Scotland's turn to shine as Olympic torch tour begins

Friday 8 June 2012

THE Olympic torch arrived in Scotland last night and will be carried through the streets of Glasgow today by actor James McAvoy and stunt cyclist Danny MacAskill.

FIRST FOOTER: Doreen Bowie from Stranraer brings the Olympic flame ashore at Cairnryan ahead of its Scottish tour. Picture: PA

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Mark Smith and Gerry Braiden

After a five-day tour of Ireland, the torch crossed the Irish Sea and arrived in Cairnryan at 6.30pm yesterday. It begins its journey north today, starting in Stranraer and taking in communities such as Girvan, Ayr, Maybole and Kilmarnock before arriving in Glasgow.

More than 100 people will today carry the torch as it emerged the convoy accompanying it will involve 170 vehicles, stretching back to around three miles.The flame was met in Cairnryan by local MP and Scotland Office Minister David Mundell, along with Scottish Sport Minister Shona Robison.It was due to set off just after 6am today with the first torchbearer Ross McClelland, 20, a soldier from Ayr. He returned from a seven-month tour of Afghanistan earlier this year and hopes to compete in the Olympics as a long-distance runner.The torch was then due to visit Ballantrae, Girvan, Turnberry, Maidens, Kirkoswald, Maybole, Alloway, Ayr, Kilmarnock, Kilmaurs, Stewarton, Dunlop, Barmill, Beith, Lochwinnoch, Kilmacolm, Port Glasgow, Rutherglen and Glasgow.Mr MacAskill, the cyclist made famous by his YouTube videos, will be the first to carry the torch in Glasgow, followed by actor McAvoy, 33, star of X Men and The Last King of Scotland. Olympian curler Rhona Martin will also carry the flame before the day's procession ends with a celebration in George Square.The ages of the torchbearers range from 12 to 72, but yesterday there was criticism that some of the places had gone to sponsors such as Samsung. Baroness Dee Doocey, Olympics spokeswoman for the LibDems, said it was against the spirit of the Games but a spokesman for 2012 said the sponsored torchbearers would also have made a contribution to their community.Tomorrow, the procession will resume its trip north. It will take in Inverness, Aberdeen, Dundee, Edinburgh and Lerwick on the Shetland Isles.It will arrive in Inverness tomorrow night before travelling on to John O'Groats on Sunday. It will be flown to Stornoway and then will visit Aberdeen on Monday, Dundee on Tuesday and St Andrews and Edinburgh on Wednesday. On Thursday, it will head south and after visiting Peebles, Selkirk and Galashiels, will cross into England on its way to London.Scotland's top police officer urged drivers to heed warnings on motorway gantries or run the risk of facing lengthy delays because of the event. Drivers have also been warned about the impact of the relay on rural roads, especially narrow stretches of the A82.Steve House, Chief Constable of Strathclyde Police, has also provided fresh detail on the number of officers who will be deployed on Olympic duties when football matches are played at Hampden.At a peak, 630 extra Strathclyde officers will be called into service, on top of the normal numbers of police on duty in Glasgow, during the Games.Strathclyde will also be sending down 239 officers to London to work with the Met during the Games, including specialist teams, while other officers will be on hand at Prestwick Airport, which will receive most UK-bound "rogue" flights.Mr House said: "This is a significant policing event and one we've been planning for for some time. We're confident it will go as well as it can but it's a pretty tricky event. The roads are an issue. The total number of vehicles in the convoy is 170. That's about three miles."There'll be a little bit of a gap and they don't always travel in the full convoy. But if you're driving around the Strathclyde area pay careful attention to information alerting you to where the torch might be."

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Scotland's turn to shine as Olympic torch tour begins

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