Many of the UK's top sailors live and train in the Weymouth area

The new �8m sailing academy site, not yet complete, is currently being used by the country's top sailors to prepare for the Athens Olympics.

Britain's sailing team came top of 69 competing countries at the Sydney Olympics in 2000, winning three golds and two silver medals.

London's bid will be officially unveiled on Friday in Covent Garden.

The benefits and the prestige for Weymouth and Portland will be incalculable Bill Ludlow

Many of the country's top Olympic sailors regularly train at the sailing academy and Ben Ainsley, who took gold at Sydney, trained for both the 1996 and 2000 Olympics at Portland.

Bill Ludlow, Academy Chairman said: "It has been our dream for the last 25 years, that one day we may be able to utilise the finest small boat sailing waters in northern Europe, here at Portland, to host a British Olympic Games.

"Shortly we will have a world-class Sailing Academy at Osprey Quay, capable of handling the enormity of such an event and certainly equal to any similar facility in the world.

"If Britain wins the bid to host the games in 2012, the benefits and the prestige for Weymouth and Portland will be incalculable.