London's bid banner

They will be strung across our streets and flown from our buildings. With banners like the one shown here, London's Olympic bid organisers hope to capture the imagination of the capital and persuade Londoners that we can win the right to host the Games.

London 2012 today launched the design of the flags, which will be draped from some of the capital's most famous monuments in an attempt to raise the public profile of the bid.

The designs emphasise the theme of the Thames running west to east, just as the Games' events will take in all parts of the city - from tennis at Wimbledon, athletics in Stratford, archery at Lord's, baseball in Regent's Park and football at the new Wembley Stadium.

There has been criticism that our bid has been disappointingly low-profile compared with main rival Paris, where banners already line the Champs Elys饳.

And, while a majority of Londoners appear to support the bid, there is also widespread doubt as to whether the transport infrastructure is up to the job. But London 2012, headed by former Olympic champion Lord Coe, hopes today's launch will go a long way towards winning over the doubters.

A bid spokeswoman said: "We really want the city to come alive. We want to get London excited about the fact we're bidding.

"We've got a lot of support, especially among young people, and the visibility of our bid is vital in making people realise we're serious about winning it."

The launch at the Excel centre in Docklands will be attended by some of the athletes backing the bid. The London Youth Games, culminating on 10 July at Crystal Palace, will also showcase the campaign, with tens of thousands of London 2012 stickers and leaflets distributed to crowds and the 20,000 children taking part.

Other major events will be targeted, along with hundreds of smaller events such as schools' sports days and borough festivals.

London 2012 will also use the Olympic torch relay to raise enthusiasm. The flame will be paraded through the capital on 29 June on the way to Athens for this year's Olympics.

More than 1,000 billboards will advertise our bid, and merchandising such as T-shirts, mugs and key rings will soon be on sale. The bid spokeswoman said: "Every corner of London will see publicity material promoting the bid."

As part of their profile-raising effort, Lord Coe and his deputy chairman Barbara Cassani, who formerly headed the bid, were at Royal Ascot yesterday.

By the time the International Olympic Committee decides, in July next year, which of the eight shortlisted cities should host the Games, London will have spent ?30 million on its campaign.

That pales in comparison with the billions needed to stage the Games. But the backers say the cost will be more than recouped by the economic benefits.