Irish Olympic torch route unveiled

The London 2012 Olympic torch will arrive in Belfast early in June to be borne through more than 60 towns and villages across Northern Ireland.

It will also be taken across the Border to be carried along a number of streets in Dublin city centre for a morning.

The Olympic torch will be on the island of Ireland for five days from Sunday, June 3rd until Thursday, June 7th.

The torch relay will begin at the Titanic Belfast visitor centre shortly after 6am on June 3rd. It will travel through Hollywood, Bangor, Newtownards and Comber before being brought to Stormont before starting its journey throughout Northern Ireland.

Over the course of the relay, the torch it will be within about 15km of 95 per cent of the Northern Ireland population, according to the North’s sports minister Carál Ní Chuilín.

On Wednesday, June 6th, it will be carried through parts of Dublin, starting at Croke Park. It will travel past the Garden of Remembrance, down O’Connell Street and along a number of streets before crossing the Liffey and finally ending up at the Mansion House in Dawson Street.

The torch will then travel by convoy back across the Border to Newry, onto to Lisburn and back to Belfast. During its time in the North, the torch will be carried over the Carrick-a-Rede rope bridge and also across Lough Neagh and the River Bann.

Ms Ní Chuilín said the relay was a real opportunity for the entire island to shine. “The relay will showcase and celebrate our torchbearers who are inspirational people who do so much for their local communities,” she said.

“The visit of the Olympic Flame in June will be a wonderful opportunity for Ireland to be even more closely involved with the 2012 London Olympic Games and for Irish people to be part of the biggest sporting event in the world,” said the Minister of State for Tourism and Sport Michael Ring.

The 70-day relay begins at Land's End, Cornwall, on May 19th and arrives at the Olympic opening ceremony in London on July 27th. An average of 115 bearers will carry the torch each day.