Kids Inspired By Olympic Diver

27 June 2013, 10:41 | Updated: 30 March 2016, 13:50

Hundreds of pupils from schools across Portsmouth are taking part in a big day of Olympic-theme' activities.

Around 900 children are taking part in sports from basketball to skating on Southsea seafront today (Thursday 27 June) as part of a national campaign to get more youngsters involved in sport.

Olympic diver and Silver Medallist Pete Waterfield, from Southampton, joined schoolchildren at the The Pyramids Centre to celebrate the start of this year’s Lloyds TSB National School Sport Week - Britain’s biggest school sport event.

Speaking at the Pyramids Centre, Youth Sport Trust ambassador, Pete Waterfield, said: "It has been fantastic to spend the day with pupils from schools across Portsmouth today and see the legacy of London 2012 for myself. These pupils have been truly inspired by the Games and National School Sport Week and are eager to continue the celebrations and try out new sports. With Lloyds TSB’s partnership of Join In this summer, those sporting pathways are easier to follow and will hopefully encourage more pupils to join out of school sport clubs.”

“By helping pupils discover more sport and providing the opportunities both in and out of school to have a go and stay active, Lloyds TSB is helping a new generation to become active and potentially be the future stars of Team GB and ParalympicsGB.”

In 2012, 64% of pupils wanted to play more sport afterwards as a result of National School Sport Week and 85% of participating children enjoyed National School Sport Week so much that they wanted to participate again in 2013.

Recent research from Lloyds TSB revealed that over 3 million (79%) of the 3.8 million pupils in England and Wales who participated in last year’s week are now playing more sport than before with 1.8 million (49%) physically joining a new club or team outside school and 2.1 million (55%) joining a new club or team in school.

James Humphries, Head Teacher, Priory School said “We’ve been participating in Lloyds TSB National School Sport Week for five years and this year’s event was a huge success for our school and enjoyed by teachers and students alike.  As well as the great results the week has had on encouraging pupils to achieve their personal best in athletics we’ve also witnessed first-hand the knock-on effect it’s had on behaviour and learning. Our students have been thrilled to meet Jason Gardener today and they will be really inspired to continue playing sport for some time.”

Since 2009, more than 21,000 schools and almost nine million pupils across the UK have taken part in National School Sport Week. Lloyds TSB National School Sport Week 2013 will take place from 24 – 28 June and will encourage schools to build upon the inspiration of London 2012. Click here to find out more.

The Join In Summer kicks off on 27 July and runs through to 9 September. More than 6,500 events have already been registered, and the numbers are growing fast. To find out more or register your club’s event click here .