The heads of the Serbian National Olympic Committee visited Sheffield last week to inspect the facilities which will be used by their athletes in the run-up to the London 2012 Olympic Games.

Following the historic agreement announced in May for Serbian athletes to use Sheffield and Leeds as their training base ahead of the Games, Olympic bosses from Serbia toured both cities to see first-hand the range of facilities and accommodation to be used by their sporting stars.

The visit by the Serbian Olympic Committee coincided with Chief Executive of LOCOG (London Organising Committee of the Olympic Games), Lord Seb Coe's visit to Sheffield and the delegation met with Coe at Ponds Forge International Sports Centre.

The visiting party were led by the President of the Serbian National Olympic Committee Vlade Divac and Secretary General Djordje Visacki. Standing at 7ft 1in tall, Divac is a famous former sports star in his own right, as he enjoyed a high-profile 16-year career playing basketball in the NBA in America. During the visit to Sheffield he was introduced to Sheffield's own basketball stars - the Sheffield Sharks.

Their tour also encompassed Sheffield Hallam University's Centre for Sport and Exercise Science, Don Valley Stadium, Sheffield Arena, the English Institute of Sport-Sheffield and Sheffield United FC where Mr Divac, a keen football fan, was given a tour of United's Legends of the Lane museum to look at the heritage of football in the city. He was also shown the original hand written rules of the game from Sheffield FC, as well as given a brief history of the Blades.

In total approximately 100 athletes are expected to form the Serbian Olympic squad for 2012, with Sheffield facilities being used for boxing, judo and athletics. The large team sports of basketball, handball and volleyball are also part of the discussions for the region.

The agreement means that the Serbian squad are expected to undertake at least one major training camp in Leeds and Sheffield every year leading up to London 2012.

Councillor Sylvia Dunkley, Cabinet Member for Culture, Sport and Tourism at Sheffield City Council said

"Hosting international training camps in the lead up to London 2012 is a key part of our plans to maximise the opportunities presented by London hosting the 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games.

"Sheffield's outstanding world class facilities and sporting expertise means that we are perfectly placed to host the Serbian athletes and we are delighted to be able to welcome them to our city."

Sheffield City Council in conjunction with the Sheffield-Lighting the Flame partnership are working together to ensure that the South Yorkshire region benefits from the London 2012 Games. Their work covers six key areas - Increasing participation, increasing opportunities for coaches and volunteers, attracting major events and international training camps, supporting elite athletes, the cultural Olympiad and helping businesses win contracts related to the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games.

For further information on Sheffield - Lighting the Flame for Sport, please visit www.sheffield-lightingtheflame.com or to see how the Yorkshire region is gearing up to London 2012 visit www.yorkshire-gold.com