Midfielder believes Hammers can keep Olympic flame burning

Mark Noble is keen for West Ham help build an Olympic legacy. Photo credit: Adam Davy/EMPICS

Wednesday, August 8, 2012
11:10 AM

Mark Noble has backed West Ham’s ambitions to maintain the legacy of the Games

Mark Noble believes West Ham United are well placed to carry on the Olympic legacy long after the London 2012 Games are finished.

Great Britain have already enjoyed their biggest medal haul for over a century and with five days still to go look set to add more honours.

It has seen football take a back seat as the nation celebrates the success of our rowers, cyclists, athletes and other superstars, but the midfielder feels the Hammers can keep that feelgood factor going.

The newly promoted Premier League side have ambitions of making the Olympic Stadium in Stratford their new home as part of that legacy and have created the slogan: “Moore than a football club, creating legacies since 1895”.

Their players wore shirts with the message emblazoned across before their 3-1 pre-season defeat at Ipswich on Saturday and Noble has back the club’s ambition.

“Everyone at the club knows of the importance of a legacy being left for London after the 2012 Olympic Games. No one more so than us all here at West Ham,” he told the official United website.

“We wore T-shirts (before the Ipswich game) that state our intentions on that legacy and how we as a club can help with that if we were to move to the Olympic Stadium.

“We can already see what having the Olympics and the stadium has done to improve parts of London. I am from Canning Town myself and it is really something we can be proud of. Not just for now, but in the future as well.”