The Olympic torch’s arrival in the city on 30 June 2012 will be marked by an evening of celebrations.

Birmingham will host the 160-strong US track and field team, who will train in and around the city.

And the 60 members of the Jamaican track and field team, including the world’s fastest man, Usain Bolt, will be based in Birmingham.

The city council said it had not yet been decided what celebrations would accompany the flame’s arrival in the city, but it was likely to be a celebration of the city’s sporting heritage and ambitions for future sporting glory.

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City council sports chief Martin Mullaney said: “I’m sure the people of Birmingham will be out in force to celebrate its arrival in our city.”

He added: “Across the world, the flame is the most recognisable symbol of the modern Games

“Now we can get in the mood for what I know will be an unforgettable Olympic Games.”

The council said the Jamaican and USA deals were worth about ??20m to the city’s economy.

For an Olympic legacy the council points to improvements to the Alexander Stadium for athletics, which has attracted the prestigious Samsung Diamond League to the city for the next three years.

And the Jamaican Training Camp Legacy Exchange Programme offers opportunities for schools in Jamaica and Birmingham to link learn from each other.

It had been hoped a further legacy would be a 50m swimming pool in the Ladywood area.

But recent funding cuts mean the scheme has not gone beyond the planning stage.

Electricity was lost at 1223 BST, but the vast majority had supplies restored by 1237 BST, Central Networks said.

More than 230 properties, including ones in Newhall Street, Cornwall Street and Victoria Square, remained without power at 1420 BST.

Thirty-five were without supplies an hour later. Central Networks apologised for any inconvenience caused.

Earlier, Eleanor Ingamells, who works as an office junior and receptionist at a solicitors’ firm, said: “We can’t get out through the main door and we can’t get kind of in because it’s an electric door.

“So it’s quite embarrassing when we have to lead our clients through the fire escape which they have to climb through.”

Staff at transport body Centro in Summer Lane were among those affected.

West Midlands Police said its power went off, but generators kicked in.

A Central Networks spokesperson said: “Our priority is to get supplies back on as quickly and as safety as we can.

“We are able to switch supplies for the majority of the customers affected to other parts of the network.”

Charity Leukaemia and Lymphoma Research has invested several million pounds in medical research projects at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital.

Former England and Wolves footballer and leukaemia survivor Geoff Thomas will be among those attending a plaque unveiling on Monday.

Professor Paul Moss said the title sent out “a tremendous signal”.

“I think it’s a great accolade for us to be made a centre of excellence,” he said.

“We’re one of a few in the country and I think it sends a tremendous signal to the researchers here that their work is being appreciated but also to our supporters around the region and indeed to the patients.”

The hospital, in Edgbaston, started admitting patients in June after more than 500m was spent replacing Selly Oak and the old Queen Elizabeth Hospital.

It has 1,213 beds - about the same as the combined capacity of the old hospitals - and 30 operating theatres.

Roads around the Birmingham park will be closed off from 1800 BST on Saturday until 2000 BST the next day and residents will be required to carry vehicle passes as well as proof of identity and address with them if they wish to leave their houses.

“We must be the safest place in the Midlands right now, there are so many police around here,” said Lickey Road resident Brenda Darwood.

“One helicopter was hovering so low over the tree line in my garden, I thought mate, if you come any closer you’ll be in my house and joining me on the sofa.”

National Express West Midlands has warned customers to expect temporary road closures at short notice for security reasons as the Pope travels through the city and has asked passengers to be patient if their route is unexpectedly diverted.

Cadbury’s worker Alan Evans from Rednall said the road closures would make it hard for him getting to work on Sunday.

“The roads are going to be a nightmare with all the security checks. I think it’s a lot of trouble and expense, there wouldn’t be all this disruption for the Queen and she’s our head of state, so why are we doing this for him?”

Lickey Road newsagent David Fenton from Bromsgrove said the restrictions were a nuisance but there had been other benefits.

He said: “The good thing at least is the whole place has been tidied up. Litter has been cleared, the lawns have been cut three times and the street lamps have been painted. We’ve had a kiss of life, it’s been great.

“The Pope is coming so it is being done now. I see nothing wrong with that and at least we get to enjoy it afterwards.

“Everybody’s talking about it. It’s a once in a lifetime experience. It’s got people very excited one way or another.”

However, Mary Hewson from Lickey Road said she was worried about the 1.5m cost of the UK visit.

She said: “I’m not a Catholic, I’m Church of England and I couldn’t do anything without my faith, but I object to the cost of this event and the inconvenience.”

