Mo Farah hails return of athletics to London Olympic Stadium

 
24 January 2013

Top-class athletics will return to the Olympic Stadium this summer on the anniversary of the opening ceremony of London 2012.

The British Athletics London Grand Prix, part of the elite Diamond League series, will take place on July 27, a year to the day after the Games began in spectacular fashion.

Mo Farah, who won gold medals in the 10,000 metres and 5,000m at the Olympics, said: "The atmosphere was electric during the Games, I'll never forget it, so it's great that the British fans, and athletes, will get to experience that again so soon after the Games."

The Grand Prix usually takes place at Crystal Palace and 15,500 people had already bought tickets.

They will now be refunded and will be first in the queue when tickets go on sale for the Olympic Stadium, with UK Athletics saying spectators will be able to purchase the equivalent seat for the same price.

There will be 65,000 tickets available to the public, and it is expected to be a sell-out, while there remains the possibility a second day could be added to the meeting, which is the usual format at Crystal Palace.

Athletics tickets were among the most sought after for the Games and heptathlon gold medallist Jessica Ennis hopes the Grand Prix will give people who were unable to buy tickets a chance to go to the stadium.

She said: "It is brilliant to hear that the British Athletics London GP is going to be held at the Olympic Stadium a year after the Games.

"It will give athletes and fans who did not get to experience the amazing venue the chance to go there, and for those of us who had the most incredible experiences on the track and field, an opportunity to relive a few memories.

"Hopefully I will be there and using the competition as part of my preparation for the World Championships."

The long-term future of the Olympic Stadium is yet to be decided, with West Ham announced as the preferred bidders in December but a deal far from certain.

Keeping athletics at the stadium has been a key part of the legacy and it will host the World Championships and IPC World Championships in the summer of 2017, while concerts and music festivals are expected to take place from this summer.

The redevelopment of the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park began straight after the Paralympics and the first part of it will reopen for the Diamond League meeting.

The £292million project includes clearing away temporary venues like the hockey, basketball and water polo arenas, while the Copper Box is being refitted for public use with a new gym and sports courts for hire.

The Aquatics Centre, which is being reduced in size, will also be open to the public and the whole park will be fully open by the spring of 2014.

Mayor of London Boris Johnson, who is also chairman of the London Legacy Development Corporation, said: "What better way to mark the anniversary of the tremendous London 2012 opening ceremony than to see this stadium packed again as the world's top athletes compete in this unique series.

"After last summer's amazing Games, we can now see the stadium's legacy emerging as a top venue for both international sport and entertainment.

"I am ever confident that in the coming years we can look forward to seeing Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park staging a wide range of major events, with their organisers and audiences drawn by its perfect location and unrivalled facilities."

Create a FREE account to continue reading

eros

Registration is a free and easy way to support our journalism.

Join our community where you can: comment on stories; sign up to newsletters; enter competitions and access content on our app.

Your email address

Must be at least 6 characters, include an upper and lower case character and a number

You must be at least 18 years old to create an account

* Required fields

Already have an account? SIGN IN

By clicking Create Account you confirm that your data has been entered correctly and you have read and agree to our Terms of use , Cookie policy and Privacy policy .

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged in