Village people! Pearce and his team arrive at what will be home for the next three weeks

As athletes from all around the world start filtering through the airports and on to the Olympic Village, Team GB, having made the comparatively shorter journey, have already begun getting settled at the site in London.

The men's football team were one of the first through the doors on Monday, joined by Daniel Sturridge following his bout of viral meningitis. 

The 18-man squad, along with manager Stuart Pearce, struck a pose together for the first time ahead of what they hope will be an historic tournament. It is the first time Great Britain have put a team in the competition for more than 40 years. 

Who they are: (top row, from the left) Steven Caulker, Jack Buckland, Ryan Giggs, Craig Dawson, Aaron Ramsey, Jason Steele, manager Stuart Pearce, Ryan Bertrand, Scott Sinclair, Marvin Sordell, Craig Bellamy and (bottom row, from the left) Daniel Sturridge, Tom Cleverley, Jack Cork, Joe Allen, Neil Taylor, Danny Rose, Micah Richards and James Tomkins.

Hot on their heels were the women's team, led by Hope Powell and containing some of the planet's best players, including Kelly Smith and Kim Little. 

Not everyone had a smooth transition,though. 

Two-time world 400 metres hurdles champion Kerron Clement was getting a less than favourable first impression of London on Monday morning as the bus taking him to the Olympic Village struggled to find its destination.

Make yourself at home, we'll look after you: Athletes will be well protected in their new home in easy reach of the Olympic Stadium in Stratford 

The American tweeted: 'Um, so we've been lost on the road for 4hrs. Not a good first impression London. Athletes are sleepy, hungry and need to pee. Could we get to the Olympic Village please.'

The 26-year-old, who won the world title in 2007 and 2009 before surrendering the crown to Great Britain's Dai Greene in Daegu last year, is the the Olympic silver medallist.

A media shuttle bus also had difficulty finding its destination. The double decker, travelling from Russell Square to the Olympic Park in Stratford, pulled over 30 minutes into its journey.

Don't forget the girls: Hope Powell's team also checked in on Monday as they prepared to take on the rest of the world

Incoming: Meanwhile some of the first competitors from around the globe began arriving in Britain, including Russian and South Korean

The driver said: 'Sorry about this'. He then got out a map, before performing a U-turn and quickly getting back on the correct route.

USA Track and Field confirmed the American athletes were heading to the Village just to pick up their accreditation before travelling to their pre-Games training camp in Birmingham.

Heathrow expected to welcome a record number of passengers on Monday, and Europe's largest airport says athletes from 50 nations will arrive in what it is describing as Britain's biggest peacetime transport challenge.

Some 236,955 passengers are expected to pass through the airport. The previous record of 233,562 was set in July 2011.