UK Business Information / Sports Industry & Equipment
As the 2012 London Olympics fast approaches, the government and regional development agencies are investing more heavily in the sporting infrstructure of the UK.
EAST MIDLANDS
Loughborough University has long held a reputation as being the UK's leading centre for sporting innovation and excellence. Many top sportspeople, particularly atheletes trained at Loughborough.
The new £15 million Sports Technology Institute at Loughborough furthers the university's reputation as a leader in its field. The Institute’s researchers seek to have a positive social and economic impact on sport globally through excellent engineering research and teaching. Other aims for the institute include boosting enterprise in the sport and leisure sector and developing cutting-edge technology to assist elite athletes in preparation for the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games.
Facilities available to businesses at the Institute include computer modelling and simulation, design and prototype manufacture, analysis of ball/implementation impacts, instrumentation and measurements, equipment testing, and player testing and analysis.
Spin-outs from the Sports Technology Institute incubator programme so far are Sports Dynamics Ltd, Progressive Sports technologies Ltd and Smart Weights Ltd. All these companies have been funded by Loughborough University.
The Sports Technology Research Group, based at the Institute has an international reputation for its work with global brands on the design, simulation, testing and manufacture of sports equipment.
LONDON
Brunel University in London is another centre of excellence in sport. Alumni of the university have competed at the highest level in a variety of sports, many representing their country.
Brunel recently invested £14 million into developing its sports facilities. The University is one of only four High Performance Athletic Centres used by the British Athletics Team.
NORTH WEST
Manchester in the North West region has a great heritage when it comes to sport. Two of England's leading football teams are from Manchester, the city has hosted the Commonwealth Games and both Manchester and Manchester Metropolitan Universities are known for being strong at sport.
Sportcity, in East Manchester, is the largest concentration of sporting venues in Europe and is less than two miles from the city centre. Originally developed for the 2002 Commonwealth Games, the site includes a 48,000 seat stadium, velodrome, tennis centre, 6,500 seat Manchester Regional Arena and the National Squash Centre.
A number of sports governing bodies are located in Manchester, including the English Institute of Sport, The British Cycling Federation and The English Squash and Racketball Association
