Hethersett's Olympic Legacy - 2010 to present
Hethersett Open Weekend began in 2010 as part of the lead up and celebrations for the London 2012 Olympic games.
The village quickly gained a national reputation for organising more events per head of the population than any other village, town or city in the United Kingdom and this culminated in our being awarded the prestigious Prime Minister's Big Society award in 2012. We were the first village to gain this award.
In 2010, Hethersett decided to embrace the concept of the London 2012 Games and took part in the country's 2010 Open Weekend of events designed to give everyone the chance to take part in sport, arts and cultural events across the length and breadth of the United Kingdom. It was designed to add excitement leading up to the 2012 Games and also to create a lasting legacy.
Hethersett's efforts led to a pre-open weekend visit from Sir Keith Mills, vice-chair of the London Olympic Organising Committee.
Hethersett came in for lavish praise from Sir Keith, a man who was at the forefront of bringing the 2012 Games to London. He made a whistle stop tour of the village on Friday 23rd July, 2010, to meet children, members of the public and key figures involved in the village open weekend.
Sir Keith began his day at the Village Hall where he was welcomed by Daniel Cox, leader of Norfolk County Council and Fred Watkins, chair of Hethersett Parish Council. He also had the opportunity to chat to Hethersett Parish Councillors and members of the Hethersett "Olympic" Committee.
Next stop was Hethersett Junior School where pupils had put on a programme of sports under the leadership of Head Teacher Andy Whittle. Whilst there Sir Keith undertook interviews with both the printed Media, local radio and Anglia and BBC Television.
After a quick lunch it was off to Hethersett Woodside School to meet the children and Head Teacher Helen Lamb on her last working day before her retirement.
Sir Keith then visited Hethersett Memorial Playng Field where he was welcomed by Elizabeth Meakings, chair of the playing field committee. His final two stops were at Hethersett Library where he chatted to staff and the public and finally St Remigius Church where he was welcomed by the Rev Di Lammas.
Sir Keith played a huge part in bringing the Olympics to our shores and in 2006 was knighted for his services to sport. Throughout his stay he took a keen interest in sport, leisure and facilities in the village.
Sir Keith singled out Hethersett for his visit because the village had organised more public events per head of its population than anywhere else in the UK.
"This part of the country is leading the rest of the country. There's more projects, more enthusiasm here than anywhere else," he said.
Katie Huane, regional project manager for London 2012 said: "Hethersett is the place to start because they have managed to bring the whole community together in order to plan for this weekend. It's absolutely amazing to see from the schools to the parish council to the library."
* * *
The open weekend kicked off on Friday 23rd July with a Hethersett's Got Talent competition in the village hall where eight acts battled it out for the top trophy. Dancers, vocalists, a classical violin quartet and possibly the worst act you are ever likely to see (by their own admission) took part in a fun evening that was a thoroughly enjoyable start to the weekend of events.
The top prize went to young Mia Stebbings for her modern dance routine which included moonwalking and the worm. Judges praised Mia for her classic interpretation, energy and skill. Second place went to singer Emily Ellwood and third was Gemma Walsh.
There was a special mention for Hethersett's answer to Jedward, Redward, better known as James Rice and Ollie Armstrong who were taking time out from organising the following day's Sport in the Park event to produce a blood curdling display of out of tune singing that really summed up the event - full of fun and energy. Thankfully the other contestants showed a greater amount of skill! The evening was kicked off by dance trio Passion Production.
Over 1,000 people attended the sport in the park event on Saturday, July 24th, 2010. Members of the public of all ages were able to try their hand at a large number of sports from bowls and badminton to tennis and football. Martial arts, tug of war, hockey, golf and cycle speedway were just some of the other sports on display at the free event.
Sunday brought a number of events which opened with an inter-denominational church service in Hethersett Social Club and then moved into arguably the biggest event of the weekend - the revival of a two mile round the village funrun. Over 250 people entered with some running, some walking and some almost crawling, but they all made it home within 45 minutes. Many took part in fancy dress.
The funrun was started at Hethersett Junior School by Helen Lamb, who the previous Friday had retired as Head teacher of Woodside School. The event went along Queen's Road and Great Melton Road before turning left into Mill Road and then left again into New Road and back along Old Norwich Road past the King's Head and Queen's Head and back to the finish at the Junior School.
Before the off competitors were able to limber up with the help of top Norfolk athlete Paul Evans.
First back in an amazing time of just over 10 minutes was Norfolk runner Adam Lewis, although technically he was beaten by his one year old son Finlay whom he pushed in front of him in his buggy.
Once the elite athletes were through the way was open for the fun runners to finish in some most impressive times.
Eighteen teams from Hethersett, Bunwell, Thorpe, Walton in Hertfordshire, Aylsham, Bungay, Freethorpe, Wymondham, Coltishall, Sprowston and Hockering took part in a major ladies five-a-side tournament on Hethersett Memorial Playing Field. Thorpe Ladies took the title by beating Hethersett Hearts in the final after three round robin groups.
The weekend concluded with a concert in St Remigius Chruch by the Pulham Orchestra and the Wymondham Youth Orchestra. The two orchestras had only rehearsed together for the first time on the afternoon of the concert.
The two groups combined for a programme of varied music from the classical world of Mendelssohn's Organ Sonata (played by the orchestras rather than on the organ), Schubert's Moments Musicaux, Beethoven's Prometheus Overture and Borodin's wonderfully tuneful Polovtsian Dances to the lighter world of Gershwin and film music including Singing in the Rain, Tea for Two and Somewhere Over the Rainbow. The whole thing was rounded off with a rousing version of the Donkey Serenade.
Chair of the Hethersett Open Weekend organising committee Shane Hull pronounced the evening to be a "brilliant finale to the weekend."
The evening was introduced by Duncan Pigg who paid tribute to the work of the open weekend organising committee: "It has been an absolutely fantastic weekend. We had an inspirational church service, over 250 people taking part in a funrun and all the other events that have put us in the news over the weekend," he said.
