According to a published report, the British government is rewriting a think tank report which claimed that staging large sporting events provided no economic benefit to the country.
A draft report on the future of British sport by the Government’s Strategy Unit, stating there was no evidence proving that big events such as the Olympics were economically viable, provoked outrage among sports officials.
The final version of the 200-page document is due to be published a week before Christmas but copies have already been sent to governing bodies. The new report includes a number of changes from the original, and all references to the economic pitfalls of staging major events have been removed.
British Olympic Association (BOA) head Simon Clegg said, “I’ve yet to see the latest draft of the report but, if this is correct, I find this particularly encouraging. It certainly reinforces the argument we have made for a London bit because it has been proven by successive Olympic host cities that there are significant benefits which accrue as a result of hosting a major sporting event like the Olympic Games”.