Route of Paralympic Lantern through York revealed (From York Press)

Route of Paralympic Lantern through York revealed

9:34am Tuesday 14th August 2012 in News By Mike Laycock, Chief reporter

YORK’S Paralympic Lantern will be taken by open-top bus from the railway station to the Minster and then down Bootham before ending up in Acomb .

Council officials have confirmed the route for the lantern’s journey through the city on Friday, August 24.

The day starts with Yorkshire’s Paralympic Lantern being lit in a special ceremony at Trafalgar Square before being carried by train to York.

It will then be split between five lanterns at the Royal York Hotel, with four taken to events at Leeds, Sheffield, Huddersfield and Beverley.

The York lantern will go on a decorated open top bus to the Minster, where residents and visitors are being encouraged to gather to cheer it on its way. When the Olympic Torch was carried through York over two days in June ahead of the London Olympics, thousands of people turned out to cheer on the torchbearers.

The civic party and the city’s Hands And Voices Choir, one of the UK’s first singing and signing choirs, will join the lantern on the vehicle, which will then tour along Bootham, Water Lane, Carr Lane and in to Front Street, Acomb.

There, an escort of accessible bicycles will join the bus and lead it on to Energise Leisure Centre in Cornlands Road, where it will shine at City of York Council ’s third annual and Inspire-Marked Celebrating Ability Day.

This free, all-day event is intended to showcase the physical activity and sport opportunities across the city for disabled people with a physical, sensory or learning disability.

There will be a series of sports taster sessions led by voluntary sports clubs and the council’s sport and active leisure team, with activities in the sports including badminton, Boccia (a target ball sport), goalball (a team sport for visually-impaired athletes), a sportsability session, tennis, and a wheelchair skills session from WhizzKidz charity.

In the pool, athletes can make a splash with an open swim session and the climbing wall will offer sessions with adaptive equipment if needed.

On the Astroturf athletics will be run by City of York Athletics Club and football by Copmanthorpe FC .

An easy-read timetable is being updated at www.york.gov.uk/yorkgold2012

• The Paralympic Games will take place in London from August 29 to September 9.