THE number of people regularly playing sport in the North East has increased steadily since the London Olympics.

Figures from Sport England show that more than 700,000 men and women across the region take part in sport or exercise at least once a week, an increase of 80,000 from when London won the bid to host the games in 2005.

The boost to sports participation from Team GB’s record-breaking results at the Olympics has been maintained despite the worst spring weather in many years.

Good progress has also been made among young people and across the UK up to 15.3 million people are playing sport at least once a week such as football, golf and cycling.

Minister for Sport and Tourism, Hugh Robertson, said: “We remain absolutely committed to delivering a lasting sports participation legacy from London 2012 and I am encouraged to see good underlying trends in the number of young people, women and disabled people playing sports regularly and with confidence.”

More women are now competing in boxing and netball, which has further narrowed the gender gap in sport. Figures for disabled people playing sports have also been rising steadily since 2005.

Nick Bitel, chairman of Sport England, said: “These figures show we’re holding onto the growth achieved over the past 18 months and it’s encouraging to see the number of young people moving in the right direction.”