The Team GB Preparation camp has officially opened at Loughborough University.
Approximately 550 athletes and 450 support staff are expected to pass through the Team GB Experience and 13 sports are to base themselves in Loughborough to undertake final preparations.
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The Preparation Camp will see hundreds of athletes and support staff pass through the “Team GB Experience” which includes the official kitting out process and an opportunity for athletes and support staff to sign up to the five “One Team GB” core values of Performance, Respect, Unity, Responsibility and Pride.
adidas alone are issuing 175,000 units of kit across 23 sizes and 349 items, with female athletes receiving 65 items of kit and male athletes receiving 59, not including their sport specific competition wear. While retailer Next issuing 80,000 items across 64 sizes, it is expected that each athlete will spend three and a half hours passing through the entire experience.
Team GB Partners UPS, BP, BMW and Powerade are all part of the TG Experience. UPS are responsible for all the logistics including the picking and packing of all kit bags. BP Target Neutral, BP’s not-for-profit carbon offsetting programme, will, over the coming weeks, be an integral part of the Team GB prep camp. This provides an opportunity for athletes to show their personal support by signing up to offset their travel, creating awareness of the environmental impact of all journeys to and from the Games. BMW are providing vehicles to facilitate athlete transport and Powerade have set up a lounge in the athlete accommodation to allow them to relax, socialise and refresh in a sports themed entertainment area.
Team GB Chef De Mission Andy Hunt acknowledges the importance of the athletes and staff going through the “Team GB Experience”:
One of the first sports to go through the “Team GB Experience” is rowing and fresh from the final test event in Munich before the Olympics, Olympic Gold Medalist from 2008 Zac Purchase commented on the Team GB experience:
Of course it isn’t just the athletes and support staff who are part of the “Team GB Experience”, hundreds of staff from both adidas and Next as well as volunteers are involved in making the experience as seamless and speedy as possible.
One of those people is Phil Harker, Next Master Tailor who spoke about his the experience is going for his:
With 13 sports set to use the Team GB Preparation Camp at Loughborough as their main training base before the games, including the men’s and women’s volleyball and handball squads, weightlifters, wrestlers, fencers, taekwondo fighters, triathletes and endurance runners many of the nation’s top athletes are due in the East Midlands area.
Mike Hay, Team GB Preparation Camp Director said,