03 July 2012

The British Olympic Association (BOA) has announced today 71 track and field athletes selected to Team GB for the London 2012 Olympic Games. These athletes join the six marathon runners earlier selected to complete the Team GB athletics line-up, bringing the athletics total to 77, and the overall number of athletes selected to Team GB to 502 from across 25 sports.

With an increase on the Beijing Olympic Games squad size of 68, UK Athletics Head Coach Charles Van Commenee has made it clear a target of eight medals – including at least one gold – has always been the aim for the Team GB athletics squad at London 2012. This ambitious tally would not only double the four medals won in Beijing, but would represent Team GB’s best result since the Seoul  1988 Olympic Games, when a squad featuring Daley Thompson, Linford Christie, Colin Jackson and Steve Cram won eight medals in total, but no gold medals.

The athletes selected to Team GB today are

Men

Adam Gemili – 100m and 4 x 100m (age: 18, born: London, lives: Dartford) – Michael Afilaka

Dwain Chambers – 100m and 4 x 100m (age: 34, born: London, Lives: London) Stuart McMillan

James Dasaolu- 100 and 4x100m (age: 24, born: Croydon, lives: Loughborough) – Kevin Tyler

Christian Malcolm- 200m and 4x100m (age: 33, born: Cardiff, lives: Newport) – Stuart McMillan

James Ellington- 200m and 4x100m (age: 26, born: Lewisham, lives: London – John Powell

Martyn Rooney- 400m and 4x400m (age: 25, born: Croydon, lives: Loughborough) – Nick Dakin

Conrad Williams- 400m and 4x400m (age: 30, born: Kingston, Jamaica, lives: Hither Green) – Linford Christie

Nigel Levine- 400m* and 4x400m (age: 23, born: Bedford, lives: Bedford) – Linford Christie

Andrew Osagie- 800m (age: 24, born: Harlow, lives: Twickenham) – Craig Winrow

Michael Rimmer – 800m (age: 26, born: Southport, lives: Manchester) – Norman Poole

Ross Murray- 1500m (age: 22, born: Gateshead, lives: Twickenham) – Craig Winrow

Andrew Baddeley- 1500m (age: 30, born: Merseyside lives: London) – Andrew Hobdel

Nick McCormick- 5000m (age:30, born: Newcastle, lives: Loughborough) – Lindsay Dunn

Mo Farah- 5,000 and 10,000 (age:28, born: Somalia, lives: Portland, USA) – Alberto Salazar

Chris Thompson – 10,000m (age: 31, born: Barrow-in-Furness, lives Oregon USA) – Mark Rowland

Stuart Stokes – 3000mSC (age: 35, born: Bolton, lives: Bolton) – self

Lawrence Clarke- 110mh (age: 22, born: London, lives: Bath) – Malcolm Arnold

Andrew Pozzi- 110mh (age: 19, born: Leamington Spa, lives: Bristol) – Malcolm Arnold

Andy Turner- 110mh (age: 31, born: Nottingham, lives: Sutton) – Lloyd Cowan

Dai Greene- 400mh and 4x400m (age: 26, born: Llanelli, lives: Trowbridge) – Malcolm Arnold

Jack Green- 400mh and 4x400m (age: 20, born: Maidstone, lives: Bath) – Malcolm Arnold

Rhys Williams – 400mh (age: 28, born: Cardiff, lives: London) – Dan Pfaff

Robbie Grabarz- high jump (age: 24, born: Enfield, lives: Birmingham) – Fuzz Ahmed

Steve Lewis- pole vault (age: 26, born: Stoke on Trent, lives:London) – Dan Pfaff

Greg Rutherford- long jump (age: 24, born: Milton Keynes, lives: Milton Keynes) – Dan Pfaff

Chris Tomlinson- long jump (age: 30, born: Middlesbrough, lives: London) – Frank Attoh

Philips Idowu- triple jump (age: 33, born: Hackney, lives: Birmingham) – Aston Moore

Mervyn Luckwell – javelin (age: 27, born: Milton Keynes, lives: Loughborough) – Esa Utrainian

Lawrence Okoye- discus (age: 20, born: Croydon, lives Croydon) – John Hillier

Brett Morse – discus (age: 23, born:Cardiff, lives: Penarth) – Vesteinn Hafsteinsson

Abdul Buhari – discus (age: 30, born: Nigeria, lives: London) – Mark Wiseman

Carl Myerscough – Shotput (age: 32, born: Blackpool, lives: USA) – self

Alex Smith – Hammer (age:24, born: Hull, lives Hull) – Shane Peacock

Daniel Awde – Decathlon (age: 24, born: Essex, lives Essex) – Greg Richards

Dominic King – 50k Walk (age: 29. Born: Colchester. Lives: Colchester) – Andi Drake

