Andy Hunt, chief executive of the British Olympic Association (BOA), employer of Sir Clive and one of the bodies behind the scheme, said in an interview with insidethegames that once “a certain threshold” in commercial sponsorship was reached, “a proportion of that money then does go into funding the Olympic Coaching Programme in the first 12 months”.

 

 

He described this proportion as “a small tranche”, adding: “The reason it goes in first is everybody agrees, if you are going to make an elite coaching intervention, you need to do it now not in two years’ time.

 

"There’s no point funding the Olympic Coaching Programme in 2011.”

 

Launched earlier this year in an effort to plug a £50 million shortfall in funding for British athletes hoping to compete in the London 2012 Olympics, Team 2012 brings together all major organisations involved in supporting British Olympic and Paralympic sport.

These bodies have pooled rights and aligned fundraising ambitions in an attempt to present as compelling a marketing proposition as possible to existing international and domestic Olympic sponsors.

 

Though some high-profile Olympians have yet to commit to the scheme, Hunt said that “close to 1,000” athlete deeds had been returned and that the scheme was “very close” to signing a presenting, or lead, partner.

 

“We’ve got a number of other sponsors that are lining up in the wings,” he added.

 

“This is one of the most exciting funding opportunities for British sport – it really is.

 

“And it’s not just about filling this £50 million gap; it’s actually about creating a new model for private-sector funding of Olympic sports going forward.”

 

He revealed that the BOA’s Olympic Appeal for London 2012 is set to be combined into the Team 2012 programme, “subject to everything being contracted at the end of the day”.

 

Woodward is already working with shooting, one of a number of sports to have seen their financing packages cut after it became clear that prior efforts to raise private-sector funding to support 2012 athletes had failed.

 

Hunt confirmed that the BOA had earmarked very little budget for the Olympic Coaching Programme other than sums raised from Team 2012.

 

“I took a view when I came in [that] we cannot spend any more money on the Olympic Coaching Programme until we have found a sponsor for it,” he said.

 

“That’s exactly what we have done outside of the direct costs that we already had budgeted.”

 

“The great news is the Olympic Coaching Programme now is accepted as part of Mission 2012, as the elite coaching intervention, which is really, really exciting."