Although there’s no motorsport in the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games, Mini will be making an appearance during the track and field events in the Olympic stadium.
A fleet of three remote-controlled, quarter-scale Mini Cooper JCWs are charged with retrieving javelins, discus, shot and hammer, and will cover around 6000 metres per day while on duty. Each ‘mini Mini’ has a potential payload of 8kg, and will be operated by specially-trained ‘Games Makers’.
It’s a nifty sidestepping of the strict commercial rules at the Games, whereby product placement is banned. But as a major sponsor, BMW has somehow managed to persuade the Olympic organisers to allow the baby Mini on the track and field events.