POSTED: Wednesday May 9th 2012
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
The first in a collection of 12 medallions made by The Royal Mint went on sale today to raise funds in support of the home teams at the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games.
The collection features some of Britain’s greatest Olympians and Paralympians from the past, as well as some of the current athletes hoping to represent Team GB and ParalympicsGB at the Games this year, including: Olympians Sir Steve Redgrave, Sebastian Coe KBE, Dame Kelly Holmes MBE (mil), Sir Matthew Pinsent, Daley Thompson CBE, Denise Lewis OBE, James Cracknell OBE, Sir Chris Hoy, Rebecca Adlington OBE and Ben Ainslie CBE, as well as Paralympians Baroness Tanni Grey-Thompson and Lee Pearson CBE.
A new medallion will be released each Wednesday to build the complete Our Greatest Team Legends Collection - one of only two official pieces of merchandise created to support Team GB and ParalympicsGB.
The medallions, which depict ten British Olympic and two British Paralympic winning moments from past Games, can be purchased from London 2012 sponsor BP’s forecourts across the country. The first medallion is available for £1 together with an official presentation pack and the remaining 11 medallions will cost £2 each.
Rowing Legend Sir Steve Redgrave is the first legend to have his winning moment immortalised. He launched the collection today by bringing his medallion to life and recreating his historic fifth gold medal-winning moment from Sydney 2000.
Sir Steve commented: “Collecting all the medallions is a great way to give vital support to our athletes competing at the London 2012 Games and beyond, as well as remember and celebrate our proud heritage of Olympic and Paralympic success.
“Let’s hope that when future generations look at their medallion collection from 2012 they will have another set of iconic winning moments from this summer’s Games to look back on too.”
Andy Hunt, Chef de Mission Team GB London 2012 commented: “We are hugely proud of our Olympic and Paralympic heritage and what better way to celebrate our legends than to produce a medallion collection to honour them. We hope that everyone will seize this opportunity to start collecting the medallions and in doing so show their support for British athletes at London 2012 and beyond.”
Craig Hunter, Chef de Mission of ParalympicsGB, said: “Collecting the medallions is a fantastic way for the public to get behind our athletes and be part of British sporting history this summer. Sales of the Collection will raise valuable funds for ParalympicsGB and Team GB, supporting the athletes competing in London and beyond.”
All profits from the sale of the Our Greatest Team Legends Collection will directly support Team GB and ParalympicsGB to help aspiring athletes deliver their best performance at London 2012 and beyond.
The second legend’s medallion to be released will be Sebastian Coe KBE in a week’s time, followed by Dame Kelly Holmes MBE (mil) on May 23rd and Sir Matthew Pinsent on May 30th.
For more information about the Our Greatest Team Legends Collection and how you can start collecting the limited edition medallions, visit http://www.bp.com/medallions.
- Ends -
Notes to Editors
BP has partnered with the British Olympic Association and British Paralympic Association to launch the Our Greatest Team Legends Collection, a series of 12 collectable medallions that are available exclusively from BP forecourts in the run up to London 2012. The medallions will be available from May 9th with a new medallion revealed every Wednesday for 12 weeks. Also available from BP forecourts are limited edition medallion display folders which can be kept as a keepsake for years to come. No petrol purchase necessary.
The 12 Legends and their medallion launch dates:
Sir Steve Redgrave - 09-May-12
Sebastian Coe KBE - 16-May-12
Dame Kelly Holmes MBE (mil) - 23-May-12
Sir Matthew Pinsent - 30-May-12
Daley Thompson CBE- 06-Jun-12
Denise Lewis OBE- 13-Jun-12
James Cracknell OBE- 20-Jun-12
Sir Chris Hoy - 27-Jun-12
Rebecca Adlington OBE - 04-Jul-12
Ben Ainslie CBE - 11-Jul-12
Baroness Tanni Grey-Thompson DBE - 18-Jul-12
Lee Pearson CBE - 25-Jul-12
About BP and London 2012
BP is the official Oil and Gas Partner for London 2012 providing advanced fuels and lubricants for over 5,000 official vehicles during Olympic and Paralympic Games. For more information on BP and London 2012 go to http://www.bp.com/2012
About the BOA
The British Olympic Association (BOA) is the National Olympic Committee for Great Britain and Northern Ireland. Its mission is to transform British lives through the power of the Olympic values and the success of Team GB. The BOA’s role is to prepare the ‘Best of British’ athletes for, and lead them at, the summer, winter and youth Olympic Games. The BOA delivers extensive support services to Britain’s Olympic athletes and their National Governing Bodies to enhance Olympic success and is responsible for championing the Olympic values and brand in the UK. The BOA receives no funding from the lottery or government, has no political interests and is completely dependent upon fundraising income to achieve its mission. The BOA is the strong, independent voice for British Olympic Sport.
Team GB website: http://www.teamgb.com
Team GB Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/TeamGB
Team GB Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/TeamGB
About the BPA and ParalympicsGB
ParalympicsGB is the name for the Great Britain and Northern Ireland Paralympic Team that competes at the summer and winter Paralympic Games. The Team is selected and managed by the British Paralympic Association, in conjunction with the national governing bodies, and is made up of the best sportsmen and women who compete in the 20 summer and 4 winter sports on the Paralympic Programme.
We are proud of our tradition of outstanding performance at the Paralympic Games: ParalympicsGB has finished second in the medals table at the last three summer Paralympic Games and brought 102 medals home from Beijing, 42 of them gold.
With the next summer Games on home soil, the BPA is exploring every possible option that might have a positive impact on the performance of British athletes in London enabling them to achieve their personal best when it matters most. We recognise that the British team’s performance will have an impact on changing perceptions of disability sport and influencing attitudes towards disability.
ParalympicsGB website: http://www.paralympics.org.uk
ParalympicsGB twitter: @ParalympicsGB
ParalympicsGB facebook: http://www.facebook.com/ParalympicsGB
For further information on behalf of BP2012 please contact:
Lucy Watts, Claire Wood, Sonal Patel or Naomi Finn
Launch Group
020 7758 3900
lucyw@launchgroup.co.uk
clairew@launchgroup.co.uk
sonalp@launchgroup.co.uk
naomif@launchgroup.co.uk
For further information on behalf of TeamGB please contact:
BOA Director of Communications Darryl Seibel on 0207 842 5700
For further information on behalf of ParalympicsGB please contact:
BPA Communications Manager Tash Carpenter on 020 7842 5793 or Tash.Carpenter@paralympics.org.uk
Name: British Olympic Association Communications Team
Organization: British Olympic Association
Email:
Phone: 442078425700
URL: http://www.olympics.org.uk