2012 Olympic RoadShow

Sport participation was on the agenda in Middlesbrough on Wednesday 4th July 2007. As the 2012 Olympic Road show rolled into town. So rE-view sent reporters Glen Robertson, Sian Williams and Holly Angus, along to the event to find out what it was all about.

Middlesbrough was full of activity as the 2012 Olympic road show visited to promote sport participation for the children and young people of the North East. The Olympic bus will also be making appearances at London, Suffolk and Wales within the week, along with some famous sporting personalities.

Joining the Middlesbrough leg of the tour was former IBF cruiserweight champion Glenn McCrory, 400m commonwealth games silver medallist Allison Curbishley and long jump British record holder Chris Tomlinson.

The day provided an opportunity to experience a variety of different sports for local school children and young people within Middlesbrough. This included sports such as rock climbing, pole vault, table tennis and boxing with a professional ring. All activities were accompanied by local coaches to provide advice and guidance for their sport speciality.

The events were opened by Middlesbrough's Mayor Ray Mallon who felt passionately dedicated to make Middlesbrough and the North East renowned for its sport participation and that, we should all do more to promote sport and this annual event is just the beginning.' Also supporting the 2012 Olympics was SportEngland's Judith Rasmussen who helped coordinate the event. Her aim was to develop links with local clubs within the North East.

During a discussion with Boxer Glenn McCrory he was keen to emphasise his support for developing young sporting talent into medal winning adults. Although he has never competed in the Olympics himself, he is currently training a group of North East Boxers to take to Beijing next year, with the help of a professional team from Cuba. He is interested in getting as many young dedicated boxing enthusiasts involved, of all abilities and gender. His gym is located in Newcastle, but has future plans to expand across the country.

Middlesbrough born and bred long jumper Chris Tomlinson attended the road show with the National Lottery. Being a local lad he was eager to get more local children to follow his example and enjoy sport. Advising young people to try a variety of sports, not to get pushed into sports you lose interest in, and most importantly to enjoy it!' even though he is training hard for Beijing, he is excited about the change to compete in London 2012, as the home crowd makes it more special.

Allison Curbishley will hopefully be covering the games working for radio Five Live. She stated that she would be envious of those competing in 2012 but covering it as a journalist is the next best thing. She hopes the legacy of the games will enable Great Britain to stay towards the top of the medals table beyond 2012. Commenting on the days events she said; It is nice to see the smiles on all the faces.' The day's events proved successful to both participants and the organisers. The road show passed without a hitch and was clear that everyone enjoyed themselves, taking away a vital understanding of the importance of sport and the Olympics. Along with the knowledge that some of the children and young people who attended could also find themselves competing at the 2012 London Olympics.