IOC president praises London's 'happy and glorious' Olympic Games

International Olympic Committee president Jacques Rogge has praised London's "happy and glorious" Olympic Games after the Closing Ceremony concluded the two-week event.

In a speech marking the end of the Games of the XXXth Olympiad, Rogge paid tribute to the athletes, organisers, volunteers and spectators for ensuring London's success as Host City.

Rogge said: "The legacy of the Games will become clear in many ways. Concrete improvements in infrastructure will benefit the host nation for years to come.

"The human legacy will reach every region of the world. Many young people will be inspired to take up a sport or to pursue their dreams."

As the Games drew to a close, the government announced that UK Sport will receive around £125m a year over the next four years to support Team GB going into the Rio 2016 Games.

It comes after Team GB recorded its best medal tally for more than 100 years, with 29 gold medals ensuring a third place finish in the London 2012 Medal Table.

Exchequer funding for elite athletes will remain in place until the end of the current spending review period in 2014-15 - the first two years leading up to Rio 2016.

However, an exception has now been made to commit further funding up until 2016-17 in an attempt to offer greater "financial certainty" to athletes in the final years before the Games.

Baroness Sue Campbell, Chair of UK Sport, said: "The government's announcement to maintain funding in our high performance system demonstrates vision and commitment to sustain this level of high performance beyond London onto Rio and beyond."

A number of sports have already reported increased interest since the start of the Games, with rowing and cycling among those seeing an immediate impact due to Team GB's success.

• Prime Minister David Cameron has also confirmed that competitive sport will be at the heart of the new primary school curriculum - using the London Games as inspiration.

The PE programme of study will be refined to help pupils to become physically active over a sustained period of time, while providing chances to compete in competitive environments.

Cameron said: "I want to use the example of competitive sport at the Olympics to lead a revival of competitive sport in primary schools."

• Sebastian Coe, chair of the London 2012 organising committee, has been appointed by the Prime Minister as a new Olympics legacy ambassador.

An Olympics Legacy unit is to be established in the Cabinet Office, with Lord Coe to advise Cameron on plans in four areas - economic, sporting, volunteering and regeneration.

Cameron said: "I cannot think of a better person than Seb to be our ambassador to the global market-place and make sure we achieve our ambitious legacy targets."

• Away from the sport sector, other leisure industries have benefited from the London Games, according to a survey of 100 large companies undertaken by Deloitte.

The official professional services provider to London 2012 found that 68 per cent of travel, hospitality and leisure firms had seen an increase in demand since the Games commenced.

Heather Hancock, lead London 2012 partner at Deloitte, said: "For large chains with stores, hotels and restaurants across the capital, opportunities have been there to exploit."

Click here to read Jacques Rogge's speech from the London 2012 Olympic Games Closing Ceremony.

Click here for more information about the funding announced for UK Sport and click here for more information about government plans for competitive sport in primary schools

Click here for more from Deloitte on how some businesses have reported a increase in demand due to the London Games.

The latest issue of Sports Management magazine takes an in-depth look at London 2012 - to read, visit: www.sportsmanagement.co.uk/2012

Image: sam_churchill/flickr