The pool hall was quiet, but the tension was palpable. Solemn-faced, the competitors of the mini triathlon – including my daughter Meribel – lined up by the side of the water waiting to be called to the start. Opposite stood a bank of anxious parents. Then the silence broke, as the children dived into the water in quick succession and parents cheered and shouted encouragement as they swam their two lengths of the pool.
At the end of the 800m bike ride and a 600m run, every child crossed the finishing line with a huge smile, and then went on to collect their medal and t-shirt for taking part. At the age of eight, they could bask in the knowledge that they had completed a triathlon.
EARLY STARTS
Experts agree it’s crucial to engage young children in active lifestyles. Pressure on the curriculum and the sale of school playing fields, however, have led to universal sport in schools dwindling. The obesity statistics are evidence of the fact that children aren’t running around, riding bikes and playing football in their spare time to the extent they were in previous generations. Fortunately, in the wake of the London 2012 Olympics, which provided a great shop window for sport, many sports providers are doing an excellent job of opening up opportunities for children to engage in interesting sport challenges from a young age.
For example, mountain bike race organisers Fully Sussed and Go Ride now both run kids' cycling races alongside some of the adult races. There's even an emerging pathway into modern pentathlon as more biathlon events are being run through schools. Starting off as swimming and running events, these evolve to add in other elements of the pentathlon.
The Mini Triathlon Series, run by Cornwall-based Trust, Tempus Leisure, has been created following an upsurge in interest in adult triathlons, undoubtedly due partly to the Brownlee brothers gold and bronze Olympic medals.
“The Mini Triathlon Series was viewed as an essential addition to support the charitable objective of the trust while encouraging participation in healthy active lifestyles in the younger age category,” says Geoffrey Samuels, senior community leisure officer at Tempus Leisure. “It was also felt that providing competitive opportunities for eight to 14-year-olds would support the growth of the adult series, by developing the skills of younger competitors and acting as a feeder to the adult series. A 15 to 16 age category has also been introduced so everyone is catered from the age of eight up.”
OLYMPIC FACILITIES
Another way the Olympics have left their legacy is new sporting facilities now available to the general public. For a few pounds, anyone can swim in the hallowed lanes at the Olympic Aquatic Centre where swimmers like Ellie Simmonds and Michael Phelps made history, or try out the velodrome where the British cycling team swept the board.
One of the latest Olympic venues to come on stream is the Lee Valley Hockey and Tennis Centre, where Andy Murray won his gold medal. Manager Angie Oliva says there's lots going on to encourage children to come and play hockey and tennis, who otherwise wouldn’t have the opportunity. “We’re not having a performance squad at either venue, because that ties it up too much and we want to keep it available for members of the public to use,” she says.
A tennis development officer has been appointed to go into local schools teach some skills, bring them to the centre and hopefully encourage them to enrol on extra-curricular sports courses. A range of programmes have been developed to appeal to different age groups, including a mini tennis programme and a course aimed at 16-year-olds.
Nearby, at the Lee Valley Athletics Centre, the Athletics Academy is going strong. Two programmes run three times a week, aimed at six to eight-year-olds and eight to 12-year-olds. “We teach a basic introduction to athletics, fitness work, relays and work on general skills and motor skills,” says manager Mick Bond. “There has been a 30-40 per cent increase in interest since the Olympics.”
The sessions appeal to a mix of abilities. The good ones are talent spotted and fed into local clubs. The Enfield and Haringey Athletics Club is national champion for that age group, which Bond puts down to the groundwork being done on this programme. He says another advantage of the programme is that children can go to secondary school with a positive attitude towards athletics, rather than losing confidence and opting out. This is particularly important for those with less natural ability or confidence.
OLYMPIC ATHLETES
London 2012 created a raft of British role models and turned sports stars into household names. Swimming bronze medallist Rebecca Adlington is one of the athletes using her profile to encourage children to get active, with her role in the Legacy Games. Her role is to attend the events, hang out with the kids, have photos taken and sign autographs. “What I love about the Legacy Games is that they are playing and doing all different sorts of activities. More programmes need to be aimed at making sport and activities available to everyone,” she says.
The Legacy Games are devised and delivered by Fit for Sport and Everyone Active, and have been awarded the Cabinet Office’s Inspired by 2012 mark. The aim is to get 500,000 under-16s active.
“Let’s not forget that 2012 was very much a spectator year. What we need to do next is move away from watching sport, towards doing sport,” says Duncan Jefford, south east regional director of Everyone Active. “We need to engage youngsters at an early age to show them that sport and activity is fun and rewarding.”
The Legacy Games works with councils and schools to get primary school children to take part in a day of community sport, which is free to schools. The children work in groups to learn new skills and activities and the day ends with a series of races.
So that the impact can be sustained, the teachers also learn new ways to work with children to help continue an inspiring programme of activity back at school. Participating children are also encouraged to return to the centre with their parents to try a new sport or activity.
“I’m proud because the uptake is high, the impact is measurable and the atmosphere of each event is energising and inspiring. The postivity literally radiates off the kids and even our more sceptical guests soon accept the concept works,” says Jefford. “The halo effect and continued participation of kids at our centres as well as the feedback we get from schools about the success of their updated PE programmes tells me this is working.”
GAMESMAKERS
There are a few organisational issues for targeting this demographic: safeguarding and health and safety being the main ones. Most organisers continue to invoke the Gamesmaker spirit of the Olympics by enlisting the help of many volunteers to make sure the events meet the high level of health and safety requirements.
As well as achieving the primary aim of getting kids active, there are a number of knock-on benefits of organising events for children. The Mini Triathlon Series has increased participation in competitive sport at Tempus Leisure centres, helped increase leisure centre throughput, and led to further uptake in coaching sessions such as swimming classes.
Across the first three boroughs which ran Legacy Games in 2013, Everyone Active saw an increase of 17 per cent in children’s activities. Following the sports days and Fit for Sport, local camps saw an average increase in participation of 30 per cent. The programme has also boosted participation rates within junior sports clubs and programmes in the boroughs.
Children competing tends to make the day into a family outing, which has boosted secondary spend at Tempus Leisure’s catering outlets. Samuels says the event has also helped with the kudos of the brand, explaining: “Among the triathlon community, Tempus Leisure is now viewed as an organisation which is prepared to invest in youth development.”
As the Jesuit saying goes: “Give me the child, and I will mould the man.” This is true of sport. If the exercise habits and skills are learned young, they stay for life.