There was considerable Media interest in Hethersett Open Weekend 2010.
Television, Radio Stations, Newspapers, Facebook, web sites, Twitter - you name it and Hethersett appeared on it and in it.
BBC's Look East and Anglia Television both featured the village extensively on their Friday night news programmes. Radio Norfolk broadcast live from the Memorial Playing Field during the sport in the park event on the Saturday and the Eastern Daily Press and Norwich Evening News had extensive coverage of events.
As a result of the 2010 celebrations Hethersett was awarded an Inspire Mark. The village also received a letter of support from Lord Coe - probably better known as Olympic gold medal and world champion runner Sebastian Coe. The village set up a special Olympic Committee to arrange subsequent events.
The village quickly gained a national reputation for organising more events per head of the population than any other village, town or city in the United Kingdom and this culminated in our being awarded the prestigious Prime Minister's Big Society award in 2012. We were the first village to gain this award.
In 2010, Hethersett decided to embrace the concept of the London 2012 Games and took part in the country's 2010 Open Weekend of events designed to give everyone the chance to take part in sport, arts and cultural events across the length and breadth of the United Kingdom. It was designed to add excitement leading up to the 2012 Games and also to create a lasting legacy.
Hethersett's efforts led to a pre-open weekend visit from Sir Keith Mills, vice-chair of the London Olympic Organising Committee.
Hethersett came in for lavish praise from Sir Keith, a man who was at the forefront of bringing the 2012 Games to London. He made a whistle stop tour of the village on Friday 23rd July, 2010, to meet children, members of the public and key figures involved in the village open weekend.
Sir Keith began his day at the Village Hall where he was welcomed by Daniel Cox, leader of Norfolk County Council and Fred Watkins, chair of Hethersett Parish Council. He also had the opportunity to chat to Hethersett Parish Councillors and members of the Hethersett "Olympic" Committee.
Next stop was Hethersett Junior School where pupils had put on a programme of sports under the leadership of Head Teacher Andy Whittle. Whilst there Sir Keith undertook interviews with both the printed Media, local radio and Anglia and BBC Television.
After a quick lunch it was off to Hethersett Woodside School to meet the children and Head Teacher Helen Lamb on her last working day before her retirement.
Sir Keith then visited Hethersett Memorial Playng Field where he was welcomed by Elizabeth Meakings, chair of the playing field committee. His final two stops were at Hethersett Library where he chatted to staff and the public and finally St Remigius Church where he was welcomed by the Rev Di Lammas.
Sir Keith played a huge part in bringing the Olympics to our shores and in 2006 was knighted for his services to sport. Throughout his stay he took a keen interest in sport, leisure and facilities in the village.
Sir Keith singled out Hethersett for his visit because the village had organised more public events per head of its population than anywhere else in the UK.
"This part of the country is leading the rest of the country. There's more projects, more enthusiasm here than anywhere else," he said.
Katie Huane, regional project manager for London 2012 said: "Hethersett is the place to start because they have managed to bring the whole community together in order to plan for this weekend. It's absolutely amazing to see from the schools to the parish council to the library."
* * *
The open weekend kicked off on Friday 23rd July with a Hethersett's Got Talent competition in the village hall where eight acts battled it out for the top trophy. Dancers, vocalists, a classical violin quartet and possibly the worst act you are ever likely to see (by their own admission) took part in a fun evening that was a thoroughly enjoyable start to the weekend of events.
The top prize went to young Mia Stebbings for her modern dance routine which included moonwalking and the worm. Judges praised Mia for her classic interpretation, energy and skill. Second place went to singer Emily Ellwood and third was Gemma Walsh.
There was a special mention for Hethersett's answer to Jedward, Redward, better known as James Rice and Ollie Armstrong who were taking time out from organising the following day's Sport in the Park event to produce a blood curdling display of out of tune singing that really summed up the event - full of fun and energy. Thankfully the other contestants showed a greater amount of skill! The evening was kicked off by dance trio Passion Production.
Over 1,000 people attended the sport in the park event on Saturday, July 24th, 2010. Members of the public of all ages were able to try their hand at a large number of sports from bowls and badminton to tennis and football. Martial arts, tug of war, hockey, golf and cycle speedway were just some of the other sports on display at the free event.
Sunday brought a number of events which opened with an inter-denominational church service in Hethersett Social Club and then moved into arguably the biggest event of the weekend - the revival of a two mile round the village funrun. Over 250 people entered with some running, some walking and some almost crawling, but they all made it home within 45 minutes. Many took part in fancy dress.
The funrun was started at Hethersett Junior School by Helen Lamb, who the previous Friday had retired as Head teacher of Woodside School. The event went along Queen's Road and Great Melton Road before turning left into Mill Road and then left again into New Road and back along Old Norwich Road past the King's Head and Queen's Head and back to the finish at the Junior School.
Before the off competitors were able to limber up with the help of top Norfolk athlete Paul Evans.
First back in an amazing time of just over 10 minutes was Norfolk runner Adam Lewis, although technically he was beaten by his one year old son Finlay whom he pushed in front of him in his buggy.
Once the elite athletes were through the way was open for the fun runners to finish in some most impressive times.
Eighteen teams from Hethersett, Bunwell, Thorpe, Walton in Hertfordshire, Aylsham, Bungay, Freethorpe, Wymondham, Coltishall, Sprowston and Hockering took part in a major ladies five-a-side tournament on Hethersett Memorial Playing Field. Thorpe Ladies took the title by beating Hethersett Hearts in the final after three round robin groups.
The weekend concluded with a concert in St Remigius Chruch by the Pulham Orchestra and the Wymondham Youth Orchestra. The two orchestras had only rehearsed together for the first time on the afternoon of the concert.
