Olympic power players

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5 April 2012

Jessica Ennis is tipped to earn £1 million from endorsements ahead of this summer's Games, while the heaviest weightlifters are expected to lift more than the record 472.5kg, and all eyes will be on Usain Bolt to see if he retains his position as the fastest man on earth. But these are not the only measures of power at London 2012.

The world's top businessmen - and, despite much searching, one woman - are jostling to be king of the corporates at the Olympics. There's Nick Buckles, chief executive of security firm G4S and one of the world's biggest employers. Last November he was forced to abandon a £5.2 billion take-over of the ISS cleaning company. G4S's provision of 21,000 guards at the Games will be the first big opportunity for Buckles to return to
the spotlight.

Then there's Bob Dudley, the American who took over at the helm of BP after its environmental catastrophe in the Gulf of Mexico two years ago. He too has suffered a string of deal failures in recent months - and will be using the Olympics as an attempt to repair BP's damaged reputation. It is paying to offset Games vehicles' carbon emissions. But Dudley won't be surprised if the green campaigners who gather outside BP's AGM each year make their presence known at London 2012 too.

It takes a look across the Atlantic, to the helm of the company that gobbled Cadbury's two years ago, to find a woman in charge. When Irene Rosenfeld takes up some corporate hospitality at one of this summer's events (she's a sporty woman who rollerblades to relax), she shouldn't expect an easy ride. Kraft is shedding 200 jobs in its UK factories.

The City's biggest players have a lot of deal-making to do and reputations to recover at London 2012. The games won't be limited to those going on in front of the TV cameras.

Nick Buckles

Boss of security giant G4S

Olympic effort: 10,000 guards patrolling Games venues
Minions: 625,000 staff
Wonga: Buckles took home £1.42 million in 2010
Age: 50
Scandal factor: 8
The US has raised repeated concerns about security at the Games and is reported to be preparing to send up to 1,000 agents, including 500 from the FBI, to protect its athletes.

Bob Dudley

Boss of BP

Olympic effort: fuel and engine oils for 5,000 official vehicles - and paying to offset the vehicles' carbon emissions
Minions: 80,000
Wonga: paid $1.2 million (£770,750) in 2010
Age: 55
Scandal factor: 7
Could face protesters still angry about environmental damage from the Gulf of Mexico oil spill.

Richard Cousins

Boss of Compass

Olympic effort: meal-making at stadia including the O2 Arena, Wembley Arena, Wimbledon, ExCel and Earl's Court
Minions: 52,000
Wonga: paid £2.3 million in 2010
Age: 52
Scandal factor: 6
Compass provides one in 10 of Britain's school meals, attacked by Jamie Oliver's healthy eating campaign. Will Olympic meals be healthy ones?

Willie Walsh

Boss of IAG, owner of British Airways

Olympic effort: a package worth some £40 million over four years to cover air travel for athletes plus sponsorship
Minions: 40,000
Wonga: Basic salary £825,000
Age: 50
Scandal factor: 6
The risk of cabin crew strikes can never be overlooked in the airline industry.

Andrew Witty

Boss of GlaxoSmithKline

Olympic effort: GSK will carry out 6,250 dope tests on Games athletes
Minions: 96,500
Wonga: took home £2.3 million in 2010
Age: 42
Scandal factor: 6
As well as drug-testing Olympians, GSK also makes one of the drugs that is most widely abused by athletes.

Irene Rosenfeld

Boss of Kraft, owner of Cadbury

Olympic effort: all confectionery and ice cream at the Games will be Cadbury's
Minions: 127,000
Wonga: $1.5 million (£963,000)
Age: 57
Scandal factor: 8
A chocolate-maker at the sporty Games?

Ian Livingston

Boss of BT

Olympic effort: 250 people working on the Games infrastructure now, hitting 850 during the Games. Equivalent to 642,000 man hours
Minions: 75,700 staff in the UK
Wonga: £2.4 million in pay and cash bonus in 2010
Age: 47
Scandal factor: 3
BT has warned that nearly a third of British firms do not yet have a plan to cope with a lack of staff and other disruption during the Games.

Antonio Horta-Osorio

Boss of Lloyds

Olympic effort: The "official banking and insurance partner" of London 2012
Minions: 104,000 staff
Wonga: basic salary £1  million
Age: 47
Scandal factor: 8
The bank is 41 per cent owned by taxpayers so corporate hospitality largesse won't go down well.

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