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Business Insight Tuesday July 23 2013

Glasgow 2014 Reaching for the sky

Countdown begins Commonwealth Games launch is a year today

Tuesday July 23 2013 | the times

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Business Insight

Welcome

SANDY YOUNG

Everyone can be a winner A week may be a long time in politics but a year is not a long time if you are planning an event that will attract athletes, spectators and the eyes of the world.

As of today, it is exactly a year to the opening of the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow and in this special issue of Business Insight we examine the impressive work that has been completed so far by the Glasgow 2014 team plus we take a look at the stars of track and field who are expected to be returning home with medals.

The competitions will take place in 19 venues and we will view the changes at these that have either taken place or are planned.

We will also look back at the history of the Games plus their legacy: not only for Glasgow but for Scotland.

And crucially, we will announce how you can get your tickets for Glasgow 2014.

COVER IMAGE BY JAMES GLOSSOP FOR THE TIMES

Inside What goes around ....

Glasgow prepares to show its friendly face to a host of Commonwealth nations Page 4

Window of opportunity

The city has high hopes that major investment will lead to a long-term legacy Page 6

Location, location, location

An impressive array of venues will offer world-class settings for 2014 Page 8

Up for discussion

The Times Business Forum analyses the Games Page 12

On the fast track

The big names and medal prospects line up Page 14

Glasgow was on the global stage at the unveiling of the International Sector of the Queen’s Baton Relay. Otis Bezie from Glasgow carried the saltire

Sporting success will come from dedicated teamwork Delivering the most exciting and most memorable Commonwealth Games ever involves a lot of people pulling together, says David Grevemberg

T

oday marks One Year To Go until the start of the Glasgow 2014 Commonwealth Games and it promises to be a memorable day of celebration across Scotland and the Commonwealth.

Entering the final 12 months, it all becomes that much more real. The momentum is growing and the pace is quickening. The final countdown to the action has started.

This is a critical period to lock everything down and make sure that we are ready to greet the Commonwealth with open arms when the time comes to put on a show.

Glasgow 2014 is an international, multisport event and the biggest sporting celebration coming to the United Kingdom in 2014. Within the Organising Committee and alongside our Games Partners, the Scottish Government, Glasgow City Council and Commonwealth Games Scotland — and, of course, our growing family of sponsors — there is a shared sense of purpose.

Our joint focus is to deliver for Glasgow and Scotland an outstanding Games and, beyond that, to leave a powerful legacy well into the future.

In many respects, the legacy has begun.

Sport is already higher on the agenda for the city, with a number of new venues open for business and meeting a public demand. They are set up to host elite competition but, importantly, are also community-relevant.

Glasgow’s skyline has been transformed and so, perhaps, has its mind set. Here is a city with something to say for itself, proud

Team leader David Grevemberg is a recognised international sports manager with extensive knowledge and experience in Olympic, Paralympic and Commonwealth sport governance and management. He joined Glasgow 2014 as Director of Operations in October 2009, became Chief Operating Officer and was appointed Chief Executive in 2011. Prior to joining Glasgow 2014 Ltd. He was Executive Director of Sport and International Federation (IF) Relations at the International Paralympic Committee (IPC), headquartered in Bonn, Germany. He has served as a coach, team administrator, consultant and board member. He is a New Orleans, Louisiana, native and is married with two children.

of the way it looks and feels. My belief is that sport is a vehicle for change and regeneration. It is something that can reach out to all backgrounds and all ages. Everyone is invited to these Games.

After London 2012, this is the next opportunity to see a wealth of top athletes and the next generation of superstars in action in the UK. On August 19 this year one million tickets go on sale for the first time and our watchwords from the outset have been affordability and accessibility.

Today we launch our Ticketing Guide, giving plenty of time for people to consider their buying options before they apply.

We are striving for packed stadia and have set our prices at the right levels for families to attend, with two thirds of the tickets at £25 or less, while under-16s and over-60s will benefit from half-price concessions.

The ticketing process is simple and fair and will allow as many people as possible to experience the Games. At least 70 per cent of tickets will be available to the public for every session of sport.

Glasgow 2014 will have more events for female athletes than previous Commonwealth Games, including the debut of Women’s Boxing and a new Triathlon Mixed Relay event.

We are proud to be able to offer the largest Para-Sport programme in Commonwealth Games history with 22 medal events across five sports. For the first time Para-Sport Cycling will be included.

These events are all integrated into the main sports schedule and it was pleasing to hear the International Paralympic Committee, on a recent visit to Glasgow, back us to host the most successful Commonwealth Games ever for Para-Sport.

“The public’s desire to be involved in the Games was evident in the remarkable numbers who applied to be volunteers: an incredible 50,811 applications.

As a Commonwealth first, you could be 16 to volunteer and our decision to open

it up to this age group is a great example of us empowering and inspiring young people. Both our tartan and our official mascot, Clyde, were based on original designs from schoolchildren.

The Queen’s Baton Relay has become a powerful tradition and will travel to every nation and territory within the Commonwealth, including a first trip to Rwanda, before completing its journey around Scotland.

Glasgow 2014, the Commonwealth Games Federation and UNICEF have joined forces in a unique partnership with the ambition to have a positive impact on the lives of children both within Scotland and throughout the Commonwealth.

We are on target to deliver the most successful commercial programme of any Commonwealth Games. Glasgow 2014’s Sponsor Family already consists of leading global and UK brands as well as significant Scottish-based organisations.

We are also well-advanced with broadcast rights deals, with the Glasgow 2014 Games set to be seen by more than one billion TV viewers across the Commonwealth.

There are still a number of businesses across the UK to be involved in the supply chain with some large value contracts up for grabs as part of our £350 million procurement programme creating real opportunities to share in and benefit from the Games.

The Glasgow 2014 Cultural Programme will be a nationwide celebration and massive part of the Games experience for spectators and visitors.

As we realise our big vision for the Games, we are building on an already extremely strong base of support and engagement across Scotland, with awareness and excitement also growing across the UK and beyond.

In precisely one year’s time, the party starts: the biggest sporting and cultural event ever held in Scotland. Consider this your early invitation to be there with us.

David Grevemberg is Chief Executive of Glasgow 2014

the times | Tuesday July 23 2013

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Business Insight

The countdown begins Every helper and every second counts as Glasgow gears up to welcome the world to the XX Games, writes Ginny Clark

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here may be 365 days until the opening ceremony at Celtic Park, but Glasgow is already immersed in preparations for the XX Commonwealth Games. This is a city renowned for throwing a good party.

Around 2.2 million people already visit Glasgow from the rest of the UK and beyond each year, but next summer will be different — ­­ around 4500 athletes and 2000 team officials will arrive in Glasgow in early July, followed by thousands of excited spectators.

So as the countdown ticks into the final 12 months, organisation moves into the last stages as the city gets set and ready to go for 11 memorable days.

Work is already more than 80 per cent complete on the 700 homes at the Athletes’ Village site in Dalmarnock, with 260,000 items of furniture, fittings and equipment also ticked off the shopping list.

In terms of general accommodation, Glasgow has 9090 hotel bedrooms within 10 miles of the city centre, and 11,044 if you widen that to 20 miles, with another big hotel also on track to be ready for the Games.

“The city’s burgeoning hospitality sector is stepping up a gear as we prepare for the influx of visitors that will come to Glasgow for what will be our showcase year,” said Scott Taylor, chief executive of Glasgow City Marketing Bureau. “Glasgow is very much open for business and our thriving hospitality sector is prepared to meet such demands, with the number and quality of hotels in the city at an alltime high. There are five hotels in the pipeline for the city, which totals approximately 700 extra hotel rooms. Breaking ground at the moment is the Premier Inn at Pacific Quay, which is anticipated being open for the Games.”

Of course, that influx of visitors adds to the considerable task surrounding security. Police Scotland say that safety and security, planned together with the organising committee and other Games Partners, including the Scottish Government and Glasgow City Council, is well advanced. Security will be provided by a mix of police officers — including the involvement of the special constabulary and, potentially, cadets — private security and the military, with numbers and roles to be refined as plans develop. The procurement process for private contract security services to deliver stewarding and other roles is also ongoing.

“Police Scotland is working with the Games Partners to provide a safe and secure event that will be remembered for years to come,” said Deputy Chief

Constable Steve Allen. He has responsibility for the Commonwealth Games and other major events. “Policing in Scotland has a track record of keeping people safe at large-scale public events and, while this is the single biggest sporting event the country will have witnessed, our planning is progressing well.”

Police Scotland are also committed to the Games theme of volunteering and have targeted the significant figure of 2014 as they recruit special constables, while working to establish pilot cadet initiatives involving young people in Glasgow, Edinburgh and Dundee.

Of course, whether welcoming the crowds or driving athletes to events, it will be the army of Games volunteers who will be crucial to making 2014 a success. Around 300 ‘frontrunners’ are already involved in interviewing the rest of the volunteers and Valerie Mitchell, Glasgow 2014 head of Games workforce, says they are on target to deliver “15,000 smiling faces”.

“There were a record-breaking 50,811 applications for volunteer posts,” she says. “This showed the enthusiasm and passion for the Games, and not just in Scotland, with 35 per cent applying from the rest of the UK and abroad.

We’re going to interview around 25,000 in a phased approach.

We’ve already sent out about 15,000 invitations and have interviewed almost 7,000. Making the commitment to actually turn up to interview is different from filling in a form, so we were expecting a high attrition rate, but nine out of 10 are turning up, which is fantastic.”

The organisers will be making offers from October, subject to January security checks, and the orientation training will begin from March at the Emirates Arena, with role and venue-specific training rolling into July.

“It’s the biggest peacetime recruitment drive in Scotland,” adds Mitchell. “I spent a lot of time going up and down from London, working closely with the person

who had the same role as I do at 2012. I learned a lot from that experience, particularly about having a robust communications strategy. We really do have a solid programme here.”

Just one element remains to be detailed — who has organised the weather?

‘Nothing will stop me from being there’

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he Commonwealth Games is a very special event for me and I am proud to be among the Ambassadors for Glasgow 2014, writes Sir Chris Hoy. Making sure that people from all walks of life feel inspired to be a part of the Games is a big focus for me now that I have retired from cycling. Getting young people involved in sport is something I’ll always be committed to.

I have fantastic memories of competing for Scotland in the Games on three separate occasions, especially winning my first major Championship gold medal at the Manchester 2002 Commonwealth Games.

I may no longer be competing but nothing will stop me from being there next summer. Since Glasgow won the right to host the Games, I have looked forward to this moment for many years.

This is one of the world’s greatest sporting

competitions on home soil. The Commonwealth’s best athletes, on the back of remarkable achievements at the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games, will battle for medal glory across 17 sports and 11 days of competition.

The Commonwealth Games has a permanent place in my heart which is why Glasgow 2014 means so much.

Winning gold for Scotland at Manchester 2002 and Melbourne 2006 were incredibly emotional moments for me.

With passionate home crowds, I predict the athletes competing for Team Scotland at Glasgow 2014 are in for a life-changing experience.

