His Royal Highness The Earl of Wessex visited the Putteridge Bury campus to watch presentations on the globalised education linked to London 2012 and also launch a page on social networking site, facebook.

Prince Edward, Patron of the British Paralympic Association, saw how the University is using facebook to create a network of youngsters internationally who share an interest in both the Olympics and educational success.

The founder members of the network are the 15 cultural ambassadors from some of Bedfordshire’s schools and colleges who went to Beijing in August 2008 during the Olympic Games.

The initiative was organised by the University in partnership with the Bedfordshire Olympic Opportunities Support Team (BOOST).

Although the University is looking to build links with all countries represented on the International Olympic Committee, the initial emphasis is on the major Commonwealth nations, particularly from the Indian sub-continent and East African countries such as Kenya.

Each of the cultural ambassadors will be assigned to a country with the aim of further developing relationships electronically with students as well as their schools and colleges. They will recruit youngsters with strong educational potential, including those facing educational disadvantage.

Steve Kendall, Associate Dean of the Partnership Office at the University who set up the Beijing visit, said: “We wanted a way of sustaining and enhancing the trip to Beijing and this is it.

“The Earl of Wessex has an interest in the Commonwealth, sport and young people and it all knits together well. We want to provide a link between sporting excellence and academic excellence. It’s about inspiring young people to succeed and to reach their potential.”

One of the cultural ambassadors who visited Beijing was inspired to become a University of Bedfordshire student. Amy O’Neil from Luton is a first year student studying sports therapy.

She said: “We saw some of the events in Beijing and the finals of the athletics as well as visiting places like the Great Wall of China. We also spoke to one of the physios for the Lithuanian national team when we were out there and his words helped to influence me.”