Britain eye Cyprus for Athens 2004 training camp
( 2002-04-26 11:31 ) (7 )

Britain's athletes may make their final preparations for the 2004 Athens Olympic Games on Cyprus after the Cypriot and British Olympic Committees signed a preliminary agreement on Thursday.

The letter of intent confirms the British team's preference for a training base on the Mediterranean island, although officials emphasised that further negotiations needed to take place before it was considered a done deal.

"It indicates how very serious we are in terms of trying to pursue the Cyprus option because of its climate, history, sports facilities, (and) receptiveness of the Cyprus government," British Minister for Sport Richard Caborn told reporters.

Caborn said "hard negotiations still had to take place" before a final deal was reached.

Training in Cyprus would give athletes the opportunity to get acclimatised to the hot weather in the Greek capital.

In August temperatures in Nicosia and Athens reach around 35 degrees centigrade.

In any case, a BOA spokesman briefed Reuters on Tuesday that several sites on the Mediterranean would share hosting for British athletes preparing for the Games.

"What might be the perfect place for one kind of sportsman may not suit another so we're looking at various sites," he said.