The support they will receive is certain to make a positive difference and with around a million tickets up for grabs everyone can join the party.

Tuesday July 23 2013 | the times

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Business Insight

Glasgow 2014

‘My message is to join in and be part of this’ In a year from now 700 quality, affordable we will celebrate the homes, including 400 for opening ceremony social rent. In addition, of the Glasgow 2014 the village will be home to Commonwealth a large care home for the Games. It will be elderly, which in itself will the biggest sporting support a workforce of event in Scotland’s around 200. history — and Hosting the ComGlasgow 2014 monwealth Games gives promises to be a

By Alex Salmond our young people an fantastic spectacle. unrivalled opportunity to Excitement and enthusiasm is gain valuable work experience. building as we look forward to We’re focused on making a a hugely successful Games that positive impact on the futures of I’m confident will be delivered on young Scots through the wealth time and on budget. of volunteering and training opportunities available in the run The Games are a once in a up to the Games. This is why, last generation opportunity to make year, I announced a multi-million lasting improvements and bring pound investment in youth wide-ranging benefits to our employment delivered through nation, our economy and comScotland’s Best and Employer munities all over the country.

Recruitment Incentives.

We are proud to fund almost The Games are also a fantastic two thirds of their full cost because we know they will inspire opportunity to get young people generations of new sporting talent into sport. By opening up Comand see more Scots motivated to munity Sports Hubs in schools lead healthier, fitter lives. and local venues right across the country, more local communities The Scottish Government has will have access to the sporting helped deliver the new Sir Chris facilities they need.

Hoy Velodrome, an upgraded I am absolutely delighted with Tollcross International Swimming the number of people who have Centre, a new National Hockey signed up to volunteer at the Centre, the Athletes’ Village and Games. It is testament to the a host of other infrastructure spirit of the Games and the spirit projects representing investment of Scotland that they are being so of more than £1 billion. generous with their time to make Since 2007 this Government sure we are able to show off the has been investing record very best of Scottish hospitality amounts of funding to provide the people of Scotland with facili- to our visitors from all around the world. ties across the country, including We also want to make sure up to £25 million to deliver a that, for those who need it, the National Performance Centre for BIG Lottery Fund’s £500,000 Sport by 2016.

Legacy 2014 Volunteer Support More than £73 million has Programme is available to those been spent on sports facilities, who want to volunteer but may which includes over £36 million face practical or financial barriers. for competition and training With a record number of facilities and last year alone applications, I’m very proud so almost £8.5 million was invested many Scots want to get involved. in supporting grass roots and The Games will touch every development of youth football part of Scotland when from June and improving football facilities.

2014 the Queen’s Baton Relay We want to ensure that we visits towns and cities across the have world-class facilities in country. place not just for use during the It will have already toured the excitement of the Games but as 70 other nations and territories a lasting legacy for our citizens, of the Commonwealth, inviting young and old, to gain longer them to Glasgow. term benefits from them.

We are continuing, alongside The Games have been key in our Games Partners, to ensure attracting 32 national and interthat Scotland is ready to host national events, worth over £10 a Commonwealth Games the million to the Scottish economy, whole nation can be proud of. as well as providing state of the These are not just Glasgow’s art facilities for the public.

Games, they are Scotland’s The Athletes’ Village is Games. They will contribute to being completed to a very high standard, having recently been a memorable sporting year for awarded the Best Green Initiative Scotland, which also sees Glenat the prestigious Homes for eagles host the Ryder Cup. Scotland Awards.

My simple message to the people of Scotland is to join in It will provide a safe and secure and be part of it! base for 6,500 competitors and Alex Salmond is First Minister officials during the Games and afterwards it will offer more than of Scotland

What goes around If we really want to get the most from playing host, we’ll have to live up to our reputation as a friendly, welcoming nation — and that means simply being ourselves, says Magnus Linklater

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s Eric Liddell, the great Scots athlete, won gold in the 400 metres at the 1924 Olympics, stunning those who watched him with his finishing speed and his extraordinary running style, the stadium erupted in a very Scottish manner: “The drums and pipes of the Cameron Highlanders, who were on the ground, skirled out Liddell’s triumph, and all the athletic world seemed to go mad,” wrote an excited observer.

Liddell took the adulation with typical modesty. The notion of wrapping himself in his nation’s flag and parading round the ground would have horrified him.

Instead, having accepted his medal, he hurried from the stadium to prepare an address he was to deliver the following Sunday at a religious service that would mark the end of the Games.

God took precedence over celebration.

No such reticence can be expected in Glasgow next July when the 2014 Commonwealth Games begin. The experience of the London Olympics, where the wall of sound that hailed each British victory seemed to envelop the entire city, and delirious athletes, draped in their national colours, drank in the applause on victory circuits that seemed to last forever, has set a benchmark Glasgow will want to emulate.

This time, however — and it is impossible to avoid it — there will be an extra dimension to what is otherwise a purely sporting event.

The 2014 calendar, already studded with anniversaries and sporting encounters, from the Ryder Cup to Bannockburn, looks set to be a landmark year for Scotland. It will climax, in September, with a historic referendum vote on the nation’s future; inevitably, therefore, as Scottish athletes parade round the stadium, greeted by the saltire-waving crowds, and celebrating what one hopes will be Scottish victories, politics

and sport will be hard to separate.

Whether that exuberance leads to a boost in support for independence is quite another matter. Not very much is the probable answer. The Olympics in London were marked by an outpouring of national joy, but resulted in no discernible improvement in the popularity of David Cameron’s coalition government, which remained stubbornly behind Labour in most opinion polls.

Scots who will be voting next September may exult in Scottish achievements on the track or in the pool, but they are still more likely to be swayed by harsh economic realities than by national pride when it comes to marking their choice on the ballot paper.

There will, nevertheless, be a distinct political edge to the event. David Grevemberg, chief executive of the Games, acknowledges it cautiously, but puts a different slant on it: “The people of Scotland will determine their future,” he says. “The Games, on the other hand, will be run by the Commonwealth Games Federation, and they have clear principles, which are non-political.”

It is worth adding that, if the frisson of nationalism does run through the Games, then it is unlikely to do much to dampen the atmosphere — if anything, it could have the opposite effect.

Compared to the fraught conditions that have surrounded some previous Commonwealth encounters, Glasgow is

the times | Tuesday July 23 2013

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Business Insight ALEX BROADWAY

The action next year will be fast and furious at the Sir Chris Hoy Velodrome

comes around looking and sounding in good shape to project a positive image — well-prepared, with a state-of-the-art Velodrome, a capacity stadium with 60,000 people at Celtic Park, plans for a closing ceremony with 44,000 at Hampden, and a worldwide audience of a billion.

We are light years away from the near-farcical arrangements that hung round the last Commonwealth games to be held in Scotland. Boycotted by a majority of countries, largely from Africa and the Caribbean, because of the West’s sporting links with the apartheid regime, the games held in Edinburgh in 1986 resembled a whites-only event, and resulted in the lowest number of athletes since 1950.

As a result it faced a financial black hole, and, despite a laughable guarantee from the publisher Robert Maxwell that he would “save” the Games, it ended up with a mammoth debt which was not to be paid off until 1989; there are Edinburgh councillors who still bear the scars.

No sense of that financial crisis has yet stained the profile of the Glasgow Games. There have been ripples of concern over sponsorship, and the inevitably escalating costs, but unlike 1986, when Mrs Thatcher, because of the boycott, resolutely refused to bail out the Games, this time, both Glasgow Council and the Scottish Government are pledged to underwrite most of the estimated £524 million budget.

Glasgow is famous for its spirit and hospitality – qualities likely to be on display

The inevitable question arises: is this money well spent? Do these vastly expensive, high-profile sporting events boost the host country’s image at home and abroad, or are they seen, as in Brazil where demonstrations against the forthcoming World Cup have flooded the streets, as unnecessary and over-inflated status symbols, a very expensive way of buying a few gold medals?

A lot of research has been done on this, and the experience of the most recent Olympics suggests that their contribution cannot just be measured in ticket sales or legacy projects.

The sense of wellbeing they impart, the involvement of youth in sport, the training and the investment in local economies are crucial as well. They raise the profile of a country, place it on a global platform and radiate an image of selfconfidence and self-worth.

Mike Cantlay, the Chairman of VisitScotland, the national tourist agency, sees the value in marketing terms. He talks of using the event to draw in visitors, not just to Glasgow but the rest of Scotland, “with millions being targeted through television, online and traditional marketing”.

He also points out that there will be a global campaign, as the “Queen’s Baton” criss-crosses the Commonwealth nations in the style of the Olympic torch.

“With this in mind, over the coming months we’re inviting media from some

of the most read and watched outlets in the world to come and experience Glasgow and Scotland for themselves, spreading the message across the globe,” he says.

Scottish Enterprise tends to see the benefit in business terms. Lord Smith of Kelvin, who chairs the Organising Committee, says that this year’s Commonwealth theme is one of ‘Opportunities through Enterprise.’

“The Commonwealth represents a huge and growing corporate, cultural and consumer opportunity for us all,” he says.

“The scope to collaborate and exchange skills and knowledge is huge. Individuals, organisations and governments all have a role to play in maximising the economic and social potential of our Commonwealth family.”

That family is often underestimated.

As Peter Kellner, the Chairman of the Royal Commonwealth Society, points out: “Thirty per cent of the world’s population live in the Commonwealth and of this 2.1 billion, more than half are under the age of 30. During Glasgow 2014 this global and increasingly connected audience will come together to watch the Commonwealth Games.”

Mr Grevemberg adds that at the London Olympics, Commonwealth athletes won 179 medals, or around a quarter of the total.

As Scotland’s First Minister Alex Salmond points out, hosting the Games is a way of offering young people the opportunity to gain valuable work experience.

“Offering up to 2,500 young people training and employment opportunities, these programmes will give young people up and down the country the chance to gain valuable skills, experience and qualifications while supporting employers in developing new talent,” he says.

All of this, of course, depends on how well the Games are run, how security is handled, whether the ticketing arrangements can be managed in such a way Glasgow avoids the images of unfilled seats that were an occasional feature of the London Olympics, and above all whether it can succeed in conveying a sense that the city and its citizens are behind it.

Everyone who attended the Olympics commented on the friendliness of the volunteers and the welcome that visitors received in London’s East End. Glasgow, too, is famous for its spirit, its hospitality, its self-esteem, its friendliness. Those qualities are likely to be on display next year and, if they are, then all of Scotland will benefit.

As the author William McIlvanney once wrote: “Scotland is one of the most intense talking shops I have ever been in.

Here the Ancient Mariner haunts many pubs, and Socrates sometimes wears a bunnet, and women at bus stops say serious things about the world.”

If garrulous Glasgow can convey something of that openness and involvement next July, Scotland will be remembered, not just for the Games themselves but for the way the nation and its people reached out to the world — and, just possibly, for the way the world liked what it saw.

Perhaps, the best motto should be left to the great Eric Liddell, he who put his faith before everything else — running included.

