I was delighted to join the City of London delegation this evening to welcome the International Association of Athletics Federations to the Guildhall as they ready to launch their latest world championships. All part of our support for sport, and London as a host city for events.
They are now over a 100 years old having stated life in July 1912, following the closing ceremony of the Olympic Games in the Swedish capital. Then known as the International Amateur Athletic Federation (IAAF) they formed the world governing body for the sport of track and field athletics.
The London Championships will be the 16th in the event’s 34-year history with the first IAAF World Championships being hosted in Helsinki in 1983.
The most recent Championships in Beijing, China, in August, 2015, saw 1931 athletes participate from a record 207 national federations. Kenya topped the medal table for the first time in its history, winning 16 medals of which seven were gold. USA have topped the medal table on 10 occasions...but maybe this year GB can challenge them!
London’s Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park will light up for a spectacular Summer of World Athletics, and I hope we continue to see London as a destination for international sport!