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Tuesday, 06 December 2005 |
British Olympics chiefs worried about medal returns
British Olympic Association officials fear a poor medal return at the
London Games in 2012 due to the government's lack of financial backing.
In a pre-budget report on Monday, chancellor Gordon Brown failed to
mention any funding for elite athletes and with five months gone by
since London were awarded the Games, BOA chief executive Simon Clegg is
a worried man.
"We're now being forced into a race with one hand tied behind our back," said a disappointed Simon Clegg.
"The sole measurement of the Games will not be on how efficient the
organising committee is, not how beautifully architectured the design
of the stadiums are.
"It will be decided on how many British athletes stand on the podium and collect medals.
"We need to be in the market place now looking for the world's finest
coaches and putting in place the necessary performance plans to
contribute to fourth place in the table.
"The Chancellor has indicated a whole range of other issues in the
pre-budget report and we are extremely disappointed that here was no
announcement regarding high-performance sport."
UK Sport chair Sue Campbell was also shocked by the report and added:
"We're disappointed because we want the best chance of success for our
athletes.
"We had hoped for some news, but while there was no specific
announcement today about additional financial plans to support Team
GB's ambitions for London 2012, it by no means closes the door on
future possibilities."
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