Invited to speak in St Giles Cathedral, after being carried shoulder-high by the crowd up Edinburgh’s Royal Mile for a service to commemorate his Olympic achievements, he restricted himself to this comment: “Over the gate of Pennsylvania University are inscribed these words: ‘In the dust of defeat as well as in the laurels of victory there is a glory to be found, if one has done one’s best.’”

Games offer a sporting chance for our nation’s culture The Glasgow 2014 Cultural Programme will be a nationwide celebration — a massive part of the Games experience for spectators, residents and visitors. By Eileen There will be inti- Gallagher mate shows in small venues and outdoor spectaculars; work in theatres, community centres, on bicycles, by rivers, in botanic gardens, art galleries, cinemas, public spaces and much more. Everyone will have the chance to be part of the Games. The programme — a partnership between the Glasgow 2014 Organising Committee, Glasgow Life and Creative Scotland — has two strands. Culture 2014 kicks off this year and is the Scotland-wide cultural countdown to the Games, extending beyond the Closing Ceremony. Many events will happen from mid-June to tie in with the Queen’s Baton Relay — the global precursor to the Games — as Scotland’s towns and communities celebrate as the baton passes through.

Festival 2014 is the Games-time celebration in Glasgow running alongside the sporting action and transforming the city from July 19 to August 3 with an invigorating mix of entertainment, culture and fun filling the streets, spaces and stages of Glasgow. Highlights include the Big Big Sing, which will give people across Scotland the opportunity to take part in the Cultural Programme.

Aerial performers will take to stages high above Glasgow streets in Perch.

There will be a satirical comedy, News Just In, set in a fictional press office and the family-friendly Blueblock Studio will create play and storytelling spaces for children.

Actor and theatre maker Tam Dean Burn is going the extra mile as he cycles across the nation in an attempt to read all 167 books by Gruffalo creator Julia Donaldson to children and young people. There will be one of the most ambitious celebrations of contemporary art ever held by a single country, GENERATION, a wide-ranging programme from Get Scotland Dancing and performances by the UK’s most exciting composers as part of the New Music Biennial.

These are just a few of the highlights. There will be lots more news about the programme and some significant additional projects still to be announced: you can visit www.glasgow2014.com/culture Eileen Gallagher is an Independent Director on the Glasgow 2014 Board

Tuesday July 23 2013 | the times

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Business Insight

Glasgow 2014

Games open a window of Investment in infrastructure and long-term planning for a true legacy demonstrate Glasgow really does mean business, writes Kenny Kemp

L

egacy is a highly charged word when it is applied to the East End of Glasgow. Over several generations it has had negative connotations related to the postindustrial decline of the Second City of Empire.

But, with Glasgow 2014 now a year away, the Commonwealth Games have become the catalyst for a collaborative approach across Scotland’s biggest city to ensure that, this time, the legacy will be positive, aspirational and sustainable, helping to defeat some of the city’s deep-rooted social issues.

A total of £700 million is being spent on both staging the Games and on the major infrastructure projects and venues that were already planned but will benefit the Games. When other construction projects and benefits are added this total is pushing towards £1.2 billion, according to Glasgow Chamber of Commerce. This is a massive injection of money from the public purse and private sector — but the policy makers argue this level of investment was essential to make a baseline shift in improving Glasgow’s health, reducing inequality, delivering real jobs and creating more green space.

Councillor Archie Graham, executive member for the Commonwealth Games at Glasgow City Council, is certainly upbeat in what he sees as this transformation of Glasgow.

“We are delivering on all of our legacy projects. We’ve delivered all of our venues and we’ve delivered thousands of jobs and apprenticeship places. We are now going to continue our work to ensure the legacy left by the Games will leave Glasgow a better place in which to live and work, both now and in the decades to come,” he said.

The Glasgow 2014 Legacy Framework is working to make the city more prosperous, active and an inclusive place. It is about Glasgow exploiting the Games to raise its international profile and show the city as a greener, more environmentally sustainable place. A recent report highlighted that all of the venues and infrastructure due to be used during the Games are now complete, including the Emirates Arena and Sir Chris Hoy Velodrome at Dalmarnock, the refurbished Tollcross International Swimming Centre, the Cathkin Braes Mountain Bike Trails, the Kelvingrove Lawn Bowls Centre and the Clyde Gateway route. The council recently unveiled the £5.5 million Glasgow National Hockey Centre — the last dedicated sports venue to be built — which is about to open.

The communities of Bridgeton, Dalmarnock, Shawfield and Rutherglen are among the most disadvantaged in the UK and Clyde Gateway, established in 2008, is an urban regeneration company covering more than 2,000 acres of the East End of Glasgow and South Lanarkshire. This partnership, based in Bridge-

ton, created by Glasgow City Council, South Lanarkshire Council and Scottish Enterprise, with funding from the Scottish Government, has a 25-year business vision using £200 million of public investment and working next door to the National Indoor Sports Arena and the East End Regeneration Route to stimulate land values and encourage private sector investment of up to £1 billion “We want many more people to come and live here,” said Ian Manson, the chief executive of Clyde Gateway. “We are minutes away from the city centre on public transport and there is sufficient land available once the remediation work has all been done. Our ambition is to bring to productive use the whole area along the banks of the Clyde. Our aspirations are very high but this is a long haul.

You can’t undo 80 years of neglect in five years. Let’s say, more like 20 years.”

Neil MacDonald, the Lanarkshire businessman and chairman of Clyde Gateway, who took over from Robert Crawford, the former Scottish Enterprise head, said: “All of this regeneration and renewal has taken place against a background of what has seemed to be never-ending bad news about the economy. It is therefore a positive and encouraging signs that Clyde Gateway was been able to attract £24 million of private sector funding, as well as substantial sums from Europe and elsewhere.”

Ian Manson is clear about what attracts people, saying that without the Games, the regeneration would have taken far longer. “World-class facilities such as the Emirates Arena are critical in helping to bring business and inward investors into the area. The sporting events also get people coming into Clyde Gateway and seeing with their own eyes the changes and viewing it as a place to live.”

For example, Dalmarnock Station, eight minutes from Central Station, will be a main transport hub for 2014 with tens of thousands arriving every day to the East End sporting venues. The new £11 million station is nearing completion, paid for by a financial package put together by Clyde Gateway, Glasgow City Council and Strathclyde Partnership for Transport, the European Regional Development Fund and Network Rail.

“It will be the hub of this new district:

a riverside community that will be a great place to live. This would not have happened without the Games. People remember GEAR [a previous urban renewal project] when they got redbrick flowerbeds instead of jobs. We wanted to make sure it was different and sustainable this time,“ said Ian Manson.

A fighting chance for local heritage The Olympia Theatre, pictured right, was the centre of local entertainment at Bridgeton Cross. A Glasgow landmark, opened in 1911, it was a handsome music hall that later became a cinema. Like so many variety theatres, it ended up as a bingo hall then a furniture warehouse, before falling into dereliction and disrepair.

“It was a symbol of all that had gone wrong,” said Ian Manson, the chief executive of Clyde Gateway.

“Dramatic action had to be taken.

It was shocking and in the eyes of local people it became an important test of whether we could make a difference.”

Clyde Gateway bought the building in 2009. In May 2011 a £10 million investment began to create a new

public library, a café and a centre for the Scottish Amateur boxing federation. Last February, a refurbished five-tonne dome was lifted back in place, giving locals a real sense that their community was being reborn.

More than half the costs have been secured from the Heritage Lottery Fund, Sportscotland, Historic Scotland, Better Glasgow Fund and the Trades’ House Commonweal Fund. Since re-opening, the number of local library users has more than doubled.

“It’s now a symbol of renewal.

It’s fantastic and we urge people to come and see it. The legacy includes an elite training centre for Scotland’s amateur boxers — this is a direct benefit of the Games,” said Mr Manson.

BFI

At Bridgeton, the Eastgate office development is Glasgow’s largest new-build office, costing £9.7 million and with space for 500 people, while at Clyde Gateway East there is a site rumoured to be the new Police Service of Scotland HQ with desk space for 900 staff. A proposed office, earmarked as Dalmarnock Research & Development, could be built for up to 600 staff, but this will require £16 million.

At the Athletes’ Village almost 600 of the 700 homes are now complete. The Village has been built by the City Legacy Consortium.

Once the Games are over, kitchens will be fitted so that a range of affordable properties — including one-bedroom apartments and four-bedroom detached houses — will be available.

Martin Kiely, the managing director of City Legacy, said: “The Athletes’ Village is the largest regeneration project of its type in the UK and it is transforming the East End. The area now features 700 homes, 300 of which will be available for sale. After the Games, the development will become a community for families, giving a completely fresh start to this area. Even Glaswegians are surprised by its location on the Clyde, with many of our properties on the waterfront.”

Echoing Ian Manson, he said that the development’s proximity to Glasgow city centre, just three stops away on the train,

the times | Tuesday July 23 2013

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Business Insight

opportunity for all YADID LEVY/GETTY IMAGES

will attract people to move into the area.

“This development is environmentally friendly, from the building materials to the local power system, recognised by a Best Green Initiative Award and an EcoHomes Excellent rating, which means a 60 per cent reduction in carbon emissions. Properties will benefit from a district energy plant which will slash heating and energy bills. We’re on schedule and expect home owners to start moving in from December 2014.”

Glasgow is being transformed all over.

Even blighted communities, such as Sighthill in the north of the city, and the largest of the eight Transformational Regeneration Areas (TRAs) is seeing work that might have been another 20 years away. It was being fast-tracked as part of Glasgow’s unsuccessful bid for the 2018 Youth Games, with 800 new homes in mixed development, a school campus and

We are now going to ensure the legacy of the Games will leave Glasgow a better place

a bridge over the M8 to make it easier to link up with the city centre.

Elsewhere, Games-related work is creating a more accessible city. Projects include Subway upgrade works at Ibrox, Partickhill and Kelvinhall stations; cycle routes across Glasgow; and public realm and refurbishment projects at sites such as Custom House Quay, Bells Bridge, Kelvin Walkway, The Barras and Calton.

The Legacy will be measured across a number of outcomes, including involvement in volunteering and the creation of green public space, but creating work for Glasgow’s existing businesses remains an imperative. Scottish firms have already won £300 million worth of contracts connected to the Games, according to a report by Glasgow City Council’s Executive Committee, with more than 60 per cent going to businesses based in the city.

Almost 21,500 registrations have been made on the Glasgow Business Portal — more than 4,600 from Glasgow. This is vital as organisations not registered or business-ready cannot bid for Gamesrelated contracts. The council, along with Glasgow 2014, Scottish Enterprise and CEiS, the Scottish Government’s social support agency, has developed a Business Engagement programme to ensure firms based in Glasgow and Scotland continue to have access to contracts. Martin Little, the Glasgow chairman of the Federation

An elevated view of Glasgow, undergoing major developments and with significant potential

of Small Businesses has welcomed this help but strikes a note of caution. “The Games are a tremendous opportunity for Glasgow’s independent businesses but every effort needs to be made to ensure a variety of firms in all parts of the city reap the benefits. During the London Olympics, retailers and hospitality businesses that weren’t adjacent to the venues reported subdued sales. During the Commonwealth Games, visitors should be encouraged to explore different parts of the city and to use the city’s brilliant independent shops, restaurants, bars and accommodation.

