2012 days to go to the London Paralympic Games

For the first time, both the Olympic Games and Paralympic Games will have been planned and designed together from the start. London 2012 is the first Organising Committee to integrate planning in this way.

"The Paralympic Games is one of the world's most exciting and inspiring sporting events and experiences for elite athletes, and we want to ensure that our Games in London are the best ever," said Sebastian Coe, Chairman of London 2012.

"We want to set new standards on and off the track, and be a catalyst for continued change for public attitudes towards disability. The Paralympic Games will be a huge festival of sport with the whole of the world watching events such as Boccia, Goalball, Wheelchair Tennis and Wheelchair Rugby.

"The Games will leave a lasting legacy as well with the building of a new tennis centre in the north of the Olympic Park. We will provide a compact and inclusive Paralympic Games with high quality accessible venues, transport services and excellent Village facilities for athletes as well as for team and technical officials."

Tessa Jowell, the Cabinet Minister with responsibility for the Paralympic Games, said: "Paralympic sport has its roots in the UK, so I am especially delighted this terrific worldwide event is coming to the UK for the first time in 2012. And given our proud history, it’s not surprising we have so many successful Paralympic athletes.

"Consistent medal-winning performances make the GB team an inspiration to young disabled athletes across the country. It is to them we look as we count down the 2012 days to the start of the London Paralympic Games."

Mayor of London Ken Livingstone said: "2012 days from now we want to welcome the world's elite Paralympians to the city that has made the most progress in making itself accessible to people with disabilities.

"The improvements to our capital in the lead up to 2012 will help disabled Londoners maximise opportunities to participate in the Games and leave a lasting legacy for generations to come."

President of the British Paralympic Association and London Organising Committee board member Mike Brace said: "The London Games are a once in a lifetime opportunity to leave a sporting legacy for Britain's disabled people and we hope that following the Games every person in the country with a physical or sensory impairment will have to opportunity to participate in sport.

"The British Paralympic Association is committed to providing a world class environment for our athletes to thrive in and we will be looking to maintain our position as one of the world’s leading Paralympic nations."

The bulk of London's Paralympic venues are set in two zones - the Olympic Park Zone and the River Zone. The two zones are within 15 minutes of each other, leading to one of the most compact Games ever, minimising travel times and disruption for Paralympians.

All Paralympic athletes will be housed within the Athletes' Village set within the Olympic Park which has been designed to be fully accessible from the outset.

Paralympic sailors and rowers will have accommodation close to their competition venues in Weymouth and Eton Dorney but will also have a bed available within the village if required.

Outside the two zones, road cycling will take place in Regent’s Park in central London, the new sport of adaptive rowing in Eton Dorney, which hosted a successful rowing world championships last August, and sailing at Weymouth and Portland.

- Ends -

Note to Editors:

Other key facts and figures about the Paralympic Games are listed below.

• The London 2012 Paralympic Games will run from Wednesday 29th August through to Sunday 9th September, and are the second largest multi-sport event in the world. There will be 20 sports, 4,500 athletes and 2,300 officials taking part. They will follow on from the London 2012 Olympic Games which take place from Friday, 27 July to Sunday, 12 August.
• The London Organising Committee of the Olympic Games and Paralympic Games, responsible for the staging of the Games, is integrating and coordinating all planning for the Olympic Games and Paralympic Games. It is the first Organising Committee to integrate planning for the Games in this way.
• The London 2012 Paralympic Games have been scheduled to start on a Wednesday to enable two full weekends of action. The day after the Opening Ceremony, Thursday 30th August, has been scheduled as "Paralympic Day", where spectators will be encouraged to try out Paralympic Sports and watch athletes compete and train. There will also be cultural performing arts events taking place and the day will be a celebration of Paralympism.
• The Olympic Park will contain the main athletics stadium where the athletics and opening and closing ceremonies will take place, the Hockey Centre will host Seven-a-Side and Five-a-Side Football, and the Velopark will host Track Cycling. In the north of the Park at Eton Manor will be the Archery and Wheelchair Tennis venue which will be converted post Games into a state-of-the-art indoor and outdoor tennis centre, with a tangible legacy from the Paralympic Games for the local community. Three indoor arenas will host Wheelchair Rugby, Goalball, Wheelchair Basketball, Judo, and Wheelchair Fencing. The Aquatics Centre will host Swimming. The Athletes' Village is also set within the Park, as are the Main Press Centre and the International Broadcast Centre.
  
  Moving south eastwards, the River Zone will see a lot of action. The Greenwich temporary arena will host Sitting Volleyball, Greenwich Park will host Equestrian, providing a stunning backdrop. ExCeL will host Boccia, Powerlifting, Wheelchair Basketball and Table Tennis. The Royal Artillery Barracks in Woolwich will host Shooting.
• All these venues are less than 15 minutes away from the Olympic Park making travelling between venues easy and convenient for competitors and spectators. As a result 90% of athletes will be within 15 minutes of their venue.
• The tennis centre at Eton Manor in the Olympic Park is a tangible legacy of the Paralympic Games for the local community and will also provide Wheelchair Tennis with another tennis venue in the UK for Grand Prix events and championships.
• Other legacies from the Paralympic Games include the relocation of hockey pitches after the Games to Eton Manor. The Main Press Centre and International Broadcast Centre are now in the Olympic Park and will be used for light industrial premises afterwards.
• The Paralympic movement has its origins at Stoke Mandeville Hospital, where Sir Ludwig Guttman organised the first competitive wheelchair games to coincide with the 1948 London Olympic Games.
• A GamesMobility Service will be developed at the London 2012 Games. This service was used at the Manchester 2002 Commonwealth Games and means that spectators with a disability and other participants in the Games will be offered a Games-wide free service which enables them to book a ticket for a guaranteed accessible location, and arrangements can be made to provide a personal guide to the event.
• There will be a cultural festival with concerts and street festivals taking place throughout the UK to bridge the gap between the London Olympic Games and Paralympic Games.
• The Paralympic Games Opening Ceremony will be a spectacular ceremony featuring the best of British art and entertainment and will be a celebration of sports and arts for the disabled.
• There will be a wide range of accessible accommodation available for spectators ranging from five-star hotels to affordable student and bed and breakfast accommodation. The Paralympic media community will be in fully accessible hotels in Bloomsbury, and there will also be accommodation near to the International Broadcast Centre, the Main Press Centre in the Olympic Park, and close to the ExCeL centre.

Download an image of Seb Coe, Ade Adepitan and David Wier

Download an image of the Paralympic venues map

For further information please contact the London 2012 Press Office on +44 (0)203 2012 100.

Find out the latest from London 2012 HQ on our Work in Progress blog.