phlebotomycourses: London 2012 Olympics failing to inspire people to play more sport

Saturday 30 June 2012

London 2012 Olympics failing to inspire people to play more sport

Vast majority of people surveyed by ComRes said they were not 'inspired to play more sport at the moment because of Olympics'

New research has shown the scale of the challenge facing the government and London 2012 organisers to meet their promise to "inspire a generation" to play more sport, with eight in 10 people saying the Games have not yet had an effect on their exercise habits.

The ComRes findings accompany a new joint report by the independent Sports Think Tank and theology thinktank Theos, which claims that "no recent Olympic Games has produced proven economic benefits to the host country or city".

On Friday, the culture secretary, Jeremy Hunt, insisted the government would not walk away from promises made when London won the right to host the Games that it would inspire more people to play more sport.

While accepting that it was "a big challenge", he said that �1bn invested over five years through Sport England would help boost participation figures, particularly among the young. New figures show that while participation rates for those over 26 have risen in the past year, among under 25-year-olds they continue to fall.

The government has also claimed that the Games will boost tourism numbers by 4 million and result in a �1bn boost for inward investment.

Only 4% of those surveyed said they agreed strongly with the statement: "I'm inspired to play more sport at the moment because of the London 2012 Olympics", while 80% disagreed or disagreed strongly.

Sports minister Hugh Robertson and the London 2012 chairman, Lord Coe, have said it is unfair to judge the legacy effect of the Games before they have even taken place.

The government was last year forced to drop a target set by the previous Labour administration that promised to get a million more people playing more sport by 2013. Figures released on Friday showed that 500,000 had been added to the numbers.

The report, Give Us Our Ball Back: Reclaiming Sport for the Common Good, says too many claims are made on behalf of sport and that it should be considered a worthwhile investment in itself.

"Releasing sport from the demands of public utility will allow it to occupy its rightful place in society ? that of contributing to a full, happy and meaningful life," it concludes.

"External benefits will naturally come from playing, watching and engaging in sport, but should be seen primarily as byproducts of something with specific worth already."

Andy Reed, the former MP who is co-director of the Sports Think Tank and chair of the Sports and Recreation Alliance, said: "Those of us who love sport need to remember to be cautious about placing unrealistic political, economic and social demands on it and relearn how to value it for its own sake."

The survey also showed that 64% of the public believe taxpayers have contributed too much to the cost of the Games, with the figure rising to 70% in London, where a proportion of the council tax has also been put towards the �9.3bn cost of staging the Games.

Earlier this month, the government said there would be at least �400m in contingency remaining from the �9.3bn public funding package for the Games, which paid for the venues, security, and other costs. The London organising committee (Locog) privately raised the �2bn it costs to stage the Games from sponsorship and ticketing income.

Owen Gibson