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Delegation to visit the city this weekSPORTS chiefs from the Serbian National Olympic and Paralympic Committee are visiting Sheffield this week to see if their national squads could benefit from the world class sports facilities the city offers.SportsPulse, the organisation spearheading the development of South Yorkshire’s sports sector, has invited the delegation to Sheffield to showcase the range of facilities and expert support available to international athletes for training camps ahead of the Beijing and London Olympics and Paralympics.The visit is a major coup for SportsPulse and Sheffield being the first of several the organisation, which is based at Sheffield Hallam University, is hoping to secure for the city, as part of its drive to help Sheffield develop into a leading centre of sporting excellence.The Serbian delegation will be looking at the wealth of sporting venues available to host international training camps in several sports at Ponds Forge International Sports Centre, Don Valley Stadium and the English Institute of Sport Sheffield, as part of their preparation for major sporting competitions.“We are delighted to be welcoming representatives from the Serbian National Olympic and Paralympic Committee to Sheffield. Serbia has a growing array of sporting talent, and some big hitters including the world number four men’s basketball team, and of course, two star tennis players. Such international teams are a great example of the calibre of athletes we want to come and benefit from Sheffield and its first class venues and facilities,” said David Curtis, SportsPulse’s Director. “Through such visits, we will highlight to national decision-makers and sporting chiefs that Sheffield has everything needed to host high quality training camps in a wide range of sports, particularly ahead of the Beijing and of course London 2012 Games. We hope the Serbian delegation is the first of many coming to see the city first hand,” he added.

Serbia is a leading nation in the sports of basketball, water polo and volleyball. The Balkan nation also excels in football, handball and track and field – sports in which Serbia is planning to participate in Beijing. The Beijing Games will be the first time since 1912 that the country has competed under its own national identity – it previously competed with Montenegro in 2004 and as part of the former Yugoslavia for decades before that.Serbia and Montenegro took Olympic water polo silver in the men’s event behind Hungary at Athens and Yugoslavia the bronze in Sydney in 2000. The Paralympic team came away from Athens with a bronze medal in the men’s F12 javelin.The delegation – Dr Branislav Jevcic (corr), Operations Sports Director of the National Olympic and Paralympic Committee and Mr Dejan Kozlina (corr), the committee’s Marketing Manager - will be met and escorted by Serbian-speaking Gerry Montgomery, Chairman of MLS, a leading Sheffield-based sports consultancy, George Tokos (corr), British Serbian Council member and MLS’ Director and Head of Events John Timms.They will tour venues this Friday morning (Jan 18) and be given a civic reception by the Lord Mayor of Sheffield, Cllr Arthur Dunworth on Thursday evening (Jan 17) at Sheffield Town Hall where they will meet representatives from the London Organising Committee of the Olympic Games, the local Serbian community, the Serbian Embassy and sports representatives as well as dignitaries from Sheffield and South Yorkshire.John Timms, who is co-ordinating the International Training Camp Programme for SportsPulse, said the Serbian visit was a great way to start Sheffield’s Olympic year.“As well as hosting major sporting competitions, Sheffield is perfectly placed to offer excellent preparation facilities for athletes. We hope the Serbian delegation will be impressed by what they see at our venues and want to bring their sporting stars to the city over the next four years. We hope it is the start of a great relationship between Sheffield and Serbia,” he added.


The Serbians will also meet one of SportsPulse’s Sports Ambassadors Peter Scantlebury, Head Coach of Sheffield Sharks basketball team, and key players in the world of sport in the city and beyond. SportsPulse has already held successful international training camps for the Saudi Arabian wheelchair athletes and the Bermudian national women’s basketball team.