Cricket Ireland is providing free health checks, inspired by Shane Warne’s Legacy, at the Under-17s Youth Inter-Provincial festival in Ballyclare today.
Health checks will be available pitch-side throughout the day.
As part of Cricket Ireland’s talent pathway programme, an Under-17s Boys and Under-17s Girls festival is being held throughout this week, with Tuesday’s matches being played at Templepatrick Cricket Club.
“We’re very excited to bring together some of the most talented young cricketers to Northern Ireland this week,” said Albert van der Merwe, National Talent Pathway Manager.
“The standard and interest levels at youth levels is growing year-on-year, and the future of Irish cricket is very bright if this crop of players is any indication of the next generation coming through.”
“It’s also fantastic that we can use an event such as this to benefit the community, and we are pleased that our friends at the Shane Warne Legacy in Australia have chosen us as their first overseas health check event.”
23 years ago, Australian cricket legend Shane Warne donned the green and gold to play his last game for Australia against Ireland in Belfast.
To honour his memory and celebrate his status within the game, the Shane Warne Legacy Health Check unit will be present at the ground with two of SiSU Health’s innovative digital Health Stations to ensure that Irish cricket fans are able to take a health check and raise their awareness about the importance of regular healthy heart checks.
“It’s exciting to bring the Shane Warne Legacy Health Checks to Northern Ireland,” added Helen Nolan, CEO of Shane Warne Legacy.
“We are so proud of the impact these events are making to people’s lives and we’re reaching people who had no idea they were walking around with these health issues.”
The Shane Warne Legacy was founded in 2023 in response to the sudden and tragic passing of Shane Warne, who died of a heart attack in March 2022 at the age of 52. At the time, this prompted a huge surge in people visiting their doctors to get their hearts checked, deemed the ‘Shane Warne Halo effect’.
The Shane Warne Legacy Health Check program was first introduced during the 2023 Boxing Day Test at the MCG, the AFL Gather Round in South Australia, and the NRL in Brisbane.
Providing health checks in community settings is an effective way of engaging people in their health. This program is a great opportunity to start discussions about heart health and promote the significance of maintaining a healthy heart.
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