Mrs Hewson said she thought Coventry Airport was the ideal place for the Pope to lead Mass from a security point of view, rather than in a park beside a residential area.

She said the Pope was an obvious target for discontent because of public anger at the scale and handling of child sex abuse by Catholic clergy and recent calls by an American Baptist church leader to burn the Koran, which she feared could encourage a reprisal attack. For its part the cabinet office has said security for the papal visit is of paramount importance and it is confident in its security arrangements for all the UK events.

Mrs Hewson’s neighbour Brenda Darwood said she did not share her friend’s qualms and had even allowed her eight-year-old grandson David to come and stay so that he could soak up the atmosphere.

“He is desperate to be able to tell his school friends that he was here when the Pope came to Cofton Park,” she said.

Some neighbours who overlook the park said they were impressed with the event’s organisation and felt they had been kept well informed.

John Heath of Groveley Lane said: “It all seems to be taken care of. We’ve had lots of leaflets and maps, and there were meetings in the village hall.

“There’s so much unhappiness in the world today, if this event makes 70,000 people happy for one day, then that’s got to be a good thing.”

Hundreds of people, many of whom had queued for more than an hour before the polls closed, were unable to vote.

Problems were reported in Sheffield, Manchester, Liverpool, Birmingham, Newcastle and parts of London.

Most returning officers blamed an unexpectedly high turnout and a late surge in voting.

The Electoral Commission will examine the reasons given by officials for the problems with the 6 May poll.

Police called

BBC political correspondent Mike Sergeant says politicians on all sides were swift to condemn the chaos at many polling stations.

Some of the more alarming scenes were in Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg’s constituency of Sheffield Hallum, where hundreds of students queued for hours but still did not get to vote.

There were more than a dozen reports of police being called in other parts of the country, as most polling stations shut their doors at exactly 2200 BST, which the rules dictated.

But in other areas people were allowed inside - in Lewisham, south London, voting was extended for half an hour.

Among the incidents:

??? Police were called to a polling station in Lewisham where about 300 people had still to vote by 2200 BST

??? In Hackney, east London, angry would-be voters staged a sit-in when polls closed

??? In his Sheffield Hallam constituency, Liberal Democrat leader Nick Clegg went to offer his apologies to frustrated voters at a polling station in Ranmoor, after they queued for more than three hours

??? Doors were closed on 200 potential voters at Ladybarn in Withington, Manchester

??? In Liverpool, voters were left waiting when one polling station ran out of ballot papers

??? Voters were turned away amid long queues at St Paul’s Church in Birmingham and queues were reported at Mere Green polling station in Sutton Coldfield

??? There were reports of voters being turned away after long queues in Weybridge, Surrey

??? Long queues were reported at two polling stations in Newcastle

It is possible the problems might have affected the result in a few very marginal constituencies, but election re-runs are now considered very unlikely.

The disruption is affecting flights to and from the Republic of Ireland and Scotland on Wednesday.

Glasgow, Prestwick and Derry airports are likely to be closed all day.

Birmingham airport said passengers should look at its website or check with their airline for specific flight details.

Plane engines

Inverness airport is closed during the morning only and Belfast in the afternoon.

Last month, volcanic ash clouds from Iceland grounded flights for six days.

The flight ban cost Birmingham airport about ??1.8m in lost revenue, officials said.

On Tuesday, flights in and out of the Irish Republic, Northern Ireland and Scotland’s Hebrides were suspended at the first sign of an increase of volcanic ash levels in the skies.

Flights across Europe were suspended last month because of fears of the effect of volcanic ash on plane engines.

Volcanic ash drifting from Iceland prompted a UK-wide ban last Thursday.

Earlier, it was thought the ban at Birmingham might be lifted by lunchtime on Tuesday, but the new ash cloud is causing doubts.

The European Gymnastics Championships in the city is going ahead as competitors endured long journeys across Europe to arrive.

Organisers delayed the start by 24 hours, to Thursday, and made arrangements to collect competitors from UK ports and bring them to Birmingham.

‘Likely to change’

Some teams travelled for 24 hours, with the Finnish team driving from Helsinki to Calais, a distance of 2,209 km (1,373 miles).

Twenty-three of the 40 competing teams have managed to make the journey so far.

Some airports across the UK are reopening.

The air traffic control body Nats said that based on the latest Met Office information, Aberdeen, Inverness and Edinburgh airports would be operational from 1300 to 1900 BST on Tuesday. Newcastle Airport should also have flights.

“We will continue to monitor Met Office information and the situation is likely to change during the course of the day,” a statement said.