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The London 2012 Olympics will spend “whatever it takes” to guarantee the security of the Games, British Olympic Association chairman Lord Colin Moynihan said.
“The safety of the athletes and everybody (is) paramount. Whatever it takes must be spent in order to secure their safety. That is critical,” he told reporters.
Moynihan, in Sydney for talks with his Australian counterpart John Coates, said that London’s security budget will be far greater than originally planned for.
“In the bid, the amount of money doesn’t reflect what we now realise is necessary to make for a secure Games,” he said.
British newspaper reports said the security budget is likely to blow out to STG1.5 billion ($A3.33 billion), three times the original estimate. The total Games budget is STG9.3 billion ($A20.68 billion).
“The security budget has yet to be finalised,” Moynihan said.
“I fly back from here and we’ve got an Olympic board meeting (this week) when we’ll dicuss it.
“If the security budget is greater than originally conceived, which it is, that is a price you absolutely have to pay to make sure the Games are a success and the athletes are secure, and everybody who comes to the country as our guest … is fully secure.”
He said whatever extra money needed to be spent on security would not jeopardise other aspects of the Games.
“That can’t be traded off against other aspects of the Games,” he said.
The organisers got an early lesson in what a massive undertaking they have on their hands; the London terrorist bombings of July 7, 2005, took place the day after London won the bid.
Moynihan conceded that the current global financial crisis was also having an impact on some sponsorship arrangements.
“It makes it tougher, no question, (but) I believe we will achieve our targets” he said.
“Some are under greater strain than they were a matter of months ago so we need to respond to that.
“Ultimately we’ve given commitments to the IOC and we need to see those commitments through.”
Aside from the Games budget, Britain is spending STG600 million ($A1.33 billion) over six years preparing its team, of which half comes from the national lottery.
Moynihan said he expected Britain would have almost double the 305 athletes it sent to Beijing, where it finished fourth on the medal table with 47 medals, including 19 gold (Australia won 46, including 14 gold).
He said the Games would still be modelled on the Sydney 2000 Olympics, rather than the $US50 billion ($A60.4 billion) extravaganza in Beijing.
Like Sydney, London will be able to use existing venue for sports, including Lord’s cricket ground for archery, Eton school for rowing, Wimbledon for tennis and the Serpentine in Hyde Park for triathlon.
Moynihan also announced that Britain would send more than 200 athletes and officials to take part in the Australian Youth Olympic Festival in Sydney next January as part of their buildup to the London Games.