The announcement of the Olympic Torch Relay route earlier this month -and in particular, the fact that it will pass within ten miles of 95 per cent of the population – is one tangible way in which the Games will touch every corner of the UK.

Another, of course, is Team GB – Our Greatest Team:  the 550 athletes who will come from towns and cities throughout the UK and fulfil the opportunity of a lifetime by competing in the London 2012 Olympic Games.

During the past week we have launched a vital campaign - "Be There with Team 2012" - which gives everyone the chance to win tickets to the Games and, in doing so, help British athletes achieve their ambition of winning more medals from more sports and, in doing so, unite and inspire the nation next summer.

The objective of the Be There campaign is to raise £2 million ($3.2 million/€2.3 million) to give British athletes – Olympic and Paralympic – a critical boost in their final preparations for the biggest moment of their sporting careers. The money raised will go toward world-class coaching, medical support, travel to competitions, sport psychology and specialist equipment over the next nine months.

This is your chance to win tickets to this once-in-a-lifetime experience; your chance to help British athletes to achieve their dreams; your chance to Be There. Find out more here.

Your support can make the crucial difference for Britain's Olympic and Paralympic athletes. Research shows that the London 2012 Olympics will be the most competitive Games in history with more nations than ever now producing athletes capable of winning medals.

The latest predictive Olympic medal table published recently shows Team GB in fifth place with 59 medals. That's 12 more than were won in our groundbreaking performance at the Beijing Games in 2008. Crucially, however, the breakdown is 15 gold, 21 silver and 23 bronze, while Germany currently stand at 17 gold in their overall total of 55 medals, and currently claim fourth place in the predictive table.


In Beijing, four of Team GB's fantastic Olympic gold medals were won by a cumulative difference of just 0.87 seconds. These are the fine margins that define Olympic success. That's why the Be There with Team 2012 campaign is so important; to give British athletes the extra one percent; to convert silver and bronze into gold when it matters most, on home soil next summer.

For many British athletes, the next step in their preparation will be to compete at one of the twelve London 2012 test events taking place across many of the Olympic venues in the next three months. Athletes from six sports will compete at ExCeL, including our boxing and taekwondo squads who both returned from their 2011 World Championships with outstanding four medal hauls.

The women's handball team will debut in the impressive Handball Arena later this month before the gymnasts, track cyclists and swimmers test their Olympic venues early in 2012. The test events are invaluable in terms of sharpening our Games time plans – athletes, coaches, support staff and Team GB leadership.

As we approach the end of the year and enter the awards season, I look back on countless exceptional performances across our Olympic sports. For me personally, five of the most memorable moments were:

•         Keri-Anne Payne, open water swimming world champion

It was a privilege to be there to witness Keri-Anne's world beating performance as she took the world crown in China and qualified an Olympic quota place for Team GB.


• Sarah Stevenson (pictured), taekwondo world champion

Sarah showed immense courage, bravery and commitment to win gold in Korea, the home of Taekwondo, while overcoming the most difficult of personal circumstances.

•         Mo Farah, athletics world champion

Mo demonstrated incredible belief in his ability to bounce back from the disappointment of silver in the 10,000 metres to win a thrilling 5,000m just days later.

•         Mark Cavendish, road cycling test event

Cav's sprint finish down the Mall to win the London 2012 Test Event provided one of the highlights of the summer and certainly whet the appetite for day one of London 2012 when he will be racing for Olympic gold. He then went on to become GB's first male world race champion in 46 years in Denmark in September.

•         Denise Johns and Lucy Boulton, beach volleyball test event

The GB pair were undoubtedly inspired by the home support to beat China's world number four pair en route to reaching the semi-finals in an iconic 2012 Olympic venue.

Andy Hunt is Team GB Chef de Mission and chief executive of the British Olympic Association (BOA). To follow him on Twitter click here.