Public asked to design equestrian coin to celebrate London 2012

Do you want to help create a lasting horsey legacy for the 2012 London Olympics?

The Royal Mint wants the public to help design a new 50 pence coin to represent equestrianism at the 2012 Olympic Games.

The 50p will be one of 29 that Britain’s coin maker plans to print to celebrate the different sports taking part in the London Olympics and Paralympics.

As well as having their designs reproduced on a British coin, winners will receive a hefty £1,000 cash prize and a special gold coin featuring their historical design.

The Royal Mint Design Competition for London 2012 is open to all UK residents aged over 13, who are invited to come up with designs for the 27 different sports participating in the games.

But there are also two extra categories — a children’s competition for 6 to 12-year-olds to design a coin for athletics, which was launched yesterday by Blue Peter, and a secondary school competition for 13 to 16-year-olds to design a coin for cycling. The winner will receive £10,000 for their school.

On 31 March, 2008, there were an estimated 769million 50p coins in circulation.

For a full list of permitted sporting themes, and full entry details, visit www.royalmintcompetition.co.uk

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