Team GB return to London after unforgettable Olympics
Monday, 25 Aug 2008 22:26
The biggest cheer was for triple-gold medalist Chris Hoy.
Britain's Olympic heroes have returned home from China following their best performance in a century.
The team touched down at Heathrow airport at around 15:00 BST on a British Airways Boeing 747 with a gold nose cone.
Britain won 19 golds in Beijing to finish fourth in the medal table with a total of 47 medals.
Cyclist Chris Hoy, swimmer Rebecca Adlington and sailor Ben Ainslie were the first gold-medal winners to emerge from the plane, followed by Steve Williams, a member of the victorious men's coxless four.
Gordon Brown, culture secretary Andy Burnham and Tessa Jowell, the Olympics minister, greeted each athlete individually.
Extra champagne was ordered for the flight and British Airways gave the medalists special upgrades, although many athletes went for apple juice.
Fans had been warned to stay away from the airport and asked to attend the victory parade in London on October 16th. A reception at Downing Street is also likely to be arranged.
Hoy, a triple-gold medalist at the velodrome, said he will take two months off.
"It's been a long pressure build-up and it's going to be nice to switch off and see friends and family and do normal things again."
Lord Coe, the London 2012 chairman, said: "Team GB have provided us with just the most extraordinary platform, one we could not possibly imagine before we came here.
"It's the opportunity to drive the project for us, but take nothing from any of those guys who've performed, I think, way beyond what I think any of us were expecting."