“Ahead of the Games, business owners and managers must think about how the event might impact on their operations and consider if there are opportunities for their enterprise. Glaswegian entrepreneurs are excited about the possibility of really improving their city. However, unlike the athletes and the visitors, we won’t be packing up and going elsewhere when the event is finished. We hope 2014 marks the start, not the end, of an economic resurgence for the city.”

Richard Muir, the deputy chief executive of Glasgow Chamber of Commerce, said: “This is the biggest global event ever to take place in Glasgow. Our role is threefold: to ensure business growth and engagement with the Games; help build excitement with members who can win contracts and understand the branding opportunities; and look at how we reap the long-term legacy for Glasgow.”

Mr Muir said there is immense civic pride for the City, which reflects on business. He added: “It is great when chamber members benefit from the Games.

Construction companies such as Robert McAlpine and Barr Construction are great examples, while Trespass has won the contract for the Games uniforms, and a product design company such as 4c Design benefits from making the Queen’s Relay Baton, which will tour 71 competing territories and countries.”

Mr Muir said Glasgow’s businesses have benefited from more than £182 million of contracts — and there is still much more to come. Glasgow 2014 Legacy Framework has set the bar high. Like all the best sporting stars, it will require hard work and application to ensure sustained success for Glasgow.

Signs of a job well done Real and lasting jobs remain one of the greatest legacies of the Games. A peak workforce of 2,000 has been employed to deliver Games-related projects.

Glasgow City Council insisted thousands of young people benefit from working on these major projects. Contractors signed commitments to place 330 New Entrant Trainees — in fact 447 were in place, 128 of which were apprentices.

Community benefit clauses were added to contracts for regeneration initiatives, resulting in long-term unemployed and school leavers winning places on high-profile construction projects. More than 250 work experience placements for

school leavers and the long-term unemployed were secured. The Commonwealth Apprenticeship Initiative has found places for 2,584 school leavers between April 2009 and the end of 2012.

The £25m Glasgow Guarantee aims to ensure every Glaswegian aged 16-24 has access to a job, training or apprenticeship. 250 graduates have gained employment through the council’s Commonwealth Graduate Fund, with 92 per cent retention. More than 450 previously unemployed people have secured jobs through the Commonwealth Jobs Fund. CityLegacy, the consortium building the Athletes’ Village, have created 620 jobs, including 60 apprenticeships.

‘We are well on our way to delivering on these pledges’ Glasgow is getting ready to stage the biggest event ever to be held in Scotland.

With a year to go until the start of the Glasgow 2014 CommonBy Gordon wealth Games, our sports venues Matheson are already complete and in use and we’ve delivered jobs, training and contracts for businesses.

We are now looking forward to welcoming many of the world’s greatest athletes to the city, as well as the huge number of visitors who will come to see the Games.

The work by the council and our partners has gone exceptionally well so far and I am confident we will host the best Games ever held. Our preparations have already left a legacy for Glasgow and I am sure we will look back on an unforgettable event that transformed not just Glasgow but how the city is seen by the world.

Firms and organisations across the country have won £300 million worth of Games-related contracts, with 60 per cent of these going to companies in Glasgow. There’s more to come. For example, more than 2500 Glasgow school leavers have a bright future thanks to our unique Commonwealth Apprenticeship Initiative.

This scheme is part of the council’s groundbreaking Glasgow Guarantee, which is aimed at providing a job, apprenticeship or training place for everyone in the city aged between 16 and 24. The scheme includes the Commonwealth Apprenticeship Initiative, the Commonwealth Jobs Fund, the Commonwealth Graduate Fund and the Commonwealth Youth Fund all part of our 2014 legacy ambitions.

Previously a pot of £25 million had been set aside for the Glasgow Guarantee. However, I recently announced that the council would double this to £50 million to allow the scheme to continue to operate until 2018, displaying the city’s unparalleled commitment to the future of our young people.

Now the council’s focus is shifting towards keeping the city running as close to normal as possible next year. We understand that residents and businesses will need information about how they can go about their daily activity and how businesses can maximise the potential that 2014 will bring them, and we are developing plans to keep people informed.

Our vision for the Games is that Glasgow will be left a more prosperous, active, inclusive, accessible, greener place — with a greater international profile and outlook.

We are well on our way to delivering on all of these pledges and I am confident that they will leave Glasgow a better place in which to live and work, both now and in the decades to come.

Councillor Gordon Matheson is Leader of Glasgow City Council

Tuesday July 23 2013 | the times

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Business Insight

Glasgow 2014

Aim is to offer a new level of excellence for everyone The preparations for the Games have seen the creation of incredible new facilities, as well as the transformation of the old. By Rick Wilson

G

lasgow is not short of extensive sporting facilities and infrastructure, however its staging of the 2014 Commonwealth Games looks set to be quite a different ball game. A few of the 19 venues are close to being Gamesready as they stand, but others need substantial changes — keeping a team of 30 people working energetically towards the deadline a year from now.

This exercise is known as “overlay”, and head of venue and village development Ian McKenzie, explains: “It means adding all the temporary requirements to a venue such as the new National Hockey Centre, which is designed to house only 500 spectators but will cater for 5,000 at the Games — so you can imagine what that demands in the extra seating, toilet facilities, lighting and signage.

“And we have to balance the need for date-meeting speed with being as economic as possible.”

Even Ibrox and Hampden require considerable changes in seating, lighting and broadcast facilities, with the latter currently being prepared for installation of a temporary athletics track. So is he confident that his team is on track?

“Yes, we’ll be fine,” says the architect who has worked with Glasgow 2014 since February 2010. “It’s a lot of hard, challenging work. It’s not easy but we don’t go into it with our eyes closed. Time is always the enemy. We have to be ready for the opening next July. We can’t change that, so you can be sure we’ll meet that.”

So where are the venues and which is being used for what?

Glasgow 2014 Commonwealth Games Athlete’s Village Designed in consultation with athletes themselves, this purpose-built, low-carbon village promises to be “home from home” to 6,500 participants and Commonwealth Games Associations’ team of-

ficials for the duration of the Games.

The complex in Glasgow’s East End — comprising 700 homes and a 120-bed care home (to be), as well as retail and recreation centres, dining hall and medical facilities — is already three-quarters complete and scheduled for handover to the Glasgow 2014 Organising Committee in January for its fit-out, with help from 260,000 items of furniture and fittings from the London 2012 village.

The 35-hectare site, featuring a new state of the art district heating system, has been developed by the city council and City Legacy, a private sector consortium, with a view to bringing further social and economic regeneration to the area.

Barry Buddon Shooting Centre Carnoustie is famous for two types of shooting – the kind that bounces off the clubs of top players on its famous golf course, and the kind that triggers excitement at nearby Barry Buddon Shooting Centre. The little east coast town is not famous for being part of Glasgow, however, so the centre is classified as a satellite venue. It is nonetheless well qualified to host the Games’ shooting events.

Sitting in undulating sand dunes, where the River Tay meets the North Sea, Barry Buddon has an established Full Bore firing range that was used for the Edinburgh 1986 Commonwealth Games.

With the addition of internationalstandard temporary Clay Target, Pistol and Small Bore rifle ranges, and potentially use of elements of London 2012 ranges’ infrastructure, spectators will be able to experience all competition formats on one site.

Cathkin Braes Mountain Bike Trails Located on the city’s south side, 15 minutes from the Athletes’ Village, this venue has bags of local character, its key features having been colourfully named by local young people after a schools’ competition as Brig O’Doom, Broken Biscuits and Clyde Climb.

These names will remain when it becomes a permanent facility for local com-

munities and international competition.

Main construction is complete and contractors are refining the trails in consultation with riders and designers.

Owned jointly by Glasgow City Council and South Lanarkshire Council, the venue makes the most of the varied terrain of Cathkin Braes Country Park to provide a challenging, international standard for the elite Mountain Bike stars.

Celtic Park This is where athletes from all over the Commonwealth will gather from day one of the Games, July 23, 2014, to take part in the opening ceremony. The Celtic Park celebration will mark the beginning of their 11-day quest for victory and glory.

Some will have travelled across the world, but they won’t have so far to go on that day, as the stadium, also known to football fans as Parkhead and Paradise, is located next to the Athletes’ Village.

Owned by Celtic Football Club, it has a long history, having been built in 1892. It was redeveloped and upgraded in 1999 and is now one of Britain’s finest football venues. With a capacity of 60,000 and a seating arrangement that brings spectators close to the action, it offers an excellent setting for the Opening Ceremony.

Emirates Arena & Sir Chris Hoy Velodrome Also near the Athletes’ Village is one of the most versatile new structures of its kind in Europe — the £113 million Emirates Arena, which includes the Sir Chris Hoy Velodrome.

With 10,000 people passing through the doors on opening weekend, the complex has quickly become a landmark as a national training centre for athletics, basketball, netball, track cycling and volleyball — designed not just to host international competition but to aid the development of the next generation of elite Scottish athletes and offer first-class community facilities.

The arena will provide a dramatic setting for the badminton competition, with the action taking place on six courts, watched by 6,000 spectators.

The Sir Chris Hoy Velodrome, with its innovative design and 250-metre track, is named after Scotland’s famous goldmedal-winning Olympian. Its permanent viewing capacity of 2,500 will rise to 3,600 for Glasgow 2014.

Glasgow National Hockey Centre Glasgow Green, the city’s oldest public park, continues to evolve. The latest stage of its development is the creation of the new National Hockey Centre. Specially designed to host the Glasgow 2014 Hockey competition, it features two synthetic pitches, as well as athlete and official support areas.

There are permanent stands to seat 500 spectators, and 4,500 temporary seats will be added for the Games — after which the world-class sporting facility will become Scottish Hockey’s HQ, to be used by Glasgow schools and clubs for training and competition.

Glasgow Green will also host the start and finish points of the Marathon and Road Cycling and Time Trial events.

With capacity for 50,000, the intense, intimate atmosphere is sure to heighten the drama

Ibrox Stadium The home of Rangers FC is set to add rugby to its honours list next year when it hosts the Rugby Sevens tournament for Glasgow 2014. In this fifth holding of the event, Scotland have — as its hosts — achieved automatic qualification. Also expected to compete are the Commonwealth-member core teams of the IRB Sevens World Series. The remaining spots will be filled by winners of continental preliminary competitions.

Ibrox has an all-seated capacity for more than 50,000 spectators and superb sightlines — giving an intense, intimate atmosphere that is sure to heighten the Rugby Sevens drama.

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Business Insight

Park life is already more exciting Suzanne McCormack says she thrives on a challenge — so for the past two years she has been in the right place, organising the transformation of Hampden Park, Scotland’s national football stadium into an athletics venue.

As venue overlay and development manager for Glasgow 2014, this architectural technician has impressive experience of such exercises, having worked on the design of several international

stadiums, including at the Olympics and in Australia.

