2012 Olympic chair Baroness Ford wants track at stadium

The stadium, in Stratford in east London, is still to be completed

Tottenham's chances of moving to the Olympic Stadium appear to have receded after legacy officials insisted a running track must remain at the venue.

Baroness Ford, chair of the Olympic Park Legacy Company (OPLC), insists that, contrary to Tottenham's plans, athletics must be accommodated.

"Bidders would have to meet the Olympic promise for use of an athletics stadium - that has not changed," she said.

West Ham have also submitted a proposal to move to the stadium after the Games.

Baroness Ford insisted the legacy company remains committed to a future for the 80,000-seater stadium that includes more than just football.

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"We want this to be a mixed use and sports stadium," she said, emphasising that there has been "no change" in the pledge that athletics would benefit for the Games.

Hugh Robertson, who was made Olympics minister in May, reinforced Baroness Ford's message.

"Athletics was an absolute core part our bid and it will continue to be part of it," he said.

However Tottenham, who have already been granted permission for a separate new stadium on the site of their current White Hart Lane ground, do not believe the economics of a multi-sport stadium add up.

Tim Leiweke, president of the sports and events company Anschutz Entertainment Group (AEG) - partners in Tottenham's bid - said on Tuesday it would be "a crime if you sacrifice having a perfect football stadium...to do a track and field event every 10 years."

Over the last five years AEG has successfully reinvented the Millennium Dome, which is around three miles from the Olympic Park, as the O2 Arena, a concert and events venue.

The American company and Tottenham's plans for the 2012 Games centrepiece were announced the day after they had received planning permission for their favoured option of a new 56,250-seater stadium on or around the site of their current home.

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By contrast to their London rivals, West Ham have proposed to retain the track as part of a joint scheme with Newham Council.

A 60,000-capacity stadium with the ability to host athletics, music and community events alongside the Premier League side's home games is planned.

The development would seem to comply with the Games organisers' intentions when they built the venue and the commitments made in London's successful bid to host the event.

The then-Olympics minister Tessa Jowell described the stadium as "a purpose-built home for athletics for generations to come" during London's presentation to the International Olympic Committee in July 2005.

UK Athletics, which has backed West Ham's proposal, has attacked Tottenham's surprise bid for the stadium with chairman Ed Warner describing their application as "apparently frivolous".

Crystal Palace, the traditional home of athletics, underwent a £1.5m upgrade in 2004 but is considered unsuitable for major events.

Lord Coe, who is chairman of the London Organising Committee for the 2012 Games, has suggested that a bid to host the 2015 World Championships could be based around the Olympic Stadium.

The legacy company hope to make a decision on a preferred tenant for the stadium in December and have a lease agreed by mid-March.

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