In early 2019, Children in the Wilderness (CITW) Botswana, in association with the Diacore Gaborone Marathon, ran an exciting Sports in the Wilderness programme at 15 affiliated EcoClub schools in the country. From 11 to 27 February 2019, each school hosted an environmentally-themed track and field Sports Day to inspire and motivate children to care for themselves, and their environment.
“As one of the ongoing beneficiaries of the annual Diacore Gaborone Marathon, Botswana’s largest charity sporting event, we were thrilled to receive this additional sponsorship from Diacore to launch our new Sports in the Wilderness programme. "By introducing these inspirational Sports Days at our partner schools, we are able to increase our children’s physical and mental fitness, whilst inspiring them to work together as a team.
Taking part in fun sports days helps children improve their social, personal and leadership skills, whilst building confidence at the same time”, said CITW Regional Programme Manager, Janet Wilkinson. Managing Director of Diacore, Kfir Teichman, concurred: “This is a project that is very close to our hearts, and we are excited to see future athletes engaged and supported, even at this age.
The Sports Days offered all the participants the opportunity to take part in a range of athletics events, including individual running races, and three team events: soccer, netball and volleyball. At the Sports Days the children were treated to healthy snacks and inspiring environmental talks between sporting events.
“Many of them, even those who aren’t part of our Eco-Clubs, said that the events have inspired them to look after their environment, starting from their homes”, adds Lesh Moiteela, CITW Botswana Programme Coordinator. The Sports Days were rolled out in April 2019, with the final event taking place in Gaborone on 3 May 2019.
“We are extremely proud of the success of these Sports Days, and thanks to Diacore, hope to be able to drive this programme into the future as a fun, annual event that enables us to expand our CITW Eco-Club programme to reach more children, more often – inspiring our future leaders to love and care fortheir natural world”. - Janet Wilkinson
Read more inspirational stories from Children in the Wilderness in their latest issue of Eco-Stars magazine here.
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