Britain drafted another 1,200 troops yesterday to plug a security gap at the London Olympics left by a private security firm that failed to provide enough guards.

The deployment just three days before the opening ceremony takes the extra soldiers brought in for the Olympics to 4,700 after security giant G4S said it could not provide the 10,000 guards it had originally promised.

Culture Secretary Jeremy Hunt said the numbers to be provided by G4S “continue to rise significantly” but that ministers would “leave nothing to chance” in Britain’s biggest ever peacetime security operation.

In total, 18,200 soldiers are now helping to guard 10,500 competitors at the Games, alongside thousands of private guards and police.

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