The two groups combined for a programme of varied music from the classical world of Mendelssohn's Organ Sonata (played by the orchestras rather than on the organ), Schubert's Moments Musicaux, Beethoven's Prometheus Overture and Borodin's wonderfully tuneful Polovtsian Dances to the lighter world of Gershwin and film music including Singing in the Rain, Tea for Two and Somewhere Over the Rainbow. The whole thing was rounded off with a rousing version of the Donkey Serenade.
Chair of the Hethersett Open Weekend organising committee Shane Hull pronounced the evening to be a "brilliant finale to the weekend."
The evening was introduced by Duncan Pigg who paid tribute to the work of the open weekend organising committee: "It has been an absolutely fantastic weekend. We had an inspirational church service, over 250 people taking part in a funrun and all the other events that have put us in the news over the weekend," he said.
There was considerable Media interest in Hethersett Open Weekend 2010.
Television, Radio Stations, Newspapers, Facebook, web sites, Twitter - you name it and Hethersett appeared on it and in it.
BBC's Look East and Anglia Television both featured the village extensively on their Friday night news programmes. Radio Norfolk broadcast live from the Memorial Playing Field during the sport in the park event on the Saturday and the Eastern Daily Press and Norwich Evening News had extensive coverage of events.
As a result of the 2010 celebrations Hethersett was awarded an Inspire Mark. The village also received a letter of support from Lord Coe - probably better known as Olympic gold medal and world champion runner Sebastian Coe. The village set up a special Olympic Committee to arrange subsequent events.
2011 was a big year in the history of Hethersett and its part in the lead up to the London 2012 Olympic Games. The 1948 London Olympic torch came to Hethersett on July 4th - exactly a year from the start of the 2012 London Olympics. Norfolk Olympiad Paul Evans and paralympic hopeful Will Smith toured all four Hethersett Schools with the historic torch and there was the opportunity for children to touch, pass and be photographed with the historic object.
Entertainment for all ages was provided by the second Hethersett Olympic Weekend which ran from July 22nd to 24th. The weekend got off to a marathon start on the Friday morning with pupils from Hethersett Junior School swimming 2012 lengths of their school pool. The youngsters started at 8 a.m under the watchful eye of Radio Norfolk presenters Wally Webb and Nicky Price. Nicky also swam eight lengths of the pool.
Friday evening saw a packed house at Hethersett Village Hall enjoy Hethersett's Got Talent 2011 with 12 acts vying for the title. Winner was singer guitarist David Wyatt who was appearing on stage in public for the first time.
The grand final of Hethersett's Got Talent 2011 provided an evening of excellent quality entertainment with 12 acts vying for the title.
Folk groups, singers, comedy and dance all featured at Hethersett Village Hall giving the judges the almost impossible task of picking a winner.
All ages were represented from six to adult and, after well over two hours, it was one of the "older brigade" who emerged as the winner. The accolade of "top talent 2011" went to singer guitarist David Wyatt.
David admitted that it was the first time he had appeared on stage in front of the public but he showed no signs of nerves with his comedy song about "words" which brought considerable laughter from a packed village hall. Indeed the evening was a sell out long before it took place.
Second place went to Tehya Page and her excellent backing band for her version of TLC's Waterfalls. Third were pop duo Jenna Cole and Francesca Murrell.
Others taking part in such a special evening of music, fun and laughter were: Bonnie Holmes, Ellen Whiting, Quenby Cooper, Izzy Morgan and Imogen Mardell, Ellea Albery, Get the Folk Out, Simon Floyd, Kalia Burgess, Jordan Bromley and Baby Shark.
There was also guest performances from dance act Passion Elite, solo dancer Epic Dance and the hugely talented multi instrumentalist Hayley Moyses who played electric violin and sang. Hayley was also a member of the judging panel alongside young dancer Scott Atkins, Librarian Ben Miller and Jo Thompson from Norfolk County Council.
The evening was compered by Chris Watt and a bouquet was presented to Jo Adcock for leading the organisation of the event. Refreshments were provided by Waitrose and served by Hethersett Pensioners' Association.
Saturday saw another massive Sport in the Park event. A rather dull day weather-wise was brightened up by well over 1,000 local people trying their hand at over 20 sports and pastimes.
Everything was free of charge and sports available included martial arts, trampolining, boxing, gymnastics, football, cycle speedway, bowls, athletics, table tennis, canoeing, tennis, badminton, karate, volleyball, hockey, lacrosse, Watt Bikes, golf, hoola hoop fitness, speed kick, tug of war and keep fit. Refreshments were supplied by Hethersett Bowls Club, Hethersett Methodist Church and the Queen's Head.
Woodcote Sheltered Housing complex also held an open day which included a tombola, craft and model display, memorabilia display, a £1 stall, cakes and refreshments and an exhibit of interesting collections and hobbies
Sunday saw four events - the inter denominational church service in Hethersett Social Club, the two mile round the square fun run, a ladies five a side football tournament and a Last Night of the Proms concert in St Remigius Church.
The Sunday kicked off with a short inter-denominational service in Hethersett Social Club with the Rector the Rev Di Lammas speaking on an Olympic theme.
People of all ages took part in the two mile fun run which attracted 230 - the youngest being two and a half and the oldest 83.
Some were dressed in fancy gear, some were serious runners, some walked the course, but all enjoyed the experience and received an Olympic medal for competing.
First place went to Ollie Armstrong in a time of 11 minutes and 58 seconds. Others completed the course in a much more sedate pace taking up to 50 minutes.
Runners were set off by Hethersett Junior School Head Andy Whittle and before the run there was a warm up by Norfolk Olympic runner Paul Evans. The run set off from the Junior School and took a course along Queen's Road, part of Great Melton Road, Mill Road, New Road and Norwich Road. There was also a prize for the best fancy dress which was won by Lynn Ottaway dressed as Princess Leia from Starwars.
