Coventry gains head start in attracting benefits of London 2012

Added: (Mon Jan 09 2012)

Pressbox (Press Release) - As we pass the 200-day countdown to London 2012 (Monday, January 9), Coventry boasts a significant head start on other cities in the race to benefit from the impending Games.
The city has aimed to embrace the 2012 Games like no other outside of London and has played a major role in proving that the benefits of the Games do not end at the capital city’s boundaries.
In fact, Coventry will be the first English city to host an Olympic event in 2012 when the first of 12 men’s and women’s Olympic football matches kick-off at the City of Coventry Stadium on July 25.
The matches alone are predicted to provide a £50 million boost to the city’s economy, but the benefits do not begin and end there.
Already businesses in Coventry and Warwickshire have been awarded more London 2012-related contracts than anywhere else in the wider West Midlands having landed 80 worth millions of pounds – ranging from cleaning and training services to construction and drilling.
The most high-profile contract landed in the area will see over 9,000 Olympic and Paralympic Torches manufactured in Coventry by Premier Group.
On Sunday, July 1 the Olympic Torch will return home when it arrives in the city for an overnight celebration as part of the 70-day UK-wide Olympic Torch relay before continuing its journey through the city the following day.
There are also more tangible benefits to the city with £7 million of public realm improvements being made to the city centre in preparation for the arrival of thousands of visitors during Games-time.
An open public space for events up to, during and beyond 2012 has also been created thanks to the installation of a Live Site featuring a big screen, which will show live 2012 footage and other relevant content, at Coventry Transport Museum.
Cultural benefits are already being felt across the region, notably through Coventry Cathedral’s 50th anniversary celebrations and the Godiva Awakes project, which showcases the city’s cultural offering and proud heritage to a global audience.
Godiva Awakes is part of the London 2012 Cultural Olympiad and will see a ten metre tall Lady Godiva, created by Imaginer Productions, travel from Coventry to London – powered by 100 cyclists – to join in the 2012 celebrations.
The Games has also reached the city’s youngsters with over 90 per cent of Coventry schools have registered for the London 2012 Get Set education programme and are delivering exciting projects across the curriculum.
In addition, a Festival of Sport project has aimed to give every child in Coventry a taste of what it would be like to compete at an Olympic or Paralympic Games.
The entire community has been given the opportunity to engage with London 2012 in some way through 25 London 2012-inspired sporting and cultural projects awarded the official London 2012 Inspire Mark.
Cllr John Mutton, Coventry City Council leader, said: “We may be passing another landmark as we build up to play our part in hosting the greatest show on earth, but preparations to be part of the 2012 Games began in Coventry some years ago.
“It is hard to believe just how much has been achieved already in the city and we can’t wait to welcome the world to our region and showcase our sporting and cultural heritage.
“We knew the people of Coventry would embrace such a significant event, but nobody could have foreseen just how much enthusiasm and excitement they would show.
“Welcoming the Olympic and Paralympic Games to our city is truly is a once in a lifetime opportunity, and we will continue to work to ensure Coventry benefits as much as it possibly can from the Games both in the build-up to and beyond London 2012.”


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