Hundreds of Bromley school kids to see the Olympics (From News Shopper)

Hundreds of Bromley school kids to see the Olympics

8:00am Sunday 12th February 2012 in News By David Mills

WHILE thousands of people missed out on Olympic tickets, more than 4,000 Bromley schoolchildren will witness the sporting spectacular.

In an initiative set up by London Mayor Boris Johnson and Olympic organisers LOCOG, 92 schools - 84 per cent of all schools in the borough - will receive tickets.

The free tickets have been allocated as part of the London 2012 Get Set education programme - a website encouraging kids to embrace the Olympic spirit through games, fact sheets, films and news articles.

Schools will run their own competitions to decide which pupils attend the Games.

Mr Johnson has promised to give one in eight London schoolchildren a seat at the Olympic or Paralympic Games.

He said: "These are London’s Games so it’s only right the next generation are right at the heart of the action.

"Watching some of world’s greatest athletes reach for gold, these young Londoners will form a huge part of what could be the most enduring legacy of these Games; a generation inspired and motivated to achieve their best in the classroom and out on the playing field."

Youngsters at Hayes School in West Common Road have 202 tickets which means one in eight students will experience the Olympics first hand.

The school was recently chosen by LOCOG to be an advocate for the Games.

It held an Olympic conference for pupils and worked with Slumdog Millionaire director Danny Boyle to create a series of short films based on the Olympics.

Last summer the school was the only secondary in the country to unveil the 2012 Olympic torch when it was launched at St Pancras station.

Headteacher Kieran Osborne said: "We are extremely proud of the work that we are doing towards the Olympics and see the values as incredibly important. "Receiving tickets is the icing on the cake and means that students can see the Olympics and Paralympics up close. We are looking forward to continuing our work all the way up to the summer."