The QEII, which was opened by the Queen in 1986, was chosen because of its views over Westminster and its proximity to the Olympic lanes, which prioritise Games traffic and link the West End hotels with the Olympic Park.

It is uniquely situated amongst Big Ben, The Houses of Parliament and Westminster Abbey, where Prince William is due to marry Kate Middleton later this month.

The venue will be rechristened as "Casa Italia" during the duration of the Olympics and is expected to entertain a series of high-profile guests, including Italy's Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi.

CONI, Italy's National Olympic Olympic, will use six floors of massive Conference Centre, covering more than 6,000 square meters, with catering for 2,100 people at a time.

It will also feature a "Made in Italy" expo which will showcase some of the country's best known exports, including food and wine.

During last year's Winter Olympics in Vancouver the Italians set-up base at·Roundhouse Community Centre.

Italy had been based Haidian Exhibition Hall during the 2008 Olympics in Beijing, a venue they had paid €1.1 million (£965,000/$1.5 million) to use.

But officials are much more excited by the prospect of their location for London 2012.

"This is the best Casa Italia we've had since its introduction in Los Angeles in 1984," said Giovanni Petrucci, the President of CONI, after unveiling details of the deal at a press conference in Rome.

"It will be very welcoming and hopefully we'll celebrate many medals there."

The Italians are the latest National Olympic Committee to secure a London hospitality house.

Other venue contracts have been awarded to 45 Millbank by Georgia, No 4 Hamilton Place by Japan, Alexandra Palace by Holland, Somerset House by Brazil, Old Billingsgate by France, Glaziers' Hall by Switzerland and the Museum of London Docklands by Germany.

Sochi 2014 officials, meanwhile, have unveiled plans to set-up an ice rink at Marble Arch in the heart of the capital.

The Russian Olympic Committee are expected to release details of a separate hospitality venue later this year.

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