14 November 2008

15 countries in Oceania sign up with Northwest

On behalf of the Northwest Steering Group for the 2012 Games, the Northwest Regional Development Agency (NWDA) is pleased to announce 15 Pacific Island countries from Oceania will use the Northwest as its training base in the four year period building up to the London 2012 Olympic Games and Paralympic Games.

Dr Robin Mitchell, Secretary General of the Oceania National Olympic Committees (ONOC);  Mr Vidhya Lakhan, President of the Fijian National Olympic Committee and Peter Mearns, Executive Director of Marketing and Communications at the NWDA, signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on Friday, November 14th between Oceania and England’s Northwest. They were joined by Olympic Triple Jump gold medallist and LOCOG Board Member, Jonathan Edwards, who is a Board member of the London Organising Committee of the Olympic Games and Paralympic Games (LOCOG) and the vice chairman of their Nations and Regions Group.

The MOU is a commitment for the Pacific Islands of Oceania and the Northwest to work together exclusively on using the region as the Training base for Oceania National Olympic Committees in the build up to London 2012 and hopefully beyond looking to the 2014 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow.

The NWDA and its partners* will now work with ONOC with a view to developing the agreement to start roll out early in 2009.

Dr Mitchell said: “On behalf of all 15 Olympic Committees we are delighted to have made this long-term commitment between the Northwest region and Oceania which will benefit both parties.
“Having visited the Northwest myself and seen the wonderful sports and educational facilities I know Oceania’s athletes and coaches will have the best possible preparation for London 2012. I look forward to continuing our work with the NWDA and other partners over the coming years.”

Peter Mearns said: “To include so many countries in one agreement makes this a unique understanding. It also provides an opportunity for the whole of the Northwest to be inspired by the 2012 Games as every sub region has contributed to the development of this agreement.
 “The Northwest has the world class sports facilities and infrastructure to host these athletes and our clubs and coaches will be important in helping to welcome these athletes and support their preparations for London 2012. I am delighted that Oceania have signed up with the Northwest and I look forward to working with them over the next four years and beyond.”

Jonathan Edwards said: “It’s great to see teams developing plans to come and train in the Northwest. Some of the athletes from the teams represented here today may not have had the opportunity to travel to the host country for a preparation camp before, and I hope that the financial awards that LOCOG is offering has helped to encourage these teams to train in the UK.

“LOCOG is committed to ensuring that athletes are at the heart of our Games and these plans for Pacific island competitors to train with local athletes provide a terrific opportunity for both London 2012 participants and the region’s local athletes alike.

“Wherever they train, I am sure they will receive a warm welcome and will thoroughly enjoy the experience – I know that they enjoyed the fantastic atmosphere when competing in the Manchester Commonwealth Games in 2002 and it’s fantastic that some of the knock-on benefits of those Games are delivering a tangible legacy – with the Northwest set to benefit from London hosting the Games in 2012.”

 The MoU sets out an agreement to develop wide ranging links. These include:
- Pre London 2012 preparation and holding camps.
- Oceania athletes and support staff training in the Northwest full or part time on education programmes or work placements, linking into club, coaching and competition structures in the region. A number of Universities in the Northwest have been actively involved in discussions to date for example.
-  Working together on a range of sports development initiatives back in Oceania to help grow sport and create a genuine sustainable legacy for sport in Oceania from the relationship.
- To develop wider educational and cultural exchanges between Oceania and the Northwest, linking to the values of the London 2012 Education programme and the Cultural Olympiad.

Following signing of the agreement the delegation from Oceania, which also includes Mr Vidhya Lakhan, President of the Fijian National Olympic Committee and Mr Dennis Miller from Oceania National Olympic Committees, will visit a number of the potential sites that may be used by their athletes including Edge Hill University and Wavertree Sports Centre. Representatives from Oceania have previously visited sites across the Northwest including Preston Sports Arena, Cumberland Arena in Crewe, Leigh Sports Village and Robin Park Arena in Wigan. The delegation arrived on Thursday and will stay in the region until Sunday.

Andy Worthington, Chair of the Northwest Steering Group for the 2012 Games, said: “This agreement symbolises what the Olympic Movement stands for and provides an opportunity to develop a long lasting relationship through sport with countries on the other side of the world, while inspiring communities across the Northwest. We are excited to be working with the Oceania countries and look forward to working with them to help them achieve their goals for London 2012.”

Following the signing of today’s MoU, some 16 countries have agreed to base their Olympians and Paralympians in the Northwest to date, following the agreement with Thailand signed on Wednesday.

Ends

Editors Notes

Oceania National Olympic Committees (ONOC) is the continental association of the 17 National Olympic Committees that make up the Oceania region. This MoU represents the following 15 National Olympic Committees in the Oceania region:

 American Samoa
 Cook Islands
 Federated States of Micronesia
 Fiji
 Guam
 Kiribati
 Marshall Islands
 Nauru
 Palau
 Papua New Guinea
 Samoa
 Solomon Islands
 Tonga
 Tuvalu
 Vanuatu

At this stage the agreement does not include Australia and New Zealand who are also part of Oceania as the individual sports federations in these countries make the decisions on where their athletes will train, and not the NOC.

Photographs are available after the signing on request.

The Northwest Steering Group has been established to develop and implement plans to ensure that the region fully plays its part in supporting the Games and exploits the many opportunities that they bring. The NWDA is represented on this Steering Group.

*Partners of the NWDA who have contributed to this agreement are Sport England and
World Academy of Sport as well as:

 Central Lancashire consortium – led by Preston City Council and the University of Central Lancashire (UCLan)
 Edge Hill University based in Ormskirk
 Liverpool – incorporating Liverpool City Council, Liverpool John Moores University and the University of Liverpool
 Manchester Metropolitan University and Crewe and Nantwich Borough Council/Cheshire East Consortium (MMUCE)
 Wigan Borough, representing the towns of Wigan and Leigh

The Northwest has been in discussions with the Oceania National Olympic Committees since May 2008.
The Northwest boasts 93 places listed in the London 2012 Pre Games Training Camp Guide to host athletes ahead of the Olympic and Paralympic Games in 2012.

For information on Pre-Games Training camps see www.london2012.com or http://trainingcamps.london2012.com/

For further information please contact Sam Shale, Press Officer on 01925 400264 or 07717 427872 or sam.shale@nwda.co.uk

For urgent out of hours press enquiries please call 01925 400259.

For further information and to view all press releases visit us at www.nwda.co.uk/press

The Northwest Regional Development Agency (NWDA) leads the economic development and regeneration of England's Northwest and is responsible for:

• Supporting business growth and encouraging investment
• Matching skills provision to employer needs
• Creating the conditions for economic growth
• Connecting the region through effective transport and communication infrastructure
• Promoting the region’s outstanding quality of life