By Tom Degun at Holiday Inn London Stratford City

Holiday Inn_2June 12 - Holiday Inn, the Official Hotel Provider of London 2012, today opened two new flagship hotels opposite the Olympic Park in Stratford, with the help of Olympic gold medallist Denise Lewis and rhythmic gymnast star Frankie Jones.

The accommodation – Holiday Inn London Stratford City and Staybridge Suites London – is located in heart of Westfield, the three-floor 175,000sq metres shopping centre that is reportedly now Europe's largest.

To honour the special occasion Jones, the five-times British rhythmic gymnastics champion and Commonwealth Games 2010 silver medallist, performed a special dance routine after being introduced by Lewis, who was part of the London 2012 bid team that travelled to Singapore in 2005 when the city won the right to stage the Games.

"I'm very proud to be an ambassador for Holiday Inn and I'm delighted to be here at this amazing opening event," Lewis (pictured top, on right with Jones) told insidethegames.

"The views from the hotels are incredible, and give a sneak preview to guests of the action and excitement to come this summer."

The 39-year-old Sydney 2000 heptathlon champion also revealed that she was delighted to link up with Jones ahead at the launch.

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"Meeting Frankie today was a brilliant experience and it will be fascinating to see one of our best rhythmic gymnasts in action at London 2012," she said.

"As one of Team GB's Olympic hopefuls, it's exciting to hear about Frankie's preparations, coupled with seeing the area come to life."

The new 188-room Holiday Inn and 162-room Staybridge Suites London will be entirely booked out during the Olympics and Paralympics by London 2012 although they will be available for travellers to stay in both before and after the Games.

"Outside the Olympic Park itself, our two new hotels represent the best seats in the house for London 2012," said Angela Brav, chief executive of Europe at InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG), the parent company of Holiday Inn.

"You really couldn't get much closer to the action.

"The opening of these two new hotels also sees IHG pass a significant milestone: we now have over 40,000 hotel rooms in the United Kingdom."

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