The Flag Bearer for the Australian Olympic Team in London this year will be selected by the Chef de Mission of the Australian Team, Mr Nicholas Green OAM, generally in conjunction with senior members of the Australian Olympic Committee.
The prestigious position of the flag bearer is often also referred to as the Olympic Team Captain and is usually given to one of the most experienced athletes in the team who has been a role model for the values of the Olympic movement and also for the sport that they represent. A degree of previous Olympic success is not a prerequisite, but is preferable.
The announcement of the Olympic Flag Bearer will be made at the Australian Olympic Team Reception on Thursday evening (British Time) July 26th in London.
Possible candidates include Natalie Cook OAM (Beach Volleyball), Cadel Evans (Cycling), Drew Ginn OAM (Rowing), Leisel Jones OAM (Swimming), Russell Mark OAM (Shooting) and Sally Pearson (Athletics).
Russell Mark would probably be favourite as London will be a record equalling sixth Olympic Games, he is an Olympic Gold and Silver Medallist and multiple World Champion. He was a member of the Australian Olympic Committee's Athlete's Commission for eight years and since 2005 has been an Executive Board Member of Victorian Olympic Committee and is also an Executive Board Member of Australian International Shooting Limited. In 2007 he became the only Australian to be inducted into the International Shooting Sports Federation Hall of Fame being recognised as the greatest ever competitor in his event of all time.
A recent public competition conducted by the Australian Olympic Committee however was won by Sally Pearson ahead of Steve Hooker OAM (Athletics), Anna Meares OAM (Cycling) and Cadel Evans.
Sailor Colin Beashel was the flag bearer for the opening ceremony and swimmer Petria Thomas was the flag bearer for the closing ceremony.
One of the team's athletes is selected, by either the nation's olympic committee or by the members of the team, to be the flag bearer at the opening ceremony.
Andrei Kirilenko
The United States flag bearer at the 1992 Winter Olympics in Albertville was cross country skier Bill Koch and at the 1992 Summer Olympics in Barcelona was long distance runner Francie Larrieu at the opening ceremony and fencer Peter Westbrook at the closing ceremony.
Russel Short, Australian six-time gold medal Paralympian who also competes in able-bodied Australian championships, carried his country's flag as official flag-bearer in the opening ceremony of the Beijing Paralympics on September 6, 2008.
A person named Isabel Clark Rebeiro. She was the flag bearer for Brazil in the 2010 Winter Olympics Opening Ceremony. HAPPY??!! geez..
Discus thrower Beatrice Faumuina at the opening ceremony and cyclist Sarah Ulmer at the closing ceremony.
Opening ceremony: Snowboarder Torah Bright Closing ceremony: Freestyle skier Lydia Lassila
During the country parade of the 2012 opening ceremony, the child bearer for each country is carrying a large metallic petal, all 204 of them are brought together at the end of the opening ceremony in the stadium to form the Olympic Cauldron.The Cauldron is then lit by the last of the Olympic Torch relay runner, and the Olympic Flame rests in the Cauldron for the whole duration of the games, after which the Flame is extinguished during the closing ceremony.It looks like a copper funnel.
This was sort of answered already on another page; ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- The Flag Bearer for the Australian Olympic Team in London this year will be selected by the Chef de Mission of the Australian Team, Mr Nicholas Green OAM, generally in conjunction with senior members of the Australian Olympic Committee. The prestigious position of the Flag Bearer is often also referred to as the Olympic Team Captain and is usually given to one of the most experienced athletes in the team who has been a role model for the spirit and values of the Olympic movement and also for the sport that they represent. A degree of previous Olympic success is not a prerequisite, but is preferable. The announcement of the Olympic Flag Bearer will be made at the Australian Olympic Team Reception on Thursday evening (British Time) July 26th in London. Possible candidates for 2012 will include Natalie Cook OAM (Beach Volleyball), Michael Diamond OAM (Shooting), Cadel Evans (Cycling), Drew Ginn OAM (Rowing), Leisel Jones OAM (Swimming), Russell Mark OAM (Shooting), Anna Meares OAM (Cycling) and Sally Pearson (Athletics).
The Olympic torch bearer.
Flag bearer at the opening ceremonies was 1500 meter runner Lopez Lomong and flag bearer at the closing ceremony was archer Khatuna Lorig.