Bid to host Olympics and Paralympics in North of England in the 2040s officially begins
The government announced that the proposal to hold the Olympic and Paralympic Games in the north of England in the 2040s will enter the first evaluation phase.
The government commissioned UK Sport to carry out the evaluation as part of its aim to encourage regeneration through sport in towns and cities. The evaluation will take into account costs, socio-economic benefits and chances of success.
If successful, it will be the first games to be held in the UK since London 2012.
Culture Minister Lisa Nandy said: “London 2012 showed what the Olympics can do for our country. Inspiring a generation through sport, attracting major investment and showing the best of Britain to the world.
“But while the north of England champions sporting excellence so much – whatever the talent we produce, the sporting moments we create and the world-class events we attract – we have been told for too long that the Olympics are too big and too important to be held in the north.
“Not anymore. It’s time for the Olympics to move north and show the world what we have to offer.
“I couldn’t be happier to announce that we’ve started firing on a long-overdue vote of confidence in the north.”
The findings of the initial assessment will determine whether a more detailed technical feasibility study will be conducted to examine the costs, benefits and feasibility of hosting the Games.
The final decision on whether and when a future bid will be made will be up to the British Olympic Association and the British Paralympic Association.
Manchester failed in its bid to host the 2000 Olympic Games in 1993, with the prize ultimately awarded to Sydney.
Documents released from the National Archive included a post-mortem into why the bid failed, including a comment from Damian Green, a former Conservative MP but then policy adviser to then-Prime Minister John Major, who said the reason Manchester lost was “clear”.
“Nobody in their right mind would spend three weeks in Manchester rather than Sydney,” he said.
Green said of the comments after they were made public in 2019: “I’m glad I was wrong and Manchester was finally successful in a bid and went on to stage a memorably successful Games (the 2002 Commonwealth Games).
“Manchester became a lesson in urban regeneration and I learned not to be cynical.”
