John Steele: UK Sport has shown that it can and does deliver excellence
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John Steele
Sarah Winterflood
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John Steele 28 July 2010
Overseeing 27 Olympic and 18 Paralympic sports I am often asked to highlight one that I think might shine in 2012. It’s impossible to do that.
The likes of rowing, sailing and cycling are now the envy of the world. Whilst sports such as swimming, gymnastics, triathlon, canoeing and boxing are now producing world class performances on a regular basis.
Olympic and Paralympic sport in this country is in tremendous shape and that isn’t through luck or by chance.
No longer do we have one or two sports that might do well, one or two individuals that might perform on the day and win medals.
We have a system in place in this country which means a wide range of sports should put British athletes on the podium in 2012.
It hasn’t of course always been like that. When I look back to my first day in the job at UK Sport, Monday July 4, 2005, the elite sporting landscape in the UK was largely disjointed and ineffective. I have been fortunate to witness something of a transformation.
That isn’t an exaggeration or hyperbole, those who know me will know that I don’t deal in either. It’s simply an accurate description of what life was like two days before a decision in Singapore changed everything.
It is quite incredible just how far we’ve come since that day. The decision to award London the Games, didn’t of course guarantee an improvement to the high performance system in the UK. But the record investment that followed and the difficult decisions UK Sport has taken in how and where to invest that money, has meant that Olympic and Paralympic sport in this country has been given a once in a lifetime opportunity to change the face of British elite sport for the better.
When we introduced our "no compromise" philosophy, to invest money in those sports most likely to medal in 2012 and beyond, we faced a lot of opposition from people who believed it wasn’t the best way forward for British sport. At times it might have been easier to have ignored it, to have given ourselves an easier ride with the sports, public and media, but I am glad that we didn’t.
Beijing was a resounding endorsement of our philosophy. A record 47 Olympic and 102 Paralympic medals was an outstanding achievement and I am very proud of the contribution that this organisation made to that.
UK Sport has shown that it can and does deliver excellence.
We take our responsibility to distribute public funds seriously and we always look to ensure the maximum return on the investment we make.
I am confident this will continue and our Mission 2012 update showed just last week, that we are still on course to deliver a top four finish in the Olympics and second in the Paralympics. Strong signs indeed that the system is working.
In his final speech to IOC delegates in 2005, Seb Coe, said: "When I was 12 years old I was marched into a large school hall with my classmates and we watched grainy pictures from the 1968 Mexico Olympic Games. By the time I was back in my classroom, I knew what I wanted to do - and what I wanted to be."
Following 2012, as millions of British schoolchildren walk back to their classrooms deciding "what they want to do - and what they want to be", I feel proud of the fact that UK Sport has helped create a high performance system that is capable of helping talented individuals achieve their dreams. The system here in the UK is unrecognisable compared to its predecessor from that Monday in July five years ago, and we should not underestimate its value to the nation.
We have the attention of the rest of the sporting world. This must give us the impetus to keep up the momentum that has been gathered, to innovate, to evolve, to push the boundaries of high performance sport.
The two-year run in to London 2012 will throw up many challenges which l am sure athletes, coaches and sports will rise to admirably. But the one challenge that all in Olympic and Paralympic sport must consider is to acknowledge, protect and build on the high performance system which has the potential to deliver the elusive sustainable success the nation has craved for so long.
This blog was first published on insidethegames.
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