Barking and Dagenham Borough Liberal Democrats

C4 seal 2012 deal

By Paul Carter

Channel 4 will broadcast the 2012 Paralympic Games, Disability Now can reveal, having beaten the BBC to secure the rights.

The London Organising Committee of the Olympic and Paralympic Games (LOCOG) said that Channel 4 was awarded the rights following a "highly competitive" tender process, and ends months of speculation that the Games could have been broadcast on pay-per-view, subscription television.

Channel 4 has said it will broadcast over 150 hours of television coverage, and will run its biggest ever marketing campaign to promote the Games, including completely rebranding the channel with a Paralympic theme immediately after the finish of the Olympics.

The deal also includes two peak time ten-part documentaries in 2011 and 2012, and coverage of the Paralympic torch relay.

Though the move to award Channel 4 the Games has been widely well received by those close to the Paralympics, there has been some surprise at the decision, especially considering the station's current lack of a wide-ranging sports portfolio.

However, Kevin Lygo, Channel 4's Director of Television and Content, feels that the company has a more than adequate track record to make their Paralympics coverage a success.

"Channel 4 has done more than any other broadcaster to bring disability into the mainstream and we have a great track record of broadÂcast innovation with sports like Test cricket," he said.

"We are genuinely thrilled to be given this opportunity to work with LOCOG to bring Paralympic sport into full public focus before, during and beyond the 2012 Games and to deliver a lasting legacy, including altering public attitudes to disability and disability sport."

The move to switch from the BBC, which has broadcast coverage of every Paralympics since 1980, will no doubt be viewed as a watershed moment for disability sport in this country, and truly cements the Paralympics as a marketable asset in their own right, stepping out from the shadow of the Olympics.

Roger Mosey, the BBC's Director of London 2012, said that his team were "naturally disappointed," but denied that the future of the corporation's commitment to disability sport had been jeopardised by LOCOG's decision.

"We will, of course, continue to support the Paralympics, and our commitment to disability sport in general remains," he said.

He continued: "Inevitably, the decision means we'll be showing our normal schedule on the main television channels instead of what we'd offered as our most extensive ever live Paralympic coverage. But we unambiguously want the Paralympics to be as much of a success as the rest of the year, and we wish Channel 4 all the best with their coverage."

Lord Burns, Channel 4's Chairman Designate, said: "For Channel 4, the London Paralympic Games will be the main event, not a sideshow to the Olympics; the Games will define our year in 2012 and take over Channel 4 for their duration. The Paralympics will be one of the most significant sporting events to be staged in Britain for many years and we're confident the more comprehensive and more cross-platform coverage we are offering can connect the Games with the widest possible cross-section of British viewers.

Dame Tanni Grey-Thompson, winner of 11 Paralympic gold medals, welcomed LOCOG's decision not to award the games to a subscription-based broadcaster, such as Sky or ESPN.

She said: "I am pleased that the Paralympic Games will be shown by a terrestrial broadcaster in the UK in 2012. Channel 4 has some exciting plans for its coverage and marketing support. I look forward to seeing these plans progress in the coming months and years ahead on the road to London 2012 "

Sir Philip Craven, President of the International Paralympic Committee (IPC) agreed.

"The IPC congratulates Channel 4 as a free to air public broadcaster in being awarded the national television rights for the UK," he said.

"I am sure they will work diligently in portraying just what a magnificent event the Paralympic Games really are, what Paralympic athletes are able to achieve and how they can inspire the world with their performances.

Dee Doocey, the Liberal Democrat London Assembly Olympics Spokesperson said she "wholeheartedly" congratulated LOCOG's decision to keep the Games free, calling it "a decision which will be welcomed by every Paralympic athlete and organisation".

"This is a great start in honouring the commitments that Seb Coe made in Singapore that the 2012 London Games would be the most accessible ever, and that under no circumstances would the Paralympics be an 'add on' to the Olympics."