Sir Steve Redgrave Launches Sport Makers Programme

 

Five-time Olympic Gold medalist, Sir Steve Redgrave, has unveiled a new way for people to become sporting heroes in their local community.

 

Sir Steve, our greatest Olympian, has joined forces with Sport England to launch Sport Makers, a programme for everyone who’d like to make sport happen for their friends, neighbours or colleagues.

 

Sir Steve said: “You don’t need medals to become a sporting hero. By helping people you know to get involved in sport you’ll be doing something amazing for your friends and local community as well as having fun yourself.  “The thing I want to see more than anything is more people out enjoying what sport has to offer, but we need your help to make it happen.  “So why not take your first step to becoming a sporting hero and visit sportmakers.co.uk”

Sport Makers aims to inspire over 40,000 people to get involved, with each of them spending at least 10 hours organising or leading sporting activities. It is open to anyone aged 16 and over.  Backed by the British Olympic Association and £4 million of National Lottery funding, Sport Makers is part of the Places People Play legacy programme that is bringing the magic of a home Olympic and Paralympic Games into communities across the country.
 

 

Every Sport Maker will be invited to an informal and interactive workshop where they’ll gain the skills and opportunities to get involved in sport in their area. Sport Makers will be introduced to organisations that need their help, and join forces with others who want to make sport happen locally. There’ll also be opportunities to meet top athletes and plenty of incentives to stay involved.  By taking part in Sport Makers, and completing your 10 hours, you could secure tickets to the greatest show on earth: Sport Makers and London 2012 are working together to give people the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to attend next year’s Olympic and Paralympic Games.

The launch was welcomed by the Minister for Sport and the Olympics, Hugh Robertson MP. He said: “The volunteers that help out at local sports clubs up and down the country are the foundations of community sport. The new Sport Makers initiative is a key part of the London 2012 sports legacy and will help community sports clubs across the country get more people playing sport.”

 

In Staffordshire & Stoke-on-Trent we are looking to recruit 800 new volunteers into sport by providing a range of different placements. We are working closely with Volunteer Centres, Universities, Colleges, NGBs and Community Clubs to identify opportunities to deploy Sport Makers in the areas/sports where the need is greatest. 

 

What kind of things can you do as a Sport Maker?

• Get your mates together for a regular activity informally (such as running in the park, mountain bike rides, zumba)
• Organise a team from work to join a local league or challenge a rival department
  (such as Netball or 5-a-side at a local facility)
• Persuade a group of friends to train with you and enter an event (such as a charity bike ride or a sprint triathlon etc.)
• Design and distribute a poster for your local swimming club to help them attract new members and grow the club  

The three steps to becoming a Sport Maker

1. First you need to register your details on the Sport Makers website so that we can send you all the relevant information on becoming a Sport Maker in Staffordshire & Stoke-on-Trent 
   
2. If you decide you do want to become a Sport Maker, you will need to come along to one of our workshops.  Here, you will get all the tools and information you need to become a Sport Maker and will receive your official Adidas Sport Makers kit.
   
3. Make sport happen!  We will ensure you have all the resources and networks you need to organise your own sports event or find opportunities to help others organise theirs.  In return, we simply ask you to log your sport-making hours in your online journal.  

For more information contact:

Ben Hollands

E: bhollands@staffordbc.gov.uk

T: 01785 616317