Summerhill win fitness award
SUMMERHILL COLLEGE were the winners of Ireland’s Most Improved Boys School at the Irish Life Health Schools Fitness Challenge. The presentation took place in Croke Park recently with Irish Olympian Thomas Barr and boxer Mary-Kate Slattery.
The programme revealed that participation in the fitness challenge drops by over 80% after thirdyear and the fitness levels among girls decreases dramatically from first to sixth year.
The Irish Life Health Schools’ Fitness Challenge demonstrates that a six-week fitness programme improves children’s fitness levels by an average of 10%.
Prof. Niall Moyna, who oversees the programme, in the Centre for Preventive Medicine at Dublin City University said: “The past seven years of data have enabled us to analyse the trends and of biggest concern is the tremendously large participation drop off after third year.”
The 2018 data shows that nearly nine-thousand 13-year-olds participated in the Schools’ Fitness Challenge compared to a meagre thirteen-hundred 17-year olds.
Irish Olympian and Irish Life Health Ambassador Thomas Barr said:“The Irish Life Health School’s Fitness Challenge is something all schools across the country should be taking part in. The benefits children can gain from just a six-week programme are astonishing. I’ve always been a big advocate for encouraging children to partake in regular fitness as I know first-hand the benefits it has on my own physical and mental health.
“There is nothing that clears my head better than a walk or fitness session,” he added.
The schools which improved their average fitness levels the most were announced recently at an award ceremony at Croke Park, attended by Irish Life Health ambassadors including Barr, Slattery, Prof. Moyna and Dr. Sarah Kelly.