Olympics can boost NI: Long

12.00.00am BST (GMT +0100) Wed 6th Jul 2005

Alliance Spokesperson for Sport, Michael Long, has welcomed the IOC's decision to select London to host the 2012 Olympics and has expressed the hope that Northern Ireland can benefit from the hosting of the games.

Councillor Long said: "I welcome the announcement that London will host the Olympic Games in 2012. I am confident that the event will be a major success as the London bid team have done a massive amount of work on the project.

"I hope that Northern Ireland will benefit from the decision through tourism and the improvement of local sporting facilities.

"I wish to call upon the Minister to do all in his power to ensure that Northern Ireland can contribute and benefit from the Olympic Games in London. I would like to see money being spent by the government on sporting facilities including the proposed national sports stadium so that Northern Ireland can host preparation and training events for teams participating in the Olympics. This would not only benefit the sports sector here but also boost tourism in Northern Ireland.

"When Ireland hosted the Special Olympics it was very successful and it had a positive impact upon the whole island. I am hopeful that the 2012 Olympics in London can also have a positive effect on Northern Ireland."

ENDS