On Wednesday 4 November, five representatives from the West Midlands, plus Dave Moorcroft OBE, joined Jonathan Edwards, Olympic Triple Jump Gold medallist and Deputy Chair of London 2012’s Nations and Regions Group, for a special tour around the Olympic Park site.
The 1,000 days to go milestone was reached on Saturday 31 October 2009 and celebrated the contribution millions of people all over the UK are making to the 2012 Games.
The West Midlands Leadership Group for the 2012 Games can already boast over 1000 ways in which people in the West Midlands are already benefiting from the Games. The West Midlands representatives visiting the Olympic Park each demonstrate one of the 1000 ways the region is already benefiting from London 2012. Representatives included:
Leone Davis, aged 14, is a schools National champion in mountain biking, a sprint cyclist in the Manchester velodrome and an outstanding road racer. Leone is a pupil at St Peters High School and International College, Stoke-on-Trent which is involved in the London 2012 Get Set education programme. Leone is in contention for a place in the 2012 Games.
Nick Harrison, Sales Director for Slick Seating Systems Ltd in Redditch, will represent the business community in the West Midlands. Slick Systems have been appointed, via CompeteFor, to provide seating for the Basketball Arena in the Olympic Park.
Sian Williams, from Worcester, is a learner on the Sport Structures, Personal Best Programme. Sian hopes that through the Personal Best programme, which is backed by a government initiative called 2012 Games Inspirations, she can be a positive role model to her four children, have the chance of being interviewed to be a Games Time volunteer at the London 2012 Olympic Games and gain the skills and knowledge to enable her to move towards employment.
Claire Maddocks, is from Imagineer Productions an independent creative production company based in Coventry, which produces large-scale outdoor events, carnival and site specific theatre. Imagineer have been selected as the West Midlands winner of a £500,000 commission for Artists taking the lead, one of the major projects for the London 2012 Cultural Olympiad, for their project Godiva Awakes.
Tim Ellis from Hybrid Arts, a social enterprise dedicated to creating opportunities for young people, represents Extraordinary Cycles a project that celebrates the marriage of sport and art through exploring and developing the art form of dancing on bikes.
Dave Moorcroft, OBE, regional ambassador and former Olympian, said: “It was really exciting to visit the Olympic Park with colleagues from the West Midlands. To see the Olympic Park evolve is something quite special and to know that London 2012 is already making an impact in the West Midlands through business contracts won, cultural projects already engaging people from across the region and through projects inspiring young people is fantastic.”
Jonathan Edwards, Olympic Triple Jump Gold medallist and Deputy Chair of London 2012’s Nations and Regions Group, said: “With 996 days to go until the start of the London 2012 Games, it was a pleasure to welcome the West Midlands to the Olympic Park. The individual stories I’ve heard on 4 November represent the many ways people right across the region are already inspired by, involved, benefitting from or delivering the 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games. Together we will ensure the events are a spectacular success and deliver a legacy for generations to come.”
Nigel Russell, Head of Tourism Culture and Olympics for Advantage West Midlands, said: “Creating an Olympic Moment for everyone in the West Midlands is our aim as we work to maximize the opportunities for the region against our five thematic areas of Business; Volunteering; Culture; Tourism and the regional image of the region; sport and physical activity. With 1000 days to go to the 2012 Games and as the visit to the Olympic Park demonstrated we are on track to deliver real benefits for people across the region.”
For further information visit www.wmfor2012.com