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Sunday 6th July 2008

Tees Barrage to appear in London 2012 training guide

4th Mar 2008

The Tees Barrage, British Waterways flagship Teeside white water course, has been selected to appear in the London Organising Committee Pre-Games Training Camp Guide alongside 18 other facilities from the North East, it was revealed yesterday.

Tees Barrage

The decision is a testament to The Tees Barrage’s high quality capacity and existing contribution to sport in the Stockton/Middlesborough area, as only those facilities of the highest standard were picked as camps for athletes to train at in the run-up to the 2012 Olympics.

The North East is already popping the champagne corks in preparation for the London 2012 Olympic Games and Paralympic Games with a staggering 19 facilities from the region scheduled to appear in the Guide. This is a fantastic opportunity to raise the profile of the North East and the outstanding Barrage on a global scale.

The Guide, detailing the successful facilities, will first be published at the Beijing Games when all participating Olympic nations will learn about The Tees Barrage and the other facilities the North East has to offer for canoe, kayak and slalom enthusiasts.

The Tees Barrage has been selected, particularly, for its ability to host world class training.

Laurence Morgan, General Manager, British Waterways Yorkshire, which owns and manages the site, said: "We are delighted with the announcement that the Tees Barrage has been selected to appear in the Guide as an Olympic training centre. We are confident that it will attract significant numbers of elite athletes for training purposes within a 1-2 hours travel for canoeists, rafting enthusiasts.

"British Waterways is committed to the success of the 2012 London Olympics and is already involved in restoring the waterways around the Olympic park. It is fantastic news therefore that we can also contribute to the Olympic training programme with one of our northern regional assets and demonstrates that the event is of national significance."

Currently The Tees Barrage provides facilities for water sports enthusiasts, team building and water safety training via the White Water Centre which operates on site. Around seven sporting events already use the venue year on year such as the national British Touring Jet Ski championships, and The Northern Region Water Skiing Championships.