The event provided inspiration to almost 200 delegates with a special interest in the London 2012 Olympic & Paralympic Games, drawn from sports organisations, tourism businesses, education and training establishments, the commercial sector and community groups.
‘Are You Ready?’ was designed to encourage businesses and other organisations to make the most of this once in a lifetime opportunity and it included an innovative mix of business briefings, workshops and sporting challenges. Buckinghamshire’s history as the birthplace of disability sport at Stoke Mandeville and as the host county to Olympic & Paralympic Sports at Dorney Lake provided a focus for the day’s activities.
Lord Coe launched Buckinghamshire’s 2012 Legacy Plan alongside Adrian Moorhouse, Chair of Bucks 2012 Group and Martin McElhatton, Chief Executive of Wheelpower the national charity for Wheelchair Sport and owners of Stoke Mandeville Stadium. The Legacy Plan will ensure everyone who lives and works in Buckinghamshire has the opportunity to take inspiration from the Games and that a lasting and positive impact is provided for all businesses, communities and individuals.
During the afternoon’s programme of workshops Tourism South East explored the opportunities available for tourism-related businesses on offer through its innovative customer care programme for the area, ‘Hosting the World’. Other workshops focused on the development of stronger business education and community links and supporting Bucks’ sporting challenge ‘Reactivate’.
Throughout the day there was a wheelchair basketball challenge for delegates to take part in, giving them the chance to learn new skills and learn a little more about this fast moving sport ahead of the Women’s European Championships taking place at Stoke Mandeville between August 25th-31st. Coe was amongst the participants in the basketball challenge and his participation was captured by artist Rachel Gadsden who presented him with his action portrait at the end of the visit.
Said Coe of his Buckinghamshire visit; ‘It was a real honour to visit once again the county that is the home of the Paralympic movement. The 2012 Games present many involvement opportunities for local businesses, organisations and community groups and through the Legacy & Ambitions Strategy Buckinghamshire is helping ensure its residents benefit from this once in a lifetime event. With 1253 days to go until the start of the London 2012 Olympic Games, now is the time to get involved. I particularly enjoyed having a taste of wheelchair basketball and learning about the skills needed to excel at this sport and I would like to thank Rachel for capturing my involvement on canvas.’
To download a copy of the Buckinghamshire 2012 Legacy & Ambitions follow the atached link.Buckinghamshire 2012 Legacy & Ambitions