Maccabi GB preparations for next summer’s 18th Maccabiah Games have been boosted by a partnership with Village Hotels worth in the region of £250,000.

The agreement will see Village Hotels offering complimentary membership of their state-of-the-art fitness clubs to each member of Team GB taking part in the Maccabiah in Israel in July 2009.

The squad selected is expected to be the largest ever to represent Maccabi GB in Israel with numbers exceeding 500.

Through the partnership, the entire Team GB party will be issued with special Maccabiah membership cards guaranteeing access to the 20 Village clubs around the country.

The arrangement takes immediate effect and runs until the team returns in late July.

Michael Bibring, director of the Village Hotel group, said: “We are absolutely delighted to be partnering Maccabi in supporting the Great Britain team with the forthcoming Maccabiah.

“This is a huge event and Village is proud to be playing its part in helping the GB athletes train and prepare properly, with a view to bringing back as many medals as possible.”

At Maccabi GB, chief executive Martin Berliner commented: “Opportunities like this do not come around very often so I urge our individual competitors and team sports to grab this chance with both hands.”