GBR Sailing to get more funding

10:27 AM Sat 29 Nov 2008 GMT

'Skandia Team GBR medal winners - L-R Paul Goodison, Sarah Webb, Pippa Wilson, Ben Ainslie, Sarah Ayton, Andrew Simpson, Bryony Shaw, Nick Rogers, Iain Percy and Joe Glanfield.' onEdition &copy Click Here to view large photo

Ashling O'Connor, the Times Olympics Correspondent reports that after the phenomenal success of the cycling, sailing and rowing teams in Beijing, their funding levels are set to be increased. Sports that missed their targets at the Games in August but can identify genuine medal contenders for 2012 are likely to have their funding levels maintained.

But, the axe hangs over ten of Great Britain's Olympic teams before a key funding decision next week that will define the country's preparations for London 2012. The situation should become clear on Tuesday at a board meeting of UK Sport, the funding agency for elite athletes.

It must allocate lottery grants for 2009 to 2013 on the basis of ?221 million of confirmed cash available, not the ?300 million it had expected. The ?79 million funding gap over the next four years has put basketball, fencing, handball, shooting, table tennis, volleyball, water polo, weightlifting and wrestling 'below the line' in the funding formula. Several Paralympic sports also face cuts.

The Government is still trying to raise sponsorship - Sainsbury's is in talks about ?1 million a year for the Medal Hopes programme - but it is too little, too late for UK Sport.

In the March 2006 Budget, Gordon Brown, the Chancellor at the time, announced a ?600 million six-year funding package for elite sport. But ?100 million of it was supposed to come from the private sector. That has failed to materialise, although extra lottery receipts narrowed the gap to ?79 million.

There could be funding boosts in years down the line. The Department of Culture, Media and Sport pledged yesterday that the funding package for London would exceed that agreed for Beijing, where Britain had their most successful Games for a century.

Ashling O'Connor, Times Olympics Correspondent

Full Story - www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/sport/olympics/article5254798.ece

by Ashling O'Connor

Newsfeed supplied by

#News #Sailing #Cycling

GBR Sailing to get more funding

Sports/News

Weather Forecasts & Live Reports

Buy & Sell/Classifieds