British Airways Flights to Show the Best Sports Films as Voted by Team GB and ParalympicsGB

HARMONDSWORTH, England, July 17, 2012 /PRNewswire/ --

British Airways has announced that it will be showing a selection of the best sports films as voted by Team GB and ParalympicsGB, for customers flying during the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games.

The athletes nominated over 30 titles, including their favourite, 'Coach Carter', a basketball film featuring Samuel L. Jackson, ahead of 'Cool Runnings', which took second place.

Oliver Stone's award winning 'Any Given Sunday' took bronze and was nominated by a number of athletes including Gymnast Louis Smith. Triathlete Helen Jenkins voted for the boxing classic 'Rocky', while three times Olympic Champion Ben Ainslie swaps water for the track with his preference for the recent Formula One documentary 'Senna'.

The athletes nominated a wide range of sports, from football to Formula One. Other nominations included: 'Chariots of Fire', 'Dodgeball', 'Goal', 'Bend it like Beckham', 'Remember the Titans', 'Million Dollar Baby', 'Wimbledon', 'Jerry Maguire', 'Invincible', 'Happy Gilmore' and 'Rumble in the Jungle'.

Some of the more unusual titles nominated included 'Teen Wolf', 'Space Jam', 'Blue Crush', 'Robin Hood' and 'The Water Boy'.

Team GB rower, Zac Purchase said: "I don't think you can get better then Al Pacino's 'inches' speech in 'Any Given Sunday'. It's such a poignant moment, with many true parallels with the way each and every sports person across the world prepares for the performance of their lives."

In comparison, British Airways Facebook users voted for 'Chariots of Fire' as their all time favourite sports movie, closely followed by classics 'Cool Runnings' and 'Rocky'.

British Airways sponsorship manager, Luisa Fernandez, said: "We know that customers love catching up on films when they fly, and now they have the opportunity to re-live some of the classic sports films of all time in preparation for the London 2012 Games."

Customers on board flights this summer will also be able to enjoy an exclusive Olympic-inspired menu created by Michelin star chef Simon Hulstone, who worked with Heston Blumenthal on the project. To complement the menu is a specially commissioned on-board soundtrack which customers can tune in to, featuring uplifting music and commentary from iconic British moments from previous Games, to enhance the dining experience.

Along with classic sporting films, the airline is also showing 'Fast Girls', a new British film following the women's 4x100 metres relay team. There is also a dedicated sports channel which includes a number of Olympic and Paralympic related programmes, such as the 'Journey to London 2012'.

Finally, customers flying over the summer will be able to watch the short film 'BOY' produced exclusively for British Airways. It was written by up-and-coming writer Prasanna Puwanarajah, who was mentored by Richard E Grant in the BA Great Britons programme. It features much-loved British actor Timothy Spall and was filmed in the Velodrome in the Olympic Park.

The airline is encouraging the nation to get behind the UK athletes this summer by tweeting their support using the hashtag #HomeAdvantage.

About British Airways:

British Airways plc offers a wide range of worldwide destinations - including holidays in Toronto, holidays in Maldives, holidays in Nice as well as Belfast flights and flights to Las Vegas. Customers can save time and money with ba.com when booking ATOL protected holiday packages, ATOL number is 5985. Passengers are offered added peace of mind to their holiday plans and the security of travelling with British Airways. British Airways plc constantly seeks to exceed customers' expectations, both in terms of the value for money and quality of the service provided.

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SOURCE British Airways