The 2012 Summer Olympic development process began in 2005, following the successful London bid for the 2012 Summer Olympics, and ran until the games in 2012. While many of the plans were included in the bid portfolio, which gained the favour of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) over the four other bids on 6 July 2005, there were more details released and decisions made afterwards. The London Organising Committee of the Olympic Games and Paralympic Games (LOCOG) was created to oversee many of these developments, though such a large-scale event requires the co-operation of many other agencies. These organizations are sometimes integral parts of the London 2012 plans, while others are unrelated but can still have a great effect.
The day after the announcement saw one of the worst terrorist attacks in Britain, as London was struck by four bomb blasts. While the motivation was not linked specifically to the success of the bid it was to have an effect on the development and planning of the event.
Timelines
Since the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney, Australia the IOC have developed a "master schedule" to ensure that the planning and development of the Games goes smoothly. Gilbert Felli, the IOC Executive Director for the Olympic Games, explained the master schedule as "a timeline of milestones that need to be met for the Games to be delivered on time." On 24 January 2006 LOCOG released full details of their plan, based partly on the IOC Master Schedule.
As of early 2005 60% of the venues and facilities were in place. The bid needed to detail the time plan for any further construction work that was required, and the London 2012 team came up with a schedule that would see all the facilities ready by 2011.
Announcements and developments
Sports
27 October 2005: Women's boxing is officially ruled out of the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing, China by the IOC, but Kelly Fairweather, their director of sport, says that it is being considered for the 2012 Games. 11 November 2005: The Scottish Football Association (SFA) rule out the participation of their players in a Great British team in the football events. Players from England and Northern Ireland will compete together in the team, with the Football Association of Wales (FAW) still deciding on their position. The team gained automatic qualification to the competition because the UK is the host nation – as there is no British team competing in the UEFA Under-21 Championships (the qualifying tournament) it is likely to be the only time such a team will compete in the Olympics. The BOA appealed for both the SFA and FAW to reconsider their positions, quoting statistics showing the apparent public support for the team. 9 February 2006: An appeal against the removal of baseball and softball from London 2012 is rejected by the IOC. On 15 January 2008, Aldershot Army Base is chosen over Bath and Loughborough universities to be the training camp for the British Olympic team. 29 May 2009: After last-ditch talks prompted by a FIFA deadline, the four national federations within the UK come to a compromise regarding football participation at the Games. By that time, Northern Ireland had pulled out of any potential "Team GB". On that date, the four federations sent a letter to FIFA stating that while the Scottish, Welsh, and Northern Ireland federations would not participate in unified Olympic men's and women's football teams, they would not prevent England from fielding teams under the Great Britain banner for the Games.