Loughborough University has been selected by the British Olympic Association (BOA) as The Official Preparation Camp Headquarters for Team GB prior to the London 2012 Olympic Games.

The agreement, announced today (Wednesday 14 April), means many of Team GB’s sports disciplines are expected to use Loughborough’s facilities for their pre-Games training.

It is also intended that all members of Team GB will pass through Loughborough University for the official ‘kitting out’ process. This will provide the essential opportunity to bring together the hundreds of athletes and officials into one collective unit and mentally prepare the whole of Team GB for competition at the largest scale multi-sports environment in the world.

In the months preceding the 2012 Games, the BOA will also base its support services at Loughborough.

Of today’s announcement, Professor Shirley Pearce, Vice Chancellor of Loughborough University, was delighted with the announcement.

“The University has been the base for the preparation of around 170 British Olympians over the past 30 years, and many of the country’s 2012 contenders are already using our state-of-the-art facilities.

“Today’s announcement is confirmation that Loughborough offers the best possible Olympic preparation environment for many of Team GB’s sports.”

BOA Chief Executive Andy Hunt said: “Our number one priority is to ensure that Team GB athletes have the best possible preparation environment immediately before the Games in 2012.

“We are delighted that Loughborough University will partner the BOA as Team GB’s preparation HQ. We’re confident Loughborough’s excellence in the field of sport will be of huge benefit to Team GB’s aspiration of securing fourth place in the London 2012 medal table.”

Councillor David Parsons CBE, leader of Leicestershire County Council, added:

“It is recognition of Loughborough’s world class facilities and its place as the country’s leading university for sport. Hosting 500 plus athletes will be a major task and the County Council will do everything it can to support the University in giving Britain’s competitors the very best chance of Olympic success.”

As well as the BOA, Loughborough University will also host the Japanese Olympic team in the weeks prior to the 2012 Olympic Games. The co-location of two major teams will create a unique environment, with Loughborough likely to have the highest concentration of Olympic activity outside the capital.

A partnership agreement, signed with the Japanese Olympic Committee (JOC) in June last year, has already seen the two organisations working closely together on academic research and teaching activity. Japan’s Olympic sports teams will also be using the University’s world-class facilities for training camps and final preparations before competitions in Europe from now until 2012.