To celebrate the end of the Beijing Olympics on Sunday, and mark the start of the countdown to London in 2012, a spinnaker bearing the London 2012 logo is to be hoisted in front of the Needles on the Isle of Wight.

Over 400 flags will be raised the length and breadth of the UK, to mark the handover, with the Isle of Wight being one of the most imaginative.

With the Island’s strong sailing heritage and success in the sport, it was an obvious choice for the Isle of Wight Council to mark this historic moment on the water, flying a huge spinnaker bearing the London 2012 logo in front of our most famous landmark, the Needles.

Image:©London 2012 logo with the Union Jack infil features on the Handover Flag around the UK. 

One of the Island’s most famous Olympians, double gold medal winning sailor Shirley Robertson OBE, said:

“With London 2012 fast approaching, I hope young people on the Island will be inspired to try new sports and make the most of the fantastic sporting facilities and opportunities the Island has to offer.

Sailing is my passion and I was fortunate enough to attend four Olympic Games, winning gold at two.”

Every local authority in Britain has been invited to hoist the Handover Flag to celebrate the moment when Great Britain becomes the next Olympic host.

A young crew will sail to the Needles onboard Paddiywack, a 32ft Seaquest yacht and at 3.30pm will hoist a spinnaker bearing the London 2012 logo and raise the Handover Flag.

The crew will then sail to Cowes where they will be greeted by the Isle of Wight Council’s Chairman and young people belonging to the Island’s Talented and Gifted Sports Programme who are hoping to represent the Island at the International Island Games to be held on the Isle of Wight in 2011.

They will also be joined by the Leader of the Isle of Wight Council Cllr David Pugh, the Chairman of the Island Games Committee David Ball and Olympic rower Louis Attrill from Sandown with his gold medal won at the Sydney Olympic Games in 2000.

Leader of the Isle of Wight Council Cllr David Pugh said:

“As a council we are keen to encourage people of all ages to keep fit and healthy. The forthcoming 2012 Olympic Games provides a great focus and source of inspiration to young people both here on the Isle of Wight and around the world.

The raising of the Handover Flag is a historic moment marking London’s status as the next city to host the Olympic Games and the Isle of Wight is proud to be taking part in the flag raising ceremony.”

The Handover Flag will be hoisted as a symbol of inspiration to young sportsmen and women across the Island who are aspiring to become the Olympians of the future.

In the lead up to the 2012 Games, the Isle of Wight Council’s sports unit will take the Handover Flag on a tour of the Island’s schools, giving students on the Island the opportunity to see the special flag while learning more about the Games and finding out how they can get involved in sporting activities.

Across the UK:

Flags will be raised at Local Government Buildings, Army Barracks, Whitehall Departments. They will also fly at the points furthest north, south, east and west in the UK. Outside the UK, the flag will be flown at overseas missions from Vancouver to Tokyo.

This activity will follow the moment when London Mayor Boris Johnson is symbolically handed the Olympic Flag, officially marking the start of London’s tenure as Summer Olympic Host City.

London 2012 Organising Committee Chair Sebastian Coe said:

‘When the Mayor of London accepts the Olympic Flag on 24 August, the eyes of the world will turn to London and the UK as the next Summer Host City.

‘It is a very important and exciting moment for us, and we want as many people as possible to join in the Handover celebrations. We are delighted that so many local authorities share our excitement and are proudly displaying the Handover Flag to mark this very special moment on our journey to 2012.’