All set for a lasting 2012 legacy
Published on: 4th August 2011
With one year to go to the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games, West Yorkshire Sport are sharing their vision of the lasting legacy for the county - more people inspired to play sport with more opportunities available to all.
Nigel Harrison, Director of West Yorkshire Sport, the County Sports Partnership tasked with coordinating sport across the five districts said:
"It is going to be an exciting year for everyone in sport, we have been working on building the legacy and we have many programmes inspired by the Games from local initiatives like Volunteers in Sport and Coaching West Yorkshire through to national programmes like Sportivate (14-25 participation), Sport Makers (volunteers) and of course the 2012 School Games next June.
"Sebastian Coe's promise in 2005 of the sporting legacy of the Games is a serious and important one. And also one that very few sporting events have achieved in the past.
"The definition of a legacy is 'something handed down by a predecessor' (Oxford English Dictionary).
Through inspiration, the Olympic and Paralympic Games need to be handing down more people inspired to play sport with more opportunities available to all.
"Following the announcement in 2005, West Yorkshire Sport and its partners developed a framework for creating an Olympic sporting legacy - to be implemented in three phases.
"Phase 1, commencing in 2007, was to lay the Foundation for legacy through more coaches and volunteers. We are coming to the end of this phase and moving over the next 12 months to the Activity phase where people will be inspired to organise and play sport through the 'magic dust' created by the atmosphere within the country.
"The final phase, Sustain, begins the moment the Games ends as we seek to keep people inspired and involved during the “decade of sportâ€; through the Glasgow Commonwealth Games,2013 Rugby League World Cup and the 2015 Rugby Union World Cup.
"Six themes of work were identified where we believe that the inspiration of the Olympics would add real value:
- Volunteering
- Coaching
- Disability Sport
- Activity
- Inspire
- Talent Support
"Each district has drawn up and implemented plans around these themes.
"Our legacy document sets out the specific areas of work that West Yorkshire Sport has been and will be involved with and gives a taste of some of the work going on across the districts.
Watch an interview with WYSport's Gillian Brown on Leeds Today:
http://www.leedstrinity.ac.uk/sites/cfj/archive/Pages/LeedsTodayProgramme27-07-2011.aspx
