In bidding to host the 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games, the London bid committee promised a range of ambitious legacies. Planning for legacy pre-Games was a relatively new aspect of event planning (Leopkey & Parent, 2009). For the London Organising Committee of the Olympic Games and Paralympic Games (LOCOG) and the Department of Culture Media and Sport (DCMS), the sporting legacy from London 2012 was intended to be experienced across Britain. As such, a significant impact was expected on the sporting lives of people in non-host areas. To this extent it seems entirely appropriate, therefore, to examine the attempts to establish a ‘legacy’ in a city outside of London. Birmingham, one of the most populated cities in the UK, is therefore the focus of this study. The aim of this project was to investigate the legacy experiences of those delivering sport in Birmingham prior to, and soon after, the Games. This research was conducted from a figurational approach. A case study design was used to provide a detailed insight into a complex network of people and their perceptions that influence sport policy and development. The methods employed within this case study include documentary analysis of national policy documents and semi-structured interviews with key personnel in Birmingham. Interviews were conducted in the months prior to the Games and follow-up telephone interviews several months after the Games.

Nationalism and globalisation are two topics of great debate. In an increasingly connected world, these concepts are contrasted as opposites unable to coexist with a rise in one there must be a fall in the other. In this study, these concepts are explored alongside Olympism through the medium of the Olympic Games. Historically, the Olympics are structured around nations/nation-states, and national teams, while still attempting to promote universalism, internationalism, and the unity of humankind. This work aims to explore how and why nationalism, Olympism, and globalisation are expressed in the Olympic Movement through a case study of the London 2012 Olympic Games and what the outcomes of these actions are. Backed by an interpretivist paradigm, this study focused on selected events in the lead-up to the London Games, starting in the summer of 2011, and culminated with a prolonged period of observation at the London Games, both at Olympic venues and the live site at Hyde Park. Throughout the course of data collection there was a focus on not only the institutions staging the Games but also the spectators taking part in them.

The research analyses stability and change in the English/British elite sport policy landscape in the period 2005 to early 2014. In the context of a recession and change of government, the policy environment could be described as turbulent and cuts to public funding and commitment to deregulation have been key features of the overarching policy landscape. There was an assumption that elite sport would not be immune from the policy turbulence. The policy landscape is described as consisting of three elements: organisations, public funding and political salience. The original contribution of the thesis is threefold: first, in relation to the empirical study of the relative impact of the political and economic turbulence on the elite sport system; second, in the application of institutional theory and punctuated equilibrium theory to the analysis of elite sport policy; and third, the application of theory to explain the extent of stability uncovered through the empirical research. The research used a case study approach. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 20 senior officials from sport in England/the UK from both sport-specific NGBs and organisations with wider, national remits for elite sport and incorporating both government and non-government organisations. Due to the sample of interviewees, the nuances of elite interviewing were an important consideration for the researcher. A document analysis study was also carried out. Through the existing literature and the data gathered, three cases emerged and were examined in depth: youth talent search and development; nurturing and transferring talent; and sustaining world class athletes. Thematic analysis was used to examine the data. The data revealed that the policy landscape was, for the most part, stable in the period studied. There were changes to the intensity of financial and political support and refinements of policy objectives, especially due to the hosting of the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games, but the overall policy aims remained consistent. The reasons identified for this stability were as follows: the absence of an alternative, critical lobby; strong leadership in the sector; and the hosting of the London 2012 Games. The long-term impact of Labour s Modernisation agenda was found to have contributed to the stable governance of elite sport, which includes a structure for decision-making and accountability around funding of NGBs by UK Sport. Historical Institutionalism was found to offer the most useful meso-level framework for analysis of the data and clear critical junctures and path formation phases could be identified.

