News
Lord Coe Impressed by Olympic Pool Plans
14 November 2007
Olympic gold medallist Sebastian Coe visited Northern Ireland
last week to promote the London 2012 Games and the benefits
that it can bring to Northern Ireland.
Working to a busy schedule, Lord Coe, Chairman of the London
Organising Committee of the Olympic and Paralympic Games
(LOCOG), visited the Constructing Excellence Business Seminar,
a reception for young athletes, met with senior government
officials and, along with Sports Minister Edwin Poots, MLA,
officially opened the Northern Ireland Gymnastics Centre
in Lisburn.
 At
an evening briefing for Local Authorities organised by NILGA
(the Northern Ireland Local Government Association) North
Down’s Mayor, Dr Stephen Farry, MLA, had the opportunity
to meet Lord Coe and to show him the Council’s plans
for Northern Ireland’s first Olympic-sized 50m pool,
which is being funded via the 2012 Elite Facilities Programme.
Trevor Polley, Chief Executive of North Down Borough Council,
and Stephen Reid, Director of Leisure, accompanied the Mayor
at the briefing in Lisburn.
Speaking after the briefing, the Mayor commented: “It
was a great pleasure to meet Lord Coe and to gain a better
insight into LOCOG’s vision for 2012. North Down is,
of course, already benefiting from the Games, having been
selected as the preferred bidder to build Northern Ireland’s
first 50m swimming pool.”
He continued: “On meeting Lord Coe I had the opportunity
to show him Council’s plans for the 50m pool. He commented
that they were very impressive and bore a striking resemblance
to the Aquatics Centre in London—Council is, in fact,
using the same architects.”
“With the support of our funders, DCAL and Sport
NI, it is Council’s intention to open the pool in
advance of the 2012 Olympics in order that it can be used
for developing local swimmers and holding training camps
for visiting countries swim teams. Lord Coe was able to
advise on how the Council could best approach Olympic teams
to base themselves in Bangor in advance of the Games. This
is something we will proactively pursue with a number of
national teams following the Beijing Games in 2008.”
At each of his engagements Lord Coe stressed that improving
sporting infrastructure and encouraging young people to
develop their sporting ability, would give Northern Ireland
a lasting legacy from the 2012 Games. He believes that London
2012 will offer the Province opportunities to change lives
on and off the sporting field.
He said: “The London 2012 Games are not just about
sport, they encompass all aspects of our daily lives. The
Games can play a vital role in improving community cohesion,
public health, education and skills, economic growth, social
development and attracting tourists to Northern Ireland.”
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