There’s a long list of things to be done before Hampden Park plays host to the track and field athletics competitions and the Games’ closing ceremony. These include expansion and replacement of floodlighting, adding extra scoreboards, and providing accessible viewing platforms, particularly for the disabled.

The biggest by far is the raising of the playing surface by 1.9

metres to build an internationalstandard track and field athletics facility.

A contract for that is about to be awarded after study of four tenders and Suzanne is optimistic all will be well to accommodate 44,000 Games spectators. “We are in a good place,” she says. “Everything has happened as it should have.

We had a series of milestones to meet and we’ve done all of that.

So we’re in good shape.”

high standard, the venue is already a popular sporting and community resource that includes the National Badminton Academy, indoor tennis centre and other fitness facilities.

The six new squash courts can be converted for use as four doubles courts.

During the Games Scotstoun Precinct will also feature a glass-walled show court for the squash events.

The table tennis competition will be played across two show courts and eight match courts.

The provision of 2,500 seats around the show courts and up to 500 for the match courts will ensure spectators get a great view of the action. Other recent developments at the venue include the opening of an extended fitness centre and an expansion of the car park.

The SSE Hydro Set to be Scotland’s largest purpose-built arena, the SSE Hydro is part of the SSE Precinct, which will host six sports: gymnastics, boxing, judo, netball, wrestling and weightlifting/powerlifting. It will also be the home of the international broadcast centre and main press centre.

The SSE Hydro will seat 12,500 in a circular auditorium with a domed roof and having a clear span of 120 metres, the arena — which was designed by the renowned architect Sir Norman Foster and Arup Scotland — is the latest development on a site that already includes the Scottish Exhibition and Conference Centre (SECC) and Clyde Auditorium, known locally as The Armadillo.

The SSE Hydro has the potential to inject an annual £131 million into the local economy and create 1,400 jobs. The building was structurally complete in spring and is due to be in action by September.

Kelvingrove Lawn Bowls Centre There is a long tradition of bowls at Kelvingrove and the facility has been upgraded to international standards ahead of the Games. The centre will host the Lawn Bowls competition, for which five of the finely manicured lawns have been refurbished and are now open. The West Pavilion was upgraded a year ago and the Kelvingrove Pavilion extension and refurbishment on the other side of Kelvin Way is under way, with completion scheduled for late summer.

Owned by Glasgow City Council, the centre has one of the most dramatic settings of all the Games venues, situated next to the magnificent Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum and overlooked by the equally spectacular Victorian edifice of Glasgow University.

No fewer than 2,500 additional seats will be installed at Games time for spectators to enjoy both the sport and the setting.

Royal Commonwealth Pool Come next summer, this will be the only venue to have featured in three Commonwealth Games — in 1970, 1986, and 2014. And the Royal Commonwealth Pool is located not in the city of Glasgow but in Edinburgh.

With the extinct volcano of Arthur’s Seat outside and award-winning architecture inside, the pool offers a dramatic setting for the diving competitions.

Owned by City of Edinburgh Council, the venue has undergone major refur-

bishment, including the upgrading of the diving pool to meet international standards. It was formally reopened in March 2012 after a £37.2 million refurbishment funded by the council and sportscotland.

At the Royal Commonwealth Pool, the diving pool was widened to a six-lane, 25-metre pool and deepened while four new diving columns housing five diving boards were installed.

An impression of how Hampden Park is planned to look during the athletics events at the 2014 Games

Scotstoun Sports Campus The multi-faceted Scotstoun Sports Campus will host the squash and table tennis competitions. Owned by Glasgow City Council and recently refurbished to a

The Tollcross International Swimming Centre will seat 5,000

Strathclyde Country Park The triathlon event will take place in Strathclyde Country Park, a satellite venue on the south-eastern edge of Glasgow, and course planning is well under way for the three disciplines.

Strathclyde Loch will be used for swimming, with the cycling and running stages taking place along the surrounding network of roads and pathways. The course is being upgraded for the Games, leaving a legacy for future events and training.

Work to improve the water quality of the loch has begun, and minor upgrading to paths and roads will be carried out in spring 2014.

The park, owned by North Lanarkshire Council, is a popular destination for thousands of visitors every year who enjoy a range of recreation activities, including rowing, sailing, cycling and bird-watching — it is a breeding site and refuge for 150 species of wild animals and birds.

Tollcross International Swimming Centre Construction work to provide a warm-up/ training pool is complete at Tollcross International Swimming Centre — where the drama of the Games swimming competitions will be played out —and it opened to the general public on 24 May 2013.

Located in Tollcross Park, the venue’s existing 50-metre, ten-lane pool has been joined by a new 50-metre, six-lane warmup and training pool, ensuring world-class facilities for the Games. The centre now has around 2,000 permanent spectator seats, and at Games time there will be an additional 3,000 temporary seats, bringing the total spectator capacity to 5,000.

The developments at the Swimming Centre will provide a permanent competition, training and recreational facility for the local community, schools and elite athletes alike.

Ticketing policy opens up Games to everyone To mark One Year To Go to the start of the Glasgow 2014 Commonwealth Games the Ticketing Guide is launched today. This gives you time to consider your options ahead of around one million tickets going on sale on August 19, 2013, at 10am via the website: www.glasgow2014.com/tickets All ticket applications must be submitted by 6pm on September 16, 2013. You can only submit one application per household. That is four weeks to apply for the sports and sessions you want.

The ticketing policy has been designed to be open to all. It familyfriendly, accessible and affordable.

Like all previous Commonwealth Games, Glasgow 2014 will run a fair and simple application process to ensure everyone has an equal chance of getting tickets.

It makes no difference whether you apply for tickets on the first day, last day or anytime in between.

Where the Games is inundated with ticket applications for particular sport sessions — like the 100 metres Track final — there will be a fair, simple draw that will be completely impartial, selecting people from across all the applications received.

You apply for the tickets you want. It’s not a lucky dip — if you’ve requested tickets for Netball, you won’t be given tickets for Table Tennis.

If you ask for four tickets, you will either be successful or unsuccessful in your application for four tickets. You will not be offered one, two or three tickets.

You will be contacted by email with a summary of your tickets before any payment is taken. You will get a second chance to buy any remaining tickets before they are put on sale to the general public in late October.

The starting price of all tickets for all sports is £15. Two thirds of all sports tickets are £25 Half-price tickets for under-16s and over-60s start from £7.50. There are no booking fees and the cost of your ticket includes public transport in the local area on the day of your session.

The Accessible Ticketing Policy demonstrates a commitment to ensuring under-represented groups can access the Games.

Accessible tickets are priced in the lowest price category for the session. A personal assistant ticket is included in the price of an accessible ticket.

You can highlight your accessibility support requirements when you apply for tickets. You can also request tickets for accompanying family and friends on your application form.

If you need help, contact the Glasgow 2014 Ticketing Customer Service team at tickets. customerservice@glasgow2014.com or on 0844 826 2014.

All applicants will be notified about the status of their application between September 30 and October 7, 2013.

Please note that all competition schedules are subject to change at any time.

Tuesday July 23 2013 | the times

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Business Insight

Glasgow 2014

Hospitality will makes this a very special party

T

he Commonwealth Games is one of the world’s most important sports events, writes HRH Prince Tunku Imran. It has its own unique character as it represents the coming together of the Commonwealth family — 71 nations and territories that are bound by deep and lasting bonds of friendship and shared values. It has given us some of the most memorable moments in sport — perhaps England’s Roger Bannister and Australia’s John Landy battling in the ‘miracle mile’ race of 1954, or Australia’s Ian Thorpe dominating the pool as a 15 year old in Kuala Lumpur in 1998, winning an astonishing four gold medals.

The Commonwealth Games brings great moments and creates lifelong memories.

Glasgow is already seeing the benefits of hosting the Games in producing a legacy that will last much longer than just 11 days of superb sport. But the legacy of the Games goes much further than Glasgow. Thanks to a unique partnership between Glasgow 2014, the Commonwealth Games Federation and the children’s charity UNICEF, children around the Commonwealth will also benefit. The partnership aims to reach the lives of millions of children across the Commonwealth using sport and culture to transform their lives for the better. This is an innovative and ground-

breaking partnership that will provide a blueprint for future global multi-sport events. This is the first time a charity has been formally partnered with a major multi-sport event and is a tribute to the innovative, creative thinking that marks the Scottish approach to the Games.

Across the Commonwealth excitement is building and when the Queen’s Baton Relay starts in October we’ll start to see anticipation mount as the baton embarks on its 190,000 kilometre journey. Thousands of people will watch and participate when the baton visits their country.

That enthusiasm is already evident in Scotland. More than 50,000 applied to

Prince Tunku Imran

‘Friendly Games’ fly the flag for everyone All-inclusive ethos of this multi-sport event is what makes it unique and extra special to so many, says Ginny Clark

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lasgow 2014 will mark the 20th staging of the Co m m o nw e a l t h Games, held every four years — apart from 1942 and 1946 — since 1930.

Well known as the “Friendly Games”, this unique sporting competition was first staged in Hamilton, Canada, when it was called the British Empire Games. This inaugural Games involved just 11 countries, with 400 athletes competing in six sports and 59 events — something of a contrast to next year’s competition, which will feature 71 teams and 4500 athletes with 17 sports and 261 medal events.

Melville Marks Robinson — known as Bobby — clearly had the right idea.

There had been plenty of discussion about a new competition, but it was the sports editor of Canadian newspaper the Hamilton Spectator who is credited with finally getting it off the ground. Robinson was also the manager of the Canadian track and field team at the 1928 Summer Olympics in Amsterdam, where he is understood to have become exasperated by the complete medal domination of the US and Germany — so exasperated

that he managed to convince the City of Hamilton to provide $30,000 to help cover the travelling expenses of the participating teams at the very first British Empire Games.

The name of the competition changed to the British Empire and Commonwealth Games from 1954-1966, the British Commonwealth Games from 19701974, and became the Commonwealth Games in 1978. This evolution reflects the establishment, in 1931, and the development of the democratic organisation, the Commonwealth of Nations.

Although its existence is rooted in the de-colonisation of what had been the British Empire, the Commonwealth also includes some countries that have never had any historical ties to Britain.

So what is it that makes the Commonwealth Games so different from the Olympic Games? It’s interesting to note that Robinson recruited the runner Phil Edwards to his Canada team for the 1928 Olympics. Edwards had actually been born in British Guiana, at that time a colony, and unable to field its own Olympic team. While he then went on to win bronze at three Olympics up to and including Berlin in 1936, Edwards also became the first black athlete to become a medal winner in what are now the Commonwealth Games — when he won gold in the 800 yards (before the competition went metric in Edinburgh in 1970) at London in 1934. On that occasion, however, he was representing British Guiana.

Now the independent nation of Guyana, this country sent six athletes to compete in three sports at last year’s London Olympics, but they did not have medal success. In 2010, however, they sent 34 athletes to the Commonwealth Games in Delhi, where Aliann Pompey secured sil-

be volunteers at the Games and no visit to the Glasgow 2014 offices is complete without looking in at the Volunteer Centre. It’s there you begin to feel the electric atmosphere that will encompass the city next summer. Glaswegians are known for being great hosts and putting on a great party, and there will be hundreds of events across the city to enjoy.

