The London Olympics this summer is big, big, big by any measure. Here are a few numbers from Olympic organizers that put the July 27 to Aug. 12 event into perspective.
The Games Themselves
—10,500 athletes from 205 national Olympic committees
—26 sports; 39 disciplines
—34 venues around the U.K.
—302 medal events
—8.8 million tickets
Sports
—21,000 media and broadcasters
The Torch
—8,000 torchbearers to carry the flame across Britain and Ireland
—8,000 miles: Length of the torch relay
—300 meters: Average distance each torchbearer has the flame
—95 percent: Portion of the U.K. population within 10 miles of the flame
The Public
—1 billion visitors to london2012.com
—14 million meals to be served at the games
—70,000 volunteers
—2,012 official pin badge designs
—28 "Olympic live sites" across nation with big screen televisions
—203,000 pieces of luggage leaving Heathrow on Aug. 13, the day after the Olympics end
Equipment
—1 million pieces of equipment
—600 basketballs
—541 lifejackets (canoeing, marathon swimming, rowing, sailing, and triathlon)
—510 adjustable hurdles for track events
—356 pairs of boxing gloves
—99 training dolls for wrestling and judo
—53 sets of lane ropes for swimming
Athletes' Village
— 45,000: number of meals served there per day
—165,000: number of towels
—22,000: number of pillows
Security
—12,000 police officers on duty on the busiest days
—23,700 security personnel, not including police
