Olympic chief visits Warrington

THE chief executive of the London Organising Committee of the Olympic and Paralympic Games visited Warrington as part of a tour of the sub-region.
Paul Deighton’s tour started at Warrington Wolves’ Halliwell Jones Stadium and took in a number of local “Inspire Mark” projects inspired by Olympic and Paralympic values.
These included the Warrington Wolves Handball Leadership Programme, Active Arcade, and the Cheshire East Inspire Basketball League.
Mr Deighton (pictured) said: “As part of the 2012 legacy work within Cheshire and Warrington, school sport partnerships and the local authorities have been tremendously proactive in developing new projects inspired by the London 2012 Games, which have been recognised through the ‘Inspire Mark’ programme.
“They are a perfect illustration of the impact the Games coming to London are having on young people across the sub-region.”
Warrington School Sport Partnership and Warrington Wolves Foundation are using the Games to inspire new leaders, coaches and volunteers and to increase participation in sport.
Partnership development manager Louaz Hofton, based at Lymm High school, said: “The Games have clearly captured the imagination of many of our young people and I’m particularly proud of how they have grasped the opportunity to learn new skills, exploit their own potential and inspire others to benefit from participation in sport.”
During his tour, Mr Deighton took part in a major conference in Chester and also visited Games-linked projects in Nantwich.
He applauded the way in which the sub region is engaging with and benefiting from the Games, and encouraged more individuals and organisations to get involved.
The conference was organised by the Cheshire and Warrington 2012 Steering Group to showcase the opportunities that exist for the sub region to benefit from the Games in a range of areas including sport, culture, tourism and business.