Danny Talbot – 4x100m (age 21, born: Sailisbury, lives: Trowbridge) – Dan Cossins

Simeon Williamson – 4x100m (age: 26, born: London, lives: Enfield) – Glen Mills

Mark Lewis-Francis – 4x100m (age: 29, born: Birmingham, lives: London) – Linford Christie

Richard Buck- 4x400m (age: 25, born: York, lives: Loughborough) – Kevin Tyler

Luke Lennon-Ford – 4x400m (age: 23, born: Sutton Coldfield, lives: London) – Linford Christie

Rob Tobin- 4x400m (age: 28, born: Lincoln, lives: Basingstoke) – Dan Pfaff

Women

Abi Oyepitan – 100m and 200m (age: 32, born: London , lives: London) – Tony Lester

Anyika Onuora-  100m* and 200m (age: 27, born: Liverpool, lives: London) – Christine Bowmaker

Margaret Adeoye- 200m (age: 27, born: London, lives: London) – Linford Christie

Christine Ohuruogu- 400m and 4x400m (age: 28, born: London, lives: London) – Lloyd Cowan

Shana Cox- 400m and 4x400m (age: 27, born: Brooklyn, USA, lives: London) – Lloyd Cowan

Lee McConnell – 400m* and 4x400m (age: 33, born: Glasgow, lives: Glasgow) – Rodger Harkins

Lynsey Sharp – 800m (age: 21, born: Edinburgh, lives: Edinburgh ) – Dave Sunderland

Laura Weightman- 1500m (age: 21, born: Alnwick, lives: Leeds) – Steve Cram

Lisa Dobriskey- 1500m (age:28, born: Ashford, lives:Loughborough) – Ricky Soos

Hannah England- 1500m (age: 25, born: Oxford, lives: Birmingham) – Bud Baldaro

Jo Pavey- 5000m and 10,000m (age: 38, born: Exeter, lives: Exeter) – Gavin Pavey

Julia Bleasdale – 5000m and 10,000m (age: 30, born: Surry, lives: Surrey) Nick Bideau

Barbara Parker- 5000m and 3000mSC (age:29, born: King’s Lynn, lives: California, USA) – Sean Burris

Eilish McColgan- 3000mSC (age: 21, born: Dundee, lives: Carnousie ) – Liz McColgan

Johanna Jackson 20km walk (age: 27, born: Middlesbrough, lives: Leeds ) Andi Drake

Tiffany Porter- 100mh (age: 24, born: Michigan, USA, lives: London) – James Henry

Perri Shakes-Drayton- 400mh and 4x400m(age: 23, born: London, lives: London) – Chris Zah

Eilidh Child- 400mh and 4x400m(age:25, born: Perth, lives: Kinross/Bath) – Malcolm Arnold

Holly Bleasdale- pole valut (age: 20, born: Preston, lives: Chorley) – Julien Raffali Ebezent

Kate Dennison- pole vault (age:28, born: Durban, SA, lives: Loughborough) – Scott Simpson

Shara Proctor- long jump (age: 23, born: Anguilla, lives: Atlanta, USA) – Rana Reider

Yamile Aldama – triple jump (age: 39, born: Havana, Cuba,lives: London) – Frank Attoh

Sophie Hitchon- hammer (age: 20, born: Burnley, lives: Loughborough) – Derek Evely

Goldie Sayers- javelin (age: 29, born: Newmarket, lives: London) – Dan Pfaff

Jessica Ennis- heptathlon and 100mh (age: 26, born: Sheffield, lives: Sheffield) – Toni Minichiello

Katarina Johnson-Thompson – heptathlon (age: 18, born: Liverpool, lives: Liverpool) – Mike Holmes

Louise Hazel- heptathlon – heptathlon (age: 26, born: Southwark, lives: Birmingham) – Aston Moore

Marilyn Okoro- 4x400m (age: 27, born: London, lives: London) – Ayo Falola

Nicola Sanders- 4x400m (age: 30, born: High Wycombe,lives: Bourne End) – Tony Lester

Emily Diamond – 4x400m (age:21  born: Bristol, lives: Bristol) – Jared Deacon

The 2011 World Championships saw Britain’s largest medal haul since 1993, with gold medal winning performances from Mo Farah and Dai Greene and the World Indoor Championships followed suit with a record medal tally, including another two gold medals.