I’m confident the Games will position Glasgow as one of the world’s premier sporting cities, and prove a great model for Australia’s Gold Coast to follow in 2018. This is going to be a very special Commonwealth Games.

HRH Prince Tunku Imran is President of the Commonwealth Games Federation SANDY YOUNG

Children line up as the Queen’s Baton Relay International Sector route was announced

ver in the Women’s 400 metres. The fact is that many smaller, and less wealthy, countries just cannot afford the investment needed to ensure all of their best athletes reach the qualifying standards set by the International Olympic Committee (IOC). For other athletes, competing under one flag, such as GB, for the Olympics, opportunities are greatly reduced. With Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland, England, plus crown dependencies such as Jersey and Guernsey, and overseas territories such as the Falkland Islands and Montserrat, all represented

Good news for Para-Sports There are two other distinctive elements that mark the progress of the ever evolving Commonwealth Games. In 2002, the competition in Manchester introduced for the first time, not just at the Games but at any multi-sport event in the world, a limited number of full medal events for elite athletes with a disability (EADs) in a fully inclusive sports programme. This has grown, and Glasgow 2014 will feature the biggest ever number of Para-Sports medals in Commonwealth Games’ history. There will be 22 medal events across five sports, including the first

Para-Sport track cycling event.

There will be six medal events in athletics, six in swimming, four in track cycling, four in powerlifting, and two in lawn bowls.

Sir Philip Craven, president of the International Paralympic Committee, said: “It is tremendous news. Glasgow will host more Para-Sport events than any other previous Games.

This underlines the growth and popularity of Para-Sport at all levels. To have 22 medal events included, just two years after London, will ensure athletes can continue to perform on the big stage in front of thousands.”

at the Commonwealth Games, many more talented and dedicated athletes have the chance to participate at this elite level of international competition.

The benefits, of course, can be measured in more than just medal metal.

The cultural exchange, the goodwill, the “friendly” bit of the Games have great value, but so too does the sporting legacy, and the opportunities for health education and economic potential this brings.

This has been underlined by Louise Martin, chair of sportscotland and vice chair of the Organising Committee, who represents Commonwealth Games Scotland on the Glasgow 2014 Board. Martin — who reached the final of the 110 yard and 220 yard backstroke at the 1962 Commonwealth Games in Perth, Australia — is also the Commonwealth Games Federation Honorary Secretary. In June this year, she was also named as the new chair of the Commonwealth Advisory Body on Sport (CABOS), an independent body providing advice on sport policy issues and Sport for Development and Peace (SDP) to Commonwealth members and the Commonwealth Secretariat.

CABOS is not only concerned by issues surrounding sporting integrity, but is also looking at the role sport can play in helping to eradicate world poverty.

“Commonwealth countries are uniquely placed to learn from each other and work together to maximise our efforts,” says Martin. “We can be tremendously powerful when we pull together as a team.”

the times | Tuesday July 23 2013

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Business Insight

It all adds up to a big winner LENNY WARREN

The 2014 Games promise not only sporting victories but are on course for commercial success, reveals Tom Donald

It is one of the most exciting things happening in Glasgow . . . from the firm’s perspective it is fantastic to get involved in our local community

A

s the big marketing push to generate ticket sales gets under way today, Glasgow’s Commonwealth Games are already on course to becoming a commercial success.

The target for commercial income from the Games is £100 million and, with a year to go, organisers have signed up a raft of big-brand sponsors and exceeded their own targets for the sale of broadcasting rights across the world. As discussions continue behind the scenes, another group of household names are expected to be revealed as Partners in the autumn.

Sponsors are being drawn by the unique nature of the event, with multiple sports spread across the city attended by the biggest crowds that will be seen in Britain for a sporting competition for the foreseeable future.

Consumer brands are typically keen to build marketing campaigns around their involvement to create awareness and, ultimately, drive sales, while specialist service providers want to demonstrate their expertise in what is the most complex event to be staged in Scotland in a generation.

For international players, such as EY (Ernst & Young) and Cisco, it is a great way of reaching a worldwide market while for Scottish players like Trespass it offers unparalleled visibility to build profile beyond their heartland.

Companies have many other reasons for becoming involved. These can be purely business-related, such as cementing relationships with key suppliers and distributors. But there are often also important internal agendas, such as boosting staff morale in difficult economic circumstances and offering ambitious people the opportunity to take time out and get involved in a once-in-a-lifetime experience, enhancing their skills along the way.

“On a personal level it is one of the most exciting things that is happening in Glasgow and Scotland and, from the firm’s perspective, it is fantastic to get involved in our local community,” says Douglas Nisbet, Glasgow office managing partner and Commonwealth Games partner of EY. “We are focused on making sure we deliver and play our part in making this a successful Games.

“It is also great for our people. Ever since we announced our involvement they have been highly engaged and we have been overwhelmed by the numbers coming forward to be part of it. We have people seconded to the Games team who have specialist management skills but others have been volunteers.”

To maximise income the Glasgow organisers have come up with a three-tier

Ty Speer is confident of achieving the £100 million target for sponsorship

sponsorship structure to suit different sizes of budget. They are also interested in forging proactive partnerships with the firms that come on board, exploring the options for joint sales and marketing and — unlike in London — allowing trackside advertising.

The structure appeals to A.G. Barr, home of Irn-Bru. “We are extremely proud of our Scottish roots and over 100 years of Glasgow heritage,” says chief executive Roger White. “Becoming a sponsor of Glasgow 2014 gives us the opportunity to play our part, help ensure the success of the Games, and to share in making next July truly memorable and exciting for spectators, volunteers and athletes alike.”

It also works on several levels for Virgin Media. “We’re thrilled that Virgin Media will be supporting Glasgow 2014, as an official partner and provider,”

says Jeff Dodds, chief marketing officer.

“Scotland is hugely important to us, with our talented local staff and strong, loyal customer base, so we intend to make the event, and Glasgow, a huge focus in 2014 — not only for our marketing and business activities but for our unique Virgin energy and enthusiasm too.”

The man leading the charge for sponsorship and in charge of the commercial programme is Ty Speer, an American who has experience at a senior level both

Jonathan Edwards CBE, centre, announces ticketing arrangements with swimmer David Carry and Rhona Simpson, Athlete Representative on the board of Glasgow 2014

A world of support The list of current sponsors is: Longines timing, scoring and results.

SSE leading power supplier.

Emirates Global airline with a big city operation.

Virgin Media leader in broadband, TV, phones.

BP was one of the big backers of the London Olympics.

Harper Macleod is one of Scotland’s top five law firms.

Search Consultancy is a leading player in recruitment.

EY (Ernst & Young) official professional advisor to the Games.

Atos IT services company working in 47 countries.

Dell American computer giant.

Toshiba TEC focused on technology for everyday lives.

A. G. Barr the firm behind IrnBru, is based in Glasgow.

NVT Group provider of flexible, ICT managed services Cisco focused on IT connectivity for the Games RGS leading furniture and equipment supplier.

Trespass Glasgow-based provider of outdoor gear.

Riedel provides real-time networks for video, audio and data.

Ticketmaster the UK’s leading ticket agent.

at last year’s Olympics and Melbourne Commonwealth Games in 2006.

“Our target is raising £100 million and I am confident that we will get to that,” he says. “On sponsorship, we have recently announced BP and Virgin Media and there are six or eight more that have agreed to become sponsors and are going through the process of coming on board.

“In terms of media rights, there are three or four deals that have been in excess of what has been achieved in the recent past and, overall, we have exceeded our internal target on that.”

While sponsors’ money is very welcome to fill up the overall funding pot and minimise the amount of public money required to stage the Games, the expertise the partners bring is also important.

EY, for example, is official professional advisor to the Commonwealth Games and is keeping on top of the many of the difficult budgeting and financial management issues that, at any moment, could lead to hold-ups or cost over-runs.

However as well as passing on knowledge, EY’s Douglas Nisbet says that he and his team have also learned much themselves.

The organisational challenges of the Games are unique and the solutions often involve many different bodies, each with their own priorities. Nisbet says finding ways that all these important bodies can work together successfully may be one of the least obvious, but ultimately most important economic legacies of the Games to the city.

While the sponsorship situation is still fluid, with deal announcements likely to be flowing through until Christmas, the success of the broadcasting rights auction can be measured already.

For 2014 there will be wider TV and internet coverage than ever before with big strides being made to beam the event to the Indian sub-continent, sub-Saharan Africa and south-east Asia.

This will also be a digital Games with many broadcasters looking to offer blanket coverage on dedicated websites to complement the live action with offers of more in-depth background and the ability to relive key moments.

So, with sponsorship revenue building and broadcasting rights secured, the focus now turns to ticket sales and Ty Speer is encouraging Scots to embrace the whole Games concept, not just their favourite sport.

“The Commonwealth Games is top level sport and our message is simply: be part of it. As well as trying to see your particular sport, go and see something different, something you would never usually watch and just have a great day out.”

Tuesday July 23 2013 | the times

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Business Insight

Business Forum

Why this event means there’s all to play for The Times Scotland Business Forum met to assess the significance of the Commonwealth Games to Glasgow and Scotland, reports Barry McDonald

T

here is exactly one year until the opening ceremony and the Glasgow 2014 Commonwealth Games is expected to leave not just a sporting legacy in the city but an economic and business legacy which resonates throughout the country. Our panel met at the headquarters of Glasgow 2014 and discussed, among other subjects, the importance of developing such lasting legacies.

Last week the UK government said the 2012 Olympics boosted the UK economy by £10 billion. Does legacy always flow naturally or does it require effort?

David Grevemberg emphasised that legacy should not be taken for granted but carefully nurtured. It is not something that’s been done to you, he argued, but something that had been done by you. “Glasgow has set out real ambition and ownership from the very early days. Even as far back as pursuing the Games back in 2002 after Manchester, Glasgow started to receive the recognition of being a potential host.”

Lesley Sawers mentioned the importance of not only the sporting legacy of the Games but that of investment and jobs. “It’s become very fashionable to talk about legacy but if you look back, Glasgow’s been very clever and has actually hard-wired community engagement, volunteering and investment in infrastructure into the programme of the Games. Legacy isn’t something that happens, it’s something you make happen and that’s what Glasgow is absolutely committed to. In addition to that, 2,500 young apprentices were recruited. That’s a life changing legacy for a lot of young people in the city.”

Ian Reid noted the legacy from the 2014 Commonwealth Games is demonstrable now as venues are already open for business and being used in great numbers by the local communities.

David Coyne said legacy can manifest itself in many ways, from the creation of jobs during the venue construction process

to the increased use of the sporting facilities. “These facilities are important as they help Glasgow market itself as a destination for international sporting events for the next 20 years. There’s been an enormous increase in local residents using world class sporting facilities right now. One of the key things in addition to the economic impact of the games was the social and health impact in tackling participation in sport.

“The relationship between the games venues and the people of Glasgow is very different to the relationship between the Olympic Park and the people of London.”

