How our athletes will all be winners after Paris Games
THERE have been moments over the past few days where the rain stopped, the clouds rolled back and the sun shone through – teasing us with the promise of the summer to come. As CEO of Allwyn, the first new operator of The National Lottery for 30 years, I can reflect on a winter full of hard work as we began to transform The National Lottery for the future: more entertainment, more players and more money for National Lotteryfunded projects.
Now two months into Allwyn’s custodianship of this much-loved national institution, we’re also looking forward to a summer of sporting promise.
As I write this, the UK has the real prospect of being represented by England, Scotland and Wales at Euro 2024 – historic in itself before the first ball is even kicked in Germany.
But even more exciting for me on a personal and professional level is the prospect of the Paris 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Games starting four months tomorrow.
Like many of us, I recall the joy and optimism of London 2012 unleashed by the phenomenal exploits of Team GB and ParalympicsGB.
With the “greatest show on earth” staged across the Channel, I’m anticipating the chance to celebrate something we’ve got remarkably good at: winning lots of Olympic and Paralympic medals.
BUT let’s remember that has not always been the case. I worked with Radio 5 Live on the Atlanta Olympics in 1996 when the (ever dependable) combination of Redgrave and Pinsent were our only gold medal winners.
That disappointment was the catalyst for National Lottery funding to support elite British sport. In the 28 years since, National Lottery-funded athletes have bought back more than 1,000 Olympic and Paralympic medals. This staggering achievement is testament to the many across British sport who have helped build a highperformance system that is the envy of the world, as well as the commitment of our talented young sportsmen and women. It’s also testament to you. As operator of The National Lottery we are immensely proud of the role the public plays in supporting our athletes every time they buy a National Lottery ticket. That small act is the catalyst to unleashing the hopes and dreams of more than 1,000 athletes.
That funding provides them with facilities, coaching and the ability to train full-time so that one day they might win big on the world’s sporting stages.
Yet what excites me as much as the medals is the power these remarkable athletes have to inspire others. Their success delivers pride in communities across the nation.
We have a generation of
Olympians and Paralympians who combine remarkable sporting ability with a social conscience. That’s why today, Allwyn alongside our partners UK Sport, Team GB and ParalympicGB, are excited to announce the “ChangeMaker” initiative.
The programme is designed to help Olympians and Paralympians give back to the communities that supported them following their return from Paris. In short, in the weeks that follow the Olympic and Paralympic Games we will provide the necessary assistance to match athletes with social impact projects.
They could be anything from grassroots sport, to championing social inclusion to environmental programmes – whatever their passion, we want to help enable it. The initiative will matchmake athletes to causes they care about and provide them with support to ensure their voice can make a difference. At Allwyn it’s hugely
important we deliver even more value to society, in addition to the £30million we raise for good causes each week.
THAT’S why this campaign is being funded from an additional annual £1million Social Value Fund Allwyn has created, designed to amplify the overall impact The National Lottery on high streets and communities. The ChangeMaker initiative is the first programme launched by the Fund. And there will be further new initiatives rolled out this summer.
The National Lottery has had – and continues to have – a transformative impact on UK society. Not just in elite sport, but across grassroots sport, arts, heritage and through thousands of brilliant community programmes. Our belief is there are new and innovative ways we can add even more value.
Establishing our Social Value Fund, and the ChangeMakers programme, is proof.
So, while the rain may return this week, let’s look forward to a summer of promise as a new generation of athletes flies the flag in France and then returns (hopefully with lots of medals!) to use their inspiration to make a difference in communities across the UK.
‘Initiative will provide athletes with social impact projects’