Legacy of the 2012 Summer Olympics explained

The London 2012 Olympic Legacy is the longer-term benefits and effects of the planning, funding, building and staging of the Olympic and Paralympic Games in summer 2012. It is variously described [1] as:

The 2012 legacy is coordinated by the UK Government who appointed Lord Sebastian Coe as the London 2012 legacy ambassador in August 2012.[2]

Examples of the 2012 legacy benefits and results include:

Bid Pledges

The London bid for the 2012 Summer Olympic and Paralympic Games included bid chairman Lord Coe placing a pledge to use the events to inspire two million people to take up sport and physical activity at the heart of the bid.[6] Legacy includes sporting, economic, cultural, and environmental benefits, and aims to ensure that no "white elephants" were created by the 2012 Summer Olympics and 2012 Summer Paralympics.[7] The London Legacy Development Corporation is a mayoral development corporation responsible for the Olympic Park area.

Construction Phase  - The Big Build

The Olympic Delivery Authority stated that legacy use and community regeneration were "locked-in" to the planning and designing of Olympic and Paralympic venues and infrastructure, and cited the Olympic Park Aquatics Centre and Olympic and Paralympic sailing facilities in Weymouth as examples showing "a clear focus on sporting, economic, social, and environmental legacy".[8]

Legacy plans

Since the London 2012 Paralympic Games finished on 9 September 2012 the UK Government has unveiled an updated Legacy Plan.[9] Its main points include:

There have been several previous legacy plans. These include:

Legacy Plan 2010

In December 2010, the Government published a new Legacy plan, which set out the legacy vision for the 2012 Olympic Games and Paralympic Games, and the detailed plans underpinning it. It identified four areas to focus on: harnessing the UK's passion for sport to increase grassroots participation, particularly by young people, and to encourage the whole population to be more physically active; exploiting to the full the opportunities for economic growth offered by hosting the Games;promoting community engagement and achieving participation across all groups in society through the Games; and ensuring that the Olympic Park can be developed after the Games as one of the principal drivers of regeneration in East London.[10]

Six borough plans 2009

The six London boroughs hosting the Games – Barking and Dagenham, Greenwich, Hackney, Newham, Tower Hamlets and Waltham Forest – published plans for legacy in 2009. This was outlined in the Strategic Regeneration Framework which included the objective that by 2030, the communities hosting the Games would have the same social and economic life chances as at least the London average.[11] This is the principle of Convergence and guides its joint working on legacy.

Legacy Action Plan 2008

A Legacy Action Plan to implement legacy promises was published on 6 June 2008.[12] With comments that the legacy has been published several years earlier than previous Olympics and critics claiming the plan lacks the detail needed to implement an effective legacy. The GLA published a legacy commitments document in 2007.

Legacy Plan 2007

The government published its legacy plans via the Department for Culture, Media and Sport's Legacy Promises document, published in 2007. The five promises were:[13]

Strategic Regeneration Framework

The Strategic Regeneration Framework and Convergence make real the promise in the original bid document that "By staging the Games in this part of the city, the most enduring legacy of the Olympics will be the regeneration of an entire community for the direct benefit of everyone who lives there".[14] The principle of Convergence is included in the Mayor of London's spatial development strategy, known as The London Plan 2011.[15]

Proven legacy

The Japanese style 'Olympic Javelin' bullet trains used to ferry spectators at London 2012[16] began to run on 28 July 2012 and were still running as of 2023, serving more destinations. Some station upgrades also occurred.[17] [18]

Sport relief occurred at the Olympic Park in 2013,[19] [20] 2014,[21] 2015 and in 2016.[22]

When concert promoters Live Nation won the right to stage shows at the stadium and in the surrounding park during January, 2013.[23] The site of the former Riverbank Arena slated to be the stage for Hard Rock Calling, Wireless and Electric Daisy Carnival festivals in 2013.[24] The Lee Valley Hockey Centre was borne from a revamp of the Olympic Legacy Hockey Facility and is the home ground of Wapping Hockey Club.[25]

Legacy bodies

The London Legacy Development Corporation is responsible for planning for, and delivering, the future development of the Olympic Park. It replaced the Olympic Park Legacy Company which had been set up in 2009.[26]

Spirit of 2012 is the London 2012 legacy funder. The National Lottery Community Fund founded Spirit in 2013 with a £47m endowment to continue and recreate the spirit of pride, positivity and community that inspired people across the UK during the London 2012 Games.[27]

Criticisms and concerns

Criticism of the London 2012 legacy includes the legacy not meeting its original ambitions with a decrease in 2014/15 in the number of people playing sport for at least half an hour a week of 125,100.[28]

