2006 Keith Murdoch Oration

Making sport matter for the next generation

Lord Sebastian Coe KBE - champion Olympic athlete, member of the House of Lords and head of London's successful bid for the 2012 Olympic Games - delivered the 2006 Keith Murdoch Oration on 16 March.

Lord Coe spoke about the importance of sport in young people’s lives and how it is under threat in modern society. He discussed the positive impact major sporting events such as the Commonwealth Games and Olympic Games can have, and the important role the media can play in inspiring young people to take up sport.

Read the lecture transcript >

	Format	Length
Listen to the entire lecture [~14.5MB]	mp3	41m 37s
Listen to the lecture - part 1 [~6.5MB]	mp3	18m 41s
Listen to the lecture - part 2 [~6MB]	mp3	16m 55s
Listen to the lecture - part 3 [~2MB]	mp3	5m 57s

Lord Sebastian Coe is regarded as one of the world's finest athletes. A champion 800m and 1500m runner, he set 12 world records and received four Olympic medals in his celebrated career. He won the gold medal for the 1500m in Moscow in 1980 and again in Los Angeles in 1984. He also won silver in the 800m at the same two events. He held the world record for the 800m until 1997.

Lord Coe retired from competitive athletics in 1990 and, utilising his Economics degree, pursued a career in sports administration. In 1991 Lord Coe was awarded an OBE. In 1992 he was elected to the British Parliament and in 1994 became a Parliamentary Private Secretary to a number of Conservative MPs.

In 2004 Lord Coe was appointed Chairman of London 2012 and steered the capital's successful bid to become the first city to stage the Olympics three times. In July 2005 he was named Chairman of the London Organising Committee for the 2012 Olympic Games. He received a knighthood in the 2006 New Years' Honours list.

Sponsors

The 2006 Keith Murdoch Oration is proudly supported by a range of generous sponsors.