The Olympic torch was taken around the Roger Bannister track at Iffley Road stadium on 10 July.
Samsung (an Official Worldwide Partner of the London 2012 Olympic
Games) had invited the University to nominate torch bearers to
carry the torch through the city on 9 and 10 July. They are Professor
Richard Cooper, Maureen O'Neill and DPhil student Nicola Byrom.
Professor
Cooper has been heavily involved in sport at Oxford for 45 years,
initially as a student playing hockey and cricket and later as a key
supporter of organised sport as a senior member of sports teams. He has
recently retired as Chair of the University Sports Committee after 15
years during which time the sports service has trebled its size in terms
of student sports provision, and still plays cricket for the University
emeriti team.
Nicola Byrom is studying experimental psychology and has
volunteered for a number of eating disorder-related projects. In 2009
she launched Student Run Self Help, a volunteer-run organisation which
provides self-help groups across the country for students with eating
disorders, and has raised more than £60,000 for the programme.
Maureen O’Neill, Director of Development for the Oxford Faculty of Law, was nominated for a lifetime of non-profit and volunteer work. She is a governor for St. Joseph’s Catholic Primary School, a Parish Council member of Corpus Christi, an advisor for Creation Theatre and a volunteer for the Scouts, helping to raise £92,000 for their World Scout Jamboree last summer. She has worked with the Law Faculty since 2004.
