Press Release: Coventry and Warwickshire organisations to Open Up for 2012 countdown

Organisations in Coventry and Warwickshire have been encouraged to plan how they want to celebrate the one-year countdown to London 2012.All organisations and venues from culture, sport, learning and sustainability are being invited to register an event for London 2012 Open Weekend, the annual celebration of the countdown to the Olympic and Paralympic Games in 2012.The event, supported by BP, will run between Friday, July 22 and Sunday, July 24 with this year set to be the biggest celebration yet as the country passes the one year to go mark.In addition to the 12-month countdown, this year’s London 2012 Open Weekend aims to celebrate and showcase the best in art, dance, film, music and sport.It is hoped this celebration will better last year which saw Coventry and Warwickshire stage 11 events and 42,000 people attend 56 events across the wider West Midlands region.For an event to be eligible it must take place between July 22 and July 24, be non-commercial and not-for-profit, have no commercial sponsorship or offer any similar marketing rights and it must be open to everyone.Will Bastin, Coventry and Warwickshire Partnership assistant for the 2012 Games, said: “For many, the Open Weekend will bring home the reality that the London 2012 Games are almost upon us.“This event provides a great chance for people from Coventry and Warwickshire to be part of the national celebrations and showcase how they will countdown to the Games.“It is also an opportunity for organisations to reach new audiences and for communities to come together to be part of London 2012 so we would like as many people as possible to be involved in hosting an event.”To register an event for London 2012 Open Weekend visit www.london2012.com/get-involved. Registration will close at 5pm on Monday, June 27.For updates on Open Weekend events taking place across the region and a full round-up of all London 2012-related activity taking place across Coventry and Warwickshire visit www.cswp.org.uk/london2012.ENDSMedia enquiries:Simon GilbertAdvent Communications2 Edison BuildingElectric WharfSandy LaneCoventry CV1 4JATel: 024 7663 3636http://www.advent-communications.co.uk