Phil Towers

The Olympic Torch passing through his home village sparked a slightly-higher-than-indifferent reaction from Horsforth student Caleb Canet-Baldwin, 18.

It was a sunny but cold day in Brough in 2012, and the then eight-year-old Caleb waited eagerly with his family and friends as the local community gathered on the streets.

“There was an air of suspense as people were waiting for it,” said Caleb, recollecting the moments before the torch appeared.

“I didn’t realise there were that many people there.”

Amongst the crowds was Caleb’s dad, who had dragged a set of drums out onto the street ready to herald the arrival of the flame.

The event had been hyped up on local radio and so he had wanted to contribute to the atmosphere, however in the end, Caleb describes how he “smacked a drum with a drum stick every now and then.”

Whilst not excited to begin with, Caleb says that the passing through of the torch gave him a renewed interest in some of the Olympic events that summer.

“I would be lying if I said it didn’t affect me,” he said.

“It was nice to see it pass where I’m from. It motivated me to get better at sports.”

On reflection, Caleb says that whilst the occasion may not have been a major turning point in the history of Brough, he thinks that it was important for those who were that and gave “some recognition that they exist.”