As one of sport’s tallest men, ex-England basketball player Alan Bannister gave Bolton youngsters someone to look up to after putting pupils through their paces for Lloyds TSB’s National School Sports Week last Friday.
Westhoughton High School played host to ten Bolton primary schools for an Olympic Legacy Day, which saw the 320 budding athletes try their hand at activities such as mountain biking, archery and tri-golf and basketball.
And after kids bumped into the towering Bannister – who stands at 7ft 4 – Westhoughton High’s school sports co-ordinator Carol Smith admitted jaws dropped before the former Manchester Giants player.
“I think astonished was perhaps the word when they first saw him because he was so much bigger than them!” she said. “They were in awe but I think they all got used to him in the end.”
Nearly 6,500 schools and three million young people are taking part in Lloyds TSB’s National School Sport Week this year – Britain’s biggest school sport event.
Recent research from Lloyds TSB revealed that over three million of the pupils who took part in last year’s National School Sport Week in England and Wales are now playing more sport than before.
And Westhoughton High made sure they played their part as 35 pupils volunteered to help out for the occasion – which Mrs Smith believes helped inspire a younger generation.
“The week was very important,” she added. “I never wanted the Olympics to come, for people to make a big fuss about it and just die a death afterwards.
“It’s important to keep going with it and inspire young children to take up sport and any other activities to keep them fit and healthy for life.
“Our young leaders were absolutely brilliant in what was a mammoth task to help organise – we’ve never had so many kids running around our school!”
Lloyds TSB National School Sport Week, Britain’s biggest school sporting event, took place from 24 – 28 June 2013.
Support your local school and help continue to encourage more young people to do more sport. To find out more visit www.lloydstsb.com/nssw
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