A ladies five-a-side football tournament took place throughout the day on the Memorial Playing Field with 13 teams taking part. For the second year running a team from Thorpe Ladies came out on top. The trophies and Olympic medals were presented at the end of the tournament by Hethersett Athletic FC chairman Peter Steward and Olympic Committee Chairman Shane Hull.
Olympic weekend was rounded off by a Last Night of the Proms concert in St Remigius Church led by the Pulham Orchestra. The event was another sell out with additional seats having to be placed in the church naive. It was a fitting and rousing end to Olympic weekend. The programme was a mixture of central European and British music including Beethoven's Egmont Overture, Mozart's Horn Concerto, Jerusalem, Land of Hope and Glory.
Tributes to the hard work put in to organise the weekend were given by Duncan Pigg and the chairman of the Hethersett Olympic committee, Shane Hull.
Later in the year it was announced that Hethersett had been singled out for a special visit from the 2012 Olympic flame on its way to the London games. Although Hethersett was not on the official route, it was decided to bring the flame to the village in recognition for the "outstanding efforts" of the village in support of the Olympic Games. And so it was that on Thursday 5th July, 2012, that chairman of the Hethersett Olympic Committee Shane Hull walked round the grounds of Hethersett High School carrying the torch. Hundreds of people turned out for the very early morning visit.
Hethersett's Open Weekend was held in June 2012 - a month earlier than usual because of the Olympics and once again there was a full programme of events.
It kicked off with a 24 hour swimming marathon which celebrated the 40th anniversary of the Junior School pool and saw pupils and members of the public joining forces to swim the equivalent distance of from Hethersett to London. Paralympic gold medallist Oliver Jones swam the last length of the marathon.
Hethersett's Got Talent 3 filled the village hall and Sport in the Park had a record number of pastimes including unusual sports such as Korfball and Dodgeball.
The Sunday Funrun attracted over 300 runners despite a torrential downpour. The Sunday service took place again in the social club, the ladies five a side attracted a record entry of 26 and the whole thing was rounded off by a Songs of Praise service in the parish church. Throughout the three days there was a flower festival in the parish church and on the Saturday night the historic building was the venue for a concert by the Hellesdon and Sprowston Brass Band.
The Hethersett Olympic bandwagon continued to roll, however. Children from three of the village schools took part in a special Olympic pageant in the grand ring at the Royal Norfolk Show when there was also a special presentation to Shane Hull to mark his outstanding work on behalf of the village.
But there was even more going on. Hethersett High School pupil Lauren Boswell-Riches designed a village torch which was made by the local blacksmith Reggie Loveday and which featured in a number of events and which took up permanent residence in the village library. Schools held a number of Olympic themed events including a poetry competition and putting together animations, films and the Junior School enjoyed a visit from inspirational paralympic gold medallist and world record swimmer Chris Holmes.
London illustrator Alice Pattullo capture the events and the visit of the Olympic flame in a special poster of events.
There were also a number of spin offs from the open weekend events. The village began to work alongside Active Norfolk to organise a come and try sports evening that eventually turned into a weekend event, Hethersett entered the South Norfolk Village Games for the first time and won in 2011 and 2012 and finished runners-up in the county finals in 2011. Hethersett and Meltons Sports Association was formed in February 2011 to bring sports and well being groups together and improve sports and leisure facilties.
The Open Weekend was Eastern Daily Press event of the year runner-up in 2010. In 2011 Hethersett was named Active Norfolk/Eastern Daily Press Norfolk sports village of the year and also Norfolk Sports Champion of Champions.
Perhaps it was all best summed up by Joseph Ballard, London 2012 Inspire Programmer for the East of England, at a special showing in Norwich Forum of a unique Olympic themed film showing the work done by children in the Hethersett cluster of schools under the direction of Extended Schools Co-ordinator Fiona Whiting. Joseph referred to our village as a "wonderful place" and brought home the enormity of the flame visit:
"It is the only time in the entire history of the Olympic Games that the Olympic flame has made an off route visit," he said, thus proving that in 2012 the Norfolk village of Hethersett made world history.
But that wasn't the end of things. After the London Olympic games the Hethersett Olympic Committee became the Hethersett Olympic Legacy Group before eventually becoming part of the Hethersett and the Meltons Sports Association. Come and Try events continued and Hethersett continued to field a very successful team in the Norfolk Village Games until they went out of existence in
In fact as county champions in that final year, Hethersett will be permanent holders of the trophy. The two mile funrun has been held every year since 2010 with the exception of 2019 when it had to be cancelled due a variety of administration factors and 2020 when it was cancelled due to the coronavirus. It is due to have its 10th running in 2021.
Entertainment for all ages was provided by the second Hethersett Olympic Weekend which ran from July 22nd to 24th. The weekend got off to a marathon start on the Friday morning with pupils from Hethersett Junior School swimming 2012 lengths of their school pool. The youngsters started at 8 a.m under the watchful eye of Radio Norfolk presenters Wally Webb and Nicky Price. Nicky also swam eight lengths of the pool.
Friday evening saw a packed house at Hethersett Village Hall enjoy Hethersett's Got Talent 2011 with 12 acts vying for the title. Winner was singer guitarist David Wyatt who was appearing on stage in public for the first time.
The grand final of Hethersett's Got Talent 2011 provided an evening of excellent quality entertainment with 12 acts vying for the title.
Folk groups, singers, comedy and dance all featured at Hethersett Village Hall giving the judges the almost impossible task of picking a winner.
All ages were represented from six to adult and, after well over two hours, it was one of the "older brigade" who emerged as the winner. The accolade of "top talent 2011" went to singer guitarist David Wyatt.
David admitted that it was the first time he had appeared on stage in front of the public but he showed no signs of nerves with his comedy song about "words" which brought considerable laughter from a packed village hall. Indeed the evening was a sell out long before it took place.
