YOUNG learners from communities throughout Gauteng, including Soweto, Orange
Farm, Midrand and Durban Deep, took part this past weekend, in the seventh
Kellogg’sR Health of the Nation 50-Hour Sports Challenge. The event, which
gets 5,000 young learners back ‘on the ball’ by keeping a ball in motion for
50 hours, took place at the Southern Suburbs Sport and Recreation Centre in
Rosettenville, Johannesburg from Friday 25 until Sunday 27 January 2013.
The learners kept the ball rolling in up to 15 different indoor and outdoor
sporting disciplines over the course of the three days and were exposed to a
huge variety of sports, including cricket, tennis, hockey, rounders, table
tennis, badminton, netball, soccer, rope skipping, athletics and touch
rugby.
The Challenge originated following a study in 2004, which revealed that an
alarmingly large percentage of South African children were already facing
probable obesity-related health problems. The Challenge aims to kick-start
an awareness of the importance of exercise and living a healthy lifestyle
amongst South Africa’s youth as research has shown that children develop
healthy habits by the age of 12. “If you’re not playing sport or leading an
active and healthy lifestyle by then, the chances are that sport and
physical activity will not feature in your adult life,” says event organiser
Brad Bing of Sporting Chance.