Campbell Walsh canoe slalom Olympic silver medallist, Des Coleman former Eastenders actor, Alan Levers former net minder of the Nottingham Panthers, Manish Bhasin BBC Football Focus presenter and Tim Garfield, regional director Sport England East Midlands face off at the Sports Summit.

Sport leaders and enthusiasts from across the East Midlands have been challenged to change the face of sport in their region in one of a series of groundbreaking BBC Sport Summits.

The BBC, Sport England and UK Sport have joined forces to host nine sport summits across England aimed at empowering people to make a difference to sport in their communities.

The outcome of each of the nine regional summits will help decide the agenda of the national summit at BBC Television Centre on 16th March, where major players from the world of sport will be involved, including heads of sporting bodies, sponsors and politicians.

The East Midlands summit held at National Ice Centre in Nottingham saw clubs, volunteers, local councils, businesses and members of the public from across the region getting together for debate and decision-making.

Richard Caborn, minister for sport, said: “The Sport Summit here in the East Midlands will be exciting, engaging and a productive forum for debate. The BBC Sport Summits will generate ideas and action – and inform decision makers. Our aim is to build on the strong foundation we have established for sport in this country and incorporate the ideas from these sport summits to ensure we look forward to an even stronger sporting future for all.

Tim Garfield, Regional Director of Sport England East Midlands, said: “These summits will help us to bring alive opportunities for delivering sport across the region and take delivery of Change 4 Sport – the blueprint for the development of sport and physical activity in the region – to the next level.

“We don’t want these events to be simply talking shop. They are designed to be calls to action – asking people to pledge to make a difference to sport in their communities.

“Sport has the potential to play a big part in improving health, reducing crime and making our communities better places to live,“ he added.

Charles Runcie, Head of Sport, BBC English Regions, said: "The BBC, both at national and regional level, aims to reflect the sports landscape on our television, radio and text services – our heroes, stories and issues.  We are delighted to be involved in these summits, either participating in or reporting on them, so we can help celebrate sport's achievements in the East Midlands and encourage debate about the future of sport in the region."

Sue Campbell, chair of UK Sport, said: "The fact that UK Sport is working in partnership with Sport England and the BBC, shows the degree of importance that we're attaching to the Sport Summit process. It is an opportunity for all of us to make a commitment to add real and lasting value to sport at a local and national level."

The outcome of each of the nine regional summits will help decide the agenda of the national summit at BBC Television Centre, where major players from the world of sport will be involved, including heads of sporting bodies, sponsors and politicians.