware that friends had been to see the relay and said that it was a bit of a disappointment. Admittedly a friend described the torch as "a giant flaming cheesegrater" which was pretty accurate. I have to admit that seeing the relay in Guernsey was pretty good as it was done over quite a short distance, and therefore we saw maybe 4 or 5 different people carrying the torch. It also went on a boat across the harbour before lighting the Olympic cauldron. What I hadn't anticipated was finding the whole thing quite moving, and it wasn't just because I was feeling hormonal! One of the people carrying the torch was a guy called Manny Helmot. Manny was a Commonwealth Games cyclist who was hit by a car in 1998 and suffered horrendous injuries to his arm, sight and brain. Manny was awarded £14 million in compensation for his injuries. What really made me feel emotional today was the news reporter interviewed his mother and she said that the whole family were just so proud that Manny could once again represent his island. It was really moving and such a pleasure to see him carrying the Olympic flame with such pride. So, what I thought would be a rather over-commercialised and over-hyped event turned out to be really moving.