Katsiaryna Artsiukh of Belarus celebrates winning the women's 400m Hurdles in Moncton (© Getty Images)
The Belarus Athletics Federation (BFLA) has implemented an educational programme to reach out to young students and ignite their interest in athletics. They have found a way to connect with kids of all ages and encourage them to participate. This unique programme shares the spirit of the Athletics World Plan by expanding the way organisations can communicate with youth, we find it inspiring and we hope you do too.
BFLA programme ‘Champions go to School’ is a traveling athletics education programme that reaches out to schools all over Belarus. The Federation sends top athletics athletes to educate children about the importance of physical activity and to share their own experiences competing in athletics.
In Minsk, ‘Champions go to School’ featured former world record holder in the 4x800m Relay and a major championship finalist, Vladimir Podolyako. Vladimir told the kids about the importance of physical activity, sport, described the history of athletics, disciplines and events, and expanded on his Olympic experience.
This programme offers a unique opportunity to engage youth in sport, the programme also took students to visit the Museum of Physical Culture and Sports of the Republic of Belarus. Before the class trip to the museum, students took part in a contest where they present compositions and drawings in a sports theme and the visiting athlete selected the winners and awarded them with medals and prizes.
As a result, students have an increased interest in athletics and some have even enrolled in a local club.
What type of educational programmes has your organisation developed to connect with students? How do you work to educate youth on the importance of physical activity? If you want to share some of your own experiences please contact us at worldplan@iaaf.org with a short summary, and a member of our editorial team will contact you. Together, we can share in the spirit of the Athletics’ World Plan.