The Reception was hosted by Deputy Mayor Richard Barnes, who congratulated Team GB on their achievements and handed out certificates to medal winners.
Richard Barnes also congratulated the fundraising work of UK Deaf Sport (UKDS), calling the £150,000 which was raised in a single week a “fantastic achievement”.
Despite receiving no funding from the UK Government, UKDS was able to raise £500,000 to send a 80-strong squad, plus coaches and officials to Taipei.
The Deputy Mayor recognised the significance of the reception being held in London, the Host City for the 2012 Olympics and drew attention to the fact that TeamGB would soon be preparing for the 2013 Deaflympics in Athens – “the home of the Olympics”.
The fundraising mission for Athens has already started in earnest. Interpreting agency Clarion have recently come on board as sponsors to Team GB and guests heard a speech from Clarion Director Sally Chalk, who is running marathons for the Deaflympics cause.
Speeches were read out from Tim Lamb, Chief Executive of the Central Council of Physical Recreation, and Jan Patterson from the British Olympic Association (BOA). Ms Patterson had paid a visit to Taipei to watch TeamGB in action and had declared herself extremely impressed with the standard of sport at the Games.
Attendees were also treated to a video showing the highlights of Taipei. The positive reaction was good news for UKDS who will show the video to potential sponsors.
During the evening London Mayor Boris Johnson popped in to greet athletes. Boris is pictured above with Philip Gerrard and Steve Wherry from UKDS.
Honorary President of UKDS Derek Simmons described the reception as being “an excellent opportunity to network with a number of non-deaf guests and hammer home the GB Deaflympics funding plight.
“It was also for Deaf athletes to thank their donors and to highlight the Team’s successes in Taipei”.