Grevemberg added that in the first 22 days of the opening of the International Swimming Centre in Tollcross, around 40,000 people passed through the doors.

Around the table The Business Forum was chaired by Angus Macleod, editor of The Times Scotland, who was joined by:

Liz Cameron, Chief Executive, Scottish Chambers of Commerce

David Coyne, Head of Economic Development, Glasgow City Council

Professor Lorne Crerar, Chairman, Harper Macleod

Sarah Deas, Director, Games Legacy, Scottish Enterprise

David Grevemberg, Chief Executive, Glasgow 2014

Afzal Khushi CBE, Director, Trespass

Douglas Nisbet, Partner, EY

Tommy Mitchell, Technical Director, NVT Group

Ian Reid, Chief Financial Officer, Glasgow 2014

Professor Lesley Sawers, Vice Principal & Pro Vice Chancellor, Glasgow Caledonian University

What is the anticipated economic benefit to Glasgow and Scotland from hosting the 2014 Commonwealth Games?

The potential for Glasgow and Scotland to benefit from an economical legacy said Liz Cameron, hinges on the ability to promote itself and create new orders, relationships and alliances. “The world’s eyes will be on Scotland. What an opportunity to promote this country’s skills, our ability to organise an event of this nature and also build on the business linkages that have already been formed. We’re now in a strong position where Scotland the brand is going to have an opportunity to reach over 1.5 billion potential viewers. What’s the value in that of selling Scotland and its assets?

“What we’re also creating in terms of the training and development of Games volunteers is a wonderfully skilled asset-base for businesses to tap into post-Commonwealth Games.

Sarah Deas emphasised the importance of a proactive approach and brokering relationships and exploiting opportunities in key sectors. “This is a fabulous opportunity to showcase Scotland on the international stage. From the business perspective there are three key opportunities: showcasing key industries, talent and quality of life; business

opportunities, and also to network strategically and develop exports.”

Douglas Nisbet said we need to look at traditional trade routes the Commonwealth offers. “I’m always stunned when you consider that 30 per cent of the world is in the Commonwealth. You have a couple of billion people and some of the fastest growing economies.”

Grevemberg agreed and emphasised that the recent trade agreement with Jamaica was as a direct result of the Commonwealth Games. He also joined Professor Lorne Crerar by stating the potential economic impact the Games’ volunteers can have. “Going back to the Sydney Olympics in 2000, where the volunteers were celebrated at the closing ceremony, that was the first time we had recognised the importance of volunteers.

“Using volunteering as a way of connecting with people and getting them up-skilled

Sarah Deas emphasised brokering relationships in key sectors

and feeling good about their community is a recent phenomenon in many respects and I think because of the age of austerity, this call to action has been more compelling. Our volunteering programme is the first of its kind to offer opportunities for young people at 16 to apply — and to get 50,811 applicants for 15,000 positions was tremendous; far surpassing Manchester and Melbourne’s total numbers combined.

Something’s going right here.”

Can the Games act as a springboard to business investment and success in Scotland?

Cameron said it was up to the business community to take advantage of this opportunity. “We have businesses right now that may not be winning contracts but that’s not a failure. What’s happening there is we have businesses who are developing their skills base in going through the procurement experience and tendering for potential business. They will use that knowledge to tender for other businesses.”

Reid said that of the £300 million worth of contracts offered, 60 per cent were awarded to businesses in Glasgow, while 386 of the 520 contracts were awarded to Scottish companies.

Crerar pointed out that with the exception of Germany, Scotland has the largest European inward investment, much larger than the rest of the UK. “Something is already happening to attract businesses here and this is an opportunity to continue that momentum to 2014.”

However, he also sounded a note of cau-

the times | Tuesday July 23 2013

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JEREMY SUTTON-HIBBERT FOR THE TIMES

Has the impact of the games been overstated? Was there initial scepticism about the potential benefits?

Crerar admitted there was initial scepticism but it soon dissipated. Cameron agreed.

“There was an initial question mark but that was very quickly dismissed. I hear across Scotland that this is great not just for Glasgow but for Scotland.”

Mitchell argued that any resistance is heavily diluted when people can see for themselves the direct, positive impact the Games is having. “If it’s done properly, everyone will be one step removed from someone who has had a direct benefit. You stop complaining because your cousin got a job because of the Games.”

Coyne also pointed to the impact increased employment has had on the attitude towards the Games. “Within the city people would ask: ‘why are you spending hundreds of millions of pounds building sports facilities when I live in a run down community?’ It’s possible now to point to the positive impact.

“We generated a map with red dots on it, showing the home post codes of people who had jobs through the construction of the venues and a lot of the red dots, indicating real jobs for real people, were in the East End.” Much of the anxiety surrounding the Games comes from a history of broken promises, argued Grevemberg, and true engagement, sincerity, generosity and a humility in your approach is the real game changer.

“You’re giving ownership and a sense of belonging and identity. The impact of these Games hasn’t been overstated.

“In a time of austerity, for people to be talking about ambition versus anxieties is very powerful. There is real momentum being built from this and we need to make sure that people aren’t waiting for legacy to happen, they’re taking it and making it happen. We need to continue to build on people’s confidence.”

tion. “There’s a danger in running the Commonwealth Games and that is you have to do it very well. One of the earliest examples was Wales with the Rugby World Cup, where they almost didn’t finish the stadium in time and it was seen as being a national catastrophe in the eyes of the world. The last Commonwealth Games in Delhi had similar kinds of issues so it’s very encouraging that all Glasgow has said it will do has been done, because the legacy relies on a well performing, well-run games, and is great for the image of the country. That’s what encourages inward investment and encourages others to come to Glasgow and Scotland.”

From the point of view of his own business, Tommy Mitchell said the Games had already proved a real boost and has engendered a sense of confidence and pride. “All of our staff are very proud to be involved and they’re striving to be better personally. We can puff out our chest, aim higher and go for things that three years ago we thought were beyond us.

“We’ve taken on 15 Modern Apprentices who will have full-time jobs as IT professionals after the Games. We’ve launched 15 new careers. It’s a small step but for us it’s proportionally massive.

“If other businesses can take the same action then the collective benefit will be massive. I believe that action leads to success and success leads to confidence. If we can get that cycle moving at a faster pace we can achieve great things.”

Afzal Khushi said that his business, which will design and supply uniforms for the Games’ workforce, is also reaping rewards

Standing, left to right: Ian Reid, Prof Lorne Crerar, Douglas Nisbet, David Grevemberg Seated, left to right: Afzal Khushi, Angus Macleod, Liz Cameron, Lesley Sawers, David Coyne, Tommy Mitchell

from involvement with Glasgow 2014. “We had a delegation from Korea in the office recently who were hugely excited by our work with Glasgow 2014. Our sales in Korea are $15 million and are growing rapidly. This is going to be a huge springboard for us to raise the profile of our brand. It’s also helping us grow our business throughout the Commonwealth to countries such as India. On a practical term I’m able to demonstrate the effect the games are having on the company.”

One of the key issues in attracting inward investment is changing the language used, argued Grevemberg. “Glasgow is not a gateway. I remember coming on board four years ago, people were still saying: ‘Glasgow — gateway to Loch Lomond’; ‘gateway to the Highlands’; gateway to business in Scotland’.

It’s not a gateway, it’s a hub for business, entertainment, tourism, sport and for life.”

Douglas Nisbet and Lesley Sawers ponder the legacy of the Games

Is there a sense of ownership of the Games throughout Scotland and does that percolate throughout the business community?

Nisbet pointed to the enthusiasm felt across his firm, including the EY Edinburgh office where, he said, flags will be raised to mark the ‘one year to go’ point.

Sawers emphasised the work done by Business Club Scotland, an initiative formed to capitalise on the Games and also draw on the lessons learned from previous Commonwealth Games in Manchester and Melbourne. “We’ve been very successful in driving business engagement across the country. We gave them support to win contracts and offered procurement portals so they can take that legacy further.

“We’ve also kept them constantly updated so there’s been a constant process of communications, updates, making people feel part of this journey. Now we’re getting to the stage we’re actually supporting the businesses through the Chambers; through the FSB; through the Club and actually say: ‘how can we make these games work for your company?’

“We also developed the Seven Cities Scottish alliance, where we have the seven cities working together to deliver investment and jobs for Scotland. The leaders of the seven cities have also made the commitment to support Glasgow.”

Cameron conceded that there was an initial scepticism about the perceived economic benefits out with Glasgow but it’s an attitude which appears to have faded.

“We went out with the message that these are Scotland’s Games; it just so happens they’re located in Glasgow.”

The Games’ wider impact goes far beyond the stadium Measuring the economic and social impact of sporting events The complex technical, legal and security aspects of modern sporting events means that public financial support By Mark Gregory is almost always required to enable the events to go ahead. The recent riots in Brazil illustrate perfectly how state expenditure on major sporting events can become a source of social tension. Measuring the economic and social impact of an event is now essential to support the case for public funding.

However, this is not a simple exercise as there are a significant number of issues to consider, the value of individual elements of which will vary between the different stakeholders.

The key issues to address include: The timing of the impact which falls into three broad stages: preparation; holding the event; and legacy.

The sectors that the impact most affects, typically construction and tourism in the run up and delivery periods, and then housing and the labour market in the legacy period.

The nature of the impact ranges from the direct impact of expenditure, such as building facilities and preparing sites, the indirect spend in the supply chain for example, and the induced spend from those employed in delivering the direct and indirect effects.

The geographic dimension of the impact will vary by the nature of the event: a World Cup has a broader national footprint than a city-based Olympics. There have been attempts to extend the framework and one study estimates the 1996 European Football Championships in England generated “happiness” worth £165 per person in the country.

Ultimately, the nature of the event, how it is being delivered and its legacy plans will drive the analysis.

Circumstances also matter. In the current fiscal environment, a consideration of the impact of the best alternative use of any funding would seem reasonable. The impact will also be different in situations in which the economy is resource constrained compared to periods of slack.

Glasgow 2014 will have to be assessed against these issues. Based on EY’s summer 2013 economic forecasts, it is now more likely the Games will take place in an improving global economy with the Commonwealth economies in particular in relatively good health and potentially increasingly important export markets for UK and Scottish businesses.

Using the Games to showcase products and services and to build new business relationships with representatives from these fast growing economies could be have the most significant economic impact and the longest lasting and most valuable legacy. In an increasingly competitive global economy, every advantage has to be seized.

Mark Gregory is EY’s chief economist

Tuesday July 23 2013 | the times

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Business Insight

Glasgow 2014

GETTY IMAGES

Tom Farmery reveals some of the names set to cause a storm when they take to the track, pool or roads in 2014

Usain Bolt When this man enters Hampden Park in Glasgow for the men’s 100m next year he’ll need no introduction. Usain Bolt is a six times Olympic champion and his success is unparalleled.

The Lightning Bolt, as he is known, is the only person ever to finish athletics’ most exciting spectacle in 9.58 seconds.

His talent is unrivalled and his background is humbling. Bolt, now the world’s highest paid athlete, grew up in Trelawny, Jamaica, where his parents owned a grocers. It was only when his speed was noticed on the cricket field that he began to evolve into an unstoppable sprinter.