Second place went to Tehya Page and her excellent backing band for her version of TLC's Waterfalls. Third were pop duo Jenna Cole and Francesca Murrell.
Others taking part in such a special evening of music, fun and laughter were: Bonnie Holmes, Ellen Whiting, Quenby Cooper, Izzy Morgan and Imogen Mardell, Ellea Albery, Get the Folk Out, Simon Floyd, Kalia Burgess, Jordan Bromley and Baby Shark.
There was also guest performances from dance act Passion Elite, solo dancer Epic Dance and the hugely talented multi instrumentalist Hayley Moyses who played electric violin and sang. Hayley was also a member of the judging panel alongside young dancer Scott Atkins, Librarian Ben Miller and Jo Thompson from Norfolk County Council.
The evening was compered by Chris Watt and a bouquet was presented to Jo Adcock for leading the organisation of the event. Refreshments were provided by Waitrose and served by Hethersett Pensioners' Association.
Saturday saw another massive Sport in the Park event. A rather dull day weather-wise was brightened up by well over 1,000 local people trying their hand at over 20 sports and pastimes.
Everything was free of charge and sports available included martial arts, trampolining, boxing, gymnastics, football, cycle speedway, bowls, athletics, table tennis, canoeing, tennis, badminton, karate, volleyball, hockey, lacrosse, Watt Bikes, golf, hoola hoop fitness, speed kick, tug of war and keep fit. Refreshments were supplied by Hethersett Bowls Club, Hethersett Methodist Church and the Queen's Head.
Woodcote Sheltered Housing complex also held an open day which included a tombola, craft and model display, memorabilia display, a £1 stall, cakes and refreshments and an exhibit of interesting collections and hobbies
Sunday saw four events - the inter denominational church service in Hethersett Social Club, the two mile round the square fun run, a ladies five a side football tournament and a Last Night of the Proms concert in St Remigius Church.
The Sunday kicked off with a short inter-denominational service in Hethersett Social Club with the Rector the Rev Di Lammas speaking on an Olympic theme.
People of all ages took part in the two mile fun run which attracted 230 - the youngest being two and a half and the oldest 83.
Some were dressed in fancy gear, some were serious runners, some walked the course, but all enjoyed the experience and received an Olympic medal for competing.
First place went to Ollie Armstrong in a time of 11 minutes and 58 seconds. Others completed the course in a much more sedate pace taking up to 50 minutes.
Runners were set off by Hethersett Junior School Head Andy Whittle and before the run there was a warm up by Norfolk Olympic runner Paul Evans. The run set off from the Junior School and took a course along Queen's Road, part of Great Melton Road, Mill Road, New Road and Norwich Road. There was also a prize for the best fancy dress which was won by Lynn Ottaway dressed as Princess Leia from Starwars.
A ladies five-a-side football tournament took place throughout the day on the Memorial Playing Field with 13 teams taking part. For the second year running a team from Thorpe Ladies came out on top. The trophies and Olympic medals were presented at the end of the tournament by Hethersett Athletic FC chairman Peter Steward and Olympic Committee Chairman Shane Hull.
Olympic weekend was rounded off by a Last Night of the Proms concert in St Remigius Church led by the Pulham Orchestra. The event was another sell out with additional seats having to be placed in the church naive. It was a fitting and rousing end to Olympic weekend. The programme was a mixture of central European and British music including Beethoven's Egmont Overture, Mozart's Horn Concerto, Jerusalem, Land of Hope and Glory.
Tributes to the hard work put in to organise the weekend were given by Duncan Pigg and the chairman of the Hethersett Olympic committee, Shane Hull.
Later in the year it was announced that Hethersett had been singled out for a special visit from the 2012 Olympic flame on its way to the London games. Although Hethersett was not on the official route, it was decided to bring the flame to the village in recognition for the "outstanding efforts" of the village in support of the Olympic Games. And so it was that on Thursday 5th July, 2012, that chairman of the Hethersett Olympic Committee Shane Hull walked round the grounds of Hethersett High School carrying the torch. Hundreds of people turned out for the very early morning visit.
Hethersett's Open Weekend was held in June 2012 - a month earlier than usual because of the Olympics and once again there was a full programme of events.
It kicked off with a 24 hour swimming marathon which celebrated the 40th anniversary of the Junior School pool and saw pupils and members of the public joining forces to swim the equivalent distance of from Hethersett to London. Paralympic gold medallist Oliver Jones swam the last length of the marathon.
Hethersett's Got Talent 3 filled the village hall and Sport in the Park had a record number of pastimes including unusual sports such as Korfball and Dodgeball.
The Sunday Funrun attracted over 300 runners despite a torrential downpour. The Sunday service took place again in the social club, the ladies five a side attracted a record entry of 26 and the whole thing was rounded off by a Songs of Praise service in the parish church. Throughout the three days there was a flower festival in the parish church and on the Saturday night the historic building was the venue for a concert by the Hellesdon and Sprowston Brass Band.
The Hethersett Olympic bandwagon continued to roll, however. Children from three of the village schools took part in a special Olympic pageant in the grand ring at the Royal Norfolk Show when there was also a special presentation to Shane Hull to mark his outstanding work on behalf of the village.
But there was even more going on. Hethersett High School pupil Lauren Boswell-Riches designed a village torch which was made by the local blacksmith Reggie Loveday and which featured in a number of events and which took up permanent residence in the village library. Schools held a number of Olympic themed events including a poetry competition and putting together animations, films and the Junior School enjoyed a visit from inspirational paralympic gold medallist and world record swimmer Chris Holmes.
London illustrator Alice Pattullo capture the events and the visit of the Olympic flame in a special poster of events.
There were also a number of spin offs from the open weekend events. The village began to work alongside Active Norfolk to organise a come and try sports evening that eventually turned into a weekend event, Hethersett entered the South Norfolk Village Games for the first time and won in 2011 and 2012 and finished runners-up in the county finals in 2011. Hethersett and Meltons Sports Association was formed in February 2011 to bring sports and well being groups together and improve sports and leisure facilties.
