By Tom Degun

colin moynihan_21-11-11November 21 - Colin Moynihan is embroiled in a new row, this time with the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS), who have refuted claims that the London 2012 Games will fail to deliver a lasting sporting legacy for most young Britons because of six years of failed Government policy.


In an outspoken attack the chairman of the British Olympic Association (BOA) claimed that politicians have failed to honour pledges to drive through a national, sporting revolution at school and grassroots levels.

"At the moment I don't see the policies being put in place that will build on the inspiration of the Games for young people and that will change their lives for a lasting sports legacy," said Moynihan in an interview published in The Observer

"There are too many schools still on two hours or less of sport a week, with no links to the local communities and clubs and volunteers, and that is a missed opportunity in the last six years.

"Politicians of all parties have the responsibility for setting policy and we have not seen that vision delivered."

Moynihan, a former Sports Minister under Margaret Thatcher, also claimed that the new School Games competition, devised by Culture Secretary Jeremy Hunt, is largely inadequate because less than half of state schools had signed up.school games_21-11-11

"There should be a universal policy," said Moynihan, who has previously mooted the possibility of setting up a rival School Games to be run by his organisation.

"There should be no school that isn't engaged in the school sport network for the Government's flagship project.

"Every primary and every secondary school should be involved in that."

But the DCMS have dismissed Moynihan's claims, stating that London 2012 will create a huge legacy for young people, primarily through the new School Games.

"London 2012 will be the legacy Games," a DCMS spokesperson told insidethegames.

"There is a huge programme of ongoing work to deliver a real sporting, business and social legacy from the Games.

"That includes the new School Games competition – for which sign-up is very strong – and £135 million ($211 million/€157 million) being invested in boosting grassroots sport in communities across the country."

The rebuttal is the latest of Moynihan's controversial comments in the past week to come under attack with the BOA chairman currently embroiled in a row with the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA).

Moynihan launched a sustained attack on WADA, calling them "toothless" and calling on the organisation to adopt the BOA bylaw which prevents athletes found guilty of a doping violation from representing Team GB in the Games.

WADA have hit back with John Fahey, the chairman of WADA, saying that "Moynihan makes comments without adherence to the facts."

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