“I’m now a legend. I’m also the greatest athlete to live,” Bolt said after he won gold in the 100m and 200m at last year’s London Olympics.

Despite his achievements he has never competed in a Commonwealth Games.

He is now 26 and Glasgow is Bolt’s last realistic chance of claiming gold.

“That’s the only title I don’t have, so I think it’s something I’d like to go for, even if I do just one event,” Bolt said.

What a prospect that would be. The Jamaican thundering down the athletics track in front of a packed audience at Hampden Park in the 100m final on the night of Saturday, August 2.

Michael Jamieson

Where lightning is sure to strike more than once

No one else is looking forward to the Glasgow Commonwealth Games next year more than Michael Jamieson.

The Scottish swimmer was born in Glasgow and just the thought of standing next to the edge of the pool at Tollcross International Swimming Centre while the Saltire is flown high gives him goosebumps.

The 24 year old was not expected to have a huge amount of success at his first Olympic Games in London last year but the Glaswegian came away after the 200m breaststroke with a silver medal hung around his neck.

However, from a very young age it looked a certainty Jamieson would follow the same career as Michael, his father, and become a professional footballer. But the swimmer, who is a lifelong Celtic fan, laughs when thinking about how a life in football would have turned out.

“I wasn’t a very good footballer. I don’t think I’d have made it very far at all and I wouldn’t have been surprised if my dad [who played for Alloa Athletic] was more likely to push me into the pool to save the embarrassment,” he said.

He made the transition to swimming very early in his teenage years. At the age of 11, Jamieson enrolled at the Glasgow School of Sport at Bellahouston Academy and he trained at the Tollcross pool. It was those early teenage years of winning many Scottish National Age Group titles that would build a strong foundation and prepare him for elite competition.

MJ, as he is known to his friends and coaches, is at the pinnacle of his sport and, despite claiming silver at the Delhi Commonwealth Games in 2010, he now has his mind focused on gold in Glasgow.

“Glasgow’s big if not bigger than London for me,” he said. “Turning out in Scottish colours and wearing the Saltire — there’s something special about that.

Glasgow is home and it’s where I was brought up. I have so many memories of competing at Tollcross but to do it next

the times | Tuesday July 23 2013

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Business Insight MARC ASPLAND FOR THE TIMES

year with an incredible crowd will be incredible. A gold medal would be amazing but I’m definitely going to need to be in a position to swim my quickest time if I want to be at the top of the podium.”

Jessica Ennis-Hill If anyone knew how to provide the sparkle to last year’s London Olympics it was Jessica Ennis. The fearless woman from Sheffield, South Yorkshire, captured the hearts of British fans when she recorded a personal best score total of 6,955 points and claimed gold in the Heptathlon.

Her remarkable achievements include gold medals at both the World Championships and European Championships.

Former athletes and sports science experts often compliment the flawless hurdling technique she possesses but what is most impressive is that she does not hail from a family of top level athletes or sporting greatness.

The 27 year old was brought up by Vinnie, her father, a Jamaican-born, self-employed painter, and her mother, Alison, a social worker.

But when at a young age she and Carmel, her sister, were taken to an athletics track event at the Don Valley Stadium in Sheffield by her father she realised what she wanted to become. An athlete.

From that moment she trained hard and others began to notice just what a formidable competitor she could be.

Her first recognisable success was winning the high jump at the National Schools Championships aged just 14.

Ten years later she was well established as the world number one in Heptathlon.

Although she has won the most prestigious prize in her sport, she still does not have a gold medal from a Commonwealth Games. The closest she has ever come was at the Melbourne Commonwealth Games in 2006 where she was awarded the bronze medal. She did not compete at the Games in Delhi four years later.

Ennis was awarded a CBE in the New Years Honours this year and will compete in the World Championships in Moscow later this year.

Next year’s Commonwealth Games, however, are penciled into her diary and it’s an event Toni Minichiello, her coach, knows just how much hunger she has to win in Glasgow.

He said: “It is tight in terms of the schedule with Glasgow 2014 coming about a fortnight before the European Championships but we certainly intend to come to Scotland. She has not won the Commonwealth title before and that is absolutely the competition plan for us looking ahead.”

David Rudisha There has been no one quicker than David Rudisha over 800m ever — and it’s written in the history books.

He is currently Kenya’s most celebrated athlete and last year at the London Olympics he reached a feat no other athlete had ever before. He became the first person to complete the 800m in under 1.41.00.

The sheer speed and steel-like resilience the 24 year old has is the reason why he is the current OIympic and World champion at the distance. He is also a member of the Maasai tribe and his father, Daniel, won a silver medal at the 1968 Olympic Games in Mexico as part of Kenya’s 4 by 400m relay team.

The 800m event at London last summer was coined “the greatest 800 metre race ever”. There would only be one winner. When the starter’s gun was fired it became obvious that Rudisha, then 23,

furious torrent of pace was demonstrated at the European Championships in 2010 when he took gold in both the 10,000 and 5,000m races.

Everyone took notice and two years later Farah was ready and primed for the London Olympics.

On Super Saturday he became the first British athlete to win Olympic gold in the 10,000m and he also went on to win gold in the 5,000m. Following his achievements, Farah was awarded a CBE in the New Year Honours list.

He was pumped up by the home crowd and, though he will enter the Hampden Park stadium in Glasgow as an English athlete, every spectator will want to witness the moment Mo wins his first Commonwealth Games gold — and no doubt the trademark celebration that will follow.

would destroy a field that consisted of Nijel Amos, the World Junior Champion, and Nick Symmonds, the five-time US champion.

On the final lap the Kenyan, already strides ahead of the eventual silver medal winner Amos, burst away down the back straight before pressing on to win gold and setting a new world record of 1.40.91.

It is unlikely he will compete in the World Championships in Moscow later this summer due to injury but because he has never competed in a Commonwealth Games before Glasgow could be the stage for another gold medal and an opportunity to break his own world record.

Mo Farah There was no bigger talking point among British fans at the London Olympics last summer than Mo Farah.

The Somali-born British athlete is the current 10,000m Olympic champion and 5,000m Olympic, World and European champion.

His trademark celebration, the Mobot, is now copied by athletes and fans of differing ages and abilities.

Now 30, Farah moved from Mogadishu when he was eight years old to London where he lived with his father, Mukhtar.

At first he found life difficult as he was not able to speak English but he soon found a passion for something universal — running.

When he attended Feltham Community College in Hounslow, south-west London, his ability, then at an early stage of development, was recognised by Alan Watkinson, a physical education teacher at the college.

Watkinson has said that, despite Farah struggling academically and finding it hard to learn English, he noticed the runner’s quick turn of speed on the football pitch and knew his potential could be nurtured into something unbeatable on the athletics track.

In 1996 at the age of 13 he entered the English Schools Cross-Country Championships and managed a ninth place finish. A year later he surpassed expectations by winning his first of five English schools titles.

Many thought that Farah, who only won his first gold medal at the European Team Championships four years ago, would find it difficult to reach the pinnacle of long distance running.

But his ability to breeze through the pack of competitors before unleashing a

Olympic Gold winner Jessica Ennis-Hill has her sights on a medal in Glasgow

He knew his potential could be nurtured into something unbeatable on the track

Mark Cavendish The Manx Missile from the Isle of Man. Usually the quickest anyone can go on two wheels is at the notorious TT motorcycle championship on his home island.

But Mark Cavendish has proved time after time that he is the fastest man on two wheels.

His coruscant career consists of 23 Tour de France stage wins, a UCI Road Race World Championship victory and two Road World Championship victories in the madison team event.

He entered the realms of stardom when, in his first professional season in 2006, he matched the 11-win record held

by Alessandro Petacchi, the former professional Italian road cyclist.

In 2011 he became the first Briton to win the road race at the World Championships since Tom Simpson in 1965. The result led to him being awarded an MBE in the Queen’s Birthday Honours in 2011 and in the same year he won the BBC Sports Personality of the Year.

The man who is lightning on a bike proved just why when he became the first person to record four consecutive final Champs-Élysées stage wins in the Tour de France last year.

Cavendish’s aim last summer at the London Olympics was to be victorious in the road race. But he finished in a disappointing 29 place and nearly a minute shy of Alexander Vinokurov of Kazakhstan, the eventual race winner.

In June this year he won the British National Road Race Championships in Glasgow on the same circuit that will be used for the road race at next year’s Commonwealth Games. In this year’s Tour de France, Cavendish was involved in a crash while competing in stage ten in Saint-Malo. Despite being exonerated, it appeared that the Manxman had purposely collided with Tom Veelers, the Dutch road cyclist who was leading the stage race as it neared its climax.

Glasgow 2014 will not be the first time Cavendish has represented the Isle of Man in the Commonwealth Games. In 2006 in Melbourne he competed in the scratch race and won gold. That win was the last time the Isle of Man have won Commonwealth gold.

But on a circuit the Manxman has already succeeded on it is almost a certainty that a gold medal from the Games in Glasgow will sit alongside his other prestigious titles when the closing ceremony takes place on August 3.

The clock is ticking and we’re into that final straight Out of everyone at Glasgow 2014 I think I’ve got the best job of the lot. As Head of Sport, I get to go to work every day and talk about sport,

By Greg Warnecke which is what I’m very passionate about. I’m lucky enough to work with a like-minded team of people and external stakeholders who are all equally excited about staging an outstanding athletecentred and sport-focused Glasgow 2014 Commonwealth Games.

Now we have reached the key milestone of One Year To Go, more than ever the focus is on making Glasgow 2014 a fantastic experience for everyone, from the athletes to the spectators.

The Games will have an exciting range of world-class sport on offer, covering 17 sports, from the athletics at Hampden to shooting at Barry Buddon in Fife, and including 22 integrated Para-Sport medal events — the most ever at a Commonwealth Games.

Attracting many of the world’s best athletes to Glasgow next year is also a key focus. Lots of work has been done with sport stakeholders, including International Federations, to position the Games in a window that make it a must-attend event.

And in a similar way to London 2012, the Games have been granted tax exemption status for visiting athletes, too.

The established Games venues demonstrate Glasgow and Scotland’s ability to host major sport events.

Many of these have already staged national or international events, with more planned in the lead-up to the Games.

The world also recently got a glimpse of the Athletes’ Village.

I’ve been lucky enough to coach or manage elite international teams, so I understand how important that ‘home away from home’ is for both athletes and team officials. Together with the competition and training venues, we want to ensure we do everything we can to maximise the opportunity for an athlete to prepare and perform at their best. And the overall experience of everything Glasgow and Scotland has to offer is very important too.

Personally, I cannot wait. I’ve been with the team for four years now and have seen the progress achieved. We have been through the organisation phase as a team and we’re ready to enter the delivery stage.

The next 12 months will fly by and it will be hard work but I am looking forward to watching the athletes of the Commonwealth walk into Celtic Park. That’s when the Games officially begin, followed by 11 days of worldclass sporting action.

Greg Warnecke is Glasgow 2014 Head of Sport

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