The Open Weekend was Eastern Daily Press event of the year runner-up in 2010. In 2011 Hethersett was named Active Norfolk/Eastern Daily Press Norfolk sports village of the year and also Norfolk Sports Champion of Champions.
Perhaps it was all best summed up by Joseph Ballard, London 2012 Inspire Programmer for the East of England, at a special showing in Norwich Forum of a unique Olympic themed film showing the work done by children in the Hethersett cluster of schools under the direction of Extended Schools Co-ordinator Fiona Whiting. Joseph referred to our village as a "wonderful place" and brought home the enormity of the flame visit:
"It is the only time in the entire history of the Olympic Games that the Olympic flame has made an off route visit," he said, thus proving that in 2012 the Norfolk village of Hethersett made world history.
But that wasn't the end of things. After the London Olympic games the Hethersett Olympic Committee became the Hethersett Olympic Legacy Group before eventually becoming part of the Hethersett and the Meltons Sports Association. Come and Try events continued and Hethersett continued to field a very successful team in the Norfolk Village Games until they went out of existence in
In fact as county champions in that final year, Hethersett will be permanent holders of the trophy. The two mile funrun has been held every year since 2010 with the exception of 2019 when it had to be cancelled due a variety of administration factors and 2020 when it was cancelled due to the coronavirus. It is due to have its 10th running in 2021.
Below is an article written about Hethersett's Olympic Legacy and which initially appeared on a former Hethersett village website.
It all began with an idea. That idea swiftly turned into reality and the rest, as they say, is history.
Parish Councillor Shane Hull formulated the idea of an Olympic Committee to organise events in Hethersett over a three year period leading up to the 2012 London Olympics. The first meeting of that committee took place at Park Farm Hotel on March 9th, 2010, when Shane spoke passionately about his dreams to bring the Olympic torch to Hethersett.
That meeting launched a campaign: "A few years ago I had the thought that maybe Hethersett could have the honour of having the Olympic torch carried through the village on its way to London. This would really put the village on the map locally, nationally and internationally," Shane said at that inaugural meeting.
Politicians and other influential people were lobbied, local schools became involved and posters were displayed in Hethersett Library and pages were set up on social media sites such as Facebook and Twitter and the idea began to take shape. The committee agreed to oversee three days of events from July 23rd to 25th, 2010, to co-incide with an open Olympic weekend in London. It was also planned to hold events in 2011 and in 2012 up until the games themselves.
"We want to give a lasting legacy to the village. We are hoping to reach new audiences and offer local residents the chance to celebrate and also to inspire young people," Shane Hull said back in 2010.
And it worked. To use a well worn cliche - from little acorns, mighty oaks grew. Over the three years Hethersett became known locally and nationally as a "can do" community with so many people working tirelessly and giving their time and energy freely for the common good. It wouldn't be overstating things to say that the ethos of the Olympic Games brought the village together in a way rarely seen. Certainly when the Olympic flame paid an off route visit to the village in July 2012 it underlined the fact that over the three year period Hethersett organised more events per head of the population than any other village, town or city in the United Kingdom.
Thursday 5th July, 2012, will go down as one of the finest days in the history of the village - not because of the physical nature of the flame - encased as it was in a lantern merely 12 inches tall - but from the symbolic nature of a unique event that brought 2,000 people together at an hour when most are usually tucked up snugly in their beds. It was the culmination of a dream. But we get ahead of ourselves. Let's start by casting our attention back to the summer of 2010 when the dreams began to take shape and turn into reality.
Scheduled events for 2010 were lined-up and Lord Coe (better known as Olympic champion Sebastian Coe) was invited to start the first ever Run the Square funrun. He wrote back to state that he would be unable to attend due to commitments abroad but had passed the information on. This in itself would have huge significance even before the village's first Open Weekend began.
It was the beginning of July when the village heard it had been awarded a coveted London Olympics Inspire Mark. The award recognised the "innovative and exceptional projects directly inspired by the 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games." The village was praised for "coming together in an exceptional display of co-operation, generosity, goodwill and team spirit."
The award was primarily given for the Sport in the Park initiative and along with the award came the first inkling of wider health and fitness benefits from what was taking place in the village:
"Projects like Sport in the Park are enabling people in Hethersett (and indeed Norfolk as a whole) to make positive life changes," Lord Coe said in another personal letter.
Shane Hull spoke of the generosity of spirit within the village: "The Inspire Mark is a testimony to the amount of hard work put in by so many people. It is a testimony to the generosity and community spirit of people wishing to put Hethersett on the map. Sport in the Park has shown that sports clubs and people connected with sport in the community can come together for the benefit of the whole village," he said. These words were echoed throughout the following two years and also led to the formation of other groups aimed at improving sport, well being and fitness in Hethersett as we will again see later on in this article.
On the eve of the weekend, Hethersett played host to a very special guest - Sir Keith Mills, deputy chair of the 2012 London Olympics organising committee. Sir Keith made a whistle stop tour of the village on Friday 23rd July to meet children, members of the public and key figures involved in organising the weekend. Hethersett Junior School mounted a special programme of sports which was covered extensively on television and in the Media. Other visits by Sir Keith included Woodside School, Hethersett Library and St Remigius Church.
The visit also marked a buzz phrase that would play an important part in publicity over the coming two years. Sir Keith praised the village for organising more public events per head of population than any other village, town or city in the United Kingdom. There was also lavish praise from Katie Huane, regional project manager for London 2012 who said:
"Hethersett is the place to start because they have managed to bring the whole community together in order to plan for this weekend. It's absolutely amazing to see what has been achieved."
The first Olympic weekend ran from July 23rd to 25th, 2010, and was kicked off by Hethersett's Got Talent in the village hall and followed by the first Sport in the Park day on the Memorial Field. - an attempt to get local residents playing a variety of sports with an Olympic theme free of charge. Athletics, football, cycle speedway, tennis, badminton, martial arts, gymnastics, tug of war were just some of the activities available.