In 2012, London successfully hosted the Games of the XXX Olympiad. The main legacy of hosting the event is the 560 acre, mixed use Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park located in Stratford in the heart of London s former industrial East End. The Park is located across the four Park Boroughs of Hackney, Newham, Tower Hamlets and Waltham Forest, each distinct in character but shaped by similar trends of urban regeneration and gentrification. This research examines the profiles, practices and perceptions of visitors to the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park as an impact study of mega events conducted within five years after the London Olympics. It draws on research about mega events and urban regeneration with a focus on sports science and geography that has largely neglected visitor experiences as an outcome of mega events. Based on a mixed methods approach combining a longitudinal face-to-face visitor survey conducted over two years, a postal survey among local schools, and interviews with stakeholders, this thesis makes an original contribution to knowledge by proposing a new conceptual framework on mega event legacy and empirical findings on the use and perceptions of The Park by local, regional, national and international visitors. The conceptual approach (Chapter 3) bridges the two distinct literatures of mega-event legacy theory (and more broadly the sports literature) and actor-network theory. The framework allows for the study to approach the research questions from a tridic actor-network perspective, examining how material, immaterial and mainly human dynamic hybrids co-exist in complex webs of relations. It also allows for the unravelling of how these relations have given rise to impacts tied to the developments in the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park. This unravelling is explored through the remainder of this thesis. Following the description and analysis of methods used in the thesis (Chapter 4), Chapter 5 provides a historic overview of the four Park Boroughs that define the study area of the thesis. The shifting nature of this multicultural area is contextualised in light of several catalytic events (industrialisation, de-industrialisation and finally the Olympic Games). At the heart of this examination is the intention to show that despite the narratives pedalled by policy makers, planners and politicians, areas of East London were inhabited by groups who for several centuries symbiotically produced and reproduced their own diverse identities and ultimately that of East London. Chapter 6 analyses and critiques 35 policy documents released during the Olympic cycle (broadly defined here as the period between 2003 and 2012) and follows both the visible and invisible actants. The key findings are that: poorly executed event planning is inextricably linked to a poor implementation of local community interests; there were unheard and excluded voices, particularly the disadvantaged and displaced, in these policy and planning documents and; that there was little opportunity for the youth voice to be heard. Finally, the analysis of policy documents has underlined the value of reflecting on legacy promises from a longer-term perspective, suggesting that the legally binding bid books should be compared with the actual outcomes from a long-term perspective. The typical visitor to the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park (Chapter 7) is a white middle-aged male or female (71% over age 25, ~50/50 male and female). They will be visiting the sports facilities and their frequency of use suggests that they have monthly membership to one of the leisure centres. This indicates that they have a relatively high level of both social capital and disposable income. They will reside within the Park Boroughs, often within walking distance of the Park or close to a transport link with a direct transport connection, probably by the Underground system. They will not often visit the Park with under 18s and if they do visit with anyone, it will be their partner or friend, and thus they resemble very closely the typical affluent gentrifier couples. The term experience athlete was coined for these visitors with 53% being from the Park Boroughs. In addition, there were those who came to sight-see, designated as Games tourists of whom 56% of these were international visitors. While ~20% of the visitors to the Park were under age 18 most of these were under 12s attending with their parents. Young people and particularly young people from the Park Boroughs were largely absent from the Park, which was contributed to by discriminatory practices (often under the guise of security issues) which focused on groups of ethnic minority youth. The possible reasons for the absence of young people from the Park are explored and unravelled in Chapter 8 by discussing the results of the semi-structured interviews with local stakeholders and the postal survey with school staff. The key issues raised in this chapter were that: the lack of a representative youth voice with a hidden and perceived to be cosmetic contribution to legacy planning and; the lack of social and financial capital in school staff and young people in combination with the gentrifying process and; spatial factors such as distance from the Park and poor acces routes, all contributed to the absence of young people from the Park. Overall, this thesis stresses the importance of unravelling networks to their fullest extent to truly understand the impact such spaces have on diverse communities.

This thesis evaluates the legacy/impact of the London 2012 Games for a non-hosting sub-region Leicestershire, principally through evaluations of four legacy-programmes (i.e. the Workplace Challenge, Get Set, Sport Makers, and Games Makers programmes), drawing conclusions about lessons learned from the Leicestershire 2012 legacy experience. The selection of Leicestershire as a non-hosting sub-region reflects the fact that little is known about the legacy/ impact of the Games in such contexts. The nature of Olympic legacy evaluation is considered as a complex, wide-ranging, and multi-staged process. This thesis thus focuses on two main areas: i) conducting a systematic review of the literature (covering the period 1996-2011) to explore and establish an understanding of the concepts of Olympic legacy , and evidenced legacy/impact of hosting the Olympics in previous Games; ii) assessing the extent to which the London 2012 Games had impacted on the changed legacy outcomes for Leicestershire through realist evaluations. Together with realist evaluations, analytic logic models and the assessment of additionality approaches are adopted in this study, focusing on the four legacy-programmes evaluations, wherein quantitative and/or qualitative methodology are utilised in order to identify the causal mechanisms that produced the anticipated/unanticipated effects in their specific contexts. This study is an empirical example of the application of the realist evaluation and assessment of additionality. It also produces an evidence base for policy analysis in order to inform stakeholders thinking regarding sustaining the legacy of the Games and any future major sporting events by identifying lessons learned for non-hosting contexts.