See also

External links

Notes and References

  1. News: Beyond 2012 – The London 2012 Legacy Story. 5 January 2016. 24 April 2012. London. Government.
  2. News: PM appoints Seb Coe as Olympics legacy ambassador. 26 December 2012. 12 August 2012. London.
  3. Web site: Learning Legacy. 5 January 2016. Government.
  4. Web site: BBC - Press Office - BBC expands London Apprentice Scheme. 10 February 2011. BBC.
  5. Web site: Queen Elizabeth Olympic park to open from July 2013 | London Legacy Development Corporation . 2012-12-26 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20130115170414/http://www.londonlegacy.co.uk/about-us/london-legacy-development-corporation/ . 15 January 2013.
  6. News: Games key legacy will be free swimming for all. 6 June 2008. 6 June 2008. The Guardian. London. Paul. Kelso.
  7. Web site: Olympic legacy: lowering the bar again. 11 November 2008. 7 October 2008. building.co.uk.
  8. Web site: London 2012  - Legacy in the lead . 12 January 2008 . 30 January 2007 . LOCOG . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20070808150645/http://www.london2012.com/news/media-releases/2007-01/london-2012-legacy-in-the-lead.php . 8 August 2007.
  9. News: London 2012 legacy plan published. 26 December 2012. 18 September 2012. BBC.
  10. News: Legacy From the Games. 14 February 2011. 14 February 2011. Government of the United Kingdom. London.
  11. Web site: Hackney Council  - 2012 Games  - The Host Boroughs and the Strategic Regeneration Framework. Government of the United Kingdom. dead. https://web.archive.org/web/20111006163036/http://www.hackney.gov.uk/srf.htm. 6 October 2011.
  12. Web site: Tessa Jowell launches action plan for London 2012 legacy. 6 June 2008. 6 June 2008. TheyWorkForYou. theyworkforyou.com.
  13. Web site: Our Promise for 2012: How the UK will benefit from the Olympic Games and Paralympic Games. 15 August 2008. 24 June 2007. DCMS. Government of the United Kingdom.
  14. Web site: Official Reports, Studies, Publications - Downloads - International Olympic Committee. dead. https://web.archive.org/web/20120227113307/https://www.london2012.com/documents/candidate-files/theme-1-olympic-games-concept-and-legacy.pdf. 27 February 2012.
  15. Web site: Archived copy . 15 September 2011 . https://web.archive.org/web/20111030131849/http://www.london.gov.uk/sites/default/files/The%20London%20Plan%202011.pdf . 30 October 2011 . dead.
  16. Web site: Olyimpic Javelin Train - Discover High Speed UK Rail Travel....
  17. News: High speed trains to ferry spectators to Olympic Park. 28 July 2012. ITV.
  18. Web site: High speed trains to ferry spectators to Olympic Park. ITV News.
  19. Web site: Join the fun and games. Comic Relief.
  20. Web site: J Sainsbury plc / Thousands to get active in Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park for Sainsbury's Sport Relief Games . J Sainsbury . 22 December 2015 . https://web.archive.org/web/20151222234923/http://www.j-sainsbury.co.uk/media/latest-stories/2013/20131001-thousands-to-get-active-in-queen-elizabeth-olympic-park-for-sainsburys-sport-relief-games/ . 22 December 2015 . dead.
  21. Web site: 'Popchoir' set for Olympic Park performance. East London and West Essex Guardian Series.
  22. Web site: Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park . Sport Relief . 22 December 2015 . https://web.archive.org/web/20151222195518/http://www.sportrelief.com/events/queen-elizabeth-olympic-park . 22 December 2015 . dead.
  23. https://www.theguardian.com/media/2013/jan/22/live-nation-olympic-stadium Live Nation strikes deal to exclusively host gigs at Olympic Stadium
  24. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-21139786 Live Nation secures Olympic Park for concerts
  25. BBC Television (19 June 2014) "Lee Valley: Latest Olympic Legacy Venue Opens in Stratford BBC London News. Retrieved August 2014.
  26. News: Olympic Park Legacy Company Board Members Named. 15 November 2009. 15 November 2009. The Guardian. London. Dave. Hill.
  27. Web site: About Us .
  28. News: Gibson. Owen. Golden promises of London 2012's legacy turn out to be idle boasts. 5 January 2016. The Guardian. 25 March 2015.

This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Legacy of the 2012 Summer Olympics".

Except where otherwise indicated, Everything.Explained.Today is © Copyright 2009-2024, A B Cryer, All Rights Reserved. Cookie policy.