An Olympics in the North of England would be “phenomenal” – and the region’s mayors and sporting greats hope Andy Burnham can help make it a reality if he becomes Prime Minister, writes Local Democracy Reporter, Daniel Holland.
Leaders from across the North gathered in Sheffield on Tuesday to begin hashing out a credible vision to stage the Olympic and Paralympic Games during the 2040s.
The Government confirmed in May that it would launch an assessment into the idea, which could see a multi-city Games spread across the North.
And, with the recently-departed Greater Manchester mayor now the clear favourite to succeed Keir Starmer in Downing Street, belief in the huge ambition is now building.
Speaking to the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS) at the Sheffield’s Olympic Legacy Park, North East mayor Kim McGuinness joked that “our plan to get the Olympics by sending our own agent to Westminster is working”.
The Labour mayor added: “Andy Burnham has stood next to every mayor around the table today and been as clear and as ambitious as us. I expect that to continue if he becomes Prime Minister.
“There is work to do to get to that point for him. But my argument would be that it is very clear that having a strong Northern voice as Prime Minister, someone who has walked the walk when it comes to dragging power North out of Westminster, should be well behind us and hopefully help us accelerate this.”
Ms McGuinness, who chairs the Great North partnership of elected mayors, said that the North “deserves to have something of this scale” and that there should be no problem sharing the Games across various towns and cities, given that the 2032 Games is being staged across a “vast” geography in Queensland, Australia.
Plans for a bid remain at a very early stage and Ms McGuinness said bosses are “completely open minded” over which sports would be hosted where – though it would inevitably require massive regeneration works to invest in new or improved sporting venues and transport infrastructure.
Asked where a flagship Olympic stadium to stage showpiece athletics events could be located, she replied: “We have not gone into that sort of detail yet, but we do know that nothing like that exists yet in the North. That is something that will have to come out of this if we are going to proceed with a bid. But I think that is exciting, that is a real opportunity for us in the North East.
“Often when you talk about events in the North, people say ‘oh it will just be Manchester or just be Leeds’. Not at all.
“We are in Sheffield today, we started this whole process in the North East at the back end of the Great North Run by saying ‘we are the Great North now and this is the scale of our ambition, the Olympics is very much on the table’. That shows our commitment to looking at the whole of the North.”
This week, more than 40 Olympians, Paralympians and elite athletes put their names to a statement backing the Northern bid – including the likes of Dame Sarah Storey, Sir Jason Kenny, and Beth Tweddle.
Commentator and former Olympian Steve Cram told the LDRS that bringing the Games to places like Newcastle, Sunderland, Leeds, and Manchester would be “phenomenal”.
The ‘Jarrow Arrow’ said: “People ask me how on Earth we will get the Olympics to the North of England. It is a bit like saying to a young 13, 14-year-old that they are never going to win an Olympic medal. If you don’t start with that ambition, it is not going to happen.”
He agreed that the presence of Mr Burnham in Downing Street could offer a massive boost to the region’s plans, saying: “These things do not happen without political support from the very top. Whatever you thought of Blair, he pushed the boat out [for London 2012] because that is what the people at the International Olympic Committee need to see. Who is sitting in Number 10 is crucial to this, particularly at this early stage.
“People have to believe in it and if they don’t believe the top people who will make decisions around funding are behind it then nobody else will get behind it. That is really important.”
Sir Brendan Foster, a medal-winning Olympic runner and founder of the Great North Run, also backed Mr Burnham to turn the North’s dream into reality if he does become Prime Minister.
He said: “People are talking today about Andy Burnham and what his policies are. One policy I know that he has, because he has told me a hundred times, is that he believes in devolving power to the regions – the North East, Manchester, Liverpool, Yorkshire. He fully believes it.”
Sir Brendan added: “I know Andy well. I don’t know all of his policies, but I know one of his policies is that the people of the North of England should no longer be treated and feel like second class citizens.”
When the idea of a Northern Olympics was announced earlier this year, London mayor Sadiq Khan claimed that it would be a “missed opportunity” if the capital was excluded from the event.
Ms McGuinness said there was “no reason” why Londoners could not take pride in an Olympics of the North, just as people from across the UK did for London 2012.
She added: “What we have across the North of England is not just a wealth of sporting talent, real ambition, some incredible cities and venues where we know these Games can really thrive, we also know that people are proud and will want to welcome fans and Olympians to see something like this.
“It is about showing the people who live here that our opportunities are limitless and, frankly, it is high time that something of this scale was delivered across the North.”
Other mayors at Tuesday’s summit included South Yorkshire’s Oliver Coppard, West Yorkshire’s Tracy Brabin, Hull and East Yorkshire’s Luke Campbell, and York and North Yorkshire’s David Skaith, as well as Liverpool City Region deputy mayor Mike Wharton.
Daniel Holland
Reporter for the Local Democracy Reporter Service.
South West Durham News covering news across County Durham.
