Mayor says Badminton World Championships has helped restore London’s image

London Mayor Boris Johnson attended badminton’s Yonex BWF World Championships at Wembley Arena over the weekend and claimed that the tournament had helped restore the image of the city across the globe following the riots of the last week.

The tournament was a test event for next year’s Olympic Games, which London is hosting.

Boris Johnson said: “It’s a good advertisement for London and sport in this country. It has been a brilliant Championship. There is an amazing atmosphere, a huge diverse crowd and no problems at all with transport or security.

“I hope people will see after the events of last week – which we cannot minimise, people like me have got to get in and sort out the causes – but look at what we can do with a wonderful badminton event.

“I hope that message will go around the world.

“I was very pleased today to be able to welcome Ashraf, who had that terrible experience and to congratulate him on some of the nice things he has been able to say about our city.”