Weymouth and Portland is an Olympic VIP (Very Important Place) (From Dorset Echo)

Weymouth and Portland is an Olympic VIP (Very Important Place)

12:00pm Monday 13th February 2012 in News By Laura Kitching

EUROPEAN royalty, the world’s leading business figures and a host of celebrities are set to descend on Weymouth and Portland for the Olympics.

Fifty as yet unnamed VIPs have confirmed their attendance for this summer’s Olympic Sailing events.

After the main events in London, sailing is expected to have the biggest draw for both crowds and royalty during the 2012 Games.

European VIPs who were attracted to the previous Olympic sailing events at the Beijing Games – and are therefore likely to make the shorter trip to Weymouth and Portland – include King of Spain Juan Carlos, King Constantine of Greece, Norwegian King Harald V as well as our own Princess Anne, president of the Royal Yachting Association.

Duncan Flint, public relations manager for the Weymouth and Portland 2012 Operations Team, told a residents’ meeting at Portland’s Royal Manor School that 50 ‘VIPs’, including Royal family members from around Europe, were expected.

He said: “We’ve got 50 VIPs including royalty coming – not just our own royal family but members of royal families from around Europe.

“We know that because they’ve already told us.

“We’re the largest Olympic and Paralympic venue outside London. We’ve got a full 20 days of competition – 14 Olympic days and six Paralympic.”

Chief Superintendent David Griffith, of the Dorset Police Olympic and Paralympic security team, said: “If you look at who went to Qingdao and Sydney and the distance from many northern European capitals to Weymouth – if you were the King of Spain or the patron of the sailing academy The Princess Royal – it would be a lot easier to come here than to China.

“We’re expecting that after London, Weymouth and Portland will be among the more popular destinations for visiting VIPs from around the world.”

John Tweed, chief executive officer for the Weymouth and Portland National Sailing Academy who attended the 2004 Athens and 2008 Beijing Games, said: “Typically there’s a sprinkling of royal faces but also I’ve heard it said that the chief executives of the top 500 companies in the world tend to go to the Olympics and quite a lot of them are interested in sailing.

“The importance of that is these people have very significant businesses so there will be a strong effort made to display the area as a good place to do business. I know the borough council is working with UK trade and industry to ensure the benefits of the area are properly represented.

“The sailing academy has bought tickets to all the medal races on the Nothe and on two particular days, we will be hosting an event for our sponsors.

He added: “At the Athens Games quite a lot of superyachts turned up.

“China was different, because it’s a long way from everywhere by sea but now the Games is being held in Europe we hope there will be some interested people.”