The event will be ‘the greatest sporting show on earth’, according to the Scottish Labour leader who has sent athletes her best wishes.

© STV

Scottish Labour leader Johann Lamont has said the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games will be "a fantastic event for the whole of the UK".

Ms Lamont said she is "deeply proud" of the Games as a Scot, and has sent her best wishes to aspiring Scottish athletes hoping to make the team.

She said: "I'm pretty proud of having completed a marathon myself, so I can only imagine the pride that real athletes feel when they are picked for the Olympic or the Paralympic Games.

"This will be the greatest sporting show on earth, it's going to be a fantastic event for the whole of the UK, and as a Scot I am deeply proud of it.

"I am sending my best wishes to all the aspiring Scottish athletes hoping to get picked for Team GB. They will do Scotland and the whole United Kingdom proud.

"Nearly 50 Scottish companies have won over £100 million in contracts for the Games, and thousands of Scots have won tickets to the Games.

"I have a feeling we are going to break the record on medals this year and I know there are really strong prospects for gold medals from Scottish athletes who I am certain will be in the team."

In 2008 in Beijing, Scottish athletes won five gold medals and were represented in 12 out of 20 sports that Team GB entered, and in two sports, tennis and canoe slalom, the participants were exclusively Scottish.

