With seven out of ten schoolchildren in the capital already inspired by London 2012 to take part in more sport, Sir Chris and Edwards joined 350 pupils in a Festival of Sport themed event where they tried their hand at a range of Olympic and Paralympic sports including tennis, handball and badminton.

Nearly 14,000 schools and five million young people have signed up to Lloyds TSB National School Sport Week, an initiative in partnership with the Youth Sport Trust and part of the London 2012 Get Set education programme, which aims to use the power of Olympic and Paralympic Games to inspire children to take part in more sport.

Schools up and down the country will be hosting opening and closing ceremonies, torch relays, inter and intra school competitions by working across their School Sport Partnership and inviting local clubs to come in and give taster sessions in a variety Olympic and Paralympic sports.

Sir Chris, who claimed three gold medals in cycling at the Beijing 2008 Olympics, claimed that the National School Sport Week is a vital initiative to get children into sports they may not have experienced before.

He said: "Hosting the London 2012 Games in Britain provides us with all sorts of opportunities to introduce young people to new and exciting sports.

"Events like National School Sport Week are great as they give school children the opportunity to take part in a new Olympic or Paralympic sport for the first time.

"I tried various different sports at school before I found something I loved and I hope that through events like these, we can encourage more children to get involved in sport."



At the end of the week at 12.20pm on Friday (July 2) pupils across Eltham Green School Sport Partnership will be joining millions of other young people across the country with a two minute sporting showcase, celebrating the new sport they’ve tried during the week.

Sebastian Coe, the chairman of London 2012, said: "The fact that nearly 14,000 schools are taking part in this year’s National School Sport Week confirms what we witness every time we travel around the UK - that children are excited about trying new sports.

"I have no doubt there will be an even greater appetite for National School Sport Week as we inch ever closer to 2012.

"The enthusiasm up and down the country; increasing levels of participation and overall support for the London 2012 Games is clear and it is great to see the impact it is already having on school children."

Recent research commissioned by Lloyds TSB, a Tier One London 2012 sponsor, has already demonstrated a huge appetite among young people with 72 per cent of schoolchildren in the capital keen to try more sport as a direct result of the UK hosting the Olympic and Paralympic Games.

The research also found that despite the enthusiasm, nearly 40 percent of Olympic sports have never been tried by 90 per cent of children. 

Contact the writer of this story at [email protected]


Related stories
May 2010: Children keen to try new sports ahead of London 2012 survey reveals