Date: May 30, 2012  University: Mälardalen University, Sweden  Program: MIMA- International Marketing  Course Name: Master Thesis (EFO705)  Title: Creating Brand Awareness Through Event Marketing  The Off-Field Competition of Sportswear Companies in the Olympics  Authors: Laura Dolge and Malin Marmbrandt  Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to research how companies are promoting themselves efficiently to increase brand awareness through advertisement in major sporting events, through viral marketing and athlete endorsement.  Research Questions: Firstly: What are the major differences and similarities between the official and non-official sponsors and their marketing activities when creating brand awareness in sporting events?  Secondly: How do official and non-official sponsoring companies increase brand awareness in sporting events through viral marketing activities?  Thirdly: How do official and non-official sponsoring companies increase brand awareness in sporting events through athlete endorsement?  Method: Data was collected with a qualitative multi-method approach that consists of observations of online social networks and media (netnography), and semi-structured interviews was applied.  Conclusion: The main differences between the official and the non-official sponsor´s marketing campaigns are that the official sponsor has the advantage of using the event’s logo in its campaigns, and is able to advertise during the event. Whilst, there are many rules that restricts the non-official company´s campaigns. Regardless, non-official sponsors are still able to associate themselves with the event by using creative viral marketing campaigns and endorsing athletes, thus create brand awareness by so called ambush marketing.

The unique potential of sport as a site for the delivery of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) has received increasing academic attention in recent years (e.g. Smith & Westerbeek, 2007). However, this literature has been said to have held 'relatively static conceptualisations of CSR through sport' (Dowling, Robinson & Washington, 2013, p. 270), and it could similarly be argued that insufficient attention has been given to the broader social contexts in which it has been delivered. This study therefore aimed to understand more about sport - and the Olympic Games - as a site for the delivery of CSR, using the specific context of private sector sponsor-led CSR schemes based upon the sport and physical activity participation legacy of London 2012. Three separate stages of qualitative data collection were conducted. The first comprised a thematic analysis of macro level policy discourse produced by official Olympic 'legacy actors' in relation to the proclaimed sport and activity legacy of the Games. The second stage also used thematic analysis in order to establish how 20 sponsors rationalised their CSR activity around the Games and how six who organised programmes involving either sport or activity participation justified these. The third stage comprised a series of semi-structured interviews with representatives of three Olympic sponsors and three charity delivery partners who co-operated in the delivery of specific CSR schemes. Once data was organised into themes, data analysis was informed by a governmentality perspective in order to help understand the respective roles of public and private sector organisations in not just the delivery of CSR, but also in 'governing' society in the broadest sense of the term.

The purpose of this PhD was to explore the psycho-social health (PSH) and well-being (WB) of Great Britain's (GB) Wheelchair Basketball (WhB) players over time, starting from when they became disabled and culminating in the London 2012 Paralympic Games. The sample comprised 16 players (8 male, 8 female) and 4 coaches. They were interviewed on three occasions - 2 years before, within a year of and a year after London. Observations spanned this period, whilst data was also collected via two visual methods: auto-photography (AP) and timelining. All data was analysed using a thematic analytical approach. First the challenges to PSH and WB of being disabled are discussed, with the diversity of experience highlighted. Secondly in exploring the role of spinal units and story-tellers in initiating players into sport, a lottery which risked their PSH and WB is exposed. Whilst copious benefits of recreational disability sport are described, being a GB WhB player is revealed as an extreme health rollercoaster. Just as being a Paralympian offers perks and privileges, so too does it risk players becoming obsessed. Performance and health are shown to be uniquely related and yet not always simultaneously achievable. Finally, from the pride of wearing the jersey and competing at a home Paralympics, to shattered dreams and unfulfilled ambitions, London 2012 is relived. The research concludes that creating a 'Healthy Paralympian' is a challenging task and yet winning formula. Recommendations are made to realise this aim, whilst those which have already been adopted by GB WhB are also shared.

This thesis presents a sociological critique of the concept of legacy as it surrounded the London 2012 Paralympic Games. A sociological approach was adopted to challenge much of the spontaneous sociology that surrounds the ascendancy of legacy within the Olympic and Paralympic space. Legacy, disability and the Paralympic Games are the predominant structures of the research problem. The literature review attempts to present a sociology of the sociological approaches in these fields. Underpinning the research design is Bourdieu et al. s (1991) epistemological hierarchy which consists of and proceeds from the break , the construction of a conceptual framework to the empirical design. This hierarchy contributed to the repositioning of legacy from the pursuit of cause and effect, or rather away from the pursuit of legitimacy and illegitimacy, of London 2012 to a study of the proposed and imposed causes and effects, legitimations and illegitimations of it. Aligned to this repositioning is the primary collection of data through interviews with five different institutional fields: government, media, corporate sponsors, disability sport and disability institutions. The research findings present a positional analysis of the inter- and intra-relations of these respective fields. In the discussion key symbolic struggles and issues are presented for each field with particular attention given to the development of the positive leaning and legitimising best ever Paralympic narrative and to the commercial and political legitimacy of the London 2012 Paralympic Games. It is concluded that legacy is ultimately a symbolic struggle of different visions of respective agents and institutions that are unable to achieve these absolute visions or ends.

No description available.