There are expected to be up to 50 British athletes competing in six sports, biathlon, bobsleigh, curling, luge, skating and skiing, at the Games which are due to take place between February 12 and 28.

 

Calgary is only an hour's flight from Vancouver and is the same venue that they used before the 2002 Winter Olympics, which were held at Salt Lake City.

 

The city staged a successful Games in 1988, which saw Italy's Alberto Tomba win two gold medals in alpine skiing but which are probably best remembered for the performances of Britain's Eddie "The Eagle" Edwards, who finished last in the ski jump, and the Jamaican bobsleigh team, whose displays were immortalised in the Disney film Cool Runnings.

 

Andy Hunt, the chief executive of the British Olympic Association, said: “In Calgary we can profit from the great venues and facilities used during the Calgary 1988 Olympic Winter Games.

 

"Team GB’s preparation camp prior to the Salt Lake City 2002 Olympic Winter Games was also in Calgary, so we know the area well.

 

"We are confident that it can deliver what we need to allow Team GB to go into the Games as the best prepared team possible.

 

"We have had some fantastic results from several of our winter sport athletes in 2008 and our statistics show that if the Games had been last year, Team GB would have moved from 21st position in the medal table in Turin to 12th in 2008.

 

"In the last couple of months alone we have seen Shelly Rudman, Amy Williams and Kristan Bromley taking medals in World and European Bob Skeleton Championships and Cups, Nicola Minichiello and her team secure a range of medals in World and European Bobsleigh Cups, Jon Eley winning silver in the 500m Short Track Speed Skating World Cup, snowboarder Zoe Gillings grabbing a World Cup bronze and the Kerr siblings take bronze in the European Figure Skating Champs - all this is very exciting with Vancouver just one year away.”

 

Leo Addington, the snowboard's team leader, said: “I have been to and used almost all the venues which will host the Team GB Preparation Camp in 2010 and they are great.

 

"The facilities are all world class and up to World Cup standard with many improvements having been made since the Calgary 1988 Winter Olympics.

 

"Being so close to Vancouver and Whistler makes transition for time zone and jet lag very easy: there are no borders to cross, it is only a one hour flight and there is only a one hour time difference to Vancouver.

 

"Because the facilities are North American built, they have North American attributes, which might be different to training at a European facility - so good preparation for what we can expect to find at the Vancouver 2010 Olympic Winter Games.”

 

Dave Murdoch, the silver medallist at the 2008 World Culing Championships, also backed the choice of Calgary. 

 

He said: "Our team was in Calgary in November last year and the facilities there are truly fantastic.

 

"We are focused and ready for the games in 2010 in Vancouver.

 

"The curling team will be at the camp in Calgary for a couple of weeks prior to the Games and it really is a superb location."