West Ham to bid again for stadium

West Ham United has announced it will seek to become a tenant at the Olympic stadium in east London if the Olympic Park Legacy Company (OPLC) reopens the tender process for the site.

A joint statement by West Ham vice-chairman Karren Brady and Newham chief executive Kim Bromley-Derry said they welcomed the move and the club would bid again to become a tenant of the stadium.

Their remarks come after sources said the Government will announce the Olympic Stadium deal with West Ham and Newham Council has collapsed.

Legal challenges by Tottenham Hotspur and Leyton Orient, plus an anonymous complaint to the European Commission, have led to fears that court action could drag on for years while the stadium remains empty.

Ms Brady and Mr Bromley-Derry said: "Uncertainty caused by the anonymous complaint to the European Commission and ongoing legal challenges have put the Olympic legacy at risk and certainly a stadium, as we envisioned it, may not be in place by 2014 due as a direct result of the legal delay.

"Therefore we would welcome a move by OPLC and Government to end that uncertainty and allow a football and athletics stadium to be in place by 2014 under a new process.

"If the speculation is true, West Ham will look to become a tenant of the stadium while Newham will aim to help deliver the legacy.

"Our bid is the only one that will secure the sporting and community legacy promise of the Olympic Stadium - an amazing year-round home for football, athletics and community events of which the nation could be proud.

"The true legacy of London 2012 will be the creation of jobs and a generation of young people inspired by sport based around a community home for all by 2014. We remain committed to help deliver that legacy promise to the people of London and the nation."

A ministerial statement is expected at around lunchtime, saying that the stadium will remain in public ownership and will be leased out to an anchor tenant following a new tender process.

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