WEST HAM'S bid to move in to the Olympic Stadium after the London 2012 Games has been backed by Olympics minister Tessa Jowell.

Tottenham and West Ham are the two parties left vying for the occupancy of the stadium after the Games, although Spurs' bid includes tearing down much of the structure and removing the running track.

Jowell admitted she liked the Hammers' joint bid with Newham Council, not least because an athletics legacy would be left by the retention of the track.

“If we broke that promise (to keep the track) it would be a very bad thing,” she told BBC Sport.

“Newham Council, together with West Ham commits to keep the athletics track, commits to external community involvement and is apparently commercially viable with partners Essex County Cricket Club and (entertainment provider) Live Nation.

“Therefore, they meet the five tests that we applied for the legacy use of the stadium, to the commitments we made in the bid book and the heavy commitment to community engagement.”

The Olympic Park Legacy Company (OPLC) is expected to announce its preferred choice of the two bidders after a board meeting on Friday January 28.

That recommendation will then have to be rubber-stamped by the government bodies the Department for Culture, Media and Sport and the Department of Communities and Local Government, as well as the London Mayor's office.