29 November 2004
Sports stars, including England football captain David Beckham, are backing London’s bid to host the 2012 Olympics.
A total of 10 football, rugby and cricket captains from all parts of the UK are endorsing the bid as the Government honours Britain’s Olympians and Paralympians from this year’s Athen’s games at a special celebration at Lords Cricket Ground.
Aaron Hughes from the Northern Ireland football side, Robert Croft, who leads the Glamorgan cricket team, and Jason Robinson who currently leads the England rugby team, are all attending the event.
The captains said staging the Olympics and the Paralympics would be a huge boost for sport.
"We urge our supporters - whichever part of the UK they live in - to rally behind the bid and say yes to London in 2012.
"If we don’t win the Games this time, we could have to wait for decades for another chance. We would be mad not to grab the chance when we can."
The Prime Minister added:
"We have a great opportunity here to win the right to stage the Olympics and Paralympics but we need everyone to pull together if we are to win."
The Government has also announced that a successful scheme to improve training and support for young sporting talent is being extended to help create the Olympians of the future.
The Talented Athlete Scholarship Scheme (TASS) will get an extra £6m to help young athletes get access to top quality coaching and physiotherapy, and train at the best venues in their part of the UK.
Culture Secretary Tessa Jowell said:
"All too often young people have shown real talent for a sport at school, but have disappeared from view once they leave.
"The TASS scheme now gives those people the opportunity they need to develop their raw potential with the help of top coaches and access to the best training facilities and sports medicine possible."
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