Ellie Simmonds OBE has thrown her support behind SportsAid Week 2017 by signing up to be an official ambassador of this year’s initiative.
Ellie received a helping hand from SportsAid at the beginning of her career, is giving her backing to the fundraising drive, taking place from 25 September to 1 October, designed to support the next generation of athletes striving to represent Team GB and ParalympicsGB at future Olympic and Paralympic Games.
The inaugural SportsAid Week was launched in 2016 to mark the charity’s 40th anniversary and generated over £40,000 with Olympians, Paralympians, up-and-coming athletes, National Governing Bodies, schools, universities, commercial organisations and individuals coming together for a week of fun and fundraising. The initiative was such a success that it has now become an annual fixture. Five-time Paralympic champion Ellie, who also acted as a SportsAid Week ambassador last year and called it a ‘big celebration’, said ‘I can't wait for it to come back around again this September’.
"I love meeting the young athletes SportsAid supports and seeing the drive and determination they have to be the best they can be,” said Simmonds. “I remember when I had help from SportsAid and it's really important when you're starting out in your sport. It gives you the confidence to push on and succeed knowing that there are people out there who believe in you. That’s why SportsAid Week is such a great idea. It’s an opportunity to show the next generation of athletes that we’re right behind them and want to do what we can to help them on their way.”
Last year’s SportsAid Week saw a diverse range of fundraising activity undertaken including bake sales, sports quizzes, fancy dress days, raffles, bucket collections and healthy eating challenges. Raising as little as £5 can be enough to help a young athlete travel to their next training session whilst £1,000 is able to fund a major one-off cost such as a warm-weather training camp or transport and accommodation for an international competition.
SportsAid Week 2017 also sees the introduction of the #MyMiles challenge – a social media led campaign asking fundraisers to undertake physical activity, covering a distance of their choice, to raise money for the charity. The inspiration behind the concept came after many fundraisers decided to support young athletes by taking on sponsored triathlons, bike rides, rows, run, swims and walks during last year’s initiative. #MyMiles is accessible to everybody – you can do a single mile or cover 40 – that’s the distance a SportsAid athlete, on average, will clock up each week in training.
SportsAid has played a vital role in the success of British sport since 1976. The charity’s impact was demonstrated at the Rio 2016 Olympic and Paralympic Games when 150 medals (64 gold, 43 silver, 43 bronze) were won for Team GB and ParalympicsGB by previous beneficiaries of SportsAid awards. Sir Mo Farah, Dame Jessica Ennis-Hill, Laura Trott CBE, Dame Sarah Storey, Richard Whitehead MBE, Adam Peaty MBE and Georgie Hermitage MBE are just a small group of SportsAid alumni, in addition to Ellie and Lutalo, that won medals in Rio.
SportsAid Week takes place from Monday 25 September to Sunday 1 October. You can find out more about this year’s initiative and the #MyMiles challenge by clicking here
