World stars to attend Olympic legacy event.
Boxing champion Kal Yafai, England cricketer Chris Woakes and Olympic gold medallist Matt Gotrel are amongst some of the sporting heroes inspiring children for the Birmingham School Games.
In its sixth year, the Games taking place this Thursday and Friday (9th and 10th February 2017) at PlayFootball Birmingham and will see 1500 children from over 100 schools compete against each other.
Sponsored by Turkish Airlines, the event is an Olympic/Paralympic style school sport competition run by Sport Birmingham and is part of the Government’s plans for lasting sporting legacy from hosting the London 2012 Games.
Mike Chamberlain, chief executive at Sport Birmingham said “The Games aren’t just about sport, they help young people develop skills and instil values essential to everyday life such as team work, determination, honesty, passion, self-belief and respect.
“The Games are a positive example of how sport can engage young people of all ages, abilities and from a variety of backgrounds, something which has been highlighted as being essential in the Government’s new sport strategy”
Birmingham Bears and England cricket all-rounder Chris Woakes who is preparing for an upcoming tour posted a video message saying, “Good luck to everyone taking part and I hope it goes all really well, be the best version of yourself and play with a smile on your face.”
Other athletes who have posted good luck messages include Paralympics athlete Sam Ruddock and Olympic medallist and former Birchfield Harrier Katharine Merry.
The Birmingham School Games launched at Edgbaston Priory last Friday at an event which featured Olympic Gold Medallist Rower Matt Gotrel MBE speaking about his experiences of school sport and how it helped impact his career.
Many businesses attended the event and also pledged their support for both the Birmingham School Games as well the Birmingham Commonwealth Bid. Selim Ozturk, General Manager for sponsors Turkish Airlines Birmingham was at the launch event and said “It is great to see so many sporting stars lending their advice and encouragement to this initiative and we are delighted to announce we have extended our sponsorship agreement for the School Games.
Turkish Airlines believe in the power of sport to bring people together and inspire fans. We sincerely wish all the participants the very best of luck”
WBA super-flyweight champion Kal Yafai and Olympic winning medallist gymnast Kristian Thomas are also attending the Games, where they will be talking to children about their journeys to becoming elite athletes.
