Kids Encouraged to Get in the Olympic Spirit in London and Beyond
The Foundation for Global Sports Development (GSD) recently launched its 2012 Olympics campaign in London to support programs that promote sportsmanship, education, fair play, and ethics among international youth.
The activities in London include an Olympic Summer Camp for underserved kids from select cities in Canada, the U.S., and the UK, as well as a London Education and Arts Programme (LEAP) for students between the ages of 10 and 16. Teachers and parents from London schools (and elsewhere) are encouraged to download lesson plans and worksheets on Olympic values, such as drug-free sport, sports role models, goal setting, and fair play. Earlier this year, an Olympics curriculum-related art submission contest allowed students to participate in a LEAP Summer Camp and the London 2012 Paralympic Games. GSD also supported the World Mile Project of the Youth Olympic Games in Innsbruck 2012 by sending two dozen youth from six schools that submitted winning collages based on the theme, “What sport means to you.”
In addition to these 2012 Olympic activities for kids, GSD aims to target underserved and at-risk communities for delinquency or school attrition by focusing on the promotion of sports and sportsmanship education. GSD partners with international sports organizations to assist young athletes from disadvantaged backgrounds and developing countries by supporting projects like, equestrian sport in South Africa, young fencers in South Korea, junior archery championships in Mexico and South America, table tennis equipment for youth in the Solomon Islands, and international initiatives that teach youth about the anti-doping movement. With the help of these programs, promising young athletes are able to train and prepare for international competitions that would otherwise be out of reach.
According to Dr. Steven Ungerleider, Executive Board Member of Global Sports Development, “The Olympic Games provide youth with the ultimate setting to experience how competitive sports can bring people of all backgrounds together. Children can learn life’s most valuable lessons through sports, and we are looking forward to bringing them this once in a lifetime opportunity to be surrounded by and learn from the greatest athletes in the world.”
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Written by Lauren Riggs
