Learners at RNIB College were invited to celebrate 500 days until the start of the 2012 Olympic and Paralympic games by participating in a re-enactment of the famous Olympic torch relay.

The event involved 5 schools and over 500 students throughout Leicestershire taking part. It all began at 9.00 Tuesday 15 March at Loughborough College. Learners took their places around the football pitch as Tommy Godwin, winner of two bronze medals for cycling in the 1948 London Olympics, kicked off the relay. As the torch was passed, each learner got a once in a lifetime opportunity to hold the original 1948 Olympic Torch.

After the relay learners and tutors got their photograph taken with the British Heart Foundation mascot and gained another chance to see the famous torch in more detail which was in fact made here in Loughborough.

Moving on from the College the torch went to 4 other schools eventually finishing the relay at 4.00 with a final lap of the Walkers Stadium in Leicester.

The morning gave learners a chance to think about what the Olympic and Paralympic games mean to them and even inspired them to talk about entering the games in the future.

See pictures of the event on our Flickr site.