26 November 2008
Technogym and the Youth Sport Trust today announce the launch of a new nationwide campaign to encourage schools to provide new innovative health and fitness activities for young people in England.
‘The Wellness Campaign’ follows recent findings from the government-commissioned Foresight Report which revealed that 50% of adults will be over-weight by 2050 – today’s generation of young people. Technogym, one of the UK’s leading authorities on Wellness and manufacturer of state-of-the-art equipment, has partnered with the Youth Sport Trust, a charity which supports the education and development of young people through PE and sport; to entice pupils to become more physically active.
The new initiative aims to emphasise the important role schools play in helping young people develop active and healthy lifestyles by re-discovering the fun in fitness. ‘The Wellness Campaign’ aims to increase participation in physical activity as part of the drive to offer all young people five hours of PE and sport a week. The campaign is being championed by England football star, Michael Owen.
To get schools on board, ‘The Wellness Campaign’ will embark on a four-month national tour* across the UK to communicate to schools the benefits of encouraging young people to lead an active lifestyle. The Wellness roadshow will present new ideas to teachers on running out-of-school-hours activities and provide advice on design and renovations of their fitness facility. Teachers will also be provided with details on how local communities can benefit from each school’s wellness facilities. At present, over 90 schools have already registered to take part in the initiative.
To support the tour, the Youth Sport Trust and Technogym will launch ‘The Wellness Challenge’, a national competition targeting schools and young people where pupils can design and create a unique health and fitness activity programme that inspires and stimulates their peers – pupils who may not normally get involved in fitness activities.
All health and fitness activity programmes submitted will be assessed by a panel of judges (as well as undergoing tried & tested reviews by young people). Activities that are likely to be submitted are expected to be as wide-ranging as running weekly skateboard clubs to setting up a unique gym challenge, such as completing a 5K run on a treadmill. The winning school will be rewarded with state-of-the-art fitness equipment worth over £40K, designed and installed by Technogym.
Sue Campbell, Chair of the Youth Sport Trust said: “The aim of the Wellness Campaign is to encourage groups of young people to work together to develop activities which are right for them. We hope that by giving today’s generation of young people the opportunity to lead the design, development and implementation of their own health and fitness activities, they will encourage other pupils to get involved.”
Steve Parkin, MD Technogym, states, “Technogym is committed to ensuring that the wellness of our country’s young people remains one of the top priorities in schools. We have launched the Wellness Campaign in conjunction with the Youth Sport Trust to ensure that young people and their peers understand the importance of leading a healthy lifestyle; and to help schools support every young person in the community. Our aim is to attract the attention of young people who are engaging in little or no fitness activity but who need to improve their overall health and wellbeing.”
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For further information or to arrange an interview with a spokesperson
Please contact Sabrina Lynch at KTB PR
Tel: 0207 924 7214 / email: Sabrina@ktbpr.com
or
James Webb/Katie Smith at Youth Sport Trust
Tel: 020 7843 2360/54/email james.webb@youthsporttrust.org or katie.smith@youthsporttrust.org
Notes to editors
* The Wellness Campaign roadshow will be visiting six cities on the following dates:
Warwick Wednesday, 13 February 2008 The Warwickshire Golf & Country Club
Newcastle Tuesday, 26 February 2008 Kingston Park Stadium
Hertfordshire Friday, 14 March 2008 University of Hertfordshire
Bolton Tuesday, 15 April 2008 Bolton Arena
Bristol Tuesday, 29 April 2008 Cadbury House
London Wednesday, 7 May 2008. Copthorne Hotel
Youth Sport Trust
The Youth Sport Trust is a registered charity established in 1994 to build a brighter future for young people through sport. Its mission is to support the education and development of all young people through PE and sport. For more information, please visit www.youthsporttrust.org
Technogym
- Technogym is a world leader in the design of fitness equipment for private homes, fitness clubs, hotels, spas, universities, professional sports facilities and more
- Established in 1983 by Nerio Alessandri, founder and president of Technogym SpA, Technogym is committed to developing equipment that adheres to the concept of wellness, innovation and social responsibility
- Technogym equipment is used by over 15 million people around the world
- Technogym was chosen as Official Supplier to the Olympic and Paralympic Games at Sydney 2000, Athens 2004, Turin 2006 and most recently, Beijing 2008.