The fight to bring the Olympic torch through Basingstoke is heating up with borough bosses and the town MP championing the cause.
Basingstoke MP Maria Miller and the borough council are holding talks with Olympic chiefs in a bid to get the borough included.
And they are appealing to residents to pledge their support and show their enthusiasm for the games by nominating people to carry the torch.
Mrs Miller confirmed she had written to sports minister Hugh Robertson and Sebastian Coe, chairman of the London Organising Committee of the Olympic and Paralympic Games (LOCOG).
Mrs Miller said: “I am doing what I can to get the Olympic torch relay route to pass through Basingstoke.
“I’ve written to Lord Coe and the sports minister, and I will continue to take every opportunity to make the case for our town to be included in the route.”
“The best way to show how much we want the torch to come to Basingstoke is to show how enthusiastic we are about this great Olympic event.
“I would also encourage people to think about other ways in which we can demonstrate our commitment to having this once-in-a-lifetime event come to our town, like pledging to get out on the pavements and cheer on the torch bearers as they go past.”
A spokesperson for Mrs Miller said the letter, sent on June 6, highlights that Basingstoke has a raft of top-class sporting venues, such as Down Grange and neighbouring Wellington Stables.
Last month, LOCOG announced outline details of the route.
Starting out on May 19 the torch will zigzag across the country for 70 days, carried by 110 different people daily.
On July 10, the torch will pass through Reading before heading south west to Salisbury.
Mrs Miller believes this is an ideal opportunity for the torch to pass through streets of Basingstoke.
Basingstoke council’s cabinet member for sport, Cllr Clive Sanders, said that officers were working closely with LOCOG.
He said: “We would love to see the torch coming through the borough. But it is about getting local people involved in the process. There is a tremendous opportunity for us and the more we show we want it the better chance we have.”
LOCOG is set to announce a more detailed route for the torch later this year.
