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Hammers chase Olympic dream

Monday 6th February 2012 9:54

Olympic Stadium: Hammers desire

Olympic Stadium: Hammers desire

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West Ham vice-chairman Karren Brady insists the club remain committed to the idea of moving to the Olympic Stadium.

The Olympic Park Legacy Committee abandoned the original deal to sell the venue to the Hammers last October amid concerns over delays caused by legal challenges from Tottenham and Leyton Orient.

The stadium will now remain in public ownership after the Games and will be rented out from 2014 to the successful bidder.

Reports last week suggested the Hammers had cooled their interest in the prospect but Brady insists their hat is still in the ring.

She told The Independent: "I wouldn't be dragging my body to all the meetings, or reading through a 900-page document every night, if we weren't still committed.

"We do genuinely believe that we could make the stadium a success, both in terms of our physical presence, and encouraging football supporters to become involved in other sports.

"It's too big and too serious a conversation to say 'if I were betting'. And I don't want to negotiate in public. This is a serious process to make sure everything is right.

"We're not going there for one match, it's 99 years. But our commitment to make the stadium work is still there. Bids are due in by 23 March, and we've done that."

Brady admits she was bitterly disappointed to see West Ham's proposed takeover of the venue fall through after playing a central role in preparing their original bid.

"My biggest disappointment is that I spent two years of my life getting to be preferred bidder for the Olympic Stadium," she added.

"It was their competition, their rules, and we abided by that, and then not being the preferred bidder, and having to go through another process, is like someone giving you the keys and then changing the locks.

"We should now be planning a future there, as opposed to having to go back and review everything."

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