News Story Date : 20 May, 2010

London 2012 Games Mascots revealed

Yesterday, May 19th 2010 saw the launch of the London 2012 mascots, Wenlock and Mandeville. London promised to connect young people with the 2012 Games and in doing so inspire them to choose to get more involved in and do more sport and these two mascots are designed to help inspire younger generations.

The two figures have been created from the last two drops of steel used to build the Olympic Stadium, and they are named Wenlock and Mandeville inspired by places at the heart of the UK’s Olympic and Paralympic heritage; Stoke Mandeville in Buckinghamshire, where, in the 1940s, Dr.Ludwig Guttmann came to Stoke Mandeville Hospital to set up a new spinal unit to help former soldiers suffering from spinal cord injuries.

The two mascots will travel around the UK on a journey to London 2012 Games, meeting people and learning about all the Olympic and Paralympic sports – always striving to push beyond their personal best. There will be the chance for the public to decide where they go next and what sports they learn about as a UK wide schools competition has been launched to determine where Wenlock and Mandeville’s journeys take them next. Schools which are part of the London 2012 Get Set education network can invite Wenlock and Mandeville to visit their school and community. making them an interactive part of the countries’ journey to the London 2012 Games

The story of the mascots has also been made into an animated film, based on an original story written by Children’s Laureate Michael Morpurgo.

Picture courtesy of BBC blog by Roger Mosey here
Read more about Wenlock and Mandeville here.