UK Sport secures three major events to strengthen Paralympic legacy
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Paddy Bedi 21 December 2012
Three of the world’s most prestigious Paralympic events will be coming to the UK as part of UK Sport’s Gold Event Series.
The IPC Athletics World Championships, IPC Swimming World Championships and ITF Wheelchair Tennis Singles Masters will all take place at London 2012 or Glasgow 2014 venues in the next five years following recent successful bids.
All three events are part of UK Sport’s Gold Event Series, an ambitious £27million National Lottery funded programme which aims to bring 70 of the world’s most prestigious sporting events to the UK, in order to maximise the legacy of London 2012 and Glasgow 2014 and establish the UK as a world leading host nation.
UK Sport Chief Executive Liz Nicholl said: “For the UK to secure three prestigious Paralympic events in quick succession demonstrates our commitment to build on the legacy of the wonderful Paralympic Games at London 2012 through the Gold Event Series.
“The packed arenas proved there is clearly a great knowledge and appetite for Paralympic sport in this country and we are delighted these bids have proved successful.
“UK Sport announced a 43 per cent increase in funding for Paralympic Sports for the Rio 2016 funding cycle earlier this week and hosting these world class events will also help support our athletes’ performance ambitions as they build towards 2016.
“Through the Gold Event Series we aim to provide a “stage to inspire” and there is no better way of encouraging participation than giving people the opportunity to see world class sport live.”
These recent successful bids mean 17 events have already been secured as part of the Gold Event Series and with three major paralympic events now making up that number UK Sport’s programme has won praise from the International Paralympic Committee.
Xavier Gonzalez, IPC Chief Executive Officer, said: “UK Sport have done a fantastic job in securing the 2015 IPC Swimming World Championships in Glasgow and the 2017 IPC Athletics World Championships in London, two of the biggest Para-sport events outside of the Paralympic Games.
“In doing so, UK Sport together with British Swimming, UK Athletics and the British Paralympic Association have shown their willingness and passion to build on the legacy the London 2012 Paralympic Games have left.”
Set for London’s Olympic Stadium one month ahead of the IAAF Athletics World Championships in 2017, the IPC Athletics World Championships will welcome over 1,000 of the world’s best 0020athletes to the capital for the sport’s showpiece event.
The 2015 IPC Swimming World Championships will be staged at Tollcross, the swimming venue for the Glasgow 2014 Commonwealth Games and will be a crucial event for Britain’s Paralympic swimmers as they look to qualify for the 2016 Paralympic Games in Rio.
Featuring the world’s top players, the ITF Wheelchair Tennis Singles Masters determines the world’s number one player each year, and in 2014 will take place at the London 2012 venue Eton Manor with the backing of UK Sport.
British Paralympic Chief Executive Tim Hollingsworth said: “London 2012 provided us with a fantastic opportunity to show the British public how exciting and competitive Paralympic sport is, and the packed stadia showed that there is a real appetite for watching Paralympic sport. It is therefore great news that there will be several opportunities for the public to see more elite disability sport through the events that are coming to the UK over the next few years.
“We know that London 2012 had a big impact on peoples’ perceptions of disability and hopefully through these events even more people can see our athletes compete and we can continue to inspire shifts in the way that people think feel and behave.”
ENDS -
NOTES TO EDITORS
Gold Event Series
The National Lottery funded, £27 million, Gold Event Series will aim to bring over 70 of the world’s most prestigious sporting events to the UK, including 36 World and European Championships. Events have been targeted to support British athletes’ preparation and qualification for Rio 2016 Olympic and Paralympic Games The Gold Events Series will provide an opportunity for 2.5 million spectators to continue to experience world class Olympic and Paralympic sport on home soil with flagship international events identified for eight London 2012 and five Glasgow 2014 venues. Forecasts suggest the series will generate approximately £287 million additional expenditure in host cities and regions across the UK and over 250,000 overseas visitors
About UK Sport
UK Sport is the nation’s high-performance sports agency. Its mission is to work in partnership to lead sport in the UK to world class success. Primarily this means working with our partner sporting organisations to deliver medals at the Olympic and Paralympic Games. UK Sport’s strategic direction helped British sports and athletes deliver 65 Olympic and 120 Paralympic medals at London 2012. UK Sport also has responsibility for activities best delivered at a UK level, such as: bidding for and staging major sporting events in this country; increasing sporting activity and influence overseas; and promoting sporting conduct, ethics and diversity in society. UK Sport is funded by a mix of Government Exchequer and Lottery income, as well as private investment through Team 2012. More @ www.uksport.gov.uk
For more information or interview requests, please contact UK Sport Head of Communications Paul.Cox@uksport.gov.uk / 02072115106
