We are delighted to announce that SOA Development is sponsoring Wheelchair Rugby Paralympian Stephen Brown in the run up to the London Games. Based in Sittingbourne in Kent, Stephen narrowly missed out on the Beijing Games but is now a regular member in the GB Team. He helped his club win the 2009 National League title, won the Kent Disability Sportsman Award and won a Gold medal in the "Vegas Vengeance" tournament in January. We will be supporting Stephen and following his long list of predicted achievements over the next two years. If you want to know a bit more about Stephen then follow this link.
SportsAid functions to raise funds from the private sector to provide financial assistance to Britain's sportsmen and women, allowing them to compete against better funded athletes from abroad. The money goes towards travel, accommodation, equipment and competition fees. If you would like to become involved in this great charity then visit their website.
Vancouver 2010 - London 2012 Next!
Fresh from the Vancouver Games, Peter Hutchison share his experience:
Back from the Vancouver Winter Games after a research trip into the impact of the London 2012 Games. Vancouverites are normally a reserved bunch – like many Brits – although it’s difficult to believe that’s true. Wearing their flag on their sleeve, the Canadian Hosts were incredibly helpful, friendly and welcoming.
At times it seemed that the whole of Vancouver had stopped for the Games. During hockey games, the place was eerily quiet. During the final – Canada won gold after extra time – it seemed as if airplanes had stopped flying as people crowded round every available screen.
In some ways the city had stopped. Downtown businesses had been asked to reduce staff and traffic in the area by around 30%, and a few of the streets were pedestrianised. The city was better for it, too. Will it change Vancouver from a car-culture to public transport for ever? Most Vancouverites didn’t think so, but they’re more open to the idea than ever before...
South African Minister for Sport Visits South London
A few months ago we were able to announce the fantastic news that the South African 2012 Olympic Team will be using South London as their base for their 2012 preparations. Following up on this, South Africa's Minister for Sport visited the region in March and was extremely impressed at the facilities and how they have been integrated together.
To read more about this visit and for other news and developments see the Go South Go website.
Hosting Visiting Olympic and Paralympic Committees
If you’re expecting a visit from an Olympic or Paralympic Committee, Peter Hutchison gives a few tips on how you might make the most of your time:
With just over two years to go until the London Olympic Games and Paralympic Games in 2012, National Olympic and Paralympic Committees will be increasingly looking towards London 2012. Competition is tough for Pre Games Training Camps, so make sure you use any time you have with visiting delegations carefully.
If you’re successful, your first meeting will be the first of many. Your job is to help your visitors see the mutually beneficial relationship in a shared future and to set firm foundations for a relationship of trust.
Click here for the four things you must do (and one thing to avoid!) when your team come to town.
Good luck!
If you’ve got a team visit coming up, and see how we can help.
Latin American Preparations for London 2012
Peter Hutchison shares his experiences with Latin Amercian National Olympic Committees and how they are preparing for the London Games:
It’s not just the capital that’s excited about the London Olympic Games and Paralympic Games. Through my travels in Latin America I’ve visited a number of National Olympic Committees. All are looking forward to the prospect of visiting, training and competing in London.
Talking through options for pre games training in their offices and Olympic institutes, it’s interesting to see the range of facilities and level of planning that is in place for 2012. High aspirations meet head on with budgets. The reality is that many of the disciplines – such as fencing – are out of reach due to the cost of equipment.
The LOCOG financial award is an interesting idea. In many cases, the NOCs are not yet aware of the award – in all honesty from their perspective it’s not that important. In some cases the £25,000 towards the cost of pre games training camps is equivalent to the NOCs annual budget. It runs the risk of unsettling future plans. It also shifts priorities.
However, just like the big teams – China, USA, Team GB and so on – the smaller teams want to do their best. The four-year Olympic cycle is already ticking with a schedule of regional, international and sub-continental competitions being used to develop the talents of national athletes to reach peak performance in the summer of 2012.
Does a financial award shift that planning? Does it help or hinder? Therein lies the beauty of sport: ability, focus, training, dedication, experience and strategy. The canny teams will be working on the positives, playing to their strengths and using that financial award accordingly, strategically. If a team can come to London and achieve their best ever performance, the profile of 2012 and the wider Olympic movement in each country stand to gain.
It’s also a great opportunity for LOCOG Approved PGTCs to work with visiting competitors and teams to build long term relationships.
Once the NOCs start to think about the LOCOG award, it’s clearly a useful opportunity – one that will hopefully be sustained by whichever of the 2016 Candidate Host Cities of Chicago, Rio de Janeiro, Madrid and Tokyo is successful.
Progress on the Main Olympic Stadium and Velodrome
Fancy seeing how the new stadium and velodrome are coming on? If so, London 2012 have created virtual tours which is actually quite good! To have a look click here.
Sign up to our newsletter on the left and we will keep you updated on latest and interesting developments. Watch this space!
