Visitbritain.Com/Media a Guide for International Media Edition 4
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A guide Brought to you by for international media ©AELTC/Scott Heavey ©AELTC/Scott Edition 4 – August 2015 Ladies’ Singles Final 2014 Wimbledon Championship, London visitbritain.com/media Contents Contents ....................................................................................................................................................... 1 Quick facts about Sport in Britain ......................................................................................................... 3 Introduction to Sport is GREAT ............................................................................................................. 4 Rugby in Britain ......................................................................................................................................... 6 Introduction to Rugby World Cup 2015 ................................................................................................ 7 Fanzones and Festival of Rugby ............................................................................................................ 9 Legacy of the Rugby League World Cup ............................................................................................. 11 Football – enjoying the beautiful game in Britain ............................................................................. 14 Where to… watch the match ......................................................................................................... 17 Where to…take families .................................................................................................................. 18 Where to…enjoy a football experience ....................................................................................... 21 Sporting legacies ..................................................................................................................................... 22 Women’s World Cups in Britain ............................................................................................................ 25 All eyes on Centre Court – tennis in Britain ...................................................................................... 27 Cricket: England’s traditional game .................................................................................................... 29 Golf in Britain ...........................................................................................................................................30 10 great golf courses ............................................................................................................................... 31 ‘The Season’ – see and be seen (and see some sport too!) .......................................................... 33 The most epic participation events in Britain .................................................................................. 35 Wales' Year of Adventure 2016 ........................................................................................................... 39 Britain’s most scenic sportsgrounds ................................................................................................... 41 Britain’s must-do sporting experiences ............................................................................................ 45 Affordable spectator sports ................................................................................................................ 49 Made in Britain: a history of sport........................................................................................................ 51 Thrillseeking in Britain – extreme sports to test your nerves ..................................................... 55 Ready, set, ACTION! ...................................................................................................................... 55 Sports grounds with amazing features ............................................................................................. 58 Run, jump, cycle, relax! Take a sporting holiday in Britain ........................................................... 62 Horse-back adventures ......................................................................................................................... 64 Britain’s most famous & historic sportsgrounds ............................................................................. 67 Stay and play – hotels with sporting activities ................................................................................ 69 Accessible Sport ...................................................................................................................................... 73 Sports museums in Britain .................................................................................................................... 76 Best natural sports grounds ................................................................................................................ 80 Run around Britain: marathons and more ........................................................................................82 Alfresco fitness in Britain ..................................................................................................................... 85 Watersports .............................................................................................................................................. 87 Highland Games ...................................................................................................................................... 90 Sports cafés and restaurants ................................................................................................................ 91 Weird, wacky and wonderful – Britain’s quirkiest sports! .............................................................. 92 Sporting Events Across Britain 2015 – 2017 .................................................................................... 98 August 2015. Destination PR and Editorial Manager: Stephanie Siegle, VisitBritain [email protected] Contributors: Rmishka Singh, Richard Mellor, Roxanne Clark, Chris Mugan, Emma Field, David Taylor, Annabelle Thorpe Please direct enquiries to [email protected] Quick facts about Sport in Britain Did you know? The largest rugby union-devoted stadium in the world, London’s Twickenham Stadium, is sometimes nicknamed The Cabbage Patch, after the land’s original, humble purpose. Find out more about Britain’s most famous sportsgrounds on page 67 The ‘Cherries’ and the ‘Canaries’ are joining the Barclays Premier League when the season kicks off on 8 August – discover who these teams are, and all about the destinations on page 14 This year’s Rugby World Cup, held in England and Wales in September and October, will be the first-ever to do so to see an official Fanzone in every host city. Find out where to celebrate in the Fanzones, the Festival of Rugby and the host destinations of Rugby World Cup 2015 on page 7 You can speed around Silverstone racing track, climb in the handholds of the expedition team that first conquered the world’s highest mountain in 1953 and tour Game of Thrones location sets by bike – just some of Britain’s must-do sporting experiences, on page 45 The Women’s Rugby and Cricket World Cups are coming to these shores in 2017 – we unveil more about where to cheer on your female sports idols as audience numbers grow on page 25 If you had been among the English upper classes in the 1880s chances are you would have played a game of Whiff Whaff as an after-dinner parlour game – what’s that, you ask? Ping pong to you and I! Find out about that, and other sports made in Britain on page 51 August is the month for indulging your eccentric side in Britain. You can gravy- wrestle, snail-race, bog-snorkel and race a train if you fancy. See page 92 for a calendar of odd sporting events There are numerous accessible sporting activities in Britain, from circus-skills to flying an aeroplane. See page 73 for details The British ‘Season’ – as much about how big your hat is as the results of sporting events, it’s a quintessentially British experience to attend horse races, sailing events and polo matches. Read about it on page 33 Underneath the home of Premier League champions Chelsea FC you’ll find Under The Bridge, a purpose-built, 550-capacity music venue, which has seen R'n'b star Jason Derulo, rock outfit Kasabian and Alicia Keys all play there. Discover other sportsgrounds with amazing features on page 58 Introduction to Sport is GREAT Sport is woven into the fabric of British life. Children kick a football around in the park on Saturday mornings. 60,000 fans scream support in a stadium while millions watch around the world. A genteel game of village cricket unfolds on a Sunday afternoon. The national anthem is sung in Welsh before a game of rugby in Cardiff. Glamorous ladies totter in high heels at Ascot as racehorses thunder by. A breeze stirs the flags as golfers tee off on the Old Course at St Andrews. Strawberries and cream slip down nicely amid the thwack-grunt- thwack of tennis at Wimbledon. To understand the British and Britain you need to understand its sports. Britain invented or codified a number of sports including football, rugby, cricket and golf. Venues such as Wembley, Lord’s, Old Trafford, Brands Hatch and the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park are synonymous around with the world with top-class action. It’s thrilling to watch Premier League football teams on TV if you’re in Shanghai, Sydney or Seattle but imagine actually being there! It’s all