The Sunday morning run the square event revived a village tradition from the 1940s and 1950s and was started by the Head Teacher of Woodside School Helen Lamb to mark her retirement. Over 200 people took part with medals for all those finishing (and everyone did). Before the race there was a warm-up session led by Norfolk Olympiad Paul Evans, another character to feature large in the celebrations over the three year period.
Teams from across Norfolk took part in a Sunday ladies five-a-side tournament organised by Hethersett Athletic Football Club. There was a multi denominational church service at the High School and the event was rounded off by a celebration classical music concert featuring the Pulham Orchestra in Hethersett Parish Church.
Olympic Weekend 2010 was a huge success and you can read more about the individual events elsewhere on this site in the various Olympic sections. Comments made following that first weekend were almost all positive:
"This weekend has helped to bring back the community spirit to our village," was just one of the many comments. It also underlined the feeling that Hethersett offers facilities, entertainment and support in just about every imaginable sphere and that our village was beginning to get a national reputation for excellence. There was already a huge amount of pride in what was being achieved. As I wrote at the time "A group of people supported an idea and just ran with it. The village had a group of "do-ers" ready to rise to every challenge."
Another of my observations made at the time was as follows: "Hethersett may not be the most attractive village in the UK, it may not even be the most attractive in Norfolk, but when it comes to community spirit there are few that can rival it."
Some communities would have said "enough is enough" and rested on their laurels with their heads held high and smiles of achievement on their faces - but not Hethersett, for the 2010 Open Weekend was just the start of bigger things to come. A campaign was launched to have the Olympic Torch visit the village on its way to London in 2012.
This was backed by Stephen Castle, National and Regional East Chairman who said:
"The weekend is something that Hethersett should be proud of. Hethersett and its residents have been a real inspiration to the East of England," he said.
As soon as the dust had settled on Open Weekend 2010, Shane Hull vowed to do it "bigger and better" in 2011 - and once again this was no idle promise. The 2011 event was held from July 22nd to 24th.
The campaign to bring the official torch to the village continued and hopes grew when it was announced that there would be an overnight stop in Norwich. At the same time came news that a genuine London Olympic torch was on its way to the village. The 1948 torch came to Hethersett on July 4th, 2011 - exactly one year before the 2012 version was due in Norfolk. Over 1,000 children from the village's four schools greeted the torch which was on loan for the day from Loughborough University. The schools held Olympic themed assemblies and James Carswell, Norfolk County Council's Cabinet Member for Cultural, Communications and Customer Services said:
"The activities taking place in Hethersett are a leading example, not only locally but nationally, of how an area can come together to use the Olympics coming to the country to bring benefit and excitement to their local community."
The 2011 Open Weekend saw even more events being included, starting with a swimming event in Hethersett Junior School pool. Pupils swam 2012 lengths in just under four hours. Hethersett's Got Talent 2 took place in the Village Hall. Sport in the Park had over 20 come and try activities and nearby Woodcote Sheltered Housing complex held an open day. The multi-denominational service was held in Hethersett Social Club and there were record numbers for the run the square event. The ladies five-a-side tournament ran on the Memorial Playing Field and the event was rounded off by a Last Night at the Proms concert by the Pulham Orchestra in the parish church.
Scarcely had the dust died down on the 2011 Open Weekend before the announcement that everyone had been waiting for came. Hethersett was singled out for a special visit from the 2012 Olympic flame on its way to the games. This was a remarkable announcement. Hethersett was not on the flame's route and Hethersett was named as the only place in the whole of the UK to have an off route visit.
It all began with an idea. That idea swiftly turned into reality and the rest, as they say, is history.
Parish Councillor Shane Hull formulated the idea of an Olympic Committee to organise events in Hethersett over a three year period leading up to the 2012 London Olympics. The first meeting of that committee took place at Park Farm Hotel on March 9th, 2010, when Shane spoke passionately about his dreams to bring the Olympic torch to Hethersett.
That meeting launched a campaign: "A few years ago I had the thought that maybe Hethersett could have the honour of having the Olympic torch carried through the village on its way to London. This would really put the village on the map locally, nationally and internationally," Shane said at that inaugural meeting.
Politicians and other influential people were lobbied, local schools became involved and posters were displayed in Hethersett Library and pages were set up on social media sites such as Facebook and Twitter and the idea began to take shape. The committee agreed to oversee three days of events from July 23rd to 25th, 2010, to co-incide with an open Olympic weekend in London. It was also planned to hold events in 2011 and in 2012 up until the games themselves.
"We want to give a lasting legacy to the village. We are hoping to reach new audiences and offer local residents the chance to celebrate and also to inspire young people," Shane Hull said back in 2010.
And it worked. To use a well worn cliche - from little acorns, mighty oaks grew. Over the three years Hethersett became known locally and nationally as a "can do" community with so many people working tirelessly and giving their time and energy freely for the common good. It wouldn't be overstating things to say that the ethos of the Olympic Games brought the village together in a way rarely seen. Certainly when the Olympic flame paid an off route visit to the village in July 2012 it underlined the fact that over the three year period Hethersett organised more events per head of the population than any other village, town or city in the United Kingdom.
Thursday 5th July, 2012, will go down as one of the finest days in the history of the village - not because of the physical nature of the flame - encased as it was in a lantern merely 12 inches tall - but from the symbolic nature of a unique event that brought 2,000 people together at an hour when most are usually tucked up snugly in their beds. It was the culmination of a dream. But we get ahead of ourselves. Let's start by casting our attention back to the summer of 2010 when the dreams began to take shape and turn into reality.
Scheduled events for 2010 were lined-up and Lord Coe (better known as Olympic champion Sebastian Coe) was invited to start the first ever Run the Square funrun. He wrote back to state that he would be unable to attend due to commitments abroad but had passed the information on. This in itself would have huge significance even before the village's first Open Weekend began.
It was the beginning of July when the village heard it had been awarded a coveted London Olympics Inspire Mark. The award recognised the "innovative and exceptional projects directly inspired by the 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games." The village was praised for "coming together in an exceptional display of co-operation, generosity, goodwill and team spirit."
The award was primarily given for the Sport in the Park initiative and along with the award came the first inkling of wider health and fitness benefits from what was taking place in the village:
"Projects like Sport in the Park are enabling people in Hethersett (and indeed Norfolk as a whole) to make positive life changes," Lord Coe said in another personal letter.
Shane Hull spoke of the generosity of spirit within the village: "The Inspire Mark is a testimony to the amount of hard work put in by so many people. It is a testimony to the generosity and community spirit of people wishing to put Hethersett on the map. Sport in the Park has shown that sports clubs and people connected with sport in the community can come together for the benefit of the whole village," he said. These words were echoed throughout the following two years and also led to the formation of other groups aimed at improving sport, well being and fitness in Hethersett as we will again see later on in this article.
On the eve of the weekend, Hethersett played host to a very special guest - Sir Keith Mills, deputy chair of the 2012 London Olympics organising committee. Sir Keith made a whistle stop tour of the village on Friday 23rd July to meet children, members of the public and key figures involved in organising the weekend. Hethersett Junior School mounted a special programme of sports which was covered extensively on television and in the Media. Other visits by Sir Keith included Woodside School, Hethersett Library and St Remigius Church.
The visit also marked a buzz phrase that would play an important part in publicity over the coming two years. Sir Keith praised the village for organising more public events per head of population than any other village, town or city in the United Kingdom. There was also lavish praise from Katie Huane, regional project manager for London 2012 who said:
"Hethersett is the place to start because they have managed to bring the whole community together in order to plan for this weekend. It's absolutely amazing to see what has been achieved."
The first Olympic weekend ran from July 23rd to 25th, 2010, and was kicked off by Hethersett's Got Talent in the village hall and followed by the first Sport in the Park day on the Memorial Field. - an attempt to get local residents playing a variety of sports with an Olympic theme free of charge. Athletics, football, cycle speedway, tennis, badminton, martial arts, gymnastics, tug of war were just some of the activities available.
The Sunday morning run the square event revived a village tradition from the 1940s and 1950s and was started by the Head Teacher of Woodside School Helen Lamb to mark her retirement. Over 200 people took part with medals for all those finishing (and everyone did). Before the race there was a warm-up session led by Norfolk Olympiad Paul Evans, another character to feature large in the celebrations over the three year period.
Teams from across Norfolk took part in a Sunday ladies five-a-side tournament organised by Hethersett Athletic Football Club. There was a multi denominational church service at the High School and the event was rounded off by a celebration classical music concert featuring the Pulham Orchestra in Hethersett Parish Church.
Olympic Weekend 2010 was a huge success and you can read more about the individual events elsewhere on this site in the various Olympic sections. Comments made following that first weekend were almost all positive:
"This weekend has helped to bring back the community spirit to our village," was just one of the many comments. It also underlined the feeling that Hethersett offers facilities, entertainment and support in just about every imaginable sphere and that our village was beginning to get a national reputation for excellence. There was already a huge amount of pride in what was being achieved. As I wrote at the time "A group of people supported an idea and just ran with it. The village had a group of "do-ers" ready to rise to every challenge."
Another of my observations made at the time was as follows: "Hethersett may not be the most attractive village in the UK, it may not even be the most attractive in Norfolk, but when it comes to community spirit there are few that can rival it."
Some communities would have said "enough is enough" and rested on their laurels with their heads held high and smiles of achievement on their faces - but not Hethersett, for the 2010 Open Weekend was just the start of bigger things to come. A campaign was launched to have the Olympic Torch visit the village on its way to London in 2012.
This was backed by Stephen Castle, National and Regional East Chairman who said:
"The weekend is something that Hethersett should be proud of. Hethersett and its residents have been a real inspiration to the East of England," he said.
As soon as the dust had settled on Open Weekend 2010, Shane Hull vowed to do it "bigger and better" in 2011 - and once again this was no idle promise. The 2011 event was held from July 22nd to 24th.
The campaign to bring the official torch to the village continued and hopes grew when it was announced that there would be an overnight stop in Norwich. At the same time came news that a genuine London Olympic torch was on its way to the village. The 1948 torch came to Hethersett on July 4th, 2011 - exactly one year before the 2012 version was due in Norfolk. Over 1,000 children from the village's four schools greeted the torch which was on loan for the day from Loughborough University. The schools held Olympic themed assemblies and James Carswell, Norfolk County Council's Cabinet Member for Cultural, Communications and Customer Services said:
"The activities taking place in Hethersett are a leading example, not only locally but nationally, of how an area can come together to use the Olympics coming to the country to bring benefit and excitement to their local community."
The 2011 Open Weekend saw even more events being included, starting with a swimming event in Hethersett Junior School pool. Pupils swam 2012 lengths in just under four hours. Hethersett's Got Talent 2 took place in the Village Hall. Sport in the Park had over 20 come and try activities and nearby Woodcote Sheltered Housing complex held an open day. The multi-denominational service was held in Hethersett Social Club and there were record numbers for the run the square event. The ladies five-a-side tournament ran on the Memorial Playing Field and the event was rounded off by a Last Night at the Proms concert by the Pulham Orchestra in the parish church.
Scarcely had the dust died down on the 2011 Open Weekend before the announcement that everyone had been waiting for came. Hethersett was singled out for a special visit from the 2012 Olympic flame on its way to the games. This was a remarkable announcement. Hethersett was not on the flame's route and Hethersett was named as the only place in the whole of the UK to have an off route visit.