Running knight gets flame going

Sir Roger Bannister has started Day 53 of the Olympic torch relay at the Iffley Road running track in Oxford where he set the record for running the first mile in less than four minutes.

The track holds a special place in Sir Roger's memory. It was there in 1954 that he set his record with pacemakers Chris Brasher and Chris Chataway. His final time was a record breaking three minutes, 59.4 seconds.

At 7.01am, Sir Roger lit the torch and carried it to the finishing line, where he passed it on to Oxford doctoral student Nicola Byrom, who took the torch for a lap of the track.

Nicola is studying at Brasenose College for a doctorate in experimental psychology. According to the LOCOG website, she has worked as a volunteer for the last five years, for a range of eating disorder-related projects.

Three years ago, she launched SRSH (Student Run Self Help), an organisation run by volunteers to provide self-help groups across for students across the country with eating disorders, and has raised more than £60,000 to support it.