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West Ham 2012 stadium plan dashed Caborn defuses 2012 stadium row
(1 day later)
The proposal that West Ham could move into the Olympic stadium after the 2012 Games appears to have been ruled out. Sports Minister Richard Caborn has denied he is in dispute with his government colleagues over the long-term use of the Olympic Stadium.
London 2012 chairman Lord Coe told BBC Five Live Sport that any club interested in taking over the stadium would have to stump up £100m. He had been reported to be hoping for a football team to move in after 2012.
He added: "At the current moment, none of the clubs taking a look at this are remotely in the same ball park." But on Sunday Culture Secretary Tessa Jowell said this idea was a non-starter and claimed Caborn had been misquoted.
Coe insisted that London 2012 would honour the pledge to provide an enduring legacy for athletics. Caborn was back on message on Monday, saying: "We have given a promise which we will honour - the core of the stadium will be athletics."
"If football wants to play within the confines of a track and field configuration, are prepared to give track and field primary usage, and are coming to the table with £100m-plus to make this a viable option of course we would look at it," said Coe. Speaking to BBC Sport, Caborn said the government's position was "very clear" and "not negotiable".
He said that approaches from others areas inside and outside sport would be considered but the commitment to an athletics legacy was paramount. Last month, however, Caborn had been quoted as saying that West Ham were in "very serious negotiations" with Olympic authorities about moving into the 2012 stadium in Stratford.
"We are sticking by the commitments we made to the International Olympic Committee in Singapore that this would be primarily an athletics legacy and off the back of that we are prepared to scope all sorts of other partnerships," he said. The Hammers have been linked with a move to the state-of-the-art venue although London rivals Spurs have already ruled out any interest in moving to the stadium.
"It could be Premiership rugby or some of the better-heeled non-League clubs in the area - and we are not closing our eyes to the potential as an entertainment venue as well." There is no offer on the table, nor is there one from rugby or any other sport, but we would look at anybody who came along in the future Sports Minister Richard Caborn Caborn is believed to have been keen for a London football team to do what Manchester City did when they moved into the Commonwealth Games stadium in 2002.
Not only are we bound by what we were told by the IOC but we are bound by a belief in the importance of there being an athletics legacy Culture Secretary Tessa Jowell This, however, ran contrary to most of what London 2012 chairman Lord Coe, Jowell and London Mayor Ken Livingstone have been saying - namely, the 80,000-seat stadium will scaled down to 25,000 seats after the Games and reserved for athletics.
Coe's comments follow those of Culture Secretary Tessa Jowell, who said she had met West Ham chairman Terence Brown and managing director Paul Aldridge in the summer to discuss a possible move. Caborn's most recent comments, however, bring him back into line with statements made by Jowell and Coe over the weekend.
She told them about the £100m price tag and stressed that they would have to keep the running track and meet the cost of building a dual-use stadium. Speaking to BBC Five Live on Sunday, Coe said any club interested in taking over the stadium would have to stump up £100m and agree to keeping the running track around the pitch.
Jowell told the Sunday Telegraph: "They said they would obviously not be interested on that basis." "At the current moment, none of the clubs taking a look at this are remotely in the same ball park," said Coe.
Sports Minister Richard Caborn was believed to be in favour of a football club moving into the stadium after the Games, which is a scenario that happened when Manchester City took over the Commonwealth Games stadium in 2002. He said that approaches from inside and outside sport would be considered but the commitment to an athletics legacy was paramount.
He was quoted last month as saying West Ham were in serious negotiations with Olympic authorities about taking over the stadium. Coe's comments followed those made by Jowell, who said she had met West Ham chairman Terence Brown and managing director Paul Aldridge in the summer to discuss a possible move.
But others, including London Mayor Ken Livingstone, did not want the stadium handed over to a football club because London's bid to host the Games contained an agreement with the International Olympic Committee to provide a lasting legacy for athletics. At that meeting she told them about the £100m price tag and stressed that they would have to keep the running track and meet the cost of building a dual-use stadium.
That would mean the stadium keeps its running track and its capacity would be reduced from 80,000 to 25,000. Jowell told The Sunday Telegraph: "They said they would obviously not be interested on that basis."
The presence of a running track and reduced capacity are not attractive to football clubs and led to West Ham's Premiership rivals Tottenham ruling out a move to the stadium. Jowell also said that Caborn had been misquoted and added that a dual-purpose stadium had been ruled out because of the expense.
Jowell said that Caborn had been misquoted and added that a dual-purpose stadium had been ruled out because of the expense. "Not only are we bound by what we were told by the IOC but we are bound by a belief in the importance of there being an athletics legacy," said Jowell.
"When we were going through the first stage of the cost review and looking at the various options on legacy costs, we discovered that football would actually be much more expensive because we are absolutely bound to provide an athletics legacy and running a parallel procurement is very, very expensive," said Jowell. Work has already started on the 2012 stadium in Stratford"So football was really knocked out at that point."
"Not only are we bound by what we were told by the IOC but we are bound by a belief in the importance of there being an athletics legacy. But she admitted that there had been a difference of opinion between her and Caborn on the subject of how the stadium would be used after the Games.
"So football was really knocked out at that point." "Have we had a different view about this? Yes, I think it is fair to say that Dick was keener on a football legacy than I was, but the idea that we have fallen out is just not true," she said.
Caborn, however, still does not seem to be singing from exactly the same hymn sheet as Jowell, as he appears to remain open-minded about the prospect of an approach from a football team.
"We are looking to see if there are any others who can come in," he told BBC Sport.
"There are a lot of people that want to use the stadium like that.
"(The idea of a football club moving in) is dead in the water until someone wants to come in and revive that.
"There is no offer on the table, nor is there one from rugby or any other sport, but we would look at anybody who came along in the future."