Wed, 30 May 2012
Seb Coe, chair of the London Organising Committee of the Olympic Games and Paralympic Games visited Dukes Meadows Golf and Tennis Centre in Chiswick where he saw for himself how Hounslow is embracing the London 2012 Games.
Also present at the visit were leader of the council Cllr Jagdish Sharma and chief executive Mary Harpley.
During his visit, Seb toured the facilities and saw first-hand how young people from the area are benefiting from taking part in sports such as athletics, rowing, golf and tennis. As part of his visit, Seb also met the coaches running the programmes.
The four sports are a key part of Hounslow’s sporting legacy programme which looks to encourage thousands of children to take up a sport of their choice.
15 primary schools have already signed up for tennis and golf lessons for the next school year which will be provided by the Dukes Meadows centre. 10 secondary schools in the borough have signed up for rowing classes, which are being provided by London Youth Rowing and the Boat Race Company, and supported by a grant from the Oxford and Cambridge Rowing Foundation which has been match funded by the borough of Hounslow. There are also between 30 and 40 pupils a week currently taking advantage of the council’s free athletics sessions as a result of the new athletics track in Osterley.
Seb Coe, chair of LOCOG said: "The Dukes Meadows Golf and Tennis Centre is a fantastic facility for local residents. I was thrilled to have the opportunity to meet the coaches and young people who are making the most of the fantastic sporting programmes on offer in their borough."
Leader of Hounslow Council, Jagdish Sharma, said: "We want to provide a legacy from the Olympic Games and our ambition is to provide high quality free sports coaching to children in our schools. Through our legacy programme, we are giving Hounslow students the opportunity to try out a new sport and continue in that sport if they are talented or simply enjoy the challenge.
"By offering youngsters this broad range of sports we are also trying to provide them with a physical activity that will give them a lifelong commitment to a healthy lifestyle."
See more photos of Lord Coe visiting the Dukes Meadows Golf and Tennis Centre