The handover of the IAAF flag to London, venue of the next World Athletics Championships, "could be the start of the next big stage of securing a legacy for the sport after the London Olympics," according to Ron Lewis of the LONDON TIMES. London will follow Beijing as host of the world championships as it followed the Chinese capital as host of the Olympics. London 2017 CEO Niels de Vos said that London "will be the best world championships in history." De Vos: "Big events are what this country thrives on; 2017 will drive massive interest not only in years leading up to it, but in the years after it." It will be the first time the world or European championships have been staged in Britain. De Vos said, "Before we never had the stadium. World championships require a stadium with a minimum capacity of 30,000 and we didn't have that." De Vos believes that securing athletics at the Olympic Stadium every summer for the next 50 years "can ensure that the sport will remain in the mainstream for that period of time" and that winning the right to stage the World Championships in two years' time was "crucial to that." De Vos: "Securing the track in the stadium was always promised, but it was by no means certain. Having a clear use for it post-Games was always important." By making the stadium a "focal point of athletics," De Vos is also hopeful that the live audience for the sport "will remain strong." He said, "These things happen in stages. London 2012 brought a whole new audience to athletics and many have stayed with us" (LONDON TIMES, 8/31).
