Beijing should learn from London for Olympic legacy planning

One year after the 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games, London hosted the World Triathlon Grand Final in City Center's Hyde Park and it was labelled as the "Olympic legacy event."

It was held on much the same course as the 2012 Olympic Games and finally the men's race was won by Javier Gomez of Spain, who took the silver medal at the same place in last year's Olympic Games. It was the biggest sporting event after the Olympics with over 8,500 athletes

representing 83 countries and regions.

Beijing hosted the World Triathlon Grand Final in 2011, three years after it staged a "truely exceptional" Olympic Games described by then IOC President Jacques Rogge. Like London, it also took place at the venue where the Olympic trianthlon competitions were held. But the venue, around the Ming Tombs Resovior and about 50 kilometers away from the city center, could hardly attract Beijingers' attention.

By comparison, London did much better. As last year in the Olympics, the event was held in the City Center and about 100,000 people watched the race.

Iain Edmondson, Head of Major Events at London and Partners, the Mayor's official promotional organisation, said that staging the event on the Olympic course is building on the legacy of the Games.

"I think that if you make full use of the legacy, the effect of the Olympic Games will last maybe 30 years to come," he told Xinhua.

He said London made the legacy plans long before the opening of last year's Games. The Olympic Stadium has already started transformation into a football stadium where English Premier League side West Ham will move in three years. Beijng's iconic Bird's Nest stadium, however, is mostly an attraction site as few sport clubs can afford its expensive operation fee.

But Edmondson, who watched the Beijing Games in 2008, said sports has already played a very important role in fostering the relations between the Beijing and London, the two Olympic cities.

In the world badminton championships in London two years ago, all the gold medals were won by Chinese players. This time, Huawei, one of world's top communication company from China, became a sponspor of the trianthlon worlds even though there were no athletes from Chinese mainland as they were competing at the Chinese National Games.

In a football-mad country, Edmondson said that staging the event migth not be profitable, but the economic benefit from these events to London are still impressive.

"All the athletes and spectators from all over the world will spend on hotels and travels, which will help London's business and help to creat jobs," he said.

It was estimated that the economic impact the five-day triathlon worlds brought to London has reached about five million pounds.

More importantly, Edmondson, a member of London's Bidding Committee for the 2012 Olympic Games, said that London's ambitious plan to bring over 70 of the world's most prestigious sporting events to Britain will make the city maintain its reputation as one of the world's leading sports destinations.

The events, called The Gold Event Series, including the 2017 World Athletics and IPC Athletics Championships to be staged in the London Olympic Stadium and the 2015 World Artistic Gymnastics Championships at the Hydro Arena in Glasgow, will bring over 250,000 overseas visitors.

"Hosting the events demonstrated our commitment to deliver a legacy for Major Events from both the Olympic and Paralympic Games," he said.

Edmondson, who took the post three years ago, works closely with the Mayor of London Events for London team and the teams within the Olympic Park Legacy Company. He has also advised on a number of major event bids and legacy planning (including 2014 Glasgow Commonwealth Games and government of Abu Dhabi) at his previous role at PMP, the UK's largest sport specialist consultancy.