This unique project is demonstrating a significant contribution to the promised London 2012 legacy by bringing together elite athletes, professional sports, education, new skills and applied research into health and wellbeing.
To mark the six-year anniversary of the staging of the London Games (July 27 – August 12 2012), new figures and research highlight how Sheffield is leading the way in delivering Olympic legacy through sport, economy, local community and environment.
Former Sports Minister and Project Lead for Sheffield Olympic Legacy Park, the Rt Hon Richard Caborn, said: “Six years on from London 2012, we’re proud to demonstrate such a lasting legacy from the Olympic and Paralympic Games.
“One of the unique offers in the London bid was to deliver an Olympic legacy on health and wellbeing through the four themes of sport, economy, local community and sustainability.
“Sheffield has taken this on board and is the only city in the UK that has delivered this part of the legacy thanks to many institutions – Legacy Park Ltd, Sheffield Teaching Hospitals, Sheffield City Council and Sheffield Hallam University – working together.
“Sheffield Olympic Legacy Park is a completely unique British project in the Sheffield City Region which is attracting interest from all over the world.”
The park will host The National Centre for Sport and Exercise Medicine (NCSEM), one of three network partners that comprise the London 2012 Olympic Legacy programme, and Sheffield Hallam University’s Advanced Wellbeing Research Centre (AWRC).
The NCSEM is enabling significant improvements with the co-location of NHS services and 80,000 appointments a year from hospitals to clinics based in leisure centres – Graves Leisure Centre, Thorncliffe and Concord Sports Centre.
It has also seen 20,000 individuals engage in public health behaviour change programmes embedding physical activity in schools, the workplace and communities.
Building work has begun on Sheffield Hallam University’s Advanced Wellbeing Research Centre (AWRC) which will act as the research hub for the NCSEM. The AWRC is set to become the most advanced research and development centre for health and physical activity in the world, creating ‘innovations to improve health’ with a focus on those that help people move.
The AWRC will be at the heart of Sheffield Olympic Legacy Park, which replaced the 35-acre site of the former Don Valley Stadium – the training ground for Jessica Ennis-Hill – 2012 Olympic Heptathlon Champion.
Already on the 60-acre Sheffield Olympic Legacy Park is the English Institute of Sport Sheffield (EISS) where numerous current elite athletes train, including 2012 Olympic gold medallist Anthony Joshua and Paralympic gold medallist Will Bayley. EISS is also the current base for the GB Paralympic wheelchair basketball and badminton teams.
Mr Caborn continued: “Sheffield is home to a multitude of elite athletes as well as countless up and coming rising stars.
“Our upcoming Celebration of Sport event will celebrate sporting talent, coaches, volunteers, schools, colleges and universities across Sheffield.”
Sheffield Olympic Legacy Park also comprises the Oasis Academy Don Valley, UTC Sheffield Olympic Legacy Park, a Community Stadium which will be used by Sheffield United Women Football Club and is home to Sheffield Eagles Rugby League Football Club, formal and informal grassed areas, run routes, cycle paths and outdoor community facilities.
Lord Coe said: “Sheffield understands the power of sport, not just at elite level, but as a way to engage local communities and as a city has used it in an exemplary way which should be seen as a template for so many other cities not just in the UK but around the world.”
British Olympic Association (BOA) Chief Executive, Bill Sweeney, said: ““The health of the nation and the role of sport in a modern society are inextricably linked and it is heartening to see the development of projects such as Sheffield Olympic Legacy Park, where agencies are working in tandem to provide innovative and fresh solutions to societal problems such as obesity, nutrition and mental welfare. We are keen supporters of the project and hope it continues to develop successfully.”
