London 2012 Receives Public Backing in One Year Anniversary Poll

The London 2012 Olympic Games received a positive review from the public in a BBC survey, with more than two-thirds of the UK believing it was worth the cost and 74% in favour of hosting the Olympics again.

The BBC’s survey, published on the one year anniversary of the Games, also showed that 11% are exercising more than they were one year ago – with the figure rising to 24% for those aged 18 to 24.

London 2012 ran more than three times over the original budget of £2.4bn to £8.77bn, however the majority of the 3,218 adults surveyed believed it was worth it.

Other key factors in the survey, conducted by ComRes showed:

> 32% thought London 2012 had a positive impact on sports facilities.

>22% thought the Games had improved their local economy.

>21% believed London 2012 improved public services.

However, whilst only 2% felt that a negative impact had been felt on sport facilities, 56% felt there had been no impact, bringing into question the legacy of the Olympic Games.

On the local economy, 67% believed there had been no impact and for public services, 69% believed no change had been made.

Another issue for legacy that is highlighted by the survey is participation – 88% of those polled said their activity levels had not changed following London 2012.

Sport England also highlighted in a study that the number of people participating in sport once a week had fallen by 200,000 between October 2012 and April 2013.

Despite this drop, since 2005 when London was awarded the Olympic Games, Sport England say that 1.4m more people are playing sport.

The survey results come on the back of a report showing that London 2012 generated nearly £10bn for the economy.

Outstanding Games

Sir Craig Reedie, who was on the board of the London 2012 Organising Committee and is a Vice-President of the International Olympic Committee (IOC), said that the reaction from the nation highlighted the ‘outstanding’ nature of London 2012.

Speaking exclusively to iSportconnect, Sir Craig said: “The London Olympic Games are universally recognised as being outstanding.

“The IOC, the International Sports Federations and every one of the 204 National Olympic Committees rejoice that they were part of a unique sporting occasion. The reaction in Great Britain mirrors this.”

Lord Coe who was chairman of the London Olympic Organising Committee and is an Olympics legacy ambassador, told BBC Breakfast: “The overall response to your survey has been incredibly positive.

“It doesn’t surprise me given the boost to the economy we revealed the other day.

“Again your survey shows a positive outcome of regional spread of interest. It was one of the ambitions we set out very clearly. We did not just want to talk about the three weeks in London.”

Sports Minister Hugh Robertson added: “We’ve made an incredibly good start, but I would be the first to admit there is an awful lot left to do.

“I don’t think we’ll be able to make a judgment until three years after the Olympics, maybe five, and probably, if we are being really honest, until a decade has passed.”

{jcomments on}