Chair of the London Organising Committee for the 2012 Olympic Games, Lord Sebastian Coe is a double Olympic Champion and 12-time world record holder in athletics. He won gold in the 1500m and silver in the 800m at both the Moscow 1980 and Los Angeles 1984 Games. He retired from competitive athletics in 1990 and became a Conservative MP and Private Secretary to William Hague. In 2002 he was made a Peer – Lord Coe of Ranmore. He received a knighthood in the 2006 New Year’s Honours List.

Lord Coe is also a Vice-President of the International Association of Athletics and controlling shareholder of The Complete Leisure Group, a non-executive director of AMT-Sybex Group, and Chair of the Parliamentary Sport Honours Committee.

Lord Sebastian Coe is a former Olympic athlete, Conservative MP and Chairman of the London Organising Committee for the Olympic Games.

Lord Coe began his running career at the age of 12 and quickly became a middle-distance specialist. Coached by his father, Peter Coe, he embarked on a hugely successful athletics career, which included winning two gold medals at the 1980 and 1984 Olympic Games.

In 1973 his father and coach Peter predicted that by 1980 his son would slice five seconds off the then 1500m-world record. In fact Sebastian sensationally broke three world records, including the 1500m, in 1979 in just 41 days: the 800m and mile in Oslo and the 1500m in Zurich. This meant Sebastian was the first man in more than 50 years to set world records at both 800m and 1500m. Sebastian added the 1000m record to his belt in Oslo, making him the holder of four world records simultaneously.

Other athletic achievements include countless personal bests and silver and bronze medals at the Olympic Games and European Championships from 1978 to 1986.

In 1983 Lord Coe was diagnosed with toxoplasmosis, the first of many health problems that were to follow, and in 1990 a chest infection caused him to bow out of the Auckland Commonwealth Games.

Since his last race in September 1989, Lord Coe has pursued a political career, becoming Conservative MP for Falmouth and Camborne in 1992 and a Parliamentary Private Secretary in 1994. In 1997 he was appointed Private Secretary to the Leader of the Opposition, William Hague MP.

Lord Coe has served as Vice Chairman of the Sports Council (1986-89), steward of the British Boxing Board of Control (1994-98) and a member of the Sport for All Commission and International Olympic Committee. Currently Chairman of the London 2012 Olympic bid team, he famously led the team to victory on July 6th 2005.

Lord Coe was awarded the OBE in 1991 and a KBE in 2006. He lives in Surrey with his wife Nicola (Badminton three day event winner, 1990) and children Madeleine, Harry and Peter.

He has written five books and is an experienced broadcaster and public speaker.