Olympic torch: Phillips Idowu to carry flame on first day in London

Young swimmer Natasha Sinha was Saturday's first torchbearer, carrying the flame in Greenwich

The Olympic flame has begun its seven day tour of London in the final countdown to the Olympic Games.

Team GB triple jumper Phillips Idowu, former gymnast Nadia Comaneci and ex-basketball star John Amaechi will carry the flame as it travels between Greenwich and Waltham Forest.
Pop star Dizzee Rascal and footballer Fabrice Muamba are also among the day's 143 torchbearers.
The day's 36-mile journey began at the Royal Greenwich Observatory.
The relay is touring five of the six Olympic boroughs on Saturday: Greenwich, Newham, Tower Hamlets, Hackney, Waltham Forest.
The flame arrived in dramatic fashion at the Tower of London on Friday night, abseiled from a helicopter by a Royal Marine.

Marine Martin Williams abseils the flame into London

It spent the night locked in the Jewel House with the Olympic medals before setting off in the week long relay which will see it pass through each of the city's 33 local authority areas and finish at the opening ceremony on 27 July.
Early on Saturday morning it was transferred to Greenwich where, shortly after 07:20, officials lit the torch of the day's first bearer, Natasha Sinha, 15, who was nominated for her dedication to swimming and cross country running.
She took the flame through Greenwich Park into the London 2012 equestrian arena, where it was passed to another 15-year-old, Ella Statham, who was chosen for her volunteer work with the London Football Association.
Ella's route took her past Queen's House and the Old Royal Naval College.
Continuing with the nautical theme, a few minutes later Sir Robin Knox-Johnson - the first person to sail solo around the world - carried the flame on a lap around the newly-restored Cutty Sark.
Sir Robin also founded the Clipper Round the World Yacht Race in 1995 and has been a Cutty Sark Trustee since 2011.
The 140-year-old ship, which was one of the last tea clippers to be built, was destroyed by fire in 2007 and was only reopened by the Queen in April this year.
Large crowds were out on the streets of Greenwich by 09:00 to see the torch relay pass through.
When it arrives in Woolwich, Jaco Van Gass, a soldier with the First Parachute Regiment, will carry the flame.
The 25-year-old was hit by a rocket-propelled grenade while serving in Afghanistan, resulting in the loss of his left arm, a collapsed lung, punctured internal organs, loss of muscle and tissue from the upper left thigh, multiple shrapnel wounds and a fractured knee, fibula and tibia.
Perfect 10 In 2011, Jaco was one of four injured servicemen in the Walking With The Wounded team who set a world record by walking to the North Pole.
At about 09:52 BST legendary gymnast Comaneci - winner of five Olympic gold medals and the first gymnast to score a perfect 10 - will meet ex-basketball star Amaechi on the roof of the North Greenwich Arena, where they will exchange the flame.
The arena is the venue for the London 2012 gymnastics events and basketball finals.

Fauja Singh (second from left) was a star attraction at the 2012 London Marathon

In Newham, British javelin legend Tessa Sanderson-White will carry the flame. She won gold at the 1984 Games in Los Angeles and is the only British woman to have done so in an Olympic throwing event.
Saturday's relay also includes stints from London's youngest and oldest torchbearers.
Chester Chambers, 12, was nominated for representing his classmates on the Thomas Tallis School Council, fundraising and helping to develop an anti-bullying campaign. He carried the flame in Greenwich.
At the other end of the age spectrum, centenarian Fauja Singh will carry his torch in Newham. The 101-year-old started his career as a marathon runner at the age of 89 and has now completed nine marathons.
Cardiac arrest His personal best time of 5 hours and 40 minutes was set at the 2003 Toronto Waterfront Marathon and is a world record for the over-90s. This year he completed the London Marathon in 7 hours and 49 minutes.
At about 14:20 BST Tahmina Begum will carry the flame at Stepney Green Park. The 19-year-old was the first qualified Bangladeshi female football referee and has been officiating local league football matches in east London since 2010.
Visits to Clissold Park, Hackney Town Hall and Leyton Cricket Ground will follow before Fabrice Muamba carries the flame as the last torchbearer of the day.
The 24-year-old was playing for Bolton against Tottenham on 17 March when he had a cardiac arrest and collapsed on the pitch. It was later revealed that his heart stopped beating for more than an hour.
He was discharged from hospital on 16 April, having been fitted with an implantable cardioverter-defibrillator, and has not ruled out the possibility of playing professional football again.
An evening celebration, featuring entertainment from Rizzle Kicks and Twist and Pulse, will be held at Chestnuts Field in Waltham Forest.
The flame will be carried by a total of 8,000 people during its 8,000 mile, 70-day journey to the opening ceremony of the Olympic Games in London on 27 July.