Ipswich takes up the Sports Challenge for the over 50’s
An event held recently in Ipswich has clearly demonstrated that the over 50’s in our town really are up for a sporting challenge and for getting more active!
The event, which was organised by local community organisation ActivLives, attracted over 130 attendances. The ‘ActivPentathlon’ is an initiative targeted at those over the age of 50 who are not currently taking part in regular sport or physical activity.
This Ipswich-wide event is part of the ActivIpswich programme, which itself is a partnership project between ActivLives and Ipswich Borough Council, funded by Sport England and the National Lottery.
The ‘ActivPentathlon’ consisted of a series of taster sessions in a variety of sports and physical activities including Pickle Ball, Squash, Petanque, Yoga, Athletics and even some Olympic style Gymnastics! It was held over 5 weeks at various venues across Ipswich.
“The response to this challenge event has been brilliant”, said Mike McCarthy, from ActivLives. “Most of the participants comment that these sports and activities just weren’t available when they were younger. Many of them are amazed at the facilities and opportunities that we have in Ipswich to play these sports. The participants have ranged in age from mid-50’s to mid-80’s, it really has been inspirational to see such enthusiasm and commitment to giving sport a go, particularly from people who are not usually regular sports participants”.
All of the sessions have been delivered by qualified coaches to ensure that the activities were enjoyable and that they were at an appropriate level for beginners.
The ActivIpswich project runs a regular programme of weekly sports sessions that are targeted at the ‘not so sporty’. The new programme kicks off in January with some new sports being added to the schedule.
For more information about this and any of the other activities offered as part of the ActivIpswich programme please email mike@activlives.org.uk, telephone on 01473 345350 or take a look at the recently updated website at www.activlives.org.uk