WITH the 2020 Olympic Games finally underway in Tokyo – it’s time to look back on when the Olympic spotlight came to south Essex.
Hadleigh Park, which had been transformed to create an elite venue with a 4.8km course, welcomed the world’s best mountain bikers who were battling it out for the coveted Olympic gold back in 2012.
Two days of competition – on August 11 and 12 – resulted in 40,000 sporting fans descending on the town to watch arguably the biggest sporting event ever held in the county.
A visit by Princess Anne, who was on hand to cheer on Team GB, capped a fantastic weekend of sport in south Essex.
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Olympics fever swept the area as patriotic supporters waved flags, honked horns and dressed in red, white and blue in support of Team GB.
Tickets were at a premium, so hundreds of south Essex residents travelled to the nearby Hadleigh Castle to soak up the sun and atmosphere while enjoying picnics on the downs.
Czechia’s Jaroslav Kulhavý won gold in the men’s cross country event as he completed 34.1km in an impressive one hour, 29 minutes and seven seconds.
But it proved to be a nail-biting finish as Nino Schurter, of Switzerland, was just one second adrift and had to settle for the runner-up slot.
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