Manchester People - Issue 37, New Year 2009

Albert Square was the setting for a very special sporting celebration in October, as Manchester welcomed its Olympic and Paralympic stars home from the Beijing Games 2008.

Albert Square was the setting for a very special sporting celebration in October, as Manchester welcomed its Olympic and Paralympic stars home from the Beijing Games 2008.

After putting on Great Britain's greatest Olympic display for a century, athletes from Manchester and the north west flew home to a glittering city-centre reception.

Hundreds of people braved the Manchester weather to cheer on their Olympic heroes, including triple-gold-medal-winning cyclist Chris Hoy, in an evening of entertainment, which included music from opera singer Jon Cristos and Manchester's Gospel Choir, Sing Out.

Collectively, athletes living and training in Manchester and the wider north west brought home 55 medals - more than a third of Great Britain's final Olympic and Paralympic tally, thanks in part to Manchester's investment in sport. The city's ambitious vision has resulted in the availability of elite training facilities, such as the Manchester Velodrome and Manchester Aquatic Centre, which helped catapult Manchester's sportsmen and women to international glory in China.

It was certainly an achievement worth celebrating and Manchester did just that. Albert Square was the backdrop for a real party atmosphere and athletes stayed around long after the organised celebrations had finished to sign autographs and pose for photographs with fans before attending a prestigious Town Hall civic reception.

The special dinner officially honoured everyone from athletes and backroom staff, to those who continue to develop Manchester's excellent sports provision: a winning team that helped team GB to dizzying heights throughout Beijing 2008.