Both reigning outdoor World Champions will represent Team GB in London this summer. They will be joined by former World Champion and current double world silver medallist Jessica Ennis who will be making her first appearance as a member of Team GB, one of 47 Olympic debutants in the squad.

Beijing silver medallist Philips Idowu will be attending his fourth Olympic Games along with Commonwealth bronze medallist Christian Malcolm, who captained Team GB to their most successful World Championships in 2011. Whilst reigning Olympic 400m Champion Christine Ohuruogu will be making her third Olympic appearance.

Olympic debutant Robbie Grabarz catapulted onto the world high jump scene this year with an impressive European title in Helsinki last week, other first time Olympians include Jack Green, Lawrence Clark, Holly Bleasdale, Sophie Hitchon and Andrew Pozzi.

The long jump in London will also represent possible medal opportunities for Team GB, with Shara Proctor breaking a near 30-year-old national record at the Olympic Trials and Greg Rutherford currently ranked joint first in the world.

In one of the most hotly contested events, the women’s 800m, European silver medallist Lynsey Sharp, received the call over a more experienced group of athletes. Her win at the Olympic trials, followed by some intelligent racing that led to a silver medal in Helsinki last week, saw the selectors pick Sharp on a B standard. International rules of the sport mean a B standard athlete can only be selected if there are no A standard athletes in that event selected to the team.

Adam Gemilli is the youngest member of the team at 18 years and 305 days old on the day of the first round of the men’s 100m on 4th August. World Indoor Champion Yamile Aldama takes the honour of being the team’s oldest athlete at 39. She will be just 11 days shy of her 40^th birthday when she steps out for the women’s triple jump competition on August 3^rd.

Team GB Chef de Mission Andy Hunt said:

“As we pass the landmark figure of 500 athletes selected to Team GB, I am delighted to announce such a talented and experienced group of track and field athletes added to Our Greatest Team for the London 2012 Olympics today.

"The progress the athletics squad has made since the last Olympics in Beijing is phenomenal. With a record medal haul of nine medals at the World Indoor Championships earlier this year, they have a fantastic opportunity to produce something special as part of Team GB this summer.

“With the likes of World Champions Mo Farah and Dai Greene, World silver medallists Jessica Ennis and Philips Idowu and reigning Olympic Champion Christine Ohuruogu part of the 71 strong squad, Team GB’s athletes will be aiming to unite and excite the nation with their performances and create moments in the Olympic Stadium in Stratford that will go down in British Olympic history.

“With the passionate and enthusiastic vocal support of the 80,000 strong home crowd behind them, I have every confidence that our track and field athletes will rise to the occasion and inspire many future generations with their exploits on the track, and in the field.”

Head Coach Charles van Commenee believes the team will be very competitive in London:

“I am very proud to have nominated such as strong team of athletes to Team GB. Our collective philosophy since Beijing has been one of raising the bar as we work towards London 2012.

“I believe this team is well prepared to go out there, be competitive and achieve on the greatest sporting stage in front of a home crowd.”

Reigning World and European Champion Mo Farah is delighted with his selection:

"It is an incredible feeling to have been selected to be part of Team GB at a home Olympic Games and I’m honoured to be part of it. Every ounce of hard work has been leading towards this point and now I can’t wait to get to the start line in the Olympic Stadium.

“It is such a big deal to be able to compete in front of home fans and I know their support will mean so much to me and the rest of my teammates. It’s so close now, I’m in Font Romeau doing my final preparations and I’m feeling in great shape going into London after retaining my European title last week.” 

Jesscia Ennis said:

"I am really excited to have made my first Olympic team, and cant wait to compete in London on the 3rd & 4th August in front of a home crowd.  I have been training really hard and feel in great shape and am really looking forward to competing – I know the atmosphere will be amazing!

Dwain Chambers said:

"It is a real honour to be selected as part of Team GB today. For me representing  my country in an Olympics is a  privilege that should never be taken for granted. To be given the opportunity to do so in my home town has been a dream that at times has seemed very distant and is now a reality.  It is now my responsibility to prepare fully for the 100m, the relay, to support all my fellow athletes and all my other colleagues within Team GB. It is a very proud day and I thank the selectors for the confidence and faith they have placed in me."

Robbie Grabarz said:

“It is absolutely fantastic to be selected as part of Team GB. I’m incredibly excited, it’s something that I have dreamed about for a long, long time and to make it a reality this year is amazing. It’ll mean so much to me to compete in front of a home crowd with all that support and hear them cheering me on. It’s going to be a fantastic atmosphere and one I am looking forward to experiencing so much.”

 *Denotes a Head Coach discretionary selection