Southeastern will today honour four- time Paralympic gold medallist, Marc Woods by officially naming a high speed Javelin® train after the prominent swimmer. The former Paralympian, European and World Champion is an ambassador for the London 2012 Games.
The Marc Woods Javelin® train will be unveiled on the Southeastern platform 13 at St Pancras International Station at 10:00am, Tuesday 10 July 2012.
Charles Horton, managing director for Southeastern said: “Marc Woods in his 17 years as a professional athlete won 12 Paralympic medals from five Games, and won gold four times. His contribution to the world of sport and his role as Ambassador for the London 2012 Games is an inspiration to us all and we’re proud of our association with Marc.
“As we approach the final countdown for the launch of the Javelin® service, it is only fitting that we recognise Marc’s incredible achievements and his work with Southeastern by naming a Javelin® train in his honour,” Mr Horton said.
12 of the 29 Javelin trains have been formally named. The first ever unit was named after Dame Kelly Holmes, who won two gold medals for her running in the 2004 Olympic Games.
Marc Woods said, “This is truly a great honour. I’ve spent years swimming up and down the pool trying to be the best I could be and pursuing the path to gold, I never expected to see my name on the side of a Javelin® train.”
As a veteran of five Games, Marc Woods has been holding sessions with Southeastern staff to impress-upon them the importance of transport for athletes competing in the Games.
“We all want the London 2012 Games to be the best ever and our transport networks will play a huge part in making this happen. As a former athlete, it’s comforting to know just exactly how much planning, preparation and testing has been underway and what the various transport companies such as Southeastern have been doing to help make the Games a success.”
Charles Horton added: “We’ve been working closely in partnership with LOCOG, the ODA, the Department for Transport, Network Rail, Transport for London and High Speed 1 to plan our service for what many call the greatest show on earth.“We are expecting our services to be very busy during the Games, but we are well prepared. We are advising our passengers to plan their travel ahead, and to visit getaheadofthegames.com to see how their journey might be affected,” he said.
Southeastern will operate the Javelin® service during the London 2012 Games. The first Javelin® service will commence on Friday 27 July. The Javelin® is by far the fastest way to the Olympic Park from Central London; providing up to 12 trains an hour at peak times and transporting 25,000 people to and from St Pancras International and Stratford every hour in just seven minutes. The service is expected to be very busy during the Games and special queuing arrangements will be in place.
Ticketed spectators with a Games Travelcard will be able to travel on the Javelin® service between St Pancras International and Stratford International. Spectators should visit London2012.com for detailed information about getting to and from event venues.
Regular Southeastern passengers are advised to visit GetAheadoftheGames.com for transport advice during the Games.
For further information and a copy of Southeastern’s special timetable for the duration of the Games visit southeasternrailway.co.uk/olympics.
Southeastern
