(ATR) Olympic organizers unveil a program of more than 40 test events in the build-up to the 2012 Games.
The year-long test event schedule, starting at the end of May, focuses mainly on the field of play, results, scoring and timing systems, as well as key operational procedures and functions.
It is made up of three different types of events: international invitational events, created and delivered by LOCOG; international federation events, delivered by LOCOG in partnership with the IFs and sports national governing bodies; and international events organized by sports' national governing bodies and other organisations with LOCOG testing operational aspects.
An invitational marathon on London's roads kicks off the test event program on May 30. The Wimbledon tennis championships in June is one of the biggest events on the schedule this year, along with the badminton world championships Aug. 8 to 14. This is the only senior world champs on the program, apart from a FISA world rowing junior championships also at the Eton Dorney venue in August.
But there are no test events planned for the iconic Olympic Park venues - aquatics, velodrome and 80,000-seat main stadium - until next year. Olympic Stadium operations are not tested until the British Universities & Colleges Sport Championships from May 4 to 7, 2012.
Olympic qualifiers in gymnastics at the North Greenwich Arena are slated for next January. In April 2012, men's Olympic football qualifiers are at the City of Coventry Stadium, while the Zaha Hadid-designed swimming venue gets its first work-out with FINA's synchronised swimming Olympic qualifier.
"Our approach to operational delivery is similar to that of an athlete," London 2012 chairman Sebastian Coe said.
"You do not want to face any conditions at competition time that you have not prepared for. When the world’s greatest Olympic and Paralympic athletes come to London in the summer of 2012, every aspect of our delivery needs to be the best it can be.
"The invaluable experience we gain through our testing program means we can "road-test" all our operational plans and make sure we have all the knowledge we need to deliver a truly memorable Games in 2012."
Denis Oswald, chairman of the IOC Coordination Commission for London, said: ‘Athletes know that the quality of their training will impact the quality of their performance as they strive to achieve their full potential.
"It is no different with the Games organisers and we can see that LOCOG is making sure that its pre-Games preparations will give it plenty of opportunity to refine its plans and produce a winning performance come July 2012."
Many events will be open to spectators with others restricted to technology and field of play testing. Some tickets will be sold by LOCOG and some sold by other event organisers.
This year's events ticketed by LOCOG including mountain biking at Hadleigh Farm in July, beach volleyball at Horse Guards Parade in August and basketball at the Olympic Park arena the same month.
Tickets go on sale in May via www.ticketmaster.co.uk
Among the 2012 events expected to be ticketed by LOCOG are: gymnastics (artistic, rhythmic & Trampoline) at the North Greenwich Arena in January; track cycling at the velodrome in February; diving at the aquatics center in February and athletics at the Olympic Stadium in May.
Written by Mark Bisson
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