Following the success of the Reciprocating Kindness campaign during the COVID lockdowns, we introduce our new campaign!

Cambridgeshire Sporting Success

The aim

To assist Cambridge based athletes to fulfil sporting ambitions whist providing motivation to increase the physical and mental wellbeing of Cambridgeshire by increasing activity levels.

The background

Cambridge has so much to be proud of, including; world leading research, healthcare, technology and businesses within the City. In addition, there are also incredible sporting achievements that deserve recognition.

Over the past 10 years we have been fortunate to support some amazing athletes from Paralympic and Commonwealth Games medalists to World Record Holders, World Champions and Olympians. Our aim is to highlight accomplishments like these and make the public aware of the remarkable performances coming from within our City.

As is well known, physical activity is essential for wellbeing, with benefits to both physical and mental health. We hope that highlighting local success stories can be a source of inspiration to everyone, regardless of age and fitness.

For the athletes themselves, our aim is to provide a platform to highlight their individual achievements. However, a team is always stronger than the individual so the community of support we aspire to create will assist these athletes to push their ambitions further whether this be through funding or access to provisions etc.

The initial approach

At the end of each season we will highlight three sporting achievements from Cambridgeshire based athletes. To kick off the campaign we are offering a free clinic appointment for each of the winners. As the Cambridge Sporting Success platform grows we are looking to increase the support for these local athletes.

Summer 2022 Winners

Name: George Schwiening

Sporting Achievement: On the 30th July, George competed for Team England in the Commonwealth Games 2022 Marathon. She was the only female to be selected for Team England in the event which is a fantastic achievement.

Name: Victoria Coe

Sporting Achievement: On Sunday 24th July, Victoria became the Triathlon England Sprint National Champion. To make this even more impressive, this was just 8 months after giving birth! Subsequently, on the 14th August, she has also won her first standard distance Triathlon!

Name: Anna Wilson

Sporting Achievement: On the 6th August, Anna was part of the England team that won the European Touch Rugby Championships. She was also nominated as player’s player of the tournament!

Spring 2022 Winners

Name: Stephen Hider

Sporting Achievement: Starting on the 28th March, Stephen ran 25 miles a day for 35 consecutive days around Cambridge (the equivalent from Lands End to John O’Groats, 874 miles) raising over £5000 for the British Heart Foundation. He has now decided to continue the fundraising and is aiming to run 4156 miles (the distance to Qatar, where the football World Cup is being held) before the World Cup Final on the 16th December!

Name: Louise Shanahan

Sporting Achievement: On Sunday 15th May, Louise ran a phenomenal 800m in 1.59.42. She smashed her PB and broke the 2 minute barrier whilst also setting a National Record in the process. This followed assisting the Cambridge University Athletics Club to retain their Varsity trophy versus Oxford in their outdoor athletics Varsity fixture the weekend before and she has since competed in the Diamond League in Birmingham. After competing in the Tokyo Olympics last summer, she is quickly becoming a Cambridge sporting legend whilst here studying her PhD!

Name: Joe Hinson

Sporting Achievement: On the 24th April, Joe won Skateboard GB UK Championships. As someone that lives and breathes skateboarding and hones his skills around the parks in Cambridge, it is brilliant to see him succeeding on the British stage.

The long term ambitions

The spring and summer winners are only the beginning of this project and we are passionate about the benefits to both the athletes and the wider community. If you would like to assist in making this a success, we would love to hear from you.

The long term ambitions are to provide meaningful support for these athletes from within Cambridgeshire, including funding and sponsorship, to access and provisions.

If you are a business and would like to support local athletes achieve their ambitions, please reach out.

inspire@fitagainsportstherapy.com

Get in touch to nominate a sporting achievement from a local athlete this autumn (Sept-November). The next three winners will be announced at the end of November!