2012 Olympics cause surge of sports participation in London

LONDON (AP) -- A survey says record numbers of men and women are playing sports every week in England because of the "inspirational impact" of London staging the Olympics and Paralympics.

Figures released by the government-funded Sport England show that 15.5 million people 16 and over played sports each week in the 12 months up to October 2012, a rise of 750,000 compared to a year ago.

It is an increase of 1.57 million from 2005, when London won the right to host the games.

Following the release of the Active People Survey, Sport England says that the rise in sporting activity is sharp "in the period since the London 2012 Games got under way, with strong increases in Olympic sports such as cycling, sailing and volleyball."