Remote English town Wenlock permeates in Olympic dreams

Annual carnival

Photo Slide: London Olympic mascot named after small town Much Wenlock.

Although this year's pomp was especially for the Olympics, the Wenlock Olympian Games were undoubtedly an annual party for people inside the town and beyond.

"We have 24 sports and 3,000 competitors this year," said MacVicker, adding that the competitors, mainly local people, do include foreigners like Brazilian, Japanese, Swiss and French.

The games were held in the William Brookes School, which everybody, young or old, can enjoy. Due to the size of the venue, the organizers put a top on the total number of participants, as they should register on a first-come-first-served basis.

"Nobody was paid for the games, and this is 100 percent volunteers," Vicker said.

Over decades, sports at the games kept changing to meet the need at different times. "We added marathon this year, and last year we started to have hockey and biathlon," he told Xinhua.

Saturday saw the youth biathlon event at the 126th Wenlock Olympian Games.

Maddie Wong, a 14-year-old girl from the Thomas Telford School, was waiting for her result. "I enjoy the atmosphere," she said. " Last year there was a small amount of people, but this year they have more participants, maybe because of the Olympics."

Wong's mom was born in Hong Kong and the girl with a pony-tail had a face as a Chinese. "I'd like to see more Chinese participants here in the future," she said.

Unlike Wong, 14-year-old Oliver Preece came to the games to win. He competed in national championships last year, and now receives training for swimming seven times a week.

"There is a bridge between this (Wenlock Games) and the Olympics," he said. "It is good for juniors and other people who cannot participate in the Olympics to come here."

Actually, his dream was not unrealistic.

In the museum of Much Wenlock there was a corner with many photos. One of them was Harold Langley from Birmingham used to compete in the Wenlock Games, before representing Great Britain in the triple jump at the 1924 Paris Olympics.

Another photo was Alisen Williamson, who won the bronze medal in archery at the 2004 Athens Olympics. "She competed here in Much Wenlock in 1981 at the age of 10, so we are very proud of her," said Tim King, tourism officer of the Shropshire council.

A hand-written letter by Sebastian Coe, President of the Organizing Committee of the London Olympic and Paralympic Games. " We hope that you are as proud of Wenlock as we are," he wrote to the people in the town. "Thank you for letting us share your story. "

Preece is looking forward to write his own story on the Olympic arena one day. "I am working really hard," said the determined boy. "Hopefully I am on my way."