The Irish Life Health Athletics Summer Camps were launched yesterday at Morton Stadium in Dublin with World Championship relay stars Kate Doherty and Aoife Lynch there to offer advice to those hoping to follow in their speedy footsteps.
Both were members of the Women’s 4x100m Irish team that secured a historic second place finish at the World Relay Championships last month.
The camps provide boys and girls aged 6-12 with the chance to be active and have fun trying out the three main athletics disciplines of running, jumping and throwing.
There are opportunities to try activities including sprinting, javelin, hurdles, shot putt, long jump, walks and relays, going one or two steps further than your traditional school sports day.
In an Olympic year especially, they are likely to prove a winner.
The range of activities helps children to develop fundamental movement skills of agility, balance and coordination with the added benefit that these skills also form an ideal base for all other sporting activity.
“The athletics camps provide children with a chance to develop many aspects of their physical abilities, such as speed, agility and balance,” said Doherty who participated in the camps herself as a child.
“They can also enjoy the fun and excitement of team events including relays, so I’d encourage everyone to sign up and get involved.”
Recent National Under-23 100m and 200m champion, Aoife Lynch added “The camps are a great way to introduce children to athletics and provide them with a chance to run, jump, and throw in a fun and supportive environment. I know I loved these camps growing up and I’d encourage all parents to get their children down to their local athletics camp.”
“Now more than ever we need to give children the opportunity to have fun and be active during their school holidays and taking part in these camps also gives young people a chance to try out athletics which is something Irish Life Health is very honoured to be encouraging as part of our partnership with Athletics Ireland,” added Liz Rowen, Head of Marketing at Irish Life Health.
Eighteen Irish Life Health Athletics Summer Camps will be taking place across twelve locations, with booking and registration now available at athleticsireland.ie/clubs/summercamps. Early booking is recommended to avoid disappointment.
Camps are priced at €65 for one week with a €10 discount for each additional family member. Each camp begins on a Monday and runs through to Friday, starting at 9:30 am and finishing at 1:30 pm daily.
Each child will go home with a t-shirt, backpack, water bottle, medal, and a participation certificate, as well as a wealth of memories and, who knows, perhaps a start on the way to a career as a high performance athlete.
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