OLYMPIC ‘GREATS’ KIP KEINO AND JONATHAN EDWARDS TO LAUNCH BRISTOL KENYA 2012
12.09.2008 18:51:00
Event: Launch of Bristol-Kenya 2012, first agreement secured by a UK city regarding pre-Games training for London Olympics 2012.
Date: September 15, 2008
Venue: Ashton Park School, Bower Ashton, Bristol BS3 2JL.
Time: 10am to noon
Bristol has got off to a flying start as the first city in the UK to establish a formal agreement with an overseas national Olympic Committee for pre-Games training facilities ahead of London 2012.
The historic tie-up will be sealed on Monday when former Olympic double gold medallist Dr Kipchoge Keino visits Ashton Park School and later begins discussions in Bristol with a range of organisations, including Bristol City Council, in his capacity as chairman of the Kenyan Olympic Committee.
Also present will be former triple jump gold medallist and world record holder Jonathan Edwards, now athlete member on the London Organising Committee for the Olympic Games and newly appointed Olympic ‘ambassador for the regions’.
The agreement is being formalised under the banner of Bristol Kenya 2012, a charitable body which will also co-ordinate a range of sporting, cultural and commercial links under the direction of Bob Reeves, Director of Sport, Exercise & Health at The University of Bristol.
Ashton Park School has been chosen as a focal point of the launch ceremonies because it has well-established links with the Inspirations School in the Mombasa, following a visit in 2004 by a 17-strong team of teachers and pupils who built a playground, painted classrooms and taught children. Two years later they returned to build two classrooms, a staffroom and other admin rooms; this year a team of 34 from Ashton Park have been helping to establish a sports hall and a running track. In ‘odd’ years they have been fundraising at home in Bristol.
On 1 September the school became one of only 141 designated Specialist Sports Colleges in the UK, with extra funding for PE teachers and improved equipment and facilities.
Kip Keino will be talking to pupils and staff during his visit on Monday morning and will also be available for filming, photography and interviews with pupils and staff along with Bob Reeves, Jonathan Edwards and individuals closely connected with Bristol Kenya 2012.
Bob Reeves said: “We are delighted that Bristol is able to lead the Olympic Legacy by offering our facilities and hospitality to our friends in Kenya. But the value in this partnership goes beyond helping to establish a pre-Games camp for their Olympic athletes.
“The successful 2012 bid was on the back of an appeal to and on behalf of young people, with a promise to put a smile on their faces. The real legacy therefore will be in our ability to engage with people across the world and to share ideas – before and after the Games.”
Dr Keino said: “I am so pleased to be coming back to Bristol. I know our athletes will find it a welcoming place, with all the facilities they need to prepare for London 2012. We greatly value this partnership with Bristol which will have many other benefits – not only sporting and cultural, but educational and commercial.”
ENDS
Notes to editors:
Bristol Kenya 2012: Supported by the city's professional and amateur sporting bodies, GWE Business West, Destination Bristol, Bristol City Council and the education sector, Bristol Kenya 2012 is the basis of Bristol's partnership with Kenya. This multi-faceted partnership embraces a wide range of educational, business, cultural and sporting links that will benefit all involved.
Kipchoge Keino, an uncoached Nandi tribesman, was 28 years old when he made his second Olympic appearance at the 1968 Mexico City Games. Suffering from violent stomach pains caused by a gall bladder infection, Keino entered the 10,000m. With two laps to go, he doubled up with pain and fell on to the infield. He finished the race but was disqualified for leaving the track. Four days later, he earned a silver medal in the 5,000m, trailing Mohamed Gammoudi of Tunisia by barely a metre. In the 1,500m, Keino tried to neutralize the finishing kick of the favourite, Jim Ryun, by building up a huge lead. His tactic worked and he won by 20m, the largest margin of victory in the history of the event. In 1972, Keino entered the steeplechase even though he had little experience in the event. Still, he was able to outkick teammate Ben Jipcho and win another gold medal. Six days after this victory, he added a silver medal in the 1,500m.
Keino and his wife, Phyllis, eventually established a childrens' home and school for orphaned and abandoned children. Dr Keino, 68, has since engaged in a number of entrepreneurial and humanitarian efforts in Kenya's Rift Valley, including funding an AIDS program and running an orphanage he founded after he and his wife took in two children in 1983. His High Performance Training Center in Eldoret provides runners from about 30 nations with high-altitude training and feeds them -- and many people in the surrounding community -- from Keino's self-sustaining 500-acre organic farm. The training centre is sanctioned by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and has produced dozens of Olympic athletes since 2000. Dr Keino also operates a tea plantation and a sporting goods store.
Jonathan Edwards MBE is a former Olympic Triple Jumper and world record holder who was a key member of the BBC Sports team in Beijing. He is a core ambassador for London 2012 and was appointed to the board of LCOG (London Organising Committee for the Olympic Games) having been involved in the bidding process from the outset. He is also on the board of Ofcom. English Schools champion in 1984, he first jumped 16m in 1986 and progressed rapidly to become the best triple jumper in Britain by 1989. In 1990 he won the Commonwealth Silver medal despite an injured ankle, winning the World Cup in 1992 and again taking Commonwealth Silver in 1994.
For further information on activities at Ashton Park School go to www.ashtonpark.co.uk
Media enquiries:
If you would like to attend this photo call on Monday, 15 September or to obtain more information, please contact Kevin Coughlan, of Montage Communications, on 07966 399121 or by email at Kevin@montagecomms.com. Alternatively, call Aisling O’Keeffe, of The University of Bristol, on 0779665 1989 or email her at aisling.okeeffe@bristol.ac.uk .
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Client name: 2012 Olympics - Bristol - Kenya legacy
Business type: Charity
Author: Kevin Coughlan
Contact author